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| The Forester's Cottage on the Blair Estate |
We've just returned from two weeks in southern Scotland, escaping the warmer summer of England's south-east.
For some years we've belonged to an organisation called Trusted Housesitters - for an annual fee you can advertise for somebody to stay in your home and care for your pets, or you can search opportunities to be the sitter. No money changes hands; it's pretty much based on trust although you do need to have a police records check as a minimum, and to register proof of identification with the organisation. Most hosts like to interview their prospective housesitters via Skype, and often they will arrange for you to meet them prior to the assignment starting, or to have you stay the first night before they head off on their holiday.
It's an ideal way to live like a local in various locations across the world, and it makes a holiday very affordable as you're not paying for accommodation. Plus, there's the bonus of enjoying somebody else's furry critters.
We decided to break the northwards driving journey with an overnight stay in Harrogate, one of North Yorkshire's most salubrious and elegant towns. I hadn't visited this lovely Yorkshire city since 1986, and Kevin had never been there.
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| The Pump House Museum |
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| Exit of the Pump House Museum |
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| Yours truly in The Sun Pavilion in Harrogate's Valley Gardens |
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| Art deco building entry in the centre of Harrogate |
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| Only in The North! |
I had fond memories of visiting Harrogate in 1986 with my Mum. She and I had been in Norway with my Dad for about a month, and while Dad stayed on for a bit longer, Mum and I travelled to the UK and spent a further couple of weeks together.
We were both Agatha Christie fans and so Harrogate held special interest for us - this is where the author was hiding out when she 'disappeared' in 1926.
I have long had a fascination with that era, post-WW1 and pre-WW2. It was an incredible period for design, architecture and social progression - particularly for women. The hotel makes the most of its connection with Christie and that era, and they regularly hold 1920s/1930s murder mystery events. That's going on the bucket list!
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| The Old Swan, Agatha Christie's hideout when she 'disappeared' in 1926 |
And so onwards to south-western Scotland, after a brief lunch stop in the nearby town of Knaresborough, where we admired the railway viaduct that towers impressively over the River Nidd.
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| The railway viaduct above the River Nidd, Knaresborough |
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| Riverside thatched cottage |
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| Knaresborough has some lovely architecture and a strong Viking connection - note the sign 'Kirkgate' which I can tell you in Norwegian means Church Street |
We arrived at our Ayrshire housesitting venue in the early evening, in time for our hosts (due to depart the following morning) to show us around the property and then serve us a wonderful meal, much of which was produced in their garden.
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| The beautiful Blair Estate, in which our housesitting venue was located |
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| Blair House - a 5-minute stroll from the cottage |
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| Our charge for two weeks - cutie pie Tonks |
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| One of several hauls of wild raspberries from our back garden and the Blair Estate |
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| Our view through the gothic windows of the lounge room |
Dalry is not exactly the hub of Scottish tourism, though it's very handy to Glasgow which is only about 30 minutes away by car or train. We made the most of this proximity for a number of reasons, including the fact that several good films were released while we were up there, and here in the UK you can't rely on movies running for more than a week or two - I wasn't going to risk the run having ended by the time we returned to Surrey.
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| Summer evening in Glasgow |
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| Glasgow is full of monuments to social justice. It's that kind of town |
I can't tell you how eager I was for the film England is Mine to be released. For several decades I have been wildly in love with the soul of Steven Patrick Morrissey, one of modern music's most polarising artists.
A lot of people really, REALLY hate Morrissey. He tends to speak his mind, and that mind is stridently uncompromising - particularly in relation to animal rights and artistic integrity. A vegetarian since his early teens and now a vegan, he's campaigned on behalf of PETA for decades, and every venue he plays must agree to only serve vegan food on the night(s) he is performing. If they won't agree to do that, he doesn't perform there.
Morrissey, both in collaboration with Johnny Marr during the years they formed The Smiths and as a solo artist, has written some of the most lyrically sorrowful, heart-wrenching and sonorously beautiful songs of the modern era. He's renowned for being able to express feelings of social awkwardness, that sense of being a bit different and feeling like you don't really fit in. My nephew Adam is under instructions to ensure two particular Smiths songs are played at my funeral.
England is Mine explored Morrissey's late teens and early twenties, going some way to explaining the man he became. He would probably hate the film, but I loved it. Jack Lowden did an impressive job of portraying Morrissey's difficult, awkward persona.
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| England Is Mine |
After a couple of days ruminating on the film I suddenly realised one of the reasons it resonated so strongly with me - it has a number of parallels with my favourite film of all time, Wings of Desire, directed by Wim Wenders (1987). Both films concern supernatural beings desirous of remaining in or returning to the mortal world, both use dialogue very sparingly, and both rely heavily on silences and beautiful music as narration.
It's been a long time since I've seen a film that I desperately want to view at least a second time, but now I'm back in Epsom I'll have to head into Kingston, Wimbleon or central London for that opportunity... it's a bit too outré for our local Odeon.
If you're planning to see it, you need to do so in the cinema - not on your TV screen at home.
We also took advantage of the strong Italian influence in the Glasgow region - the result of which means in the past two weeks we've had the most delicious Italian food of our lives outside of Italy, and the best coffee since leaving Australia three years ago.
I think Scotland's delicious water - crystal clear and freezing cold, straight from the tap - is partly responsible for the good coffee, but also it appears the Scots take this beverage seriously. We never got a coffee that was burnt (water too hot) or one that was missing that wonderful 'crema' on the top which indicates good quality coffee, correct temperature water, a machine that is regularly cleaned and a barista who has been properly trained. England should send all their baristas to Scotland immediately for training.
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| The restaurant so good we visited twice in a week! The Bath Street venue of the Fratelli Sarti chain of Italian restaurants |
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| This bread was AMAZING |
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| What to choose?! |
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| Superb coffee, even in this humble community art gallery café in the little town of West Kilbride |
Whenever we visit Scotland I find myself pondering what a fascinating place it is. On the one hand you have the superb Italian food and excellent coffee mentioned above. At the other end of the culinary spectrum you have 'chippies' on every corner, deep-fried Mars Bars, Irn Bru and the country appeared to plumb new depths on the cross-island ferry Kevin took from Androssan to the Isle of Arran - see below:
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| Oh, the horror of this abomination... |
There's a terrible health epidemic in Scotland, with the highest rates of obesity in the UK (second highest in the world, right after the USA), rapidly rising levels of diabetes, and the shortest life expectancy in the UK. And the smokers - everywhere... they line the streets in terrifying numbers! If only more of the population would embrace that wonderful Italian diet.
Despite Ayrshire not being the centre of the universe, we managed to find quite a number of attractions within a 60-90 minute drive of the cottage, including National Trust property Culzean Castle.
This lovely property, beautifully situated on the Firth of Clyde coast, was well worth the journey. Expansive grounds and wonderful views over the water are combined with an impressive stone exterior and a gracious 18th century interior. It's been used in film and TV shows and even features on the back of the Scottish five-pound note.
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| Magnificent Culzean Castle |
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| The Gate House next to Culzean Castle |
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| The skylight inside Culzean Castle |
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| Whoever does the floral arrangements at Culzean Castle could win prizes! Every room was decorated with the most beautiful natural arrangements |
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| The Camelia House |
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| Meadow wildflowers inside the walled garden at Culzean Castle |
We also tripped over to Dumfries House, not far from Ayr.
Wowsers. The interior of this house is very impressive, containing one of the world's most extensive collections of Chippendale furniture. It's all the more impressive given that just a few years ago the house was in peril of being lost to a private sale.
Thankfully the 7th Marquess of Bute, unable to maintain the property any longer, instead sold it to the nation for £45 million in 2007. This was made possible by the intervention of a consortium headed by Prince Charles, and the sale price included all the contents.
The house is now available for private functions and corporate events and you can even stay in the bedrooms - Dumfries House is not a museum.
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| Dumfries House, which isn't actually in Dumfries! |
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| This temple looks like the traditional stone version but it's actually made of wood |
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| The bridge at Dumfries House |
We alternated our activities from day to day - staying home with little Tonks if the weather was going to be wet, and heading out for adventures if it was likely to be less inclement. As regular readers and friends would know, the main reason for us choosing to spend our summer break in Scotland (as we did last year, in The Orkneys) is because you can pretty much rely on it being significantly cooler than London / Surrey.
I'm pleased to report that TMC (The Maree Curse) for once did not follow me, and we had a nice mix of sunny and grey days, with regular rain periods to allow contemplation, reading and watching trashy films on TV. It was also really nice to spend time in a garden for the first time in three years. Our hosts' veggie patch was quite extensive but not terribly well tended; by the time we left, weeds had been removed, broad beans re-tied so they weren't lying down on the ground, and the greenhouse given a good de-cluttering and re-organised.
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| Windblown trees on the Firth of Clyde coast, Ayrshire |
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| Portencross Castle, which dates from the 14th century - the site is believed to be the last mainland resting place for many former Scottish kings during the 9th and 11th centuries |
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| Newly mown fields in Ayrshire |
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| Rose Bay Willow Herb was in profusion all over southern Scotland |
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| The township of Largs |
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| Largs Harbour, looking towards the Isles of Great Cumbrae, Bute and Arran |
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| One of several references to a Viking past in Largs - The Battle of Largs in 1263 between the kingdoms of Norway and Scotland is an important part of this area's history |
Towards the end of our stay we decided to drive up to Loch Lomond and took one of those tourist boat trips that give you a brief introduction to the area. The temperature on the upper deck of our boat was 'bracing', with a stiff breeze forcing those who came unprepared (in summer clothing) to sit there shivering for the entire 90 minutes, despite the sunny conditions as you see in the photos below.
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| One of the great houses along the shores of Loch Lomond |
Not far away in Helensburgh is a National Trust property designed for publisher Walter Blackie by Charles Rennie Mackintosh and Margaret Macdonald Mackintosh in 1902, The Hill House. Being mad for the Arts & Crafts movement, of course we visited.
We saw this property in ideal conditions - a brilliantly sunny day which really showed off the house and grounds to their best advantage. It's located, as the name would indicate, on a hill and with lovely views over the Clyde.
Sadly the building has terrible structural problems which have effectively turned it into a money pit, and one of the guides told us the house is usually damp and freezing cold, even in summer - it only ever warms up on sunny days.
The cause is the type of concrete that was used to construct the exterior walls and chimney heads - it has proven to be inadequate to prevent water penetration. In recent years the National Trust has poured tens of thousands of pounds into remedies. Sadly they have been largely unsuccessful and there continues to be debate about whether to replace the original concrete with a material that looks identical and actually protects the building, or whether to preserve the 'integrity' of the building by continuing to patch it up.
*sigh*
I have suffered the shock and anger of the British in the past when I have suggested that preserving absolutely everything, everywhere, to the detriment of people actually being able to live comfortably, and in an environmentally responsible manner in the 21st century, is ridiculous. Mostly those discussions have been about old-ish residential houses with no particular historical significance. I have argued that refusing to allow people to install double-glazed windows and solar panels (etc) is tantamount to sacrificing the current population and the planet for the sake of a bit of nondescript architectural history, when there are tens of thousands of similar buildings across the country. I mean... WHY?!
The Hill House is, of course, of cultural significance but all the same - why throw good money after bad and never fix the problem? I am confident that the Mackintoshes, were they around today, would be in favour of using modern materials that will not compromise the aesthetic qualities of the house.
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| The Hill House in Helensburgh |
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| The elegant simplicity of Charles Rennie Mackintosh, at The Hill House |
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| The garden in front of the house - at The Hill House |
With our impending house move this trip to Scotland was just the thing we needed - no fixed schedule each day, plenty of fresh air and time to relax. We loved having a cat to fuss over once again, despite her daily offerings of decapitated and disembowelled tiny mice (up to three in a single day, in fact).
We can now face the upheaval of moving in a calmer frame of mind and look forward to our new life in Farnham.
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| A tunnel of green - Ayshire style (this road was just a few minutes' drive from the cottage) |
Until next time,
- Maree xo
