Winterval

it's all very well having celebrations in winter, but it can be downright perishing standing around outside waiting for things to happen. Last night, for instance...

I had a terrific time; I got off the bus and walked up the Mound till I could get a good view standing on the wall overlooking Princes Street Gardens. Radio Forth were playing musak of a vaguely xmassy flavour and some big(ish) wigs were spouting. The Norwegian bigwig mentioned that the 25th November was International Day of Protest Against VAW, so heaps of blessings on him.

Then a troop of drummers wended their way through the throngs. They were dressed how I imagine French soldiers were around at the time of Napoleon, or perhaps they merely looked like a Carry On version of French soldiers. Most likely I'd missed an announcement of who/what they were.

   

They drummed all the way to the top of the Mound and round the corner to were someone had (I assumed) carelessly left a muckle crane lying around.

Mais Non! They got on what turned out to be a death defying and bonemarrow freezing human mobile. Drumming somewhat relentlessly as they were suspended over the hill and swung about the place. The person at the top appeared to shed her hat and clothes, to reveal a trapeze outfit and then gyrate in the sub zero temperature many feet above the tree, the crowd and the sharp pointy railings.

They finished by sprinkling fairy dust over the tree and voila! It was lit. Winterval officially commenced.

Then came a goodly quantity of fireworks.

My feet were nearly numb with cold, but the rest of me was warm, so I hirpled up to que outside St Giles Cathedral for a while, then got trampled in a peculiarly fast moving glacier of christians(?) mobbing the Royal Norwegian Carol concert therein.

It was warm enough inside to thaw my feet but I was too cold to unlock rigid muscles even during the hour and a bit of Norwegian carolling. The concert was excellent, especially the Edinburgh University Chamber Choir. I happily rose to the challenge of trying to sing unfamiliar carols in Norwegian as well as one or two carols I sort of remembered from long ago.

The Norwegian connection needs an explanation.  In thanks for the help and support given to Norway by Scotland during WW2, the Norwegians have gifted the city of Edinburgh a Christmas tree for the past 25 years, hence the Norwegian presence and their Advent Concert.

Costume Exhibition

The Heroes and Heroines exhibition at Leeds City Museum was a diverting way to spend about 45 minutes looking at a variety of costumes from TV and film. There were also some examples of clothes from earlier periods too.

I took a few pictures of the costumes which I found particularly beautiful. The way in which the work involved creating the clothes was well explained on the cards beside the exhibits and this added to my enjoyment. 

Not being any kind of seamstress, I learned a fair amount just reading through the descriptions of techniques for ageing some of the outfits and the level of quality that differs depending on whether the costume is for TV or film.  I wondered if the advent of HD TV will mean everything that is produced will need to be of a higher standard to cope with the detail HD TV can pick up.

Miss Matty's costume from Cranford.

My favourite of the 'real' clothes, a 1950's coral pink cocktail dress.

I didn't take note of where all of the outfits were used, but I've chosen those which seemed most sumptuous, and those photographs which turned out best.

The exhibition is on till the new year, but I doubt I'll return to find out who wore what and in what context.

Day in Leeds

I went on my first visit to Leeds recently. What a lovely place, full of varied architecture and interesting arty things to go see. Not to mention very nice cafes and restaurants; but why so many shops?

Taking the bus tour around and about helped make sense of the layout before I set off again on foot. I also learned a lot of the history and development of the area.


I've been on a few of these city tours and this was probably the most comprehensive commentary so far, although the ancient gossip about some football team and some referee decision was irrelevant.

 

I took lots of pictures on foot and on the bus.

A curious structure, at the edge of Millennium Square.

The Royal Armories museum.

Statue at City Square.

There is still a lot of Leeds I'd like to see more of, so I hope to return sometime. And while I was there, I went to see a couple of exhibitions and the Henry Moore Institute, but I'll cover those in another post.



Light show at the Mound

Taking a stroll along Princes St after a lovely Thai meal at somewhere I now forget the name of, I was alerted by loud music and a small crowd that something interesting was happening at the Mound.

I crossed over and chatted to some young people handing stuff out beside some cars. They were part of an advertising stunt for the launch of some too expensive for me, car.

They had an excellent light show projected against the side of the National Gallery along all the pillars and reflecting onto the windows.

The cannon in this picture was at the beginning of a rapid sequence, but this is the only shot that came out reasonably well from that sequence.

 I liked this sky scraper picture and it seems to work in this shot.

Predictably, I didn't have my camera with me, although I suspect it would not have been adequate for the task of taking really good pictures in the dark. I made do with the camera on my iPhone.  I wish the stunning effects had come out better, but the pictures on this page might provide some idea of the sight.

Somehow, the projection has managed to produce realistic flames in the gallery windows. Not something that will ever actually happen, I hope.

A proper castley castle

Forgot my camera so made do with my phone camera on a recent visit to Bothwell Castle near Uddingston in the west of Scotland.

Of the various castles I've traipsed around over the past few months, this has to be the most stereotypical castle so far. It's a ruin, but with interesting and differently dated bits and pieces. It also has a fascinating history dating back to the 1200's when building began on an ambitious scale and replacing an earlier wooden structure.

All this architectural grandeur was interrupted by that pain in the neck Edward 1 of England. Thus Bothwell Castle featured in the Wars of Independence being seiged, besieged and captured back and forth between sundry Edwards, and the Moray's, companions to Wallace.

The castle is being repaired and some parts of the tower can't be accessed because of the scaffolding.

After peace broke out the Earls of Douglas took over the castle and the colourfully named Archibald the Grim began a programme of rebuilding the castle.

The castle is in a particularly strategic point, which is simply not obvious today, at least to me. But it is next to the river Clyde and guarded a major crossing point over the river that could be used by advancing English invaders during the Wars of Independence. Today, of course, it looks like a very nice ruin built from warm red sandstone sited amidst a peaceful landscape with mature trees and the river running past.

View of the postern gate with the river Clyde at the bottom of the slope.

Nauseatingly cute

On a recent visit to Martin Mere wetland centre, the experience included practising photographing the ultimate in cute, wee furry things.  The day we visited there were lots of folks who'd brought their animals and their crafts to display. Many owners were willing to allow visitors to hold or stroke ferrets, birds and baby coo's and pigs and such like.The meerkats were problematic to photograph as they would not sit still and smile for the camera.

Some beasties were closer up than others, and the just as cute but feathered instead of furry were enclosed in their own ponds but further away from the enthusiastic photographer.

Flamingos in their shed.

No picture records my not quite distant enough encounter with Priscilla the death inducing tarantula. I spied Priscilla across a hut I’d entered following my discovery of how soft chinchillas are.  I was a little off balance from narrowly avoiding verbalising my thoughts that I could now understand why heartless people made them into coats thus upsetting the terribly nice owner and ruining any credibility I have as a vegetarian.

But Priscilla and my near death experience…
All arachnophobes have dramatic tales to tell (as opposed to being drama queens) and seeing what I first thought was an ugly pattern on a chap’s jumper turned out to be blood-chilling to the extent I was capable of emitting only a feeble squeak. Sig Other congratulated me on keeping my cool. I later admitted it was shock not cool I felt.  Actual end of life was averted by staggering over with whatever aplomb I could muster to cuddle a cute python.  Equilibrium mostly restored, I carried on to the next building which held an assortment of birds of prey.

The outlying parts of this waterfowl sanctuary are home at the moment to vast numbers of pink footed geese.

And the final cute pic was taken when the otters were being fed.

Wee stop off on the way south

I took the A7 on my way south for a change. Normally I go via the A702, which is the most frustrating road in the country, apart from the all too often lethal A9. 

On each occasion that I am stuck behind lorries, farm vehicles and dithery drivers, I reflect that I live in a very rich country despite which I and every other driver has to make do with dangerous, slow and frankly, neglected transport infrastructure.

I am frequently in and around Greater Manchester, and while this is not a scientific observation, it strikes me that the motorway system around one English city is possibly more extensive than that in the whole of Scotland.

WHY?

Apart from avoiding the usual teethgrinding experience of the 45 miles between the capital and a functional motorway south, the A7 was a nice alternative on a bright sunny autumn day.

I passed a sign for Hermitage Castle, and decided to turn around and go visit it. The sign provided the information that it was 7 miles to get there. It did not say, 7 miles of muddy, potholed single track road with few passing places.

The scenery was spectacular, as the track rose above the valley and into the borders hills. I longed to stop and photograph the views, but was too concerned about other traffic, some of which was local and confidently whizzing along at what I thought was alarming speeds. At one point I narrowly managed to get the one sinking wheel out of a sodden verge that threatened to bog me down when I swerved to one side to let a local past.

Heart in mouth, I finally reached Hermitage Castle. It was worth it, even though my car looked like it had been in some particularly arduous motocross.

Fortification of the strategic border area of Liddesdale was begun in the 1240s. Then building on the existing castle started in 1360, although it has been transformed and modified over the centuries into a magnificent stronghold.

An inside wall looking a teeny bit spookily like two eyes, snub nose and gaping mouth.
 
A lovely isolated spot in glorious scenery and some history I was only vaguely aware of.

Brief London Meander

I went to London this week. But only briefly, enough time to have a bit of a wander round Hackney, Dalston and Shoreditch.  I'd never previously been to any of these areas and was pleasantly surprised by the buzz, signs of regeneration and friendliness of those people I had any interaction with.

I took my camera and set out in the lovely warm sun to take some photos. The above is a whirly windy thingy on the side of a very smart new building. All rather dynamic. But look - just across the road about 100 meters away ...

Not quite as new and shiny. But that is probably typical of any area which has been neglected and now racing to catch up with modernity.

The area is flat so more people risk traveling by bike than in more hilly areas. I can only say that they are braver than I'd ever choose to be given the London traffic.

I had a nice time and maybe sometime I can go back again and find even more cheap, yummy veggie food as I did the other day and more relaxing cafes to sit in and watch that part of London life wander by.

Lewis Chesswomen

The pic is of the three queens found in Uig, Lewis in 1831. Like the rest of the chess pieces they are carved from walrus ivory and Scandinavian in origin probably from around the 12th/13th century.  Not a lot else is known about them.

They are usually housed in the British Museum in London, but this summer they have been loaned to the National Museum of Scotland in Chamber St, Edinburgh.

The exhibition is very well set out with lots of really good background about Lewis, chess, the history of the finds and why the British Museum has them rather than being returned to Lewis where they would be a tremendous tourist attraction. I'm a great believer in returning objects to their original place if it makes sense, and this case is absolute in my opinion.

There is a roof terrace on the top of the new part of the museum, which has clear views round the city.

Looking towards the castle with St Giles spire reaching above the roofline of the old town.

Rooftop view with Arthur's Seat just peeking in on the left.

I visited these old queens a few days before Edinburgh had an influx of other auld queens got up in all their flowing finery come to proclaim their medieval views on women and other's who seek only to live as they see fit according to  a more inclusive and accepting standard of morality.

Sunday in East Lothian

Brandishing my Scottish Heritage membership card, I made my way to Dirleton Castle in East Lothian.

The village of Dirleton is quaint and pretty and completely picturesque. I immediately began plotting to find ways to retire there when the time comes.

The castle is set in lovely grounds which boast the world’s longest herbaceous border. This must be a wonderful sight in the height of summer and even this late in the season was impressive in colour and variety of planting.

Some pretty flowers that came out well when I fiddled about with the settings on my camera.

River views

Making the most of this welcome late summer, I've taken a few photos up river, down river and above river. The river being the Forth which is easily accessed by public transport and car.

This is the beach at Portobello mid afternoon and taken on my camera. The cloud formations were what attracted me to this view and the slight reflection in the shallows.

I took this on my phone at sunset while crossing the rail bridge. The sun was at a low angle and cast the shadow of the bridge onto the woodlands below.

This is up river at Carriden looking over to Fife early evening in full sun, but again taken with my phone camera.

There is a walk along the river side which is signposted by the Scottish Rights of Way Society, a charity set up in 1845 to make sure that ancient rights of way were preserved and not abused by landowners. According to their website:

Scotland has new and forward-looking legislation for public access to land, set out in Part 1 of the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003, which came into force in February 2005. This legislation gives the public wide-ranging statutory rights of access to land and inland water throughout Scotland. It builds on the Scottish traditions of access, on the network of long-established rights of way, and on other existing rights. The result is a modern approach to access which is among the best in Europe.

I was minimally aware that we have reasonable rights to roam our own country but I'm very impressed that people have been safeguarding those rights for so long.

Finally, sunset at North Queensferry back in June, the day after the solstice.

Golden Rules

One of the multiple festivals running concurrently is the Festival of Spirituality and Peace.  I went along to St John's church at the west end of Princes St to attend one of the events advertised in that particular festival. But outside the church I saw another of their events. The photo above shows Orange Suits and Golden Rules - a Living Installation.  Volunteers spend a day in an orange boiler suit such as the Guantanamo Bay detainees wear and stand outside the church in view of the traffic and people in Edinburgh's main shopping street. So not really like conditions the detainees suffer, but it's an excellent way to make the point that we should not forget about them.

The installation reminded me that I should be grateful to live in a country which does not have the death penalty even though the behaviour of some (almost always violent male criminals) sometimes seems to deserve it.  But also that I live in a country where convicted criminals can be given release on compassionate grounds irrespective of their guilt, in order to spend their last days out of prison/with their family.

Akvani are a trio who sing Georgian songs, in this case ancient healing harmonies to 'sweeten the soul'. It was billed as a 'soundbath of harmony' and certainly lived up to that description.

These songs were originally sung, some as early as pre-Christian times, to appease the Batonebi Spirits and to heal sick children. I'd liked to have heard more about this, and if I can manage it I'll go to another of Akvani's events running this week or next.

In the evening I went to a talk on Women and the Built Environment at Engender.  A real circuitous meander round the need for women's input into living space, in particular places like refuges or social housing. And the way that outdoor space is prioritised for male activities for example five aside football instead of dance or yoga or whatever women want. Of course we don't know what women want as no one asks or listens when we speak up anyway. I can claim this from my own experience of taking part in planning consultations where what I or other women say, never makes it into recommendations, or frequently is not even recorded.

The conclusion from this discussion is that we need more women in architecture, planning, engineering and for those professions to actually speak to each other so we get joined up plans.  The Golden Rule as applied to planning as well as to politics.

What thou avoidest suffering thyself seek not to impose on others. – Epictetus

Weekend wandering

Saturday was far too warm and sunny to spend much time indoors, particularly not some of the truly steamy, even drippy venues in the bowels of the old town.

So it was a trip to the most tempting venue in Edinburgh - the book tent at the book festival. Miraculously, I resisted on this occasion, but I'll probably end up going back and buying at least some of the titles I noted. Sitting in the sun outside the book tent, I reflected that if I had to choose only one natural habitat, this would be it. Even the sense of frantic busyness couldn't detract from the sense of rightness I feel in the presence of great numbers of enticing books and fellow book lovers present each year at the book festival.

Once darkness approached we did decide on a show. Sig Other and I wanted to have another go at the free festival, having experienced good and bad earlier in the week.

We saw Yianni Agisilaou in 'The Universe: A User's Guide' at Cabaret Voltaire. This was another dank dungeon, this time filled to capacity with the kind of mixed audience only the free fringe can throw up.

The act was sort of ok but difficult to judge as a loud section of the audience had come into the wrong room and were really wanting to be at the (noisy) Bee Gee's tribute show next door. Physics and the universe was a novelty for them and some settled down and laughed while others were made uncomfortable possibly by a lingering memory of being made to feel thick at school. For that reason I will excuse some of their behaviour because it probably was not their fault they were not encouraged to take up science or to take an interest in things extraterrestrial at an earlier age. And for another reason; I will not condone any form of "Scottish cringe" which would all too frequently cause inappropriate embarrassment by some behaviour of some local folk. This is our city and any inhabitants should be able to go to events and express themselves however they want to. I don't want to feel that the various festivals exclude anyone, as they inevitably do when you look at the ticket prices. But where there are free/low cost shows and exhibitions then everyone should be equally welcome.

Sunday was again a lovely day.  No more indoors suffering heatstroke, instead a brief spot the Gormley walk to Water of Leith.  Here are two of these statues from Powderhall and Bonnington.

 Gormley with a swan at Powderhall.

Scary Gormley at Bonnington!

2010 off to a snowy start

What’s happening with this weather? Is there no end to the cold and snow?

Lots more eating and drinking this year so far: Sig Other just keeps making lovely eats. Yesterday we celebrated Ne’er Day with scrumptious broccoli quiche served with creamy chicory, celery and peas mixed with Quorn fake bacon bits. These are a new discovery for me, although they aren’t too much like actual bacon, otherwise I’d be less likely to eat them. Also, Quorn has changed the recipe in some of their products to make them gluten free which is useful for the GF/veggie meals.

I’ve decided to avoid making resolutions this year. I never keep them and previously assumed that making life improving efforts like taking more exercise/reading less trashy science fiction/being more saintly in general –type resolutions were part of the routine surrounding New Year. But apparently, the practice of resolving to change at the beginning of a year dates back to Babylonian times. And no doubt the ancients were just as good at keeping them as most of us are.
http://thescotsman.scotsman.com/features/Talkin39-bout-a-resolution.5950474.jp

Seizing a gap in the freezing conditions when the sun even came out yesterday, seemed the best time to go for a walk in the gardens at Dunham Massey. The pic above is of the birch triangle in the middle of the winter garden created a couple of years ago in the grounds near the house.

Zillions of bulbs are due to emerge in the early spring, making this an attraction to revisit in a month or two.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/local/manchester/hi/people_and_places/nature/newsid_8328000/8328348.stm

I finished my stay in the south with a meal in my favourite place in Manchester, the curry mile in Rusholme. Fingers crossed for a smooth return to Edinburgh normality soon.

Dreichness Abounds

It is grey and dismal this week, so here are some photos I took on Sunday afternoon on a ramble along Longniddry Bents. Hope they are cheering.

Looking across the river Forth to Fife

Parts of this area have SSSI designation, probably because of the birds which come here. I did not have my 'Girls Book of Birds - Easy identification version' with me, so I can't report what species I saw, but one lot had distinctive red legs and long beaks, so might have been something interesting.

Cockenzie power station with Arthur's Seat in the background
There was a surprising amount of heat in the sun. Not enough to take off any layers, except gloves, but certainly no chill breeze to cause me to scurry back to the car before I was ready to.

Looking downriver with the sun at my back

Someone from the Guardian appears to have visited the week before and didn’t get quite such glorious sun. They did know what they were talking about when they saw various birds.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2009/nov/02/longniddry-bents-east-lothian-ducks

Longniddry is on the John Muir Way which is 73km long. I reckon I did 73 yards along it until I found a way down onto the beach. I’ve walked another few yards of it a year or two back when I wandered around Yellowcraigs. As a confirmed non-rambler, I don’t imagine I’ll walk the whole lot anytime soon!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Muir_Way

Squash recipes and wee meander

I’ve been playing in the kitchen with the lovely squashes and pumpkins available this season. Here are three recipes I thought turned out pretty well.

Butternut Squash Casserole
Few handfuls of kasha
Medium leek, sliced
One small or half a large butternut squash, cubed
Sliced green pepper

Glass red wine

Veg oil

1 tsp sweet paprika

1 tbsp tomato puree

Liquid veg stock

Seasonings

Toast the kasha, then set aside while you gently fry the butternut squash, leeks and green pepper. Add garlic if liked.

Slosh in red wine, liquid veg stock, paprika and tomato puree. Then add the toasted kasha and enough water to cover.

Cook either on the stovetop in a covered pan or transfer to a casserole dish and cook in a very moderate oven until the kasha swells and reaches the desired consistency – probably 45-60 minutes.

Stuffed Harlequin Squash
Harlequin squash are a handy two-portion size in a distinct colour combination of pale orangey/cream and green.

One harlequin squash
Small onion chopped
3 sliced sun dried tomatoes
Two handfuls chopped peanuts
Few oz Jarlsberg cheese, grated
Fine breadcrumbs
Parsley, finely chopped
Bouillon powder

Cut the squash in half and place cut side down on an oiled baking sheet and cook in a medium oven until soft enough to be scooped out.
Fry the onion and mix with the cooked squash, sun dried tomatoes, peanuts, bouillon powder and cheese. Pack the mix back into the squash shells and top with the breadcrumbs and parsley. Dot with butter and cook in the oven for 10 minutes or until heated through and the breadcrumbs are crisped.

Pumpkin Flan

Filling

One slice of pumpkin such as Ironbark pumpkin

One egg

Bouillon powder

Grated nutmeg

Flan base

Two handfuls of each of the following:

Pumpkin seeds

Sunflower seeds

Ground almonds

Melted butter to mix

Seasoning

Roast chunks of pumpkin in veg oil in the oven until very soft. Drain and puree thoroughly. When cool, mix with well beaten egg, nutmeg and bouillon powder.

Grind the seeds and add to the ground almonds. Mix into the melted butter and season. Press into individual flan bases and cook in the oven till firm.

Place the pumpkin mix in the flan bases and return to the oven to cook till set.

The photographs are of lovely flowers I was sent – obviously ‘coz I am so deserving. But probably coz Sig Other is exhibiting his brains with some Belgians, Norwegians, assorted Celtic fringe representatives, Baltic teams and other English folks in Holland this weekend. Well done to his team which won top of his section of clever people who can recall the right facts at the right time, assisted by an ability to make links between disparate clues to get answers correct. So I get to be in Edinburgh and enjoy flowers rather than be a ‘QUAG(B)’ (quizzing wife and girlfriend (boyfriend)).

I Quagged in Tallinn one year which was fine as Tallinn is just the most glorious old city, and I got to be in a fun quiz team with Nicolas Parsons. Delightful old gentleman, but we failed in our aim (everyone in the team’s aim except NP) to come last, in spite of our disinclination to contradict a national treasure when he proposed incorrect answers.

I’ve just read that back, and can assure myself that it makes sense, at least to me.

And here’s a pic of Tallinn showing a view of the old city merging in the distance with the new.