ROAD TO SCOTLAND

The piper was there to greet us into Scotland

 The scenic road into Edinburgh with rolling hills and sheep galore.   We lost count.

The heather on the hills.........just like they say.

NEWCASTLE

ANGEL OF THE NORTH

As you can see the enormous size of this sculpture next to the road way just outside of Newcastle-upon-Tyne.   There was controversy about it, but since has become iconic for the region.

The Millenium Bridge spans the Tyne River thru the heart of Newcastle.   There are colored lights that change the color of it every 15 seconds or so.  It is quite beautiful.   Just below the arc is the walking bridge that is the same arc that leads over the river with the colored arc upright and to the left of the walking bridge.                                                      

DURHAM CASTLE & CATHEDRAL

 The Durham Castle

A rather interesting door knocker on one of the buildings.

The Durham Cathedral was having evensong when we were there, but we walked thru the church to the cloister.  See pictures below..........this is where some of the scenes for the Harry Potter movies were filmed.  The castle was undergoing a renovation so we couldn't go in.   The old house with the red vines on it was next to the square where the castle and cathedral were standing opposite each other.

ON TO THIRSK!

We caught the train at 10:15 out of Conwy, to Liverpool, then to Thirsk.   We met Ruth's friend, Helen, there.  Our next stop was Newcastle where we stayed at Helen's before going on to Edinburgh.  

Helen talked about cleaning and clearing out her flat before we got there, so I expected a neat and tidy apartment.  OMG There was so much clutter in the hallway that we could hardly get thru with our bags, stacks of books, magazines, papers, etc. everywhere.   She has no sense of organization whatsoever.   I think she likes to be on the go and just sleeps there.   She did say "we should have seen it before" and that she is now ready to do a thorough job of it.   I encouraged her telling her how much better it makes one feel.

She was talking about setting up a BandB.............tell all of my friends.    My advice..........Do not stay with her.   We have had some very nice, well kept, and clean accommodations.

Stay tuned.

BEAUMARIS CASTLE, ANGLESEY, WALES

Just about an hour bus ride from Conwy are about 10 castles.   We only went to Conwy and Beaumaris.   Beaumaris has a moat around it, so the setting is lovely.  The castle itself was never finished because King Edward I and his men conquered Wales and never had a use for it.   It has been left unfinished and has fallen into ruin over the centuries.   The layout is symmetrical and a large grassy court yard in the middle, with inner and outer walls for defense.   It was just a large shell of walls.   Conwy with all of it's rooms and towers were much more exciting.   The stairs are treacherous in both of them!  I have developed climbing muscles as well as the walking muscles I developed at home.   They have come to good use and so far the knees are holding up well.

CONWY CASTLE RUINS

CONWY, WALES

Conwy (pronounced Conway) is a coastal town that was once surrounded by the high walls of the castle.   The city is a village really, small and quaint.   It now consists of the village inside the walls and the village outside the walls.   The entire village is dominated by the castle on the hill with only about 4 streets.  We took a walk around the top of the wall as far as we could go, approximately half to 3/4 the way around the village.   Lots of stairs and hills.

 This is the smallest house in the UK.   It is a few meters deep and about the same wide.   The lady said that a fisherman used to live there and before him a couple.   They had a pull down bed that was stored in the ceiling when unused..........talk about compact.   I wonder where the bathroom was?

 The city and castle are located on the north Wales shore and mussels are the main featured shellfish.   Lots of boats, sailboats, etc. were scattered throughout the harbor.  It is a most beautiful setting and everyone says that we had the luck of the weather with us..........from that I gather that it is rainy and rather gloomy most of the year.

This is the Gwyfryn BandB where we are staying.   Lovely home, but the decor is soooooo cluttered that there isn't enough room to put your things.   It is very clean and the young couple that own it are very nice.