Vacation Part 2

On Monday July 9, we took a rode trip to the west coast of Scotland. The trip was 180 miles, but would take us about 5 hours due to the curvy roads. We were on several small country roads to get there. It actually took us more than 5 hours because we found many neat places to stop along the way. Here is a picture of one of the roads we were on.


One of our stops was Loch Laggan. The scenery was incredible.



We also stopped at Glenfinnan. The bridge here is the one used in the Harry Potter movies. Again, the scenery here was amazing. There is something about a loch surrounded by lush, green mountains.




We arrived in Arisaig in the afternoon, which is a small town right on the ocean. We walked along the beach enjoying the views of the islands in the distance. The names of the isles are Rum, Eigg, and Skye. The last picture is of Arisaig Harbour at sunset.




On Tuesday we took a boat to the isle of Eigg. It was an hour boat ride, on which we hoped to see dolphins, seals, and maybe whales. No such luck. All we saw were birds. It was a very cloudy day so the views were not very good. But we were thankful it was dry. We had five hours on Eigg to explore. We decided to climb An Sgurr, which is the highest point on the isle. It didn't look like it was that far from where the boat landed, but was farther than we thought. It took us about 2 hours to get close to the top. We didn't make it to the very top because we ran out of time. About half way up, we ran into some boggy areas. As we stepped the ground sunk and filled our shoes with cold water. There was no way around, so we got wet. When we got back to the bottom, we had a nice cup of tea and relaxed. Round trip we had walked 4.7 miles.

The first picture is of An Sgurr. The second is a view from about half way up on our walk/climb.



On our boat trip back to Arisaig, we got to see seals in the Harbour.


On Wednesday, we drove up towards Inverness and stopped at several places along the way. One place was the Falls of Moriston.


Urquhart Castle sits on the shores of Loch Ness and is probably the most famous site associated with the Loch besides Nessie. We saw the Castle, but Nessie did not stop by :-)


Debbie and I decided to put our feet in the cold water of Loch Ness.

Summer Vacation pt.1

We have been very busy the last two weeks visiting sights around Scotland. Jason's parents arrived on July 4th. We stayed around Aberdeen for a few days seeing the local sights. On Thursday Jason and his parents went up to the River Don to walk around (I was still working). They saw seals laying on the beach near the area of the river that goes into the North Sea. We went there again on Saturday so that I could see them.


On Friday we went to Dunnottar Castle, which is my favourite spot around Aberdeen. The scenery is just incredible. It was raining pretty hard when we got to the town of Stonehaven. We sat in the car and ate our lunch and then drove to the castle. It rained lightly for a few minutes at the castle but then stopped and we were able to enjoy the scenery.


On the way home from Dunnottar, we stopped at Torry Battery. This is an old fort on a hill at the Harbour entrance in Aberdeen. This is the spot where we had seen dolphins before. As we drove up and looked out into the water, we would see the dolphins. We spent a few minutes watching them, but didn't get to see them do any good jumps. It was still very exciting.


On Saturday we went to Fyvie Castle. It is about 30 minutes north of Aberdeen. We walked on a trail through the forest which led us around the pond. Then we explored the inside of the castle. It still has the furniture and decorations of the last owner, who bought the castle in 1885. The castle dates back to the 13th century but had many addition to it over the years.


On the way home from Fyvie Castle, we stopped at Tolquhon Castle. It is a ruin, that dates back to the 1400's. Most of it was built in the late 1500's and it was abandoned by 1800. It was fun to explore and see what they think the different rooms might have been.

update

Life has moved quickly the last two months. My term has ended, which doesn't really mean much. I will continue to work throughout the summer. I have completed the basic argument of my first chapter, and I am working on preliminarily matters for the second. Erin finished her school year this week. The last day was Wednesday, but has in-service until next Thursday. She will be off until the middle of August.

We have some friends from college coming today. They will be here for the weekend, and we are going to Edinburgh on Sunday. My parents arrive on Wednesday and will be here for 10 days. We will spend the first couple of days visiting some places close to Aberdeen. On Monday week, we will drive to the west coast of Scotland. After a couple of days there, we will come back passed Loch Ness, where we hope to see Nessie. I think the reward is 1 million pounds right now. We are trying to arrange a trip to Ireland for early August.

That is about everything from this side of the pond.

A few interesting items

The days are continually getting longer. We took this picture at 945 pm a couple of days ago. Since the sky was really clear, it still had a slight glow to it. Sunrise is around 520 now and sunset about 845. It is much different than 3 months ago.

The other day Erin heard alot of noise in the back garden, and when she looked out seagulls were all over. Someone decided to throw bread out their window. The seagulls were very excited.

Dunnottar Castle

On Saturday the 14th, we journeyed down to Stonehaven and Dunnottar Castle. Stonehaven is about 15-20 minute drive south of Aberdeen right on the coast. The castle is about 2 miles from Stonehaven, and you can get there by car or walking along the cliff edges and through some fields.

Of course, we choose the walk. Along the way, we stopped at the Stonehaven War Memorial, which was set up to remember those from the Stonehaven district who died during WWI and to which the names of the dead of WWII were added.

Although the castle is now ruins, one can imagine the beauty and size of the castle. It sits on a massive rock that sticks out into the sea. The only way to the castle is down a very step hill and then right back up. It is hard to describe and the pictures certainly do not do justice to the amazing size and beauty of the rock the castle sits on.


The first mention of the area is in the 400s when the area was used as a base for (later) St. Ninian's mission to the Scots. A chapel was built in the 13th century, but it did not last long. It was destroyed by William Wallace, who burned it down with the English soldiers inside. For the next 100 years or so, the Scots and English would trade it back and forth depending on who had the most control over the land.
This is not a typical castle with high walls and defenses because it was not necessary. The wall blocks the only entrance to the castle grounds so one only had to fortify this small area.

The Keep was built in the 14th century by the Sir William Keith.

After the family became to large for the Keep, the other buildings were added beginning in the 16th century. The West, North and East Ranges contained rooms for guests and the family, a kitchen, a dining room and a long gallery. The castle must have been amazing during the 16-17 centuries. It is too bad that the weather has done so much damage to it.

Three other interesting facts about the castle. First, it was used in the movie Hamlet starring Mel Gibson. Second, the Scottish royal jewels were protected from Oliver Cromwell and his soldiers at the castle (1652). The jewels were eventually smuggled out of the castle, although no one is exactly sure how.

Third, in 1685 a group known as the Covenanters were kept here because they refused to say that the king had authority over the church and to accept the new prayer book. 167 men and women were housed in a relatively small room for over 2 months. Some acknowledged the kings authority, while others tried to escape. Most were put on a boat and shipped to the West Indies. Only 35 survived the journey.

This group's history is marked with persecution, sadness and yet joy. Their willingness to stand for Christ and his gospel in the face of persecution and certain death serves as a remarkable example to each of us. May the Lord grant to us the same resolution and confidence in his grace.

Catching Up

Sorry it has been so long since we have added anything to our blog. The last month has been extremely busy so we haven't settled down to post anything. Below are three new posts. Enjoy.

Spring is Here!

We were welcomed back to Aberdeen with beautiful weather (temps in the 50's). We had our coats ready when we left the airport but didn't need them. The trees and flowers are blooming. Daffodils seem to grow everywhere. Sunday was so sunny and warm that we decided to spend some time outdoors. We went for a walk on the beach and tried to see the dolphins, but no luck. Many people were out enjoying the weather. The range of clothing that we see here is so funny. Some people were still in coats. One guy even had a stocking cap on. Others were wearing shorts, t-shirts, and sandals! We are usually somewhere in between.

Trip to the States

On March 19th, we flew back to Arizona for my brother's wedding. Jonathan and Emily were married on March 24th. Our first week back, I enjoyed helping mom prepare for the wedding and did some shopping. We had a list of things we wanted to get while we were home (chocolate chips, hair spray...you know, the really important stuff). Jason spent the week playing with Jake and Bailey, my parent's dogs, and enjoying some TV. The dogs are so much fun. They love to be wherever you are.

The wedding was wonderful. Jason performed the ceremony which made it very special. He did a great job. We enjoyed getting to know Emily's family. We also enjoyed spending some time with Jonathan and Emily on Sunday and Monday, before they moved to Idaho on Tuesday. Emily fits in great with our family and we are so excited that she is now a part of it.


We enjoyed the warm weather and sunshine. It seemed funny to wear shorts and t-shirts. We also enjoyed eating our favourite foods (oops, British spelling) such as Mexican food, Cold Stone ice cream, Pop Tarts, donuts, pizza, and pork on the grill (we were there three weeks so this eating was spread out!) They do have donuts and pizza in Scotland but they aren't the same. It was good to be home and see family and friends. Of course there were many people we didn't see that we would have liked to.