Another good day, although I am sitting on a little plateau right now. Still holding at 55 lbs, lost--which is surely a cause for celebration. The total--not the plateau.
Foxgloves in Scotland
Threave Castle, Dunfries and Galloway
Twelve Apostles Stone Circle, Dunfries and Galloway
Lincluden Collegiate Church, Dunfries and Galloway
Lincluden Collegiate Church, Dunfries and Galloway
Lochmaben Castle ruins, Dunfries and Galloway
Well, here they are--as promised--a few pictures from my day-trip to Dumfries and Galloway yesterday. We left Harrogate around 7:30 am and drove up to Dumfries, with a small stop at McDonald's for brekkie for Jeff and a coffee for me. [I'm happy to report that I've been off fried foods for so long that his breakfast didn't even smell good.] Anyway, we got up to Dumfries around 10:30; we had planned to do the Robert Burns House and the mausoleum but the house didn't open until 2 pm (really--it's the middle of the tourist season) and yesterday was the day they were celebrating Armed Forces Day in the UK and we didn't want to tour in the middle of a church service. Anyway, we went looking for the Globe Inn, but no joy--and I had foolishly forgotten the phone number. I stopped at a petrol station to get directions but everyone had a different way to get there. A nice man finally took pity on me and told me he'd drive over there and we could follow. What a star! We got close and then I had a cup of tea (Jeff had a Guiness) while we waited on them to start serving lunch.
Lunch was very good (roast beef with steamed veggies) and very diet-friendly. Since it was still hours before the Burns House opened, we decided to check out Threave Castle, about 1/2 hour away. Threave Castle was the island stronghold of Archibald the Grim, 3rd earl of Douglas--and chieftain of the Black Douglases. [Tantallon Castle Castle on the east coast near North Berwick was the stronghold of the Red Douglases.] He was known as "the Grim" for his 'fierce countance in battle'--and probably also for his unfortunate habit of hanging folks who displeased him on his doorstep. The only thing remaining is the shell of the keep, although in its day (late 14th century and onward) there would have been a bustling village on the island. The area is also Osprey habitat and it's nesting season, although we didn't see any. There's a boat ride across the Dee (one of the many Rivers Dee in Scotland) and I managed to get in and out without embarassing myself.
After Threave Castle, we went in search of the Twelve Apostles Stone Circle. According to the map, it's near the village of Newbridge, so we headed that way. No joy. We drove thru the village and came to a T-junction. I turned left and we drove for a few miles without spotting anything so we turned around and went back the way we came, going past where we had turned. Probably about 1/8 mile that way, I saw standing stones in a field! We stopped and had a look and we could see what might be gates so we turned around. As we were coming up to the turn, Jeff spotted a boulder that looked like it had a placque, so we got out and had a look. Sure enough, it was the Twelve Apostles Stone Circle, the largest henge in Scotland--and it doesn't even have a proper sign! But it has lots of cows! Now I'm the first to admit I know nothing about cows--but my guess is they were the young ones, not quite ready to be milked. We stopped at one of the gates to get pictures and they were very curious! There was a stile there and Jeff climbed over it but I didn't. The field was a mudhole from all the recent rain, so I got my pictures from the gate.
I had seen the sign for Lincluden Collegiate Church on our way to the henge, so we stopped there on the way back. Beautiful ruins! And the sky was very atmospheric with all the dark clouds, so I was real happy with those. Lastly, we headed over to see the ruins of Lochmaben Castle before we headed home.
I have 3 weeks of straight days, starting today for a class. I've been less-than-impressed with my classes. The guy teaching is very knowledgeable but he has no idea how to teach. I like him--he's a nice guy--but it's a struggle. Too many people here think the way to teach is to ask trick questions--or give you just enough info to lead you down the wrong path. Grrrrr! But this too shall pass... Eventually.
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