Scotland, ho!

The Royal Burgh of Falkland
(History of the town here)

Posted by David:

Just a quickie here, as we're both up to our eyeballs in projects and work! Exams are coming soon, so I apologize for not getting these posted sooner. Here's the latest:

We've fully moved out of our wee flat at David Russell Apartments (see our earlier post in September), and are now full-time residents of Falkland!

Were both really happy about the move - first off, we've been in love with the town of Falkland since Debi first came here for a job interview. Since she's been commuting the past few months, I've come to see the place and have been drawn in like a moth. It's a wonderful little medieval town nestled between farmland and Lomond Hill, and is a lively little community.

As you probably know from our earlier posts, there's an organic farm (the Pillars of Hercules),

and a Royal Palace.

Now there's GrantFry Cottage as well!

Lomond Hill (a small mountain) is right behind our house - there's a trail at the top of our street that leads to the summit. A long way up...

and a long way down as well.




We went up this past weekend but had a lot to do (and were quite winded) so we stopped halfway and got back to our projects, but we'll probably climb the hill with Mandi and Daniel this weekend, if they're game!

We've started decorating (Debi's rubbing her hands together with an impish grin on her face),

and have just finished painting the Guest Bedroom. We've got some great plans for the place, and will try to keep the photos current.

The Kitchen is a little 70's... but we'll work with it.

We've been inspired by Kristen and Frank to do something fun with our space in back of the house.

We have it a bit easier than they did, as we don't have to break up the concrete or anything like that, thankfully. Our plans will be very simple, since we're not buying this place (besides, it's a much smaller space), but as we hope to rent it for a few years, it's worth putting some work into.

Debi's already sprouting seeds and reading up on gardening techniques with her usual zeal. It's great to see her so inspired.

It's a long bus ride to St. Andrews, but it gives me some time to wake up, and it's a really pleasant trip. Besides, there's plenty of reading for me to do. Debi now has a very short walk to her office. I'll be working upstairs from her this summer. Beats the subway commute by miles!
Debi's office is here in the Stables!

We've met a few of our neighbors (no pun intended)...

And they seem like good folk.

Debi's taking driving lessons and is improving rapidly - it's a lot to get used to, manual shifting, roundabouts, driving on the other side of the road... She's a real trooper. Bugsy, our wee Micra, has been very patient.

That's it for now - more soon!

The G-20 Summit was in full swing, with the accompanying madness, so we had that to consider when choosing tourist activites. Undaunted, we were able to see quite a bit.

Our first night, we tried to go to an opera, but weren't able to get tickets on short notice. Instead, we walked 'round the Covent Garden district, and found a play to see:
The Woman in Black, a good old fashioned Ghost Tale.

Before the theatre, we found a wonderfully eccentric restaurant, called Sarastro. It was amazing inside - a set designer's dream (or nightmare, depending on who you talk to). It was just perfect for us, and gave us great ideas of what to do on our next place...


I found out that the day of the conference was the first day of the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace, so I sped off to catch it.







I then toured around Kensington and Chelsea while Debi was at the meeting in Vauxhall. We met there and strolled along the Queen's Walk, taking in the Thames and the sights beyond.






We walked to the Theatre District, and ambled about until it was time to meet our friends Kathy and Richard for dinner. We went to a great little Indian place and filled-up on delicious veg fare. Kathy and Richard then took us to a hidden gem (we easily would've walked past the small entranceway on our own), Somerset House Trust - it was breathtaking.
We then took a nice long stroll on the opposite side of the Thames, past the Needle, the Sphynx, and the Eye, before taking in Big Ben and heading back to the hotel.





The next day, we headed to Portabello Road (The Diagon Alley of my childhood), to look for some things for our new place. I'd not really expected it to be like the place in Bedknobs & Broomsticks, but the 5-year-old in me kept looking for the dark alley with old wagons and ancient shops.

A few of the shops we visited were quite ecclectic, though, and we found many things we fancied (but only one we could take with us). We had a lovely lunch in a neat ol' pub, then headed to King's Cross for our long trip back home!



Slainte Mhath!

Falkland Palace is an impressive Renaissance building set in the heart of the town at the foot of the Lomond Hills. Built by James IV and James V between 1450 and 1541 the Palace was a country residence of the Stuart monarchs of Scotland for over 200 years. A Stuart, Ninian, is still in posession of the property, and is very friendly. He's very involved in the day to day running of the estate and is very supportive of the organic farming on the property.

Chancefield

Chancefield, Tara and Nick's farmhouse, is a mile or two beyond the gate. It's a great walk through the fields and woods.

We took a nice long walk together, and set off through the fields towards the mountain. We came to the House of Falkland, which is now a school, set in the middle of some enchanting (enchanted) woods. The architectural details are wondrous.















The chimneys reminded me a bit of the Apprentice Pillar at the Rosslyn Chapel. There's more about the House of Falkland (and some nice interior shots) here.



House of Falkland Chimneys


The Apprentice Pillar



There's a little burn (stream) that runs past the house, and we sat by it for a while, listening to the water on the rocks.

The mist started to come in by the time we got to the stables, and the auld kirk was quite spooky. The road home seemed to lead off into the mists...












This is the Tyndall Bruce Monument that Mrs. Margaret Tyndall Bruce had...em...erected for her late husband, Onesiphorus.

Thought highly of him, she did.



We had tea with our Gaelic teacher, Morag, and her husband, Ron. Ron's hilarious. It was great to listen to more of Morag's stories , and to hear of their travels to the States and Greece. Ron also took us on a drive up the mountain, which we hope to explore in the Spring.

It was a lovely way to spend Christmas, and we feel very lucky to have had time to be together in the country. We won't soon forget it.


We have many more posts to catch up on that we've been hoping to write since our arrival. Check back soon!