Today was moving day. We were going to drive all the way from Golspie above Inverness down to the Arbroath area below Aberdeen on the east coast. The drive would take four hours. On the recommendation of Janet McKay from the Croft Fair yesterday, we decided to visit Cawdor Castle because of two things. She said the house and garden were wonderful and that Shakespeare had it wrong. Macbeth was never thane of Cawdor because Cawdor castle wouldn’t be built for another two hundred years!
The drive was delightful, through sprinkles, showers, and rain. Sheep were on both sides of the road and our conversation moved from navigation to philosophy to the crazy names that the Scots (and Brits) name things. How about these:
Going through a “chimney town” we saw a restaurant named “The Snug.” Bet that’s a popular one. Then there were the towns which I assigned nicknames:
Moss of Barnacles: (oh, what a combination!)
Lossiemouth (clean up your language, young man!)
Fogwatt (a new kind of lightbulb?)
Dufftown (where all the bad golfers live?)
Windyraw: (the weather on most days around here)
Old Rayne: (Looked like new rain to us)
Cawdor Castle was from a fairy tale. Check out those turrets. Some rooms seemed very updated while the kitchen seemed to have been remodeled last year! Then came the vaulted room, the secret dungeon and circular stairs from the oldest castles in Britain followed by a hallway decorated with modern art. This was a place that has it all! It wasn’t big and came with a handy audio guide.
On our way to the restaurant, the sparse crowd became a large and noisy one. A tour had arrived. Among the French and German tourists, I asked the lady behind me where she was from. She was a Texan and eager to tell her story. She and a couple of friends were touring while their husbands played golf. When she told me the courses, I said, “Those are at opposite ends of the country and spending a lot of time on the road.” “Oh no. We’re doing it all by helicopter!” So, there’s a travel option that we haven’t tried yet. Hmm…
The gift shop had “handmade in Scotland” sweaters, handmade (from somewhere else) knitted hats, and fingerless gloves. There were loads of lovely dodads— I could have filled a shopping bag—or, not. I just admired everything and bought one more hat. (Only three so far this trip.)
We visited the maze garden (a favorite in our family) and the gorgeous flower garden before heading back on the road. The navigation took us along the north coast to Nairn, then through the Cairngorms National Park to Aberdeen, then south along the coast to Arbroath. Our next bed and breakfast would be the Lunan House, a stately old mansion remodeled into a large B & B. It has gorgeous gardens and is just a 4-minute walk to the sandy shore. We did the walk but will do more when there’s more daylight and maybe a bit of sun (if it’s not too much to ask.) Our room is as clean and comfortable as they all have been. We’re happy to be cozy indoors on another chilly night. Sleep tight!
