*disclaimer - there are many, many photos*
The town that my parents now live in is about 3/4 from Glasgow centre and on the coast overlooking Bute and the Island of Cumbrae. On one side the Clyde and on the other, gorse covered hills. May/June is definitely the time to see it, everything was in bloom, green and beautiful. I also really enjoyed the long evenings, which we don't get even in the summer in NSW.
When we were kids, we would jump on the ferry and head over to Cumbrae, hire bikes and spend the day cycling around the island. Dad decided to take a day off work (ahem - the phone still buzzed with emails fairly regularly... just sayin') and the 3 of us jumped on the good ol' CalMac with a coffee from a new wee Nardini's and had a walk around the island. The views of Bute, Arran and Ben Lomond in the distance were fabulous, and there was plenty to see on the island itself.
Largs
Sunset over Bute
2 CalMacs going to and fro
North end of Cumbrae looking towards Ben Lomond in the distance
Ready with binoculars
Arran from Cumbrae
Painted rocks. This is over 100 years old according to my father.
Seals off Millport
Beach volley ball at Millport!
Crocodile Rock
Paddling - it was freeezing!
Having a wee break before catching the bus back to the ferry.
Largs from the ferry.
We finished the day off with a fish and chip supper from Nardini's.
My last weekend was spent heading over to the east and catching up with our gorgeous friends in Dalgety Bay where we lived for nearly 9 years, and where 3 of the kids were born.
This is the view as you head in. We lived in one of those red-roofed houses at the bottom of the picture.
We put out the word and Wendy declared an open house for the weekend. We started off Friday night with pizza and cocktails, and moved on to breakfast, lunch and many, many cups of tea on Saturday. It was wonderful to catch up with people who have made me laugh, kept me sane, shared pregnancies, toddlers, dramas, etc. They've seen me at my worst and still love me! The weirdest thing was how weird it didn't feel. As Wendy said later "Friendship is picking up where you left off" and she's absolutely right.
Sunday was a quick whip around Dalgety Bay to see what was new, visiting our old puss cat (who, at the grand-old age of 18, I had honestly expected to be deceased) and heading back into Edinburgh to 'do lunch' and generally be a bit touristy.
Believe it or not, I have deleted a lot of pics but there still are loads - feel free to not bother!
New College on The Mound, where Hubby used to work.
The view from New College - you can see why he loved it!
Peering in through the gates
Princes Street Gardens
My Granny's favourite shop
The Bank of Scotland building
Piper and Scott Memorial. It would have been rude not to.
Ladies lunching at the National Gallery
St Giles' Cathedral
Some tourists...
The Royal Mile looking towards the Forth.
I love these buildings, and look at the colour of the sky!
Royal Mile looking towards the castle
I love all the Closes
Edinburgh Castle entrance
Mews hidden behind the castle
and from the other side.
It's a beautiful city.
I think I'll leave it there for now, I can squeeze another post out of the remaing pics!
Back soon!
xx
Hi Sandra , loving your holiday pictures...it all looks wonderful....not too many photos for me.
ReplyDeleteLooking forward to part three :0)
Jacquie x
Thanks, helped by the beautiful setings!
DeleteAaah, Edinburgh, I really miss visiting it but my sister no longer lives there. We keep meaning to go back up there for a long weekend though. Gorgeous photos and looks like you were so lucky with the weather. Sounds like you have had an absolute blast on your trip back to Scotland, I bet your husband and kids were so pleased to have you back home. They could have pretended not to have coped without you, just to be polite! xx
ReplyDeleteIt is a very gorgeous city. I think Spring had waited for me so everything was just fresh, green and opening. Hoe it's not too long before I can get back again...
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