Au Revoir Krakow

Sunday was another beautiful day in Krakow. Pretty hot for me, but not quite as extreme as yesterday. We visited the Old Synagogue in the Jewish Quarter, the oldest surviving synagogue building in Poland. It was originally built in the 15th century but was much altered over the centuries until it was completely ransacked by the Nazis in the 2nd World War; they used it as a warehouse. It was repaired and renovated in the 1950s and is now a museum about the Jewish religion. Very interesting. 
We went for a coffee in the wee courtyard behind the Jewish bookshop, which was very cute, and then headed back to the castle yet again, but this time we were finally going inside, on a tour booked by James! We met our lovely guide at St Mary Magdalene Square and headed inside. It was a great tour and very thorough - this conscientious lady was not going to let any artefact or painting or wall-hanging pass unexplained! The trouble was I felt very hot, however I managed the situation as best I could by heading straight to either a window or an air-conditioning unit in each room that we came to. I probably looked like a fool to the others in our group, but it worked! I also used my neck fan and my cooling neck towel. Then we went into the cathedral which was very ornate and learned a new fact. Saints can be put in their sarcophagi above the ground, but non-saints, even monarchs, must be buried under the ground, way below their sarcophagi. This is because, when the day of judgement comes, saints are allowed to fly straight up to heaven but mere mortals have to climb out of the earth first. Well! Who knew? 
We went down to the crypt where there were many ornate coffins, among them the Polish President and his wife who sadly died in a plane crash along with most of the government in 2010. Ewan had told us that during his and Heather’s tour earlier in the week, a tourist had asked the guide if former President Lech Walesa is buried there. “I hope not,” said the guide, “he’s not dead yet!”
After our tour we had time for a light lunch near our hotel before our taxi arrived at 4 to take us to the airport. I felt sad to be leaving beautiful Krakow, especially as the heat of the was just fading to that softer evening warmth which is so very pleasant. But what a great city break it has been! 

Get your Rock Salt Baby!

Rain, thunder and lightning were forecast for Saturday afternoon so we decided to visit the hugely popular Salt Mines near Krakow. So many people have told me that they are a must see, but I didn’t feel all that enthused about them. But it was hot and sunny in the morning so first we walked into the old town and up to the castle courtyard to the café there. It was absolutely roasting so we had cool drinks and I tried out my new cooling “neck fan” which you put around your neck and switch on to produce cool air. It’s quite effective and I saw a few people looking at it. I hope it was envy but I suspect that it was amusement! Despite my neck fan I was still so hot that for two pins I would have headed back to the hotel to cool down, but I thought to myself that we should make the most of our time in Krakow, so instead, James consulted Google Maps, and expertly steered us onto a bus which took us straight to the little town of Wieliczka, the location of the salt mine. To be honest, I’m not sure that we would have bothered visiting the salt mines if rain had not been forecast, because it would have been a shame to miss any of the delightful July weather. But in the end, I was rather glad that we went there. These ancient salt mines were in operation from the end of the 13th century right up until 2007. They are now a national museum. You start off by going down many many stairs and then walk along different areas of the mine, continuing to get deeper all the time. The tour took more than two hours but we still only saw about 1% of the vast mine. There are many passageways and caverns, some of which have been hollowed out to create chapels and meeting places. In one large chapel there were lots of salt sculptures which were really impressive. There are salt pools deep inside the mines and nowadays, there are also a couple of tourist shops and even a café. Our guide was well-informed and enthusiastic. At the end we got into a tiny lift and rattled up to the surface at alarming speed. 

I reckon that our timing was pretty good because it had just started raining with rumbles of thunder when we went in, but by the time we came out the rain had stopped although the ground was still all wet. The whole atmosphere felt a bit fresher too. We took a train back in to Krakow and just had time to get changed before going back to Starka restaurant for dinner. We enjoyed it so much with Heather and Ewan on Wednesday evening that we thought we would return, and indeed the meal was absolutely delicious, although we did miss our erstwhile dining companions. We had pierogi again of course! And James tried a new vodka. Later we strolled back to the hotel in the gorgeous warm evening, stopping for a drink in the Jozefa 12 courtyard, one of the filming locations from the film Schindler’s List. 

A Walk around Krakow

On Friday Heather and Ewan very kindly took us on a walking tour of Krakow, using the knowledge that they had gleaned on their bike tour earlier in the week. It was really great. First of all we visited the Jewish Ghetto where the Jews were forced to go in 1941, not to be confused with the original Jewish Quarter. We passed the Schindler Factory on the way - it was amazing to think that the building is still there, and yet, why not? It was not that long ago; I was born only 17 years after the 2nd World War ended. The Many of the buildings around the main square of the ghetto, Zgody Square,  have been replaced by modern buildings, so it doesn’t look the way it must have in the 1940s. The square does, however, have 33 empty over-sized chairs scattered throughout it, each one representing 1000 lost lives from the ghetto. It’s very stark, but I felt that it is effective as a way to represent loss. In one corner the original pharmacy (called Under the Eagle) is still there and is now a museum to the work of Tadeusz Pankiewicz, a gentile who stayed there to serve the Jews in the Ghetto when all of the non Jews were moved out. He prescribed their medicines, often free of charge, hid some people during the round ups and provided meeting spaces for the Resistance. It’s very moving and full of beautiful wooden cabinets with old style medicines in glass jars, just the way it would have looked in the 1940s. After a restoring cup of coffee sitting outside an attractive wee pub, we walked along the riverside to see the dragon statue (which was not belching fire as Gosia had promised me!) and then round the side of the castle and up a gentle slope into its courtyard. What a lovely courtyard, surrounded by castle buildings and the cathedral, with a café at the side. From there we walked to the main square and Heather and Ewan treated us to a delicious lunch in the rather upmarket Wesele Restaurant (yes I had pierogi, summer fruits this time.) I had noticed the horses and carriages  going on around the square while we were there and I couldn’t resist, encouraged by how well cared for the horses were. James treated us all to a carriage ride and it was good fun trotting around the streets for 40 minutes, getting a new perspective from the carriage. Touristy it certainly was, but we were tourists so why not? Then it was time to check out “Mitchell’s Café” as we had begun calling Mitchell’s favourite café on the terrace above the Cloth Hall, and we were very glad that we did because it was warm but delightfully shady and had the most beautiful views over the square as we enjoyed our drinks. All too soon it was time to return to the hotel to say goodbye to Heather and Ewan ahead of their return to the UK. James and I then strolled to the nearby Jewish quarter and had a pleasant meal before an early night, tired out from all of our sight-seeing. 

I love you more than Pierogi

Hardly had the tumble drier stopped tumbling our washing from our Cotswolds holiday, than we needed to get packed for our city break starting on Wednesday to Krakow with Heather and Ewan. We were going there to celebrate Heather’s 60th birthday, and Heather had chosen Krakow because she wanted to go somewhere that she hadn’t been before. We hadn’t been there either so it was new to all of us. Our plane journey from Glasgow to Krakow, courtesy of Ryanair, went smoothly but unfortunately very noisily - a family group of young adults and young children were making an awful racket, milling about in the aisles. When we ran into some turbulence they had to be asked by one of the stewards to sit down at least three times. I know that my own family did not always behave perfectly in planes, but in this case the adults seemed to be actually encouraging the children to shout and run about! We were glad to arrive in Krakow and took a taxi to the excellent Queen’s Hotel to meet up with Heather and Ewan, who had already been there for a couple of days (we were delayed by our Cotswolds trip.) They took us to the Jewish Quarter which had lots of little courtyards behind the buildings and we had drinks in the Hevre Restaurant which is a former synagogue; it still has fading old frescoes on its walls. We had dinner at the nearby Starka Restaurant. I had already booked it because it was recommended to us by Gosia. I had pierogi, little Polish dumplings stuffed with spinach and cottage cheese. They were absolutely melt in the mouth. I have never tasted them before. Our hotel is really well positioned between the Jewish quarter and the old town, so we can easily walk to one or the other. After a quick nightcap it was time for bed.

The next morning we went on a bus tour to Auschwitz. Like many people, I had my doubts about whether to visit Auschwitz. I felt uncomfortable about treating such a scene of cruelty and tragedy as a tourist destination. And I was concerned about my own reaction when I got there; if I became upset, I didn’t want to put my private feelings on display in front of strangers. In the end, I was glad that I went. I think it’s really important for the events at Auschwitz to be remembered, and by visiting I felt that I was paying my respects to the murdered people. The vast majority of them were Jews, and there were also Polish people, political prisoners, gypsies and more. I didn’t become emotional; I did feel sad but the monstrosity of the place on such a sunny summer’s day seemed so incongruous that I felt strangely detached. I think that my emotion will come the next time that I read a book or see a film about Auschwitz when I relate it to what I saw there; the semi-destroyed gas chambers and crematoria, the barracks, the piles of human hair, spectacles, shoes, suitcases. 

Back in Krakow we had a rest before going to the Old Town for dinner. The main square is huge and beautiful, with the large Cloth Hall building in the middle of it and restaurants all round the edges. It was bustling with life; street performers, horses and carriages jingling by, lots of people strolling about, the outside areas of the restaurants busy in the warm evening. 

Goodbye to Bibury

On the morning of Thursday 20th we went in to our favourite town of Cirencester where James went for a walk and I went for a swim in the open air pool. It was a lovely warm day and we had coffee sitting outside a café near the church. Back in Bibury we met up with Jenn and Russ for lunch at the Swan Hotel, such a beautiful old hotel covered in ivy. We had a good chat and the food was great, which made up for the fact that the service was a bit on the slow side. Then we walked along the river to the cottage where we had a cup of coffee sitting outside in the back garden, before walking up the aptly named Awkward Lane (it’s very narrow to drive on!) and on to the Catherine Wheel where we sat outside and had drinks. It was such a pleasant and relaxing afternoon in great company. 

And our last couple of days in the Cotswolds were very quiet and pleasant, revisiting a couple of favourite villages and discovering a new one, Coln St Aldwyns, which is five kilometres walk from Bibury through beautiful scenery; fields with wildflowers, tree-lined paths with dappled sunlight. And when we got there we had a cream tea sitting outside a gorgeous typically English tearoom in the warm sunshine. 

All too soon it was time to set off on the long drive home. Would we stay in Bibury next time? It’s certainly a very beautiful little village, but we did miss the many eateries and pubs of Cirencester. It has been a great holiday. 

Gloucestershire Airport

Today we had plans; James’ present from me for Christmas 22 was a flight simulator experience at Gloucestershire Airport. It was only forty minutes drive from Bibury so we had time for a stroll around the village first. We saw the cutest wee ducklings swimming in the stream. It’s so pretty but oh boy it’s touristy! Especially our little lane, Arlington Row, which has many people walking up and down it during the day. The 19th-century artist and textile designer William Morris called Bibury "the most beautiful village in England" when he visited it. I noticed that a lot of the tourists are Japanese, and on enquiring I found out that it’s because the Emperor Hirohito visited and stayed in Bibury during part of his honeymoon, when he was still only a Prince, in 1921. 
James enjoyed the flight simulator, which was an exact replica of the controls of a Boeing 737, with a wraparound screen depicting the take off, journey and landing. He said that it was so much more realistic than the flight simulators he has used on the computer, which just have the normal screen and a joystick. I was able to spectate from one of the seats behind the cockpit. The instructor explained the controls to James, who already knew quite a bit because of his interest in aircraft. He successfully took off from the airport, flew the plane and landed safely! The instructor said that it was a very good landing. Then he had time to land twice more, he chose Glasgow and Birmingham airports and didn’t crash the plane either time! After saying our goodbyes to the friendly instructor and his trainee (a retired pilot who has recently moved back to Gloucestershire from Dingwall) we walked to the nearby Aviator Restaurant. It was a very nice wee restaurant, quite busy with families and pilots. 
Our next destination was Bourton-on-the-Water, a very pretty Cotswolds village which I first visited as a child, maybe in about 1970, with my mum and Dad and Jennifer. I went back there with James in about 1987 but haven’t been back since, and it was lovely to see it again. The village has lots of cafés and a little river running through the middle; it was very busy with tourists. But for me the highlight was the model village, an exact replica of the real village. It’s absolutely amazing, built to 1/26th scale, and you can recognise all the buildings and roads. Like the real village it’s very pretty and it’s an absolute pleasure to walk around its streets, with the buildings about waist high. I can still remember so well walking there as a child. The really cool thing is that since the model village is a replica of the real village, inside it is another smaller replica of the village! And inside that is another tiny one - amazing! We went on to Northleach for a very nice coffee in the village square and later a delicious dinner at the Catherine Wheel pub in Bibury. As we strolled back to the cottage we could see trout swimming in the stream and jumping up to catch flies. 

Bristol Aerospace Museum

With the air show over we had nothing definitely planned for today, so I suggested that we head to Bristol, a city that James and I have never visited. It’s only an hour from Bibury so off we went, and started with the Bristol Aerospace Museum which is on the outskirts of Bristol, in Finton. This museum had been recommended to James by our aircraft enthusiast chums at the air show, and it didn’t disappoint. We arrived just as it opened at 10 a.m. and had breakfast in its nice wee café before James went for an escorted tour of the shed where aeroplanes were being restored. I opted out of this and read my book happily until he returned and we went around the museum together. It really was very interesting and well laid out, with lots of interactive exhibits. Then we went across to see the Concorde, which had its own hangar. It was amazing. We have been to see the Concorde at East Fortune several times with the boys, but not for a while, and I was again struck by Concorde’s elegant beauty. The museum was quiet on this term-time Tuesday morning so when we went inside the plane we had it to ourselves. We realised that it was now past two o’clock so we had a quick lunch in the café before driving into the centre of Bristol, where James navigated us to a car park close to the harbour. We were very close to the M Shed which is a converted warehouse full of artefacts representing the social history of the people of Bristol. It’s a bit of a jumble but it has a good and honest section on slavery, interesting insights on the impact on the city of the Second World War, and from its roof top terrace there are lovely views over the harbour towards the cathedral and the old town. We then walked along to Brunel’s SS Great Britain and also saw a Banksy stencil on a nearby wall; Girl with a Pierced Eardrum. It was amazing to see a Banksy in situ; we have been Banksy fans for a long time and recently went to his exhibition in Glasgow MOMA. It was a bit weathered and faded but still great to see. In order to cross back across the harbour we took a wee ferry which cost £1 each and was very convenient. We walked along the harbour side which was full of bars and restaurants, and stopped for a drink in one of them. Then onwards to the old town and the cathedral, where we saw lots of young university graduate posing for photos with their Mums and Dads, a sight which never fails to move me. Today was the graduation day of our nephew Josh in Loughborough, he has a degree in Sports Engineering and I’m very proud of him. We also sought out two more Banksies; one was the very simple “You don’t need planning permission to build castles in the sky” and the other was the very well known “Well Hung Lover” which has been vandalised quite a bit and is also looking a bit weatherbeaten. I suppose that is the ultimate fate of street art. 

After dinner back at the harbour we got a notion to drive up to Clifton to see the famous Clifton Suspension Bridge, designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel. When we got there it was getting dark, but it was still worth it because the bridge was all lit up with lights. The Avon Gorge is very deep and the bridge is very impressive, especially at more than 150 years old. We walked across the bridge and back again, looking into the deep gorge and down towards the centre of Bristol. 

Fairford Air Show Days 3 and 4

We decided to get an earlier start on Sunday so we left Bibury at about quarter to eight, and we were rewarded by a much shorter queue from the car park through security. The weather was the best yet and we had coffee in the FRIAT enclosure before taking our places in the stand to watch the Saudis Arabian display, which was very good with green and white smoke trails and a touch of red. I spent a pleasant morning of reading and occasiinal plane watching which James took literally hundreds of photos. The only problem was that James wasn’t feeling too great. He had a headache all day and a sore stomach too. We left the airshow early at about half past three, and were soon back at the cottage in Bibury where James had a restorative sleep. 
James felt much better this morning I’m glad to say, and we had breakfast at the cottage before leading back to RIAT for our final day. This was a day for the real hard-core aircraft enthusiasts; departures day. There is no air display, just a series of aeroplanes flying away from the airfield to their home airfields. As a result of this, and because it’s a Monday, there is a much much smaller crowd and we got parked right beside security. Apparently the FRIAT area is open but we couldn’t get there because we were in a fenced off area at the west end of the runway. We could have gone searching for a car park with access to FRIAT but James was actually very happy with where we were, and there was even a wee coffee van as well as some portaloos. So we spent a happy five hours watching the aircraft depart, and James took many more photographs. The weather was warm, sunny and breezy and there was a peaceful atmosphere, calmer than the huge crowds over the weekend. As the aircraft taxied past us many of the pilots waved at us, and as they took off quite a few wiggled their wings in farewell. James even saw one with a hand drawn sign in the window which said “I ❤️ RIAT!” Later we had coffee and cake in Cirencester and dinner back at our tiny cottage in Bibury. 

Fairford Air Show Day 2

Saturday was a huge improvement weather-wise. We arrived at Fairford air field in sunshine with only a few clouds. However Saturday is the air show’s busiest day, and the sunshine had ensured that everyone turned up. As a result there were huge queues to get through security, not helped by the fact that lots of people were just brazenly pushing in rather than going to the end of the queue. Security has apparently been increased this year because there is a high terrorist threat as well as the currently very active Just Stop Oil protestors. Anyway, the queue kept moving along and we got into the air show about an hour after parking. We walked along to the FRIAT area and I got a nice coffee and a Kitkat and we took our seats in the grandstand just in time for the Red Arrows display. It was very pleasant, windy but warm. After a while I headed into the marquee and I was just relaxing with my book when suddenly all of the aircraft enthusiasts, including James,  came rushing in. I wondered what was up but then realised that there had been a sudden and heavy shower of rain, which was still battering loudly against the plastic roof of the marquee. James said that the rain cloud had arrived from behind the grandstand so none of them had seen it coming until it was upon them and the heavens opened. I wonder if there was perhaps the threat of lightning because there was then an announcement over the tannoy; “Please can all people leave the grandstand at once. This is not a request. Leave the grandstand at once.”

Luckily the cloud passed fairly quickly and everyone went outside again, and the weather stayed good for the rest of the day. I went back out to the grandstand to watch the Chinook going through its paces, and a couple more very loud planes. We left at about 4 p.m. and made our way to Bibury. That’s where things got controversial.

I had booked a cottage in Bibury for this holiday for several reasons. Firstly, although I liked the cottage in Cirencester where we stayed for the past two years, it was not as clean as I would like so I was on the lookout for a change. Secondly the cottage in Cirencester’s price was being hiked up which I thought was a cheek considering reason number one. And thirdly I was very taken with Bibury when we stayed there pre children in the 1980s, so when I spotted a National Trust cottage there I booked it. The cottage is in beautiful Arlington Row, and it is very picturesque. It is also lovely and clean. However I had totally forgotten how very tiny is Bibury. One hotel, one pub and a small gift shop are not a match for the many delights of Cirencester. And not only does the cottage have no WiFi, the village of Bibury seems to have no phone reception at all! James was not best pleased and when we drove the ten minutes to Cirencester for dinner he was very wistful for our old gaff. Never mind, it might be good to do without Wifi for a week, and Bibury is very pretty. 

Fairford Air Show Day 1

This morning we set off from our Premier Inn in Cirencester to the Fairford Air Show. Unfortunately the weather had turned very rainy and the whole day was a bit of a washout. The flying display went ahead but the planes were obscured by rain. Thank goodness we had the marquee in the FRIAT area to shelter in; it was too rainy to sit in the grandstand, although I could see that some stalwarts were up there anyway. James, ever enthusiastic, went for a walk along the static display and came back wet in the outside but nice and dry underneath because he was sensibly clad in his waterproof jacket, trousers and trail shoes. We befriended a couple of nice air show aficionados who were sitting beside us when we had lunch in the marquee. One was from London, a lovely quiet and good-natured chap, and the other was a rather mischievous pensioner from Cornwall who told us how annoying he found tourists to his area. “Especially Londoners” he said with a meaningful look at the chap from London, who he had only just met. Both of them were experts on aircraft and got on extremely well with James, and we all had a good chat about music that we like and places we have visited. Later on we went to Stroud to another Premier Inn (I hadn’t managed to book two nights in one be place because all the hotels were so busy because of the air show.) Tomorrow we will be going to a cottage in Bibury for the rest of our holiday. 

As You Like It

On Thursday 13th July James and I set off southwards to the Cotswolds. The principal reason for our trip is to go to the Fairford Air Show, although that only makes up three of our nine days. Our journey went smoothly; about five and a half hours plus a twenty-five minute stop at Killington Lake Services. We arrived at Stratford upon Avon in time for a cream tea at the very pleasant Fourteas Café, which we have visited on a previous trip. The friendly owner pointed out that we were using the Devon method on our scones, which is jam first and then cream; the Cornwall method is cream first and then jam. However, he told us proudly, the Buckingham Palace method used by the late Queen is to spread the scone with jam and then scoop a little bit of cream on to the edge of the scone before each bite. He seemed to feel that this must be the superior method. 
The weather was neither too hot (for me) nor too cool, so we went for a nice 5 km walk along the canal and back, chatting all the way. We had dinner in the Rooftop Restaurant at the Swan Theatre, again a place of which we have fond memories. The food and service were both excellent. And then to the theatre itself to see As You Like It. I booked this entirely because the date suited us on our way to the Air Show, and I was delighted at how brilliant it was. Rosalind was played by the superb actress Geraldine James. However at the age of 73 she would usually be too old for the part (although she looks much younger than 73 I think.) However it all worked very well because of the clever device that it was a reunion of the actors from a 1978 production of As You Like It, with a few younger actors to replace those no longer available. So most of the actors were over sixty, some of them well over, and they incorporated this into the production by grunting and groaning during fight scenes or when they were getting up from a chair. Some even needed prompted with their lines. At first it all felt a bit like a rehearsal, but as the play went on the actors seemed to forget their aches and pains and to be swept into the play; a band started playing musical accompaniment and there was more use of scenery. By the forest scene at the end the actors literally walked into the forest, and as they stood in wonderment, Geraldine James turned to the audience and gave the epilogue. I thought that the whole thing was wonderful. After the performance we had just over an hour to drive to Cirencester. 

Swimming at Port Alt na Bradhan

The next week at Ullapool was very pleasant; the weather continued to be mixed but mainly good. Definitely still summery even though no longer a heatwave. A highlight was swimming at Port Alt na Bradhan. It was a sunny day and the water was the most gorgeous turquoise colour, really stunning. The artist from whom we bought our painting of the beach had promised us that at high tide the shallow water becomes quite warm as it heats up over the sand. Well, I wouldn’t go quite that far! It still felt quite cold when I went in, but when I swam out to some rocks in the deeper water and then back to shore I could definitely feel that it was warmer in the shallows. I stayed in for ages and then warmed up with coffee that James brewed up using his rocket stove. My legs were all scratched by climbing on the rocks, in quite an unladylike fashion. 
I had a coffee with Natasha on Sunday 9th, after only seeing each other in passing since our last coffee about two years ago! We had a good chat about all sorts of things; she has such an interesting life with her jobs in Ullapool and the family croft. 
On 10th July we travelled back to Glasgow. We had a terrible job catching Tom to put him into the car; made suspicious by seeing us packing up the car he stayed out of doors all morning. I caught him by rattling a tub of dreamies and picking him up while he was eating them. I popped him into the cottage and closed the door, while James and I finished our coffee, sitting outside on the bench. But it turns out that the door sometimes doesn’t latch properly (I hadn’t realised this) and Tom soon came strolling back out of the porch and down the path towards the lane. He walked with studied casualness, no doubt hoping we wouldn’t notice. I started following him and he kept ahead of me down the lane and then turned sharp left into some dense foliage. There was nothing I could do. We had to wait for more than an hour before he came back to the house! Meanwhile Floof was hiding behind the television so we popped them both into the car and set off homewards. 

Visitors from New Zealand

Kerry’s lovely Mum and Dad came to visit us in Ullapool at the beginning of July (4th and 5th.) It was great to see them and we were touched that they had driven all the way from Yorkshire to see us. The weather was warm but intermittently showery; when we went for a walk around the village we ended up popping in to the Cult Café to get out of a shower. The friendly owners are from New Zealand so they had a chat with Kevin and Jenny. Our visitors lived the Ceilidh Olace bookshop and kindly bought me a book about walking. Down at the harbour we were chatting to the skipper of a wee boat which had just come in with a load of mackerel. He offered us some and refused payment (it was just going to be used for bait!) So we took it back to the cottage, where Kevin gutted it (thank goodness he knew how!) and we fried it with new potatoes and asparagus for lunch. I’m now officially a pescatarian but I’m still mainly a veggie, however I had a wee taste and it was very fresh and delicious. 

We then went on a jaunt to Clachtoll Beach, because Kevin and Jenny had told us that they are interested in ancient history, and explored the two thousand year old broch there. Jenny was very brave as she climbed right inside its walls! There was a wee baby pied wagtail cheeping away from a corner; its mummy quickly arrived on the wall of the broch and squawked loudly and persistently at us to leave, which we soon did, and continued our beach walk. We went on to dinner at Delilah’s in Lochinver, which was really great, I think that their food is even better than it was last year. 

Jenny and I went swimming the next morning in the estuary at high tide and Kevin came in too. It was idyllic even though the water was a bit chillier than it is where they live in Waiheke! (I know this having experienced both!) The tide was so high that it covered a good bit of the grass, which made it very easy to walk into the water. The morning was warm and the sky was blue, so we were pleased that they got the chance to see the loch looking so beautiful. 

We booked a whisky tasting to Glen Ord Distillery for the afternoon which turned out to be excellent. After a tour of the distillery we had a private tasting, matching up five different Glen Ord whiskies with five canapés, chosen to complement the different tastes of the drinks. Needless to say, as a non drinker I didn’t get quite the same out of the experience! However our host, Rob, was very personable and knowledgeable and the canapés were really unusual and delicious, so I did enjoy myself. And it was very useful that I was able to drive everyone back to the cottage afterwards! James lit the fire and we had a convivial evening.