Scotland Chronicles – Day 5 – August 24 – Minicoach Tour to St. Andrews

Knowing that it would be easier if we had a few days of planned activities I organized a series of tours over three consecutive days. This way a tour guide could be our caretaker and we could relax and spread out in a comfy van. It worked. One of the best choices we made.

Richard of Rabbies Tours http://www.rabbies.com/ arrived in a full highland outfit complete with kilt to escort us to St. Andrews. He started by giving us the history of Scotland, in all its bloody details, including Mary Queen of Scots and the challenges of her execution. Turns out our guide on day two, Douglas, gave us the same exact stories with all the same gross details. At least these Scots get their stories straight! Even Stephen was satisfied with their accuracy. In between tidbits of Scottish history Richard would turn up the car radio which he had tuned to Scottish music. My dad put a quick end to that feature. It is Klesmer or nothing.

The beautiful sights started at Crail Harbour http://www.rabbies.com/scotland_highlands_islands_tours/scottish_highlands_islands_tours_scotland.asp?cnt=5 a quaint little fishing village. One interesting, gory bit of detail is that sometimes fisherman would get swept out to sea. The only way to identify them was the pattern of their jumper (sweater) which was unique to each village. “Say, Bill’s late for dinner, any reports of argyle washing up on shore?”

My mother was again in her safari photography mode so Richard took on the challenge and guided the minicoach through all kinds of forbidden streets. It was a blast. One thing that Richard did start to realize pretty quickly was that once we were off the coach it was a challenge to get us back on board. Like wrangling cats. Someone always had to use a restroom (20 p. to pee was soon our motto) and we loved to shop. At some points it was just my mom who dashed off the bus, jumped over walls, climbed rocks and ran through yards all in the name of getting a good shot.

St. Andrews was spectacular too. We finally made it to the sights after finding a restaurant that met our various dietary preferences. Next Richard took us to Falkland Palace. Having been rudely awakened from my mid-afternoon nap I was pretty grumpy and opted to shop instead. Luckily my mom and grammie were game, so we pumped the economy a bit. Stephen and Matthew returned to the van very sweaty and let us all know that they had just played a game of garden tennis. What had I missed? I’m still suspicious.

Scotland Chronicles – Day 4 – August 23 – Dean and Modern Art Galleries

While my dad was out perusing the countryside on his bike, having survived a fall on the cobblestones the previous night trying to ride back to the B&B from the bike shop, in the dark, we took to the galleries. My sister and brother arrived from DC today so our brood was slowly beginning to fill out. Predicting jetlag for the sibs we determined that a quite day would be best.

The National Galleries of Scotland offer free entrance with an additional fee for special exhibitions. This means that anyone can enjoy the artwork and the facilities, regardless of income or willingness to pay to view art. Being cheap I pretty much refuse to pay for extra exhibitions unless I really love the artist. (Our final few days in the UK we went to the Tate Modern to view the Frida Kahlo exhibition and it was worth the price!)

We started at the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art which is situated in a residential neighborhood in an old school administration building. Last time we were in Scotland Stephen and I visited during a snow shower and it was beautiful. Behind the gallery building is a secret walkway along the water that takes you into “downtown” Edinburgh. It soon became the favorite passage for our Aunt and Uncle who walked throughout the city during their visit.

Directly across the street is the Dean Gallery, another school administration building reclaimed for a new use. This one has a wonderful café, gift shop (note, I may be cheap but when it comes to food and commerce I go all out – with Stephen’s cash. Is it bad for an arts administration professional to say that paying for the experience of viewing art is not enough, I need to get something tangible for my investment.)

Out front is a landscape installation which takes up the entire green and is somewhat reminiscent of an Andy Goldsworthy but with a golf course kind of feel. We walked all along the installation’s banks and waterways. The area also features a community garden which was in full bloom. Sibs Marlene and Matthew took a wee nap downstairs and we got the picture – time to head back to the B&B.

Today is also when the weather took a slight turn for the worst. Up until today the temperatures could pass for late summer, but the skies opened and down came the rain and with it some much colder weather. For the next several days it certainly felt like winter had started. Escaping from the rain we took cabs back and ordered Indian Take-Away. So yummy. Then we all napped in what was quickly becoming “our B&B”.

That evening we went out to dinner with the Duncans and we had a grand time getting to know each other and our various food habits. Some are Kosher, others are vegi, a few don’t eat dairy, others want hot water with lemon but not tea. We determined it would probably be easier to carry around a laminated instruction card and hand it to the waitperson as soon as we arrive.

Scotland Chronicles – Day 3 – August 22 – Bass Rock and John Muir’s Birthplace

Today we decided to take a trip north along the coast. First Stephen had to drop off his kilt for re-sizing since it was a wee bit snug around his belly so I started the trip with the my in-laws while Stephen picked up the oldies. We drove threw Perth, past the Queen’s retired yacht the Britannia and along winding roads to the Scottish Seabird Sanctuary. It was worth the trip. Although we were on land and the giant, white Bass Rock (covered with bird poo and white birds) was out at sea there were viewing cameras that we controlled remotely.

Our next step was John Muir’s birthplace in East Lothian which had just been turned into a museum. Worth the visit. It chronicled his life with interesting information about his preservation beliefs and remarkable treks.

On the way to East Lothian we drove past beautiful fields with bails of hay alongside the sea. My mom was on a photography safari and jumped out of the car at every stop to photograph the landscape. The Duncans found our dueling cameras amusing.

On the way back Stephen took my dad and the grands to pick up the bike that my father would be riding the next day on his biketrip with his friend Jerry. The good news for the rest of us was that we would be able to have a leisurely paced day while my dad was wheeling around the countryside.