Scotland and Northumberland - September 2023

In September, I was in England and I made a little trip north to Scotland to pay a visit to Glasgow and Edinburgh.  I had previously visited or at least driven through both cities but I had never stopped for too long and I had never really seen the sights.

It is about a 4 hour drive north to Glasgow from Derbyshire and I arrived in Glasgow mid afternoon.  One of the main things I wanted to see were the Charles Rennie Mackintosh places.  The House, the Willow Tea Rooms, sadly the School of Art was being restored after the recent fire.

Mackintosh House at the Hunterian

The first stop was the Mackintosh House at the Hunterian Museum.   The house is not the actual house, that got in the way of some other development, so it was demolished in the 60's.  The house was recreated on a nearby site and the rooms furnished just as they were in the original house.  The recreated house is a part of the Hunterian Art Gallery which is nearby Glasgow University.

Interior of the Mackintosh House

Each room is decorated as it was in the original house and of course every little detail from the fireplace to the light fixtures to the tables and chairs and bookcases were all designed to fit together.  

A most beautiful fireplace

I particularly liked the fireplaces.  They all seemed quite wonderful.

Glasgow University

The nearby University is a nice collection of old buildings.  What was particularly interesting were the Memorial Gates.  Installed in 1952 to commemorate 500 years of the University they have the names of many of the prestigious figures that were associated with the University as students or teachers - Adam Smith, Lord Kelvin, Joseph Lister, James Watt, etc.

Glasgow University Memorial Gates

I had a nice hotel for the night (the 15 Glasgow) in one of the old impressive terraced houses, a couple of doors down from where Joseph Lister lived.   A nice meal in the evening at a restaurant (the Five March) that was trying hard to be cool.  It offered a lot of little dishes, all really good but none of which filled me up.

The National Piping Center, Glasgow

The next day I walked down the infamous Sauchiehall Street to the National Piping Center.  Not being a fan of the Scottish bagpipes, I wasn't expecting much.  However it proved to be quite interesting and, surprisingly, there was none of that annoying bagpipe music playing.

The Willow Tea Rooms

Back on Saucihall Street, I went into the Willow Tea Rooms.  This is another Charles Rennie Mackintosh gem and it is still operating as a tea room and restaurant today.  I had tea and scones for a mid morning snack.  

Interior of the Willow Tea Rooms

The decoration was simply spectacular.  What an eye he and his wife had for architecture, interiors and furnishings.

The Tenement Museum

The next stop in Glasgow was the Tenement Museum.  This is an old tenement flat that has been preserved exactly as it was in the early part of the 20th century.  It was another of those places where an elderly person lived and didn't update anything.  It was a time capsule from an earlier time that was fortunately bought by someone who knew how rare and important such things are.

Living Room in Tenement Museum

The tenement was likely a fine middle class home in its day.  Many modern conveniences for its time.  Compared to days modern convenience, life was still quite hard in that time.

Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum

As I was leaving Glasgow I drove past the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum.  This looked such an impressive building that I had to stop and take a look.  It is a real gem.  A very large museum and gallery and it is free entry to anyone (the way such things should be).

Many wonderful things in the Museum

I wandered around the museum and art gallery and saw many wonderful things - a spitfire, stuffed animals, an exhibit of the "Glasgow Boys" paintings and even more Mackintosh art.  I hadn't heard of the Glasgow Boys but they were quite the community of local artists in their day (the start of the 20th century).  I particularly liked James Guthrie and Ernest Hornel's work.

The Main Hall and the Organ, Kelvingrove

I finished the tour by listening to an Organ recital.  The Museum has an impressive main hall with a wonderful organ at one end and every now and then they give lunchtime organ recitals.

I left Glasgow and drove over to Edinburgh which is only 1 hour away.  I had a hotel booked in the New Town area, The Native on Queen Street.  Once I figured out how to get the car in the underground parking for the hotel, not an easy job, I left it there for the rest of my stay.

 

Salsify, beetroot, swede, sea rocket, nettle mascarpone, seed granola

I had a reservation for dinner that evening at The Wedgewood restaurant, an early reservation,  It was a restaurant where they specialized in locally sourced food, particularly locally foraged food.  I had the roast salsify, East Lothian beetroot, fondant swede, sea rocket, nettle mascarpone, and seed granola.  Again it wasn't my best meal and again I left feeling hungry.

Adam Smith Statue

The walk back from the restaurant took me up the Royal Mile and down to Princes Street.  There were many interesting things to see along the way - the Adam Smith statue, the Scott Monument, the Livingstone Statue.  It is a remarkable city but there were far more tourists around than I expected to see.

The Castle from below

The next morning, I walked over to the Castle area and tried to get in.  I was informed it was only accessible with pre-purchased tickets and that normally I would be able to buy tickets on the internet, however, the castle's website was down that morning.  

Plan B was to catch the hop on hop off bus tour which I did and I did the entire loop around the city.  Fortunately the Hop On/Off bus driver's access to Castle tickets was not down so I got one from him and got off when the bus reached the castle.

Entry to the Castle

The castle was very busy.  So many tourists.  They were dismantling the stands for the Edinburgh Tattoo at the entrance to the castle.  A major piece of construction to create a custom set of stands for viewing the tattoo. 

Inside the Castle

It was all quite nice.  There is a lot of history there.  Unfortunately as I write this a few weeks later I cannot remember many of the details.  I do remember the memorial to the war dead, I do remember a nice little chapel with beautiful stained glass, and a major hall lined with swords and shields and pikes, etc.  

As I was getting ready to leave the complex there was a large crowd gathering.  Upon asking I found out that everyone was all waiting for the 1 o'clock gun.  With 2 minutes to go I waited also.  It was a terrific bang and a slight puff of smoke and it was all over.  Every day at 1 o'clock.

After the castle I walked down to the Royal Mile again and picked up the Hop on Hop off bus.  This took me all the way to the Palace of Holyrood House.  Incidentally the rood of the name Holyrood means cross, hence Holyrood is Holy Cross.

The Palace of Holyrood House

I had a quick bite of lunch in the cafeteria at Holyrood and then went inside to tour the palace.  Holyrood is another of those historic homes that seem to be all over the UK.  I enjoy walking through one fine room after another, one more dining hall, another library, bedrooms with beautiful tapestries and four-poster beds.  However a few weeks later I am not sure I can distinguish one or another of those rooms from the rooms in Chatsworth House or Haddon Hall.  Short term memory and lack of photographs take their toll.

Holyrood Abbey

What I do remember however was the abbey adjacent to the palace.  This 12th century abbey has suffered some damage during its life, most notably by invading English armies in the 16th century and by mobs during the Scottish Reformation.  The roof fell in during the 18th century leaving it in its present state.  

The Gardens at Holyrood

I then walked through the gardens at the back of the palace where there is a fine view of Arthur's Seat.  Leaving the palace I got on the bus again to take me back towards the town.  

The new Scottish Parliament Building

On the way I passed the new Scottish Parliament buildings.  An interesting complex of buildings that would probably be worth a visit someday but by that time I was done.

St Cuthbert's Church

The Ross Fountain

Bum, the San Diego Dog

The Scott Monument

After a brief rest at the hotel I went on another walkabout.  The magnificent Caledonian Hotel, once the hotel for the Caledonian Railway Station;  St Cuthbert's Church, Bum the dog from San Diego, the Ross Fountain,  the Scott Monument, the Livingstone Statue.  

The Bar in the Dome

In the evening a fine meal at a French Bistro and then a drink in the bar at the Dome.  I splurged on a 20 year old whisky.  Alas not that enjoyable.  Perhaps my whisky days are over?

The Tiffany Window in St Cuthbert's Church

The next morning I checked out of the hotel and did another small walkabout visiting St Cuthbert's church once more where there is a window by Louis Comfort Tiffany as well as many other fine stained glass windows.

The Forth Railway Bridge

Then I left Edinburgh heading north to look at the Forth Rail Bridge.  It was always one of my favorite bridges.  I used to travel north to Aberdeen on the train when I was working up that way and cross that bridge.  I also have fond memories from the film "The 39 Steps".

Chirdle Hall Hotel

Heading south I made for Berwick on Tweed.  When I got near I searched for a hotel and found a wonderful old house out in the country, The Chirnside Hall Hotel.  It was a beautiful old hall that perhaps had half a dozen rooms and also provided meals.  It was a nice way to end the trip with a cocktail by the fireside in the living room followed by a really fine meal.  

Eyemouth

The next morning after the full English breakfast set off south again stopping first in the little fishing village of Eyemouth.  

Memorial sculpture for the 1881 Disaster

Eyemouth was the site of a tragedy back in 1881 when a storm caused the loss of 20 boats and 129 men from the Eyemouth fishing fleet.  There is a sculpture of the wives and children of the fishermen crying out from the shoreline to their men out at sea being pounded by the gale but unable to make land.

Berwick on Tweed Viaduct

Next stop was Berwick on Tweed.  Another town that I had been enamored with after my train journeys north to Aberdeen.  The railway viaduct over the Tweed as you enter the town is most impressive.  I walked around the town on what was a Saturday morning.  Shops were opening and they were getting ready for the market down the main street.  

Anne Redpath - self portrait

Berwick is a walled city and after visiting the town we walked along the wall.  There was an art gallery, the Granary Gallery, I believe.  It had a nice exhibit of paintings by Anne Redpath, a Scottish painter from the first half of the 20th century.

Lindisfarne Castle

Driving further south I stopped by Lindisfarne, or Holy Island.  This tidal island has a drivable causeway connecting it to the mainland.  If the tide is out, as it was when we arrived, you can drive out enjoy the island then return before the tide comes in again and cuts off the island. 

Walking across the mud flats

The island has become quite popular with tourists and I was amazed at the large number of visitors.  Some were making a pilgrimage and were walking across the mud flats to the island.  There is an Abbey there and a Castle too.  The little village has a couple of pubs and tourist shops.  

The Abbey at Lindisfarne

I visited the abbey and the adjacent small church and then wandered around the village a bit before stopping in a cafe for coffee and cake.  It was then home to Derbyshire before the tide came in.

Ireland, September 2023

My friend John C. is on a mission to visit all the populated islands in the British Isles (that includes Ireland, the Channel Islands, the Scilly Isles, etc).  I have already made a few trips with him to Scotland, the Channel Islands, and the Blackwater Estuary in England.  This trip to Ireland was going to be his last island.  He has visited some 220 islands over the past 2 or 3 years.

We flew from Manchester to Shannon on a ridiculously cheap Ryanair flight.  The car parking for 2 days was 70 pounds and was way more expensive than the flight.  As we flew into Shannon I was impressed by the patchwork quilt of small fields in the Irish countryside - so green.   At Shannon airport we rented a car and set off for our destination which was Foynes Island in the Shannon Estuary.

Foynes Island from the mainland

Foynes Island was a private island and John had contacted the owners about our visit and they had arranged to meet us at the dock in the town of Foynes and to take us over to the island.  We drove through Limerick on the way - quite the tourist town.

We were at the dock right on time and shortly afterwards the owner of the island, Alison O'Brien, came over in a small motorboat to pick us up.  Since it was a damp day, she suggested we out on wellington boots.  She had a collection of them in a small shed by the boat dock.

John had been getting quite unsteady on his feet in recent months and he struggled getting down into the boat.  With lots of support and helping hands he made it on board.  We had a 3 or 4 minute crossing to the island and on the other side we were greeted by Alison's husband Stephen.  We helped John off the boat and walked up the trail to the house.  

The O'Brien Residence on Foynes Island

The house was a beautiful old house that might have been late 19th century or early 20th century.  It was in need of a little bit of care and attention - the paint was flaking and the entire house needed some decorating.  Still it was a fine looking house.

Stephen and Alison were very welcoming guests who seemed to be delighted that we would want to visit their island.  Unbeknownst to us they had driven that day from the other side of Ireland and their Dublin house all the way to meet us.  

Alison and John by the fire

They lit a fire in the living room and we sat around talking, mainly about John's adventures visiting various islands.  Stephen brought out the Bushmills' Black Bush and we sipped a little Irish Whiskey too.  Stephen told us about one of his ancestors, a Conor O'Brien, who was indeed a most interesting character.  Born in 1880, he was educated at Oxford and Dublin, and trained as an architect.  He was a climber and climbed with George Mallory.  He was involved in gun running for the Irish Volunteers (Republicans).  Then in the 1920's he was the first to sail around the world in a small boat by the three capes route (Good Hope, Horn and Leeuwin).  What an interesting life.

Lunch time

Alison had prepared food for us and we all sat down around the table for a delightful lunch (accompanied by the Bushmills).  

Me, Alison, John and Stephen

After a wonderful visit we were ferried back to the mainland.  Foynes is not the most picturesque island, and it is marred a little by the presence of a nearby Aluminium smelter on the mainland.  Large boats were being offloaded just across the water from the island.

Seaplane Museum

In the town of Foynes, we stopped at the Foynes Seaplane Museum.  For a short period in the 1940's Foynes was the eastern terminus of the transatlantic seaplane route - Newfoundland to Ireland.  The Pan Am Clipper aircraft made the crossing from Newfoundland to Foynes, the shortest distance between America and Europe.  It was a long journey almost 20 hours and it must have been cold.  They have a flying boat in the museum and you can walk through it to get an idea of how primitive flying in such aircraft might have been.  Spacious for sure, but, I would imagine, not that comfortable.

Seaplane Cockpit

All one class, first class

The bar in Foynes allegedly created the Irish Coffee for those weary travelers arriving at end or beginning of a long flight across the Atlantic.  When the flying boat service was stopped during WWII, the bartender moved to Shannon, and then to San Francisco, where today they claim to be the originators of the Irish Coffee at the Buena Vista Cafe.

We drove on from Foynes to our destination for the night in Killorglin in County Kerry.  Part of this route was the Wild Atlantic Way and the Ring of Kerry.  Being a bit grey and damp, it wasn't the best of weather for appreciating the beautiful countryside.

The perfect pint of Guinness

In the hotel, the Bianconi, we had a couple of pints of Guinness and a fine meal.  The Guinness truly does taste so much better over there and they take their time to pour it correctly - pouting 2/3 of a pint and letting it settle before topping off with a perfect creamy head.

I remember the old Toucan ads for Guinness

The next morning I had an early morning walk around Killorglin.  There were certainly a lot of pubs in the town and it looked like all of them served Guinness.  

Memorial to the fist East Uprising Fatalities

The Pier the misjudged at Ballykissane

Killorglin was famous, or infamous, for being the location of the first fatalities in the 1916 Easter Uprising.  Not quite the heroic event you might expect however.  Four Irish Volunteers were driving on a quest to take over a wireless station and communicate with Roger Casement and a German arms ship.  The driver misjudged the end of the pier at Ballykissane and the car plunged into the River Laune.  Three volunteers drowned, the driver survived.

We had an evening flight from Shannon back to Manchester so we had the rest of the day to take in the countryside.  Alas, it was again a little grey and rainy.  We drove around the Ring of Kerry which, of course, was quite beautiful, even on a rainy day.  We passed through Killarney, which was a little too touristy for my liking.  Lots of big hotels and lots of Jaunting Cars trotting along the roads.

Ladies' View, Ring of Kerry

We stopped for the obligatory photo at the Ladies' View overlooking Lake Killarney.  We continued along the northern edge of Kenmare Bay to Sneem and on to Waterville where there was a Charlie Chaplin statue (it was his favorite vacation spot).  Then it was around the coastline and over to Valentia Island and then the ferry across from Knightstown to the mainland.  

It was a real shame that the weather did not cooperate but, regardless, you couldn't fail to be impressed by the beauty of the countryside.  We drove back in the rain to Shannon for our evening flight back to Manchester.  Thank you Ryanair.