25th November Glasgow

As I have never been to Glasgow Brian and Tricia very kindly offered to take me there. It's always been on my to do list but just a place I have never got to...my Grandma was originally from here. First we went to the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum. It has 22 themed galleries displaying 8000 objects covering themes like natural history, arms and armour and art form many periods of history. The art gallery includes many European artworks including Old Masters, Impressionists (yep, some more Monet and Van Gogh), Scottish Colourists and the Glasgow School. It also houses 'Christ of Saint John of the Cross' by Salvador Dali. The gallery opened in 1901 and is built in a Spanish Baroque style using Dumfriesshire red sandstone. It is quite a spectacular looking building. While we were looking through one of the galleries a pane of glass around one of the displays exploded and shattered into a thousand pieces...high drama! mum told me that when she was a young girl she went to the circus at the park near here.

Next we headed to the Transport Museum, now known as the Riverside Museum. It was opened on the 21st June 2011 at Pointhouse Quay in the Glasgow Harbour regeneration district of Glasgow. They have over 3000 objects on display and visitors can climb aboard some of the exhibits and get a feel for vintage publi transport. These included trams, subway cars, a train carriage and a bus. They also have a recreated street from 1895-1930, plus two additional display areas depicting shops from the 1930's, right through the 1980's. Naturally we took our photos on the exhibits! You can't half tell from the photo of Brian and I that we are related! We also saw the Number 29 tram which Aunty Marti tells me that her and my Mum used to take to visit their Gran...a while ago now... afterall it is in a museum ;) Then we headed back to Aunty Marti & Uncle Rick's, where I got to spend a bit more time seeing the kids before they all headed home to get ready for work and school tomorrow! I really enjoyed spending time with Brian and Tricia...and I'm looking forward to them coming to Australia!!! (Even if it is a few years away)

24th November Edinburgh

Today we took a quick trip to the shopping centre...yep, another pound shop...and then to a card shop to look for some Christmas cards. I am overwhelmed with the variety of cards that are available...and cheap! You can buy Christmas cards for anyone...Mum, Dad, Nanna & Grandad, Grandma & Grandad, Son & Daughter-in-Law, Daughter & Partner, Son & Girlfriend, Dad & Partner...and there were loads more! We just don't have this variety at home, and it's the same with clothes. I also picked up a couple of chrissie pressies toady too :)

Brian and the kids arrived and I got to meet Andrew and see poor Sarah's finger which she slammed in the car door last week. It is now black!!! Brian and I then headed off to pick up Tricia to go out for dinner. Tonight we went out to a restaurant called Dakota which is located at South Queensferry and is part of a hotel. This was after a week of trying to decide where to go mind you...but we picked one eventually! The building is a big black cube with 'Dakota' standing out in neon blue light. The decor of the restaurant is very sleek and trendy and the restaurant is cleverly designed so that some tables seem to be their own private room, yet part of the main restaurant.The service was outstanding and all the staff were very friendly. The food was very good too. I had the warm goats cheese, beetroot and rocket salad for entree, a rib-eye steak with blue cheese butter on the side for the main, and a sticky toffee pudding for dessert...yummm!!! Brian and Tricia's meals were great too...I know Brians steak tartare was good because I tasted it ;) 

After dinner we went to see the Forth Bridge. The Forth Bridge is a cantilever railway bridge over the Firth of Forth. It was opened in 1890 and connects Scotland's capital city of Edinburgh with Fife, it acts as the major artery connecting the north-east and the south-east of the country. It is often called the Forth Rail Bridge to distinguish it from the Forth Road Bridge. Sometimes if the winds are too strong the Forth Road Bridge has to be closed because it is unsafe for vehicles, particularly buses. After a quick photo stop we headed to Brian and Tricia's and made plans for tomorrow...and there was a Robbie Williams concert at the O2 in London on the TV...perfect end to a perfect night! Thanks guys xxx

23rd November Edinburgh

Well! Well! Well! Will you look at the date!!! Yes that's right...after about 5 weeks of being behind in my blog, I have FINALLY caught up! My time in Scotland has meant that I could catch my breath...in more ways than one...and catch up! Today was the 'school pick-up' day so we headed off about 11:30 to pick up Emily from school. In Scotland, kids in the council run schools (which is all but the fee paying private schools) only go to school for half a day on Friday. On the way home we took the coast road and along the way we stopped so I could take a photo of these two witches that were sitting on a fence...halloween decorations...they were awesome! The scenery along the coast was beautiful...it's not raining today so the view was grand! On the way home we stopped at Tesco to get some things for dinner...and to buy Emily her magazine and toy from the machine! She had packed in her bag today a kangaroo and two koala's to show me...her Dad later told me she had searched through all her toys just to find them for me! When we got home Raymond was there and waiting for us but we had some lunch before they went and Emily and I played on my iPad for a while. Then it was time for them to head off to Emily's swimming lesson and we headed off to Dobbies. Dobbies is a garden centre...that has a considerable lot more than garden things. It has all sorts of things...gifts, clothes, a huge eatery area, christmas decorations and a farm store that sells all kinds of food. We spent quite a lot of time looking through the christmas decorations...and I may have bought a few more (big blush)! They also had these cool displays, one was a group of Santa's singing and playing instruments and there was another one of polar bears that moved, they were fabulous. Then we had a look through the farm store and all the great produce...Mum you would love it...and we bought some black pudding for breakfast tomorrow :) Tomorrow night my cousin Brian and Tricia are taking me out for dinner...so the blog will have to wait...but I'm really looking forward to catching up with them :))))) and tomorrow I get to meet Andrew..and check out Sarah's finger that she broke when she slammed it in the door of her Dad's car the other night!

22nd November Edinburgh

Today I had another appointment at the chiropractor but first we were waiting for the new sofa to arrive. The delivery truck arrived and in the wind and rain the delivery guys managed to get them inside the conservatory. They are really lovely. The double seat sofa is a plain brown fabric and the single seat has a patterned cover and they look great together. We headed up to the shops to have a look for cups to put under the sofa legs and went for a wander through the 'pound shops'. The pound shops are like our $2 shops but they have different things to what we have at home so I love going up and down the aisles...and I have made a few purchases! Today I saw some small bottles and some cans of 

Irn-Bru...the other national drink of Scotland after whisky...and Brenton's favourite, so I took some photos. Late this afternoon we headed into Edinburgh for my chiropractor appointment. He was keen to know how I was getting on and I was pleased to report that although I was sore after his manipulations on Tuesday, the headache at least was gone. My neck and lower back were still sore...so he used his magic fingers...seriously, I wanted to put him in my suitcase and bring him home!...and he cracked my neck again and did a few other things. He thinks I should be OK now till I get home...but I'm going to try and be a little more careful just in case! On the way home we stopped at the Fish and Chip shop and I got a "Haggis Supper" for dinner....yum!!!!! Aunty Martie asked me if I wanted salt 'n' sauce with it...what the??? was my reply. It's salt and sauce, but its a vinegar tasting brown sauce, not BBQ sauce, so I said no and waited till we got home to put on my own salt and HP brown sauce. The Haggis I had tonight  was deep fried in batter and was served with chips. Haggis traditionally is a savoury pudding containing sheep's pluck (heart, liver and lungs) minced with onion, oatmeal, suet, spices, and salt, mixed with stock and traditionally encased in the animals stomach and then simmered for approximately three hours. Most modern commercial haggis is now prepared in a sausage casing rather than the actual stomach. Haggis is a traditional Scottish dish and is considered the national dish of Scotland as a result of Robert Burns' poem 'Adress to a Haggis'. It is traditionally served with "neeps and tatties" (turnip and potato), boiled and mashed seperately and a dram (glass of Scotch whisky). I quite like it and I have fond memories of "Haggis Supper" from our trip here in 2001 when Brenton and I would always order it. 

Tonight I am going to confess my new addiction to UK television. Yep...its happened! At home I would never watch any of these shows and I'm pretty sure I have never watched an episode of them...but here I am...maybe its the Scottish air...but I am starting to look forward to tomorrow nights show to see what happens next. At home I enjoy the UK shows where they buy and sell houses etc...but I'm talking about Emmerdale, Coronation Street and East Enders...and even 'I'm a celebrity get me out of here'. LOL! When I get home I feel  I'm going to pay more attention to the UK channel than I have previously!

21st November Britannia

Today we headed to Ocean Terminal at Leith to see Her Majesty's Yacht Britannia. But first we stopped to see two Highland cows resting in the grass...last time I was in Scotland we searched for a highland cow for the whole time I was here and only saw one miles away from home! Britannia is the former Royal Yacht of Queen Elizabeth II and it is now permanently moored as an exhibition ship at Leith. During her career as a Royal Yacht, Britannia conveyed the Queen, other members of the Royal Family and various dignitaries on 696 foreign visits and 272 visits in British waters. Before you even step on board, the Visitors Centre has displays and historical photographs of Britannia's fascinating past. The Britannia is a big boat and there is lots to see. We were given audio guides and off we went...first stop was the Bridge. The water surrounding the Britannia is a very dark brown/black colour which means it acts like a mirror and reflects the sky. I couldn't stop taking photos of the reflected sky in the water...it was amazing. The tour explores five decks of the ship and we saw the fabulous State Apartments and the Royal Bedrooms. This included the Queens bedroom and the Duke of Edinburgh's bedroom and the 'honeymoon' suite where Charles and Diana spent their honeymoon in 1981. The State Dining Room had displays of gifts which had been presented to the queen from various state visits. On board they have a NAAFI sweet shop and I got to sample the strawberry and cream flavoured fudge. The rooms the Royal family used were quite sumptuous and the rooms contain personal items that give you a glimpse into their private lives. I was surprised at the size of some of the rooms, including the large lounge room where they relaxed, played piano and board games etc...all with the butler on hand to meet all their needs! Conditions below deck for those working on the ship were not as grand...in fact their sleeping quarters and storage was quite cramped. On board was also a huge laundry (staff and 'royal' laundry were done on different days) and a sick bay that contained a fully functioning operating theatre!!!! The engine room was AMAZINGLY clean and sparkling and up on one of the decks was a retired Rolls-Royce Phantom V state car in a purpose built garage! It was unbelievable really. Then we went to the shop...which is always at the end of a tourist stop...and I bought a couple of things...including another christmas decoration! We also went for a wander through the other shops at Ocean Terminal before heading home.