| SCOTLAND VACATION 2004 May 18 - May 30, 2004 JOURNAL ENTRY 9 entry begun on May 24th, 2004 at 09:00 Kelso Time Sunday we were up around 07:30. Had a nice breakfast of toast, cereal, fruit, and tea, then went on the road. We drove first down to the coast to a place called Lindesfarne, which is an island off the coast of England reachable only by one road and then only when the tide is out. There is actually a tower halfway across, because the tide comes in so quickly that it catches some folks off guard who have not studied the tide tables before crossing (they are clearly noted on both sides). Lindesfarne is the home to a small village, a castle, and a priory. It is where the first Christians came to Britain, so it seemed like an interesting, unique place to come out and visit. While we got some great photos, overall the place was a disappointment. It had simply become far too commercialized for what should be a somewhat sacred place. The National Trust of England keeps the buildings in good shape, but charges unreasonable amounts of money to get into places and were absolutely fierce about their sales pitches to join the National Trust and/or buy their merchandise. The parking alone was £3, in a meter that did not dispense change, so we had to drive into the village, get change, and drive back to park. Then it was £5 to tour the castle, which was not awful for most castles we saw on our trip but was a bit high for this one. After paying 3 to park and walking all the way up to it, though, it's not like most people are going to not go in. After that, though, it was £3.50 to walk into the priory, a rather small structure you could see a good 60-70% of from the outside (and we got pictures of without paying). The museum even charged a few pounds to go in, rather than ask for donations (in fact, they asked for donations in addition to the fee). I understand the need to make money, but I just feel like these kinds of places are important for the public to be able to afford to see, with all of the historical and religious significance of them, and the equivalent of roughly $40 to see them seems a tad exorbitant. We were quite hungry leaving Lindesfarne, but wanted to get to some place that would leave a better taste in our mouths (so to speak). So we drove south down the coast to our next destination, Bamburgh Village, home to Bamburgh Castle as well as a very attractive beach on the North Sea. There were a few pubs and cafes but little parking, so we ultimately landed in the tea room at the castle itself. The tea room was not overpriced and its products were quite tasty. I had an order of Bamburgh Bangers (sausages with cole slaw and crisps), Ginger ordered a tuna mayonnaise sandwich on brown bread, and Mick had something called a cheese savory sandwich, which was much better tasting than my eyes told me it might be. I made what I hope to be the last time I make the same mistake of ordering a Diet Coke as my beverage; not even 10 oz of liquid with no ice and no refills for £1.10 (about two bucks). Ouch. After lunch Ginger and I toured the castle while Mick went to the car for a snooze. The Bamburgh Castle was far more interesting than Lindesfarne, and significantly larger (yet also only £5, probably because the National Trust of England hadn't gotten ahold of it yet (it was privately owned with people still living in it)). There was a lot of wonderful artwork around, in addition to great collections of armor and weaponry. At the end of the tour, past the gift shop, there was an archaeology room with some interesting ancient tools. They had a mock-up of what it might have been like in the dungeon as well, but this was fairly cheesy and served to make passers-by laugh more than anything else. We went and got Mick from the car, then walked out to the beach to get our feet wet in the North Sea for a bit (which was rather cold at that point, but can get quite warm up north towards St. Andrews, where the gulf stream comes across the Atlantic from the Caribbean and gets trapped). Got some great shots along the coast, collected a small seashell or two, then went back up to the car for home. Twice on the way home Mick turned the wrong way and I had to correct him. He of course claims to have just been testing my navigation skills. This was a source of good ribbing for days afterwards. When back in Kelso, we went to Safeway to gather some ingredients for a chicken dinner. Got home to Mick's house and made a great meal of breaded chicken, rice, and vegetables with cabbage. Afterwards was coffee, ice cream, and great conversation until two in the morning again (complete with a few more cups of tea for good measure). This morning we were up at 07:30 again. Ginger made a great meal of scrambled eggs, along with toast, coffee, orange juice, and cranberry juice. Ginger and Mick packed up for our overnight stay tonight in Stirling, home to Stirling Castle and close to Doune Castle, with a stop planned at Roslin Chapel on the way back to Kelso the next day. Meanwhile, I've spent the morning trying to catch up on the journal, which I have just now done. IMAGES FROM JOURNAL ENTRY 9 ---> |