This morning started with a drive into parts of the Scottish Lowlands and Border Counties. Green rolling hills, with lots and lots of sheep, many gamboling lambs, staying right beside mum, when she moved they were not far behind. .....lots of twins and even a few triplets. Yes, I do like sheep! Because of the snow in Scotland this year only a few weeks ago during the critical lambing season, farmers lost 20,000 sheep. In some places there was over 8 feet of snow. A blow to their livelihoods.
As many know the British isles has some very unusual names for places. Also unusual is the pronunciation..... a couple of examples, Hawick is pronounced Ha-oik. Another place called Buccleugh is Ba-clue! The Duke of Buccleugh owns 299,000 acres of land, making him the largest land owner in all of the UK including Europe.
Our first stop of the day was Abbotsford House, the home of Sir Walter Scott. The setting is heart stopping, beautiful gardens, old rock walls in great repair. It is so wonderful to see these stately homes looked after. We had a guided tour, incidentally guided tours are so worth spending a few £’s on as you learn so much more than just what is in a guide book. The home contains an impressive collection of historic relics, weapons (there is one room dedicated to guns, including the first ever double barreled gun), armour, as well as an extensive library with over 9,000 rare volumes.
Sir Walter Scott was extremely intelligent and educated, he spoke many languages (more than 5, if my memory is correct) , he also wrote a great number of books. I found the stories the guide relayed regarding his French wife Charlotte to be very endearing. His parents on hearing he was in love with a French girl were horrified and tried their best to dissuade him......his reply was along the lines of “he would die otherwise” in a much more poetic fashion! . I was completely in awe of this mans love for his family but also for his fellow man. He was very philanthropic. I could go on and on if I could remember the details correctly. I will definitely be reading a biography of him. Perhaps his most well known book of which he wrote 22 I believe, is called Waverley. The only writer to have a train station named for a book.
We wrapped up our afternoon with a visit to Melrose Abbey, the burial place of Robert the Bruce’s heart. A story in itself! Melrose is a ruin, albeit a magnificent one. It was destroyed by Henry VIII and also again by Oliver Cromwell. It was partially restored with funds from Sir Walter Scott to its present state. If you are able, you can climb over 100 stairs up a spiral staircase to a viewing platform and you will be rewarded to a panoramic view of the countryside and the graveyard, garden and the Abbey below. We spent an hour wandering the small town of Melrose, getting a bite of lunch before riding back into Edinburgh.
An optional tour of the Royal Yacht Britannia was next including dinner, I decided I would make my way out to Broxburn (a Village near where we once lived) to visit my cousin Andrew who was recently moved from his own home to a care home. I caught a bus on Princes Street and approximately one hour later I was there. Andrew is a dear soul who was very kind to our son Travis and his (then) girlfriend Sian, (now wife) when they moved to Edinburgh so Sian could attend Harriot Watt University. Travis took employment with HSBC for the duration. When dad and I visited them during that year, Andrew again was a terrific tour guide for us. He is a historian for our village, Winchburgh, and compiled a book on the village and events. It was an emotional visit as we looked at old photos of family that I had brought, and I realized it would probably be the last time I would see him.
When I left I realized while I had well researched the bus routes and times on my outbound journey (which also included input from Dorothy and Billy in Canada!)I had paid no attention to the return times! It was cold, windy and threatening rain as I waited at a bus stop, no others waiting. Fortunately the wait was only 20 minutes., by the way the bus also supplies free wifi!
Tomorrow we leave Edinburgh and make our way, first stop the holy grail of golf.....St Andrews .
Cherrio!
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