I didn't think I would ever write another blog, but I have just taken a very short visit up to Scotland and there are several people who want details and this is the easiest way to share, so here goes.
Firstly a very quick round up since I last posted 18 months ago (where does time go to?). For the most part Chris and I keep well. Chris will always be compromised by his COPD, but we invested in a mobility scooter last summer which has opened up the world a bit for us both. We took a coach trip to Scotland last June which was a great success, so much so, we have two more booked for this year. We also spent two weeks in mid Wales catching up with Chris' family and the ospreys at The Dyfi Osprey Project. The same pair (Telyn (f) and Idris (m)) returned last year and successfully raised three chicks. They are back again and to date, 2 eggs have been laid and hopefully a third will follow tomorrow. We will be back in Wales again for two weeks in July - I hope it will be around the time the chicks fledge. I have some studying to do whilst I am there as I have been asked by our WI to do a talk about the ospreys in June 2026. WI still keeps me very busy and out of mischief. Chris and I have joined the U3a and we both go to bridge classes every week and I play Mah Jong twice a month.
So to my solo trip. Last Wednesday I headed off to Aberdeen on the train - Bromsgrove to Birmingham, then to Edinburgh and then the final leg to Aberdeen where I was booked into the Station Hotel. I had a very small garret of a room, but it was clean, tidy and the bed was very comfortable. The view left a bit to be desired! The upside of being at the side of the hotel did mean it was away from the road and traffic noise.
The run up the coast from Edinburgh to Aberdeen
& then back again was very scenic.
On Thursday, the reason for my trip came to meet me at my hotel for breakfast. I had gone up to meet up with our eldest granddaughter, Molly, who is in her third year of a four year degree at the University of Aberdeen. They say the sun shines on the righteous, so Molly and I must have done something right in life as we had wall to wall sunshine and blue skies. I certainly saw The Granite City at its best. Our first stop was the Art Gallery.
With its statue of Major General Charles George Gordon out the front. It was donated by the Gordon clan, but despite trawling through most of a very long article about the Major General on Wikipedia, I did not find a link to Aberdeen.
We spent quite a bit of time enjoying most of the exhibits in the gallery - Molly and I are of one mind when it came to some very obscure modern art that (to us) was just different coloured blobs/squares/squiggles etc. Thankfully there was a lot of very fine works of art to admire. Time for coffee and a chance to enjoy the views from the terrace.
We were truly blessed with such amazing weather.
From the art gallery we walked through Aberdeen to the University Campus.
The building in the background is the library which Molly informed me won 'best design in 2015'
This rather magnificent building is where they hold the graduations.
Along this street is where we stopped for lunch and then visited Waterstones to add to Molly's ever increasing piles of books!
Once refreshed our next stop was the University Botanical Gardens
It is a haven of serenity to be enjoyed between lectures.
This spectacular in the autumn
There was plenty of life in this pond including fish, water boatmen and tadpoles
Having availed ourselves of a much needed rest (for me at least) on one of the many benches where we enjoyed yet more chat and appreciated the warm sun, we headed to Molly's home which she shares with one other student.
This picture had to be taken - Molly shares her birthday with Boatwif from the Cleddau crew and also her passion for reading.
I got a taxi back to my hotel to put my feet up for a while before heading out to dinner with Molly and her boyfriend. I popped the television on, but missed it all! The little doze was much needed. Molly met me at my hotel and we made our way to a local Italian where we met up with her boyfriend, Euan, where we all had a really good meal. It was a pleasure to meet Euan for the first time. The conversation flowed - I really enjoyed my time with both of them.
They very kindly walked me back to my hotel where I retired to bed after a wonderful day with Molly and evening with her and Euan. It was a long way to go, but I am really glad I made the trip.
Having gone so far north, I had decided I really would like to visit friends who we met in 1973 and last saw in 2014. A plan was hatched and on Friday I got a train from Aberdeen to Huntly where they picked me up and took me to their amazing home and garden in a small hamlet (just 11 houses). I think those of us who know them had wondered what had attracted them to such a remote place, but having seen their home and garden, I do totally understand the attraction. I will just let you enjoy the photos - the garden is a testament to their hard work and devotion. The peace, quiet and views are amazing.
These were the views from my bedroom window!
We took a drive to Banff and then for a short walk - it is always good to be beside the sea. ?Certainly better than being stuck in a train carriage from Edinburgh to Aberdeen with a young girl endlessly signing 'I do like to be beside the seaside'!! Thankfully they got out about half way through the journey.
I gather that not that long ago, this harbour would have been full of fishing boats
Today it is mostly leisure craft
Saturday they took me back to Huntly to catch the first of four trains to get me back to Bromsgrove. It was 10.5 hours door to door via the fish and chip shop for supper. It was a very long way to go for such a short visit, but I am so glad I had the time with Molly and our friends. We have lost 5 friends in the last calendar year and it does make us realise how important it is to do these things whilst we can.
On that note, if anyone we know reads this and find themselves anywhere near us, do get in touch and we will drive to meet up with you.
I know that at least two people who will read this were up at RAF Kinloss with us in the late 1970's. When we first moved up there (1977) our nearest supermarket was a large Asda in Aberdeen - a two hour drive away. With two very small children, we only went twice. We had to rely on the NAAFI and a local corner shop in Findhorn. Around 1979 they opened a Fine Fare in Elgin. What an excitement that was! It was only small, but still a vast improvement. Now, I gather, there is a huge Tesco in Elgin and even an M & S food hall! Life is nowhere near as remote as it was all those years ago.
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