I stayed on Friday night with my cousin Sophie at her house in the North York Moors. The drive from Edinburgh, including a stop at Berwick-upon-Tweed, took about 4 and a half hours – not bad going for a Friday afternoon. Continue reading
Boasting “all the simple ingredients for the perfect break away: Fresh air, sea and countryside, friendly folk, and rich history, Berwick-upon-Tweed is actually closer to Edinburgh than it is to Newcastle. It is also slightly further North than Copenhagen, and the Southern tip of Sweden! Sitting on the English-Scottish border it has passed between England and Scotland a number of times – most recently transferring back to England in 1482. Listening to people on the street, they sounded more Scottish than Geordie to me. Continue reading
The Scottish Parliament building is very impressive, and very modern – especially compared to the Houses of Parliament at Westminster. We had a very knowledgeable guide who not only talked about how the Scottish Parliament works, but also talked about the history of Parliament in Scotland – what lead to Devolution, etc. Continue reading
My destination was Selkirk, where I would be visiting the Lochcarron Tartan Mill for a guided tour. It was a very interesting tour – I learn all about how Tartan is woven, how it is designed, the difference between Ancient, Modern and Weathered colours (our own family tartans have 2 versions – Ancient and Modern). Continue reading
Today, the main reason I’ve come to Scotland this week in particular: An Essential Tremor Awareness Day at the University of Stirling (Stirling Court Hotel). Continue reading
It was a full day of driving – with almost 400 miles to cover. I broke the journey up with several stops – This was really good as it made the day really enjoyable. Somehow, the worst traffic I had all day was at Birdlip on the A417, before I’d even left Gloucestershire! Continue reading
The Sun was shining this morning and I wanted an easy day out (ahead of my long road trip to Scotland next week). So I hopped in the car and drove about an hour down the road to the England/Wales border. My idea was to do a bit of a walk along the River Wye. Continue reading
The main races – of which there were 6 – started shortly after. I enjoyed watching the horses in the paddock where I could pick which horse I would back. Not being an expert in racing, I chose a horse based on which one I liked the look of, or which name appealed to me. Continue reading
The audience were clearly full of Yes, Minister fans – lots of knowing laughs throughout, especially at the classic Sir Humphrey-style exchanges. Plenty of people the same side of 40 years of age as I am – it wasn’t all people old enough to have watched the originals on TV! Continue reading
I drove up to Hanbury Hall, a National Trust property near Droitwich in Worcestershire. The house is a real country retreat, offering a glimpse of life in rural Worcestershire in the 18th century. As always, I loved seeing all the different rooms, choosing which rooms were my favourite – which ones I’d use for radio, living room, and my bedroom, if I were to live in such a big house! Continue reading