Scotland

It's the furthest North I've ever been in the UK. Seven and a half hours on the train - London to Aviemore.  My daughter was going up there for a month and I was going as support team to help her get settled into her bothy (wooden hut) at the Highland Wildlife Park, in the Scottish mountains. Then a bit of time on my own to go exploring the area.

The logistics of getting around and stocking her up on groceries for the first few days was no mean feat without a car but we managed it with a bit of planning and much studying of the bus timetables.  Once we had arrived at the Wildlife Park and got the food put away, unpacked her very large bag with a months worth of winter, working clothes we were able to have a look around the park and see all the animals.  There is so much space in that part of the world that all the animals had huge enclosures. Link  here

Then it was time to leave her in her bothy and catch the last bus back to the hostel in nearby Aviemore.

So, my daughter started her work experience  and I travelled to Inverness for a couple of nights.  It was strange being in hostels on my own and the weather was wet and cold in Inverness but I explored the city, had a fabulous cream tea in the Royal Highland Hotel, went to a lecture as part of the Science Festival on the Loch Ness Monster and did a lot of reading.

I was glad to get back to the hostel in Aviemore after my trip to Inverness as the hostel in Aviemore is fantastic, has a cosy lounge with a fire and great facilities.  The weather also gave me two sunny days to explore around the area which lifted my spirits after a wet couple of days in the city.

I met my daughter for a fish and chip supper, heard all about her days at the wildlife park and told her about my trips.  Then I stocked her up with more groceries and said goodbye .

High drama at the Osprey centre when I visited as 

a visiting male kicked the eggs out of the nest

I have had to keep up with proceedings on their blog since I left

RSPB Loch Garten

View from the top of the Cairngorm mountain

I cheated and took the train

I did walk around this beautiful Loch though

Red squirrel in the gardens at the hostel

I met some great ladies from Glasgow who were staying at the hostel.  Audrey was there on her own when we first arrived and gave us lots of great ideas of places to visit and practical help on using the local buses.  Angie and Carol were in my dormitory on the second weekend and were great fun to go out for a drink with, their company was much appreciated.

I  am now back at work and have had a cold all week so any benefit of my travels has quickly evaporated but Alf has been very good about keeping me company while I rest and recuperate in the evenings.
I hope my daughter enjoys the rest of her time on her placement and gets out and enjoys the Scottish Highlands.

Not sure I will ever get up that way again but you never know, it's a beautiful part of the world.

xx

Globe theatre, Grayson Perry and Flamingos

I've had the chance to go into London a couple of times recently.  

My first trip was to catch the Grayson Perry 'Who are you?" exhibition before it finished.  My goodness that man is talented.  I watched the TV shows about the making of his exhibition at the end of last year and thought I must go and boy am I glad I did.  His work is just fantastic and knowing the story behind the work just added to the experience.

One of his vases

Part of a huge tapestry

more tapestry

Map of Days - Self portrait

Another trip with a friend from Yorkshire who came to stay, saw us visiting a roof garden in Kensington with great views over London and flamingos and ducks on the roof

How do they get that cow to stay so still?

View over the rooftops

there's a stream on the roof

and Flamingos 

The sun was shining and it was a lovely place to chill and admire the views.

We also had a tour of the Globe theatre which I have been meaning to do for years.  We had a fab guide who was funny and informative, probably an aspiring actor.

The stage

The standing area 

The exhibition before the tour about how Sam Wanamaker got the Globe re-building project off the ground was fascinating too along with costumes and costume designers talking about their quest for the truth in re-creating authentic costumes of the time.  I love the passion and talent some people have .  That seemed to be a theme for the week  as my friend had stopped off to see the coffin of Richard III before he was re-interned and the story of how his remains were re-discovered and the passion of Phillippa Handley, one of the driving forces behind that project, was fascinating too. 

It's been lovely to get out and about and do some different things

xx

Granny stripe blanket

It's been a while.  Just haven't been able to find any words for a post.  

I have been busy crocheting a granny stripe blanket though, as I felt the need to work with lots of colour during the winter.

random colours

on a single bed

the edging

Lots of inspiration and practical help from Lucy's blog at Attic24 - thank you Lucy!

I wanted it to be a couch sized, snuggle blanket for my daughter to take to uni later this year, but I also wanted it to look good on a single bed to brighten up her uni room.

The stats for those of you interested:

54 stripes (2 rows per stripe).  

Starting chain - can't remember. I think I just hung the chain over a single bed with a bit hanging down each side, but as the blanket works best vertically on a single bed this follows no logic at all!

Random colours from my stash

Edging adapted from Lucy's - I had a few false starts - all down to my inability to read Lucy's edging pattern properly.  In the end I just made the two treble rows, half treble rows so it wasn't so deep, but the rest worked fine when I followed the instructions!

Mr NMDS wanted to know why I was making another blanket when we are awash with them already - for a while I told him I was making another one for Alf (our cat) just to annoy him.  He just doesn't get the need to crochet. . . 

xx