Back in Kirkcaldy

And so you see the lovely view from the Beveridge Park Hotel in Kirkcaldy.   How did we get so lucky?  

Marty has been staying here regularly, and as a result, the owner was happy to give us one of his best executive rooms.  What a joy to have such huge windows looking out over the Firth of Forth.  

When we arrived this morning, we walked out of the airport with snowflakes falling, but the sun decided to show its face later in the day.  That makes the view even lovelier.

Marty and I were sitting in the lobby waiting for our room to be ready, when Dave came popping in, looking like he had just headed from the artic wearing one of those furry "Floyd B. Turbo" hats on his head.  He was so excited to see us.  It's going to be fun times in Kirkcaldy....I can already tell. 

In case you forgot, Dave is the waiter who introduced us to the best home made porridge that we have ever tasted. He took a real liking to us back in January, and it is apparent that he is happy to see us back again. I'm anxious to hear if the morning music has changed, or if Karen Carpenter and Neil Sedaka are still on the a.m. soundtrack.  Oh yes....the excitements of travel.   I'll keep you posted as best I can.

What a difference a day makes

Well, here's the proof that we were, indeed, in close proximity to the Endless Caverns entrance, although I was a bit surprised to see this view from the bedroom window among awaking.  The photo doesn't do justice to the words featured on the hillside.  Marty and I certainly got quite a chuckle out of this view.

Snow never appeared in New Market,  and the day was absolutely fabulous for walking the Civil War Museum New Market Battlefield grounds.  The museum there is well presented, and Marty and I enjoyed walking through the building and reading the history from a southern perspective.

The battle took place on the homestead of the Bushong family, and the house and building structures are preserved in their original site.  We spent several hours walking the fields and exploring the grounds.  

Here Marty stands on the porch of one of the houses on the Bushong homestead.  

Just over the hill, down a very steep cliff, flows the Shenandoah River.

As you can see, we were quite fortunate to have such lovely weather to enjoy the spectacular views of this area.  What a difference a day can make!

A Time Warp, Perhaps?

This is a photograph taken from our car, at a rest stop just outside Roanoke, Virginia today.  We read the weather warnings before departing, but scoffed them off as a supermarket scare as it just didn't seem possible that it could snow right smack in the middle of the state of VA without more northern areas being affected.

About half an hour into our trip, the giant snowflakes began to fall.  And as we traveled north, the roads became hazardous.  Our destination was a B&B just outside of New Market, VA.  We thought we'd try something different on the way home, and visit the National Civil War Battlefield in New Market in the morning.

As our destination arrival time was becoming perilously close, we decided that we would order a to-go meal from our favorite restaurant in Harrisonburg.  Our thinking was that we would pick up the meal along with a bottle of wine and enjoy both at the B&B, safely tucked in out of the snow.
Our wine options were limited to a screw-on cap, since we don't tend to travel with a corkscrew in hand.  (I know that one of my blog followers will find that comment to be amusing.)

As soon as the order was complete the road conditions improved dramatically.  Within a mile, we suddenly noticed that there was no snow....anywhere.  The grass was green (or at least as green as it would look in the dark), the trees were bare....the road was dry.  It was as if we were in some sort of movie where the car just suddenly drove out of a winter scene like in a dream.

The car certainly stood out in the parking lot, covered with ice dripping onto the macadam.
We picked up the food, and started out on our way to the B&B, which we knew was in the middle of nowhere.  And, thank goodness the snow had not traveled up this far, as finding this place was enough of an adventure without bad weather to complicate things.

We are literally adjacent to the Endless Caverns Gate Entrance. Now before you get too excited, let me mention that the place is closed for the winter, so there'll be no cavern tours, not that I was remotely interested in one.

We were warmly greeted by the B&B owner upon our arrival, but I did find it amusing that the parking lot was completely empty, considering that there are about 8 rooms in this place, and when I inquired about room availability, the response was that the Andrew Jackson suite was available.
So, here we are, the only patrons in a 1790 refurbished farmhouse, next to the Endless Caverns, in the middle of nowhere.
Our room is certainly comfy, as you can see:

But, we decided to partake of our meal downstairs, next to a burning fire, rather than eat in the room.  The food was delicious and the wine was actually quite tasty.  Whoever said that you need a cork to enjoy a bottle of wine?  But then again, after today's travels, perhaps anything with alcohol would have tasted equally as wonderful.

The last time I peeked out of the window, there was still no sign of any snowflakes.

And, I swear this lady who adorns the mantle-piece was looking in a different direction when we left the room for dinner.

Curious, don't you think?  But, really, after today's adventures, I shouldn't find anything too surprising!

The ongoing excitement of Hotel Strasburg

If you recall from past blogs, Marty and I have stayed at the Hotel Strasburg on several occasions as part of our travel adventures to and from Becky and Jon's new abode in southern Virginia.
Tonight, we find ourselves once again relaxing in the confines of a building that dates back to the early 1900's.  The owner has managed to keep the hotel decorated in period style but with the obvious modern day amenities with the newest addition being  Wi-Fi.

On our last stay here, we had Buster in tow, but he is enjoying this President's Day weekend at the Country Pet Hideaway.  I'm certain that he is having a grand time, as the place was extremely busy when I dropped him off this morning.

I reserved the room here  through a 3rd party online vendor, as I have done twice in the past.  The online offerings are typically the simplest room available, and I always book a room with a queen bed.  The second time that I booked online, it was brought to my attention that the owner seems to be rather negligent when it comes to checking the online status of the regular rooms, and since those always book first, we were offered an upgraded suite with a huge room.

We showed up this evening, and I pulled out my room reservation, and the lady once again could not find my name in the book. She politely explained the same story that we had heard on a previous trip, and this time we find ourselves on the 3rd floor, in a relatively unique room with quite a bit of room.
In fact, the room holds a queen bed as well as a twin bed with plenty of room to spare.

Doesn't it figure! The one time we don't bring Buster along, and he could have had his own bed!  But, then again, we'd have to scale 3 flights of steps every time he had the whim to want to go outside.
And with Marty having just flown in from Scotland this afternoon, with his body clock still on Edinburgh time, you know who would be making that trip up and down the stairs.
Not that I couldn't use some stairmaster exercise, but I am looking forward to not waking up to a little white dog barking at 5:00 in the morning.

But something tells me that Marty's morning will be beginning around that time since he's been sleeping half an hour already.  Oh well.  At least he doesn't bark when he gets up!

Are you hungry?

Well, you could consider driving through Pal's and ordering any of the above pictured food items.

I couldn't believe my eyes when I spotted this on Lee Highway.  The locals must love the place, as it was really hopping around lunchtime today.

And, if you can't find what you really want here, Food City is just about a hot dog's length away.

Really, could you ask for anything more?  Except maybe some relish?

Robert Burns, Auld Lang Syne & the Largest Disco Ball in Fife

Here it is!  The exciting post that I promised you!  And we owe all of this excitement to Dave, our friendly hotel waiter!

While chatting with Dave the other day, he informed us that this hotel is "famous" for two things.

First, it has the second oldest revolving door in all of Scotland.

Really?  This sure seemed  rather silly to get excited about.  And, it doesn't appear to be as old as some of the same type of doors that I've seen in Pittsburgh.  But, who am I to question Dave on this one?

But that trivia pales in comparison to the fact that the ballroom in this hotel holds the largest Disco ball in all of Fife!

Dave was all too eager to share that tidbit with us, and apparently people come from all over in order to take advantage of that feature.  How could I pass on sharing that with you?

Ok, so I had to sneak outside to get the photo looking through the window.  It probably looks better up close, but the room was filled with people tonight and this really is the best that I could do.

But, as if that wasn't enough excitement for you, let me share an unusual event which Dave arranged for us to see.  Jan. 25 is traditionally Robert Burns day here in Scotland.  The celebration involves bagpipes, Scotsmen in kilts, and the reading of Burns' poem, To A Haggis.

Well, tonight isn't January 25, but a local group of Scotsmen (and women) were celebrating the special day right here in the hotel ballroom, and Dave invited us to come and witness the festivities.

A young lad, dressed in a kilt, played the bagpipes,

while being followed by a waitress carrying a tray with a Haggis

The stuff involves sheep intestines and oatmeal and that is about enough to convince me NOT to try it!
Then, true to form, the Haggis was set on the table, and an elderly gentlemen, dressed in a kilt, read the poem to the crowd, and then stabbed the Haggis while everyone applauded.

It was quite a ceremony, and we were very excited to have been welcome in the room to witness the event.

And so,  I leave you with the exiting bagpiper playing Auld Lang Syne, written by no other than Robert Burns himself.  Enjoy!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/jrcrazy/6732785973/in/photostream

Making the most of our last day in Scotland

Our day began with one last bowl of Dave's famous porridge, which we thoroughly enjoyed, as always. Dave surprised us by bringing out the bowls with a little trinket for each of us to remind us of our stay here. 

Mine is a little Scottish bagpiper on a chain, and Marty's is a bottle opener key ring with the Scottish flag. You just can't beat that for being made welcome.

Here at the plant where Marty is working, the engineers only work half days on Friday.  This made the perfect opportunity for Marty and me to make a drive out to Linlithgow to visit the palace where Mary, Queen of Scots was born. The GPS behaved wonderfully today and we made it to the town without incident. 

What makes this palace so amazing is the fact that it still stands after being built in the mid-1400's.  The roof is gone, and the plaster walls and tapestries are absent, but standing inside, one can easily imagine the grandeur of time past. 

 The entrance through the gate takes you to a central courtyard where a fountain stands from 1537, built by King James V, and we were told that it actually still works, only being used on rare occasions.

The fountain declares Scotland's independence, subject to no one but God, and the king's superiority.

These figures are original, with the mermaid representing eloquence and the drummer representing music.

The enormity of the rooms is amazing.  Here you can see Marty standing in the fireplace in the kitchen.

The weather was cold and slightly rainy, but that didn't stop us from climbing the tower to the very top to take in the views.  Absolutely breathtaking!

And, of course, Marty couldn't resist snapping a photo of the two of us at the top of the tower.

At this point we decided to take haven in a nearby restaurant for something to warm us up.  

At the Four Mary's tavern, we found ourselves warming up quickly, sitting near a cozy fire while enjoying a bowl of Lentil soup.  By the way, the place gets its name from the four ladies-in-waiting of Mary, Queen of Scots, all of whom were named Mary.

We both commented that this was the perfect way to end the trip.  The food was delicious, the atmosphere was cozy, and who cared about the cold frigid weather outside?

But before I close this out, let me just say that there might be one more adventure from the trip coming your way. I hope that it is as exciting as anticipated.  Don't worry....I won't be doing anything crazy!

Until next time.....

Queensferry: home of the Burry Man tradition

Why Queensferry? you may ask.  To meet the Burry Man of course.  Or at least to see a model of the man preserved behind glass.  Well, I actually wasn't aware of this interesting tradition until I spotted this guy in the museum in Queensferry. More about him later.

I decided to make the trip here because I was interesting in learning about the ferry that once  transported people from the southern end of the firth to the northern side.  Queen Margaret (future St. Margaret) who was married to Malcom III in Dunfermline, would make this journey frequently herself.  She was instrumental in introducing a ferry for pilgrims making the journey from Edinburgh to St. Andrews. This is how the town got its name, and the village across the firth is called North Queensferry.

There isn't a train station in Queensferry, so I needed to alight in Dalmeny and make the walk into town to visit the museum.  Of course, I did not have a map and was hard pressed to find one, so I decided that I would ask the attendant at the train station for directions to the museum.

You can imagine my surprise when I was the lone person departing the train in Dalmeny, and the station was all locked up.  Not a soul to be found, not even a ticket man.  I would have been out of luck had I not purchased the round trip ticket for the day.

My so-called "easy" adventure was already proving to be a bit of a challenge. I had copied some street directions down, but was completely disoriented upon arrival.  I walked down the ramp, spotting a woman behind a glass door in a locked building.  She was kind enough to answer the door and head me in the right direction.

She had told me that I couldn't miss High Street, and she was absolutely correct.  It was a lovely little cobblestone street, lined with those quaint houses that I was looking for the other day.  The funny thing is that the literature that I had read never mentioned the beauty of this little town.  I was delighted to have chosen this spot to visit.

The street runs along the Firth of Forth offering an amazing view between the houses.

The town is sandwiched between the Firth Railroad Bridge and the Firth of Forth Driving Bridge, and the museum is located in the council building on this street. Luckily, the woman had told me the location of the museum. Once inside the door, I was surprised to have to ring a bell for admittance.  A buzzer sounded and I was able to open the door and climb the stairs in this old building which led to a door that had a Museum sign above it.  I was curtly informed by a man in the room that there were only 2 rooms open for viewing, and that the 3rd room was closed as it was being refurbished.

Wouldn't it figure that the closed room housed the telescope for viewing the firth?  There wasn't much that I could do about that, and since this museum was free, I really couldn't complain, could I?

So, I began to read through the history of the town and the building of the railroad bridge over the firth, which actually began in 1883, was finished in 1890 and continues to be used today.  Pretty amazing, don't you think?

In my thirst for my information regarding this town, I began to ask the man behind the desks some questions.  I was curtly told that he was not familiar with the museum's contents and that he was filling in for someone.  Well, so much for that!

The museum is small, but has some very interesting displays regarding the town and its previous industry.  One item of particular interest was an explanation of the mining of shale that was done from 1862 to 1962, the  purpose of which was to extract oil.  The display went on to explain the active oil industry in this town and the hazards surrounding the work.  I think my mouth was hanging open at this point.

My first job with Gulf Research as a Chemical Engineering, involved this very premise.  Here I was, attempting to design an efficient process that could be used on a large scale, and the Scots had successfully proven that this could be done for 100 years!

On my way out of the museum, after descending the stairs, I spotted an empty conference room that offered a spectacular view so I sneaked in and took a couple of photos through the window.  So much for Mr. Crabby upstairs!

One of the items of interest in the museum was the mention of the Hawes Inn and its connection to Robert Louis Stevenson's novel, "Kidnapped."  He had apparently stayed at the inn when the idea of the book came to him.  I was so close, and the train wasn't scheduled for quite awhile, so how could I resist the opportunity of seeing this place first hand?

This time, it was a straight stretch, on a paved sidewalk that ran along the firth.  

The Hawes house continues its role as a hotel, just as it had been back in Stevenson's day.  It stands in the shadow of the Forth Railroad bridge, and is directly across the street from the ferry that would take people across the firth so many years ago.

As I headed back towards town, I couldn't help but admire the beauty of High Street.  

I'm fairly certain that a short cut exists from High Street up the hill to the Train station, but I had decided that I was not going to wary from the path.  By this time, the weather turned for the worse, and I found myself walking along the street, getting soaked from the rain that was falling.

I passed the old Tollbooth built in 1636

and Black Castle built in 1626.

By the time I climbed the hill and reached the station, the rain had changed over to snowflakes, which were much easier to deal with.  When  I reached the hotel almost an hour later, the sun was once again shining.

But that, I hear, is typical Scottish weather.  I was just happy that I managed to get back without incident and didn't get lost!  But, in my opinion, the town of Queensbury has a lot of history worth sharing, and someone should think about putting together a walking map highlighting some of these historical and fabulous looking buildings.

But wait!  You want to read the Burry Man story, right?  This is a pagan tradition whose origins are unknown.

Every year, on the second Friday of August, a man in the town collects burrs himself, and begins to cover himself entirely with them.  Once he is fully covered in his costume he leaves the center of town around 9:00 a.m. and parades around, stopping in each of the pubs where he is offered a drink of whiskey through a straw. He has a couple of attendants with him should he need assistance.  (I wonder if they get free drinks as well?)

The story never goes on to tell just why this event occurs.  And who came up with the free whiskey through a straw idea?  I'm thinking that he needs the hard stuff in order to deburr at the end of the day!

What do you think?

The Museum Trail

Were you worried when you didn't see a new post?  Or, were you relieved to not have to read another novel?

I'll make every attempt at keeping this post shorter, although it really is quite difficult when there are so many moments that I'd love to share with you.

As mentioned in my last post, I decided that it was time for me to diverge from the nature side of Scotland, and delve into the historical side by visiting museums instead of trudging through isolated countryside.  But don't for one minute presume that walking the streets of Edinburgh is safer than traipsing through a field.  One must always be aware of surroundings.  Luckily, there are fewer people in the city at this time of year, making it a bit easier to get around, and opening up the possibility of more photos of this lovely old town.

I headed down the Royal Mile towards some museums that I had not yet explored.  On the way, I passed the Mercat with the Unicorn standing stately on top.

I made my way to the People's Story, housed in the Canongate Tollbooth which was built in 1591.The staff was very friendly and I had the place to myself to explore.

The museum presented information on the everyday lives of the ordinary people of Edinburgh, from the 18th century through today.  It was set up so that the visitor could understand the conditions of the people and how they changed over time.  The museum pretty much immerses one into the lives of the people who worked  in the town giving a perspective that we often miss.  In other words, you walked in the shoes of various professions so that you could understand what life was like for them.

Directly across the street is the Museum of Edinburgh.  There wasn't quite as much information as I had expected to find in this museum.  I learned that Silver was a big industry in Edinburgh and several rooms had displays of silver from as early as the 16th century.

                                       

But, the most endearing part of this museum is the information surrounding the legend of Greyfriar's Bobby, the story of a Skye Terrier who was so attached to his owner, that he wouldn't leave his grave in Greyfriar's cemetery.  The year was 1858, and the locals were so touched at this wee dog's devotion, that they rallied together to feed him and made him a shelter so that he could stay close to his master's grave, which he did for 14 years.  He is buried outside the cemetery since animals cannot be in the church graveyard.

The museum has a replica of the statue that stands near the Greyfriar's church, as well as  Bobby's original collar and the bowl from which he ate at the local bar.  It is obvious that the local townspeople were quite taken by this dog, and there is even a copy of a photo that was made of him at the time. 

The next stop on the Royal Mile was the Children's Museum. Now this place was Fabulous!  From the minute I walked in the door, I couldn't help but be fascinated by the large collection of toys and memorabilia that were displayed. I can't imagine anyone not being delighted by this place.  I found myself laughing out loud at some of the comical items.

How can you resist the cuteness of this little elephant toy?

There was a large collection of tea sets, but this fairy tale set sure had me laughing:

I was kind of surprised to find a Chemistry game from old:

as well as this 1901 Construction set: Engineering for Boys.

There was a room filled with dolls:  from tiny to life size.  I laughed when I saw Rex Harrison, the Dr. Doolittle Doll:

and I'll admit that this was the first time that I ever saw a nun doll:

I could go on and on, but it would probably be better for you to check out my flickr photos to see some of the highlights of the toys that this museum featured or this post will never end.

By this time, the museums were near closing and my feet had just about enough of traipsing around the town, so I decided to head back to the train for the ride back to the hotel.

But on the way, I couldn't resist snapping this photo of a giraffe all decked out in Tartan Plaid.

You gotta love the shop owner's sense of humor!