Out & About - Edinburgh Festival

August 08 - here, there and everywhere

With Edinburgh Festival madness upon us again, Michael's older sister Vanessa was up working at the Festival, both talent spotting for writers and producing a TV comedy pilot. Unfortunately, her free days coincided with days when I had long-standing social arrangements (a friend's BBQ and a dinner party) so we ended up meeting up with her in between shows on a Friday - I took a day's leave - and on a Saturday daytime. I even had to turn down the offer of attending the Perrier Award Winners' party to go to my dinner party back in Stirling, although Michael turned it down cos he hates big parties!

Having a drink in Edinburgh - Michael & his sister Vanessa

We (ok, I) struggled to get up early on the last Saturday of the Festival to get to Edinburgh for 10.30am to watch the comedy that Vanessa was producing - 'The Emergency Family'. There were various actors who had volunteered to take on the parts and who had only rehearsed together a few times before performing the 2 pilot episodes of the comedy series. I was surprised that they used their scripts but it worked and was pretty funny in places (Vanessa didn't write it). There were a few faces I recognised including a very old-looking Michael Barrymore.

Edinburgh was heaving with people and we just wanted to get away from Princes Street to somewhere a bit saner and quieter.

Dinner party - ladies' night. Left to right: Nicki, Wendy, Jenny, Georgia, Gemma

I cycled to my ladies' dinner party in nearby Bridge of Allan prefering that option to the bus or a taxi. I knew I would be having a few drinks but felt that I'd either cycle home or as a last resort get a taxi. When it finally came time to leave in the early hours, it was peeing with rain and I was a bit the worse for wear. Anyway, Nicki and I decided to cycle home together, on the (empty) footpaths, with no bike lights and got very, very wet. At the half way point I started to feel very tired and questionned the wisdom of my decision. I got home soaking wet and muddy.

The party was good- we had a dinner provided by 3 different people- I did the starter (avocado, papaya & pine nuts in lime juice and ginger) which looked like a wreck but tasted good (presentation- nul point) - Jenny & Georgia our hosts provided fish pie for mains and then we had a rather tasty summer fruit pudding for dessert. Oh yes, and lots of wine. We then played stupid games including pass the parcel, a board game called Articulate (my team won but only cos there were no questions on sport or science) and a card game reminiscent of musical chairs - all of which resulted in a great deal of hilarity.

Sunday was spent 'relaxing' while the rest of the girls went on a hill walk- they must be mad!

Me on Ben Ledi - lovely light and purple heather on the hills

As I had taken Monday off, Mic & I went on a gentle hill walk up Ben Ledi and only got rained on a bit- the rest of the time we had sun. The streams and river were really flowing fast and our normal crossing point over the stream was deeper than usual meaning we spent ten minutes trying to figure out how to cross without falling in, testing rocks and depth etc. In the end I walked straight through it while Michael opted to return the way we'd come and met me further along the path (I think he just didn't want to spoil his new suede hillwalking boots although he claimed he didn't want wet feet!)

Trains, Planes & Delays

Over the past month I have been up and down to Oxford and London 3 times for work. I prefer to get the train when I can for my green conscience. On one trip I did resort to the plane for fear of Sunday engineering works on the railways but it would have taken the same time to get the train - since the plane was delayed 2 hours - and would've been less hassle!

I get really peed off with the cost of trains mind you. It cost £48 for a single flight from Edinburgh to Birmingham- but a return train ticket from Oxford to London was £50 - it's ridiculous! The trains are too expensive and the planes are too cheap. Why would people spend £100s on a train when they could get to the same destination faster for less by air?

I had 2 days in London and walked my feet off going round the shops on Oxford street before I had to run a focus group in the evening. My boss Sally flew down to run the group with me - (having twice forgotten her purse, borrowing 40 quid off a taxi driver and finally making it from Edinburgh) then afterwards, before getting our train, we went to a nice wee Indian restaurant near Euston which has been there since the 80s. But, as we ate a fight broke out in the restaurant- not between diners or a diner and staff but between 2 staff!

I took the sleeper train for the first time that night- misnomer extraordinaire - sleep is the last thing you do! It was like a small garden shed with a bed and sink and a window. I wasn't sure what to expect. In first class you get a cabin to yourself rather than sharing the same cabin with a stranger. You put in your breakfast order as you board the train where a nice lady asks you what you want and at what time. In your cabin you get a complimentary toiletry bag and a clean towel - I got a new eye mask in my bag, a mini deodorant, toothbrush, face cream etc. I had just bought some travel toiletries and needn’t have bothered! No ear plugs but I had my own anyway - even so the sound of metal grinding on metal is not conducive to sleep.

Some strange/ worrying things I encountered on my various trips included a young woman under the influence of I'm not sure what lighting up in the seats next to me on the train then passing out, ciggie still in hand burning the plastic interior of the carriage...(she did eventually get removed, shoes on the wrong feet, by traffic cops). At Edinburgh airport I was bemused to see 'organs for transplant' being checked in at the usual check-in desks in what looked like a small plastic pet carrier and a large young woman at check-in bending over in a short dress to sort her bag only to reveal enormous white knickers (think Bridget Jones tummy control pants) and sheer purple tights with enormous holes in them around the crotch...ooh nice! I didn't have the heart to tell her what she'd just shared with the entire check-in queue!

Sun, rain & scary mountains

Aberfoyle July 08
The summer hasn't been good anywhere in the UK this year but now and again we get a lovely sunny day so we make the most of it. Mind you, even if it rains we go out walking! When we want a nice gentle walk Michael and I often go to Aberfoyle and just do one of the marked trails through the forest park- we rarely meet anyone on them, most people stick to the car park and lodge area and the adventure park 'Go Ape' thing with death slides and things.

A hot sunny day near Aberfoyle

Scary mountain - Ben Lawers, 2nd Aug 08
Our friend from near Barcelona, Toni, who's a really keen mountaineer and climber, often suggests a weekend walk and he has the maps and leads the walk for us. This time we went up to Ben Lawers national park near Killin with 2 new friends - Alexandra from France and Rosalia another Catalan so there were 5 of us including me and Nicki.

Toni drove and as usual the drive up was wonderfully scenic - we even saw a golden eagle near Ben Ledi balancing on a telegraph wire - another first for me! We came scarily close to the many enormous tour coaches on the narrow, twisty Scottish roads, it being full tourist season. Killin was the busiest I’ve seen it with many tourists admiring the white waters of the 'Falls of Dochart' and the village main street.

Another day, another mountain. Looking pretty wet as we near the summit and peaks of Ben Lawers - Nicki, Toni, Alexandra (in Michael's old jacket) & me

The girls Alex and Rosalia, who are only here working at the uni for the summer, had only brought fashion jackets and jumpers to walk in but with heavy rain forecast I offered to lend them a couple of coats (they certainly needed them)– when they suggested just using an umbrella I realised perhaps they weren’t expecting a mountain walk but a ramble!

We started around 12 noon from the car park at Ben Lawers- there was heavy rain and it rained for the entire ascent, more or less, then typically there was gorgeous sunshine for much of the descent! I was cautious not to go too fast as I had a sore hip- I thought perhaps I had jarred it on a previous hill walk but now remember pulling a muscle when messing about in the swimming pool with my nephews in York (a visit to the doctor since then confirmed it's probably just a strain, but possibly a hernia which will reveal itself through a swelling and severe pain in a few weeks... ouch!). So I was taking it slowly to avoid aggravating the pain and Alex also went at a slow pace to enjoy the views.

I did find the first 30 minutes of the walk the hardest, as is often the case, and think that eating a big banana just before starting the walk certainly didn't help! Toni is a pretty fast walker - although he describes his pace as moderate - so when I can keep up I am pleased with myself! This time I definitely wasn't keeping up!

The ridge- wet, misty & very steep - urgh!

The ridge, which runs along a number of adjacent munro peaks, was in thick mist and was narrow, as you'll see in the photos - not something I'd fancy trying in the snow. As we started the descent we came across a very steep, rocky and muddy section. As I was trying to work out which route down was the safest I froze as I heard a women screaming for a full 30 seconds. I looked down the very steep moutain side in horror fully expecting to see a woman tumbling down the slope, then lying limp and broken. Toni, Nicki and Rosali were ahead of Alex and I and Toni could see what had happened- he called back to reassure us the person was ok but it gave me a fright and the danger of the rocky section became very real.

At last, the sun comes out on the descent - Rosalia (in one of my jackets!) admiring the view. The man who fell down the rocks is walking in the distance.

Alex and I decided we'd rather go back the way we had come but Toni assured us that this was the only steep and rocky section from now on- I couldn't see a way down and had visions of slipping. After a long time glued to one spot, Toni helped me to manouevre my way down safely, mostly shuffling on my bum, but I was worried about falling and taking him with me. The rocks were wet, the muddy sections were sodden and loose and my boots' soles do not bend to grip to rocks. The girl behind me was only wearing trainers so I was worried about her too.

As we came round the bend we saw a man sitting with his head in his hands and a woman standing near him - it was the man who had slipped and fallen and his friend who had screamed having seen him fall and 'land on his head' as she described it (the person who falls rarely has time to scream). He wasn't bleeding or unconscious and luckily was able to walk so we accompanied them the long walk back to the car park where his female friend took him off to the hopsital for a check over. You do get a bit blase when you do a lot of walking but it brought back to me how things can go easily wrong- I didn't have a first aid kit or a survival bag with me and mobiles do not work up these hills. We felt very relieved that the acccident hadn't been worse.

When we got back to the car the rain had gone and it was beautifully sunny - we could now see the peaks we'd climbed. Purple heather in the foreground.

When we got back to the car, the sun was glorious and the views amazing so we ate our packed lunches, took some photos and enjoyed the views. It certainly didn't look dangerous now. Luckily I had a change of clothes as my backside was very wet and muddy. We headed off to one of the hotel pub's in Killin afterwards for tea/ beer and finally got home by around 7pm.

Summer travels

York Summer hols, July 08
I was so looking forward to a holiday after a busy, stressful time at work and had planned to have a family holiday near York with mum, dad, Kate and her 2 kids for a week. We drove down in 2 cars- Kate and I with the boys and mum and dad in his new Audi which he is ‘breaking in’. As the kids are only 6 and 3 we needed to break up the journey for them so stopped twice on the way there, taking our time and letting them run around and use the play parks. One of the places, a farm shop and café had a trampoline in the grounds that was incredibly popular with all the kids who were there – we hadn’t realised it was wet so they all came off with soggy socks!

Holiday cottage near Claxton, York - Dad, Ruben & Mum

Dad had found a holiday cottage near Claxton about 6 miles from York in grounds with 12 cottages and a small indoor heated pool, outdoor tennis courts and a play park. The countryside around the cottages was flat fields which was strange to me after the hills I am now used to around Stirling. We had a nest of 5 baby swallows in the eaves outside the kitchen and dining room and spent time every day watching which chick was getting fed, whether any had perished (none did but one greddy one got very fat), and being amazed at how often and for how long the parents fed them- apparently it tots up to 7000 insects a day which they catch on the wing!


Video clip of swallow family taken by dad on his camera

We barely saw any of the other families staying there for the entire week and only once had to share the pool with another family- who got out pretty soon after we got in (one advantage of having small kids with you!). There was only 1 day when we didn’t use the pool as we were late home after visiting my mum’s sister Janet at the campsite she and Byron were staying on not far from us (they have got a spanking new campervan with all mod cons- I am jealous. Byron even tows his smart car behind it).

The Shambles in York- Mum & Dan by Chocolate shop

Although there were a few downpours we mostly had good and sunny weather and had a glorious hot day on Scarborough beach where I and my sisters had spent some happy childhood hols with mum, dad and our grandparents. It hasn’t changed and I have a memory from when I was only 3 of the steep hill going from the beach up to the hotel we stayed in – sadly the fountain where we used to wash the sand off our feet was no longer there but the hill was just the same as I remembered. Strange that you can have such clear memories from such a young age - it obviously left an impression on me!

Scarborough beach where we spent childhood holidays - it hasn't changed!

We tried to do things that would appeal to the kids- the Transport Museum and large ‘Ferris wheel’, the beach, a miniature steam railway ride and so on. They are easily amused anyway and loved the pool and the beach which is enormous and sandy with loads of sun-warmed rock pools to explore and sit in - many near the shore had anenomes in them.

The traditional British deck chairs - Mum with spa in background

On another day trip to Scarborough to Peasholm park (they were closing early to prepare for their annual naval battle re-enactment on the pond - I was worried about what would happen to all the ducks) and the railway, we were in fog all day- the ‘har’ - and it was quite cold although only 10 miles away from the coast was warm sun and no fog to be seen! The town centre was pretty much like Blackpool with amusement arcades, tourist shops, pubs and neon.

We went to York as well for a look around and looked at the wee, cobbled back streets, York Minster, the half-timbered houses and the nice park. On Friday morning I also took a bit of time out to do a bit of clothes shopping in the town- not very successfully, mind you. Evenings were spent playing yahtzee and drinking wine after the kids had gone to bed.

Shame that the return journey to Glasgow took around 8 hours due to an accident on the A66 and the need to stop to give the boys a break. But with only 1 minor squabble in a week (that's the adults - not the kids who squabbled every day), it was a success and a great distraction from work (only dreamt of focus groups once) and a nice change of scene. I didn't touch a computer all week - a miracle for me!

New car & Ben Vane

Hill walk up Ben Vane, 12 July 08

Last weekend we had picked up our new car from my dad, who very kindly gave us his old one - a very nice Audi - and had sold our old Rover to a dealer. Mic was really keen to get out on a walk today– I think he just wanted to give the car a good run! I checked the Met Office for the weather report, then we filled up the tank of our new car and were shocked to see it was £61! Per litre we are now being charged £1.18 to £1.20!

Michael putting his boots on in Iveruglas car park - Sloy Power station in the background

We headed for Inveruglas, a village on Loch Lomond about 60 miles from Stirling, intending to climb Ben Vane, one of the mountains in the ‘Arrochar Alps’. On the way we stopped off in Callander to check out the outdoor wear discount shop but it was disappointing –no new boots for Mic and no trousers for either of us. I was also disgusted at being charged 20p to use the public toilets in the village and £1.80 to park the car for an hour – I tend to agree with Michael that it’s a bit of a tourist trap.

This was a supposedly an ‘easy walk’ according to one Callander walks website– I think they rather exaggerated (I think Michael thougth I had been fibbing!) – it was really quite hard with very steep rocky sections, loose rocks and steep drops. The directions to find the route weren’t that accurate either- we were lucky to find the start of the path! On the plus side we had good weather – sun and cloud – no rain all day, a miracle. Mic even got a bit sunburnt. It was a pleasant temperature for walking - about 14c with a nice breeze.

'Don't take my picture' - Michael avoiding the lens. Ben Vane in background.

On the way up we passed the Sloy hydro-electric power station (largest in Scotland) and the sub-station which was buzzing ominously. We were a bit disappointed that there were so many huge pylons ruining parts of the view – could be why the walk was pretty quiet when there are so many unspoilt ones to choose from.

View of Loch Lomond and beyond from Ben Vane

Mic found it hard going and decided to call it quits at a cave on the way up (although he did well to get as far as he did considering he’s had little practice). He amused himself there while I decided to carry on and see how far I could get alone, but after 2 false summits and encountering a steep rocky section with no path I decided that I didn’t want to see the view from the top that much and what looked like the summit was in a cloud anyway! It had already been a bit hairy with lots of loose rock on the track. I had seen some good views anyway and seen the huge hydro-electric dam.

The old Cat boots Mic was wearing hurt his feet as usual and he was disgusted to hear that my feet felt absolutely fine after the walk. I can thoroughly recommend the pair I bought – Raichle in leather – just like slippers and need no breaking in.

The lone ascent - avoiding looking back at how steep it was while taking a self-portrait

One of the other 'Bens' next to Ben Vane

On the return journey, we stopped off at the Lade Inn near Callander so Michael could experience the real ale and I had a tea with shortbread. We had thought about having fish and chips here but at £9.50 each we decided not to bother (even the starters were a fiver)- the food might be nice but it’s very over-priced for a wee Scottish village!

Mic was very pleased with the new car and enjoyed driving it on the country roads so much so that he turned down the offer of a pint at the inn and stuck with a half so that he could finish the drive home. I can see I’m not going to get a look in here!

The Cobbler

Wet, wet walk - The Cobbler 29 June 08

Only three of us out of the usual group were brave (?daft) enough to go for a hill walk that day- shortly after we started walking we got absolutely soaked - the rain poured down. However, there were lots of other people doing the same walk - a group of young English people with a guide all dressed in navy blue Helly Hansen waterproofs (a dead give away that they wer eon a guided walk!) and a couple with a young son of about 7 or 8 years old - all wearing welly boots- yes wellies! - to climb up the steep rocky bits and the boggy bits. It was pretty hard work for us with our proper walking shoes to get to the summit but this wee lad in his rubber boots made it to the top! They must have had some serious blisters by the time they got back down.

The distinctive outline of the Cobbler's 2 peaks - it looked like this before and after we reached the summit

At the top, we could see nothing of the view- only mist since we were in the rain cloud. We stopped only long enough to eat a banana, take a few piccies and congratulate the 7 year old boy on getting to the top! For a few brief seconds the clouds parted and we caught a tantalizing glimpse of the view we might have seen if only our timing had been better. Oh, and we talked to some of the Helly Hansen youths who were very disappointed that Sergi wasn't Scottish despite his Scottish accent as they were desperate to meet some real Scottish people (not sure why they hadn't encountered any in Scotland so far!). They then insulted the only Scot amongst us by asking why anyone would want to move from Barcelona to Scotland! Perhaps for the same reason they had come here on holiday ...!

Sergi & Toni at the summit- the view was of mist, mist and more mist (we were actually in the rain clouds)!

The Cobbler looked pretty much like this when we were at the top.

Sergi & Emma getting very wet and cold on the summit in the rain - we didn't linger there for long

We took a slightly different route down- recommended by the welly boot family - which seemed harder and steeper but was apparently a short cut. I was glad we did because as we came round a corner, Toni spotted a brown and white bird with a red spot on its head, smaller than a hen with a small brown chick -a ptarmigan! I wasn't quick enough with the camera but just enjoyed watching them since I have never seen one in the wild before and certainly wasn't expecting to see one this far south. I thought they were only found further north in the Cairngorms and similar places. I even filled out an RSPB viewing record when I got home!

Munros & midgies

Cruach Ardrain, 21 June 08
Near Crianlarich 5 of us went on a hill walk up Cruach Ardrain (one translation from the Gaelic is ‘Stack of the High Part’- catchy, eh?) which is one of the mountains that stand in Glen Falloch - a few of us have been doing quite a few walks recently and are getting quite fit but we had a newbie with us who really struggled up the first slope meaning it took us much longer than expected with lots of stops. It was a long walk anyway with lots of up and downs and very steep sections - 12 miles of walking! It took us 5 ½ hours.

Lunch stop - Romain, Cath, Roser & me

There were beautiful wild flowers including pink and white spotted orchids, butterflies, and drifts of stems with soft cotton wool-like seeds. There were lots of scruffy, pooey sheep and lambs very near the summits where it was cold and windy– they seemed a bit pissed off to see us and baahed at us loudly for ages! We saw a couple of dead sheep on way up - poor things.

Lunch with the midgies & mountains for miles around

There were paths on the mountains worn by humans and sheep which also use the paths. I was a bit surprised that there were actually paths to follow on the mountains but some routes are so popular that it’s fairly easy to follow the way without a map (as long as it’s not cloudy/ rainy when you could fall off the mountain).

When we stopped for lunch we were hassled by insects- I wasn’t sure if they were midgies or not as they were very small, looked innocuous and it’s been a long time since I’ve been attacked by any (we got mozzies down south!). The next day I knew for sure by the itchy, swollen lumps on my arms, legs, ears, and neck that, yes, they were definitely midgies! 3 day’s later they were still driving me mad itching (even woke me up in the night) and now I have scars!

Top of the world!

The summit, called Stob Garbh is 959 m (3146 ft) high (I don’t quite understand why a mountain has a different name for its summit…). As it’s over 3000ft it’s classified as a ‘Munro’ named after Sir Hugh Munro who was the Scottish mountaineer who created a list of mountains in Scotland over 3,000 feet (914.4 metres). A popular activity among some (sad) hill walkers is ‘Munro bagging’ basically climbing as many munros as you can just to say you’ve done it!

The obligatory summit shot - left to right Roser, me, Toni & Cath

White cotton flower seed-heads in foreground & Toni & Romain descending

When I got down the mountain my legs were like jelly and were trembling when I stretched them – later my thighs felt bruised after such a hard climb.

The weather was good until we got back to the car when it finally rained. On the return journey we stopped off in the Lade Inn (har, har) by Callander for real ale – I’d never been before and it was really nice - one of the Spanish guys knew of it. I didn’t get home till 8.45 pm - Michael had been worried as had not expecting it to be such a late one and I’d had no phone reception all day.