Tuesday 6 October 2015

The End of the Line: Granite and Cuddles and Little Cuddles:Days 14 and 15




The Cuddles Family

    Our tour of Scotland wound up in Glasgow on the last day of September.  We travelled from Inverness to Glasgow on an over-crowded train, and returned to our digs at the Alexander Thomson.  The three of us flew home together from Scotland to Halifax where Cuddles and I disembarked while Julia carried on to Toronto.  A few loose ends as I finish the blog, Granite and Cuddles on Tour.....

Sightings:  
Henry VIII or Brian Gorham????

     Sightings is one of my travelling past-times.  This is when I see someone who reminds me of a person I know.  I should not really call it a past-time since I don’t go out looking for these people; they just appear!!  Scotland was so rich in sightings.  I saw my niece Sheila at the next table in a restaurant where my cousin Susan was the waitress.  I saw my niece Stephanie on a tour of Skye and my grandfather Thurlow in a pub on The Royal Mile.  I saw my neighbour Dianne get on a bus in Edinburgh and our neighbour Carla joined us on the train from Inverness.  My friend Ruth was our hostess in Ayr, and our friend Hazel hosted us on Arran.  I saw my brother George about four times on the streets in Glasgow, and I saw Mike M. and all his brothers at least twice all over Scotland. 

Self-identified Scottish Canadians in teal on this map.

     I have concluded that the number of sightings I experienced in Scotland should not really be a big surprise.  After all, Tom’s father left siblings and cousins and aunts and uncles when he immigrated to Canada.  It is not such a stretch that we would be meeting Tom’s cousins as we stroll down the streets of Glasgow.  My Fullerton ancestors left Scotland in the 1800s, but they would have been leaving relatives at home in the Scottish gene pool, so I could definitely be encountering relatives as I move through the homeland.  So many of us in Canada are refugees or immigrants from the UK.

Julia's Pretend Grandfather in George Square

The Scottish Language:
     I did not anticipate any communication problems while travelling in Scotland.  After all, the Scots speak English primarily, and a wee bit of Gaelic.  However, the accent got me on a few occasions.
Speak Scottish
Are You a Kook?
     While travelling from Inverness to Kyle of Lochalsh, I was seated across the aisle from a lady and two brothers.  Cuddles and Little Cuddles were seated elsewhere so I was enjoying guilt-free eaves-dropping while knitting a mitten and taking in the landscape on one of the most scenic train rides in the UK.  The lady, whom I had named Mary Jane according to my sighting criteria, was chatting away with the two middle-aged brothers, whom I had named Russell and Freeman.  They were travelling to Lochalsh for a family reunion.  
Mary Jane
As we passed through a small village, I actually heard Mary Jane her say in her musical lilt, “Aye, I used to take my wee bairns there when they were young.  A bonny place.”  I was quite enjoying their conversation, feeling a bit cocky with the free entertainment.  
Russell and Freeman
Then, somewhat out of the blue, the lovely Scottish lady said to one of the brothers, “Are you a kook?”  Oh my God, I thought.  Mary Jane just asked Russell if he was a kook.  How impertinent!  Not at all like the Mary Jane of wee bairns and bonny places.  I lifted my eyes from my needles and glanced across the aisle.  Mary Jane still had that pleasant, open look on her rosy face.  My knitting slowed as I waited for Russell’s response.  “I do kook some but I get a lot of me meals at the pub.”


Would You Like Some Black Paper?
Cecchini's Ayr
Then at the restaurant in Ayr....
     After our waitress, cousin Susan, placed our steaming hot meals before us, she looked at me and said, "Would you like some black paper?"   
    "Pardon me?" I responded.
    "Would you like some black paper?"
     I was stunned.  I wracked my brain, wondering what she meant.  The table had no tablecloth or place-mats.  Maybe she was talking about place-mats.  Again, I asked her to repeat the question.
     "Would you like some black paper?"  In desperation, I looked across the table to Cuddles. 
     "Black pepper," he said.  "Do you want some black pepper?"

Ring Chapel Four
     Unfortunately, on Day Five of our trip, I had to buy a new cell-phone.  I'm not exactly a tech wizard, but I had gotten used to my little white Nokia over the last four years and was not keen to let her go.  While buying the new Samsung Android, our salesperson, whom I had named Karen, said, "And if you have any problems, just ring Chapel Four."
     "Pardon me?" I asked.  The salesperson had been very patient with my denseness, stupid questions and repeated requests for instructions.  I hated to ask her again.
    "Pardon me?" I repeated.  
     "Just ring Chapel Four."
Chapel Four
      Chapel Four, I thought.  Was that some sort of prayer circle for tech-challenged customers?  Not a bad idea.  
     I looked over at Cuddles.  Pointing at the keypad on the phone, he translated,"Ring treble four." 


SIGNS
     Along with sightings and the spoken word, I enjoy collecting signs while travelling.  Unfortunately, when my sweet little Nokia broke down, I lost many photos which included a lot of my Sign Collection.  I have retained a few.

To Robert Burns: 

In honour of Ronnie from "Law and Order, UK":
 

Glasgow Motto:

My friend, Mrs. Patmore of "Downton Abbey"....not just a sighting!

The Wifi Booth:
 

Victorian Water Fountain:


Health Promotion:

More Health Promotion:

Poop and Scoop in Scottish:

If the roads get icy!

Yield, in Scottish.


Tatties on Sale at the Grocery Store: 

Wrap your sandwich in Cling Film:

Do the Dishes with Washing Up Liquid:

After reading about our encounter with Roald Dahl, the Gaelic Ronald McDonald, my friend Ines sent the following inspirational message for Cuddles.  I leave you with this thought.




Thus ends Granite and Cuddles on Tour.  Hope to see you back at Woolgathering!













































Friday 2 October 2015

The "Mathieson" Castle: Eilean Donan and The Isle of Skye: Days 12 and 13

Castle at Eilean Donan

     While doing a school project on heritage in grade seven, Julia found a Mathieson connection to the castle at Eilean Donan, so that was a must stop on our Scottish itinerary.  Sure enough, when we got there, we found that a Matheson had been commissioned to build the castle in the 13th Century.  Legend has it that this Matheson could communicate with birds and the birds told him that his father should wait on him hand and foot.  The Matheson father reacted to that by kicking the Matheson son out of the home.  I know another Mathieson who claims he can communicate with birds.....and would  LIKE to be waited on hand and foot.

Tom, Overlooking the Family Home

The name Matheson comes up again in the 1500s when Dubh Matheson died trying to defend the castle from attack by the MacDonalds.
Modern Day Mathiesons at Eilean Donan

This castle is located where three lochs meet and was originally built as a defensive measure against the raiding Vikings.  It is one of the most recognized castles in Scotland and "probably appears on more shortbread tins and calendars than any other."  It has been used in many movies including Highlander and the James Bond movie, The World is not Enough.   Eilean Donan, Island of Donan, is currently owned by the McCrae clan.  Our own Canadian John McCrae, poet of "In Flanders Fields", is of the same clan and is recognized within the castle walls.
"In Flanders Fields" excerpt

     Eilean Donan is within view of the Isle of Skye where we spent two nights.  We hired a car with guide for an extensive tour of  Skye, which is one of the 35 inhabited islands of the Inner Hebrides.
Julia Mathieson on Skye

Sky on Skye

Castle Ruins on Skye

Tom Highlander on Skye

Short Hike on Skye

Afternoon Cuppa on Skye

Old Man of Storr , Skye


Near Storr, Skye
  
Kilt Rock, Skye

Portree, Skye

 
Road on Skye

Stone Bridge near Sligachan, Skye

    We stayed two nights in a "self-catering" Air B and B.  
Our Home on Skye
Your Basic Tartan Chair
  
The View from our House in Breakish

The Mortarless Stone Wall by the House

Family Boot-Dryer by the Backdoor

We were able to do some of our own cooking but we also frequented the local restaurant where we tried haggis, tatties and neeps.  It was good!  Julia compared it to Shepherd's Pie.

Haggis, Tatties and Neeps



........Until Next Time.....

Thursday 1 October 2015

Roald Dahl in Inverness

     Roald Dahl is the famous Welsh author best known for his children's book, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

Roald Dahl


Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

     And what does Roald Dahl and his works have to do with our trip to Scotland?  Well, on our night out in Inverness, we dined at the local McDonald's.  You might say we were "slumming it" , or at least saving some of those hard-earned, low-valued Canadian dollars.  Tom and I sat at a booth while Julia was buying our McDonald meals at the counter.  The following sign was on our table.   

Sign on the Table

     Tom, aka Cuddles, picked up the sign and said, in all seriousness, "Oh look, this must be Ronald McDonald in Gaelic."
     Oh dear, how I laughed.  And when Julia returned with our meals and I related the story, we laughed again.  Fortunately Cuddles is a good sport and joined us in our gales of laughter, commenting that he was happy he could bring us such joy.  

Happy Meals!!

      The real story behind McDonalds and Roald Dahl..............For six weeks this fall, McDonalds restaurants in the UK are giving away a Roald Dahl book with every happy meal.  I've got to say, Roald Dahl sure made our McDonalds meal HAPPY in Inverness!





..................Until Next Time.............