Couldn’t resist a final walk on the beach at Lundin, even though it was drizzly. Then ambled past Edinburgh down to the Borders – Melrose, Kelso and Jedburgh.
Weather was a bit more “atmospheric “. Lovely B&B in Jedburgh before the long – 320 miles – journey home. But we did take the scenic route through the Kielder National Park which was at least diverting for the first 50 miles.
It sort of helps to know that they’re anticipating a month’s rain at home today. Meanwhile Dundee is only about 40 minutes away so went to see the new amazing V&A.
Followed by Kellie Castle – it’s just like being on holiday!
And couldn’t resist taking our deckchairs and books back to Elie – enjoying the late afternoon sunshine.
We’ve had an amazing couple of days. Lundin:
Elie which is one of the nicest beaches ever.
And back to Lundin:
That’s about 8.30, with cider in the purple and wine in the red.
Ok, I made that up – but the coast is lovely.
Before that, more sightseeing in Edinburgh – it was looking very fine.
Museum of Modern Art
Feels like Scotland is a few weeks behind us in lifting lockdown. Some museums still closed and we were lucky they let us in here without a booking. But all the staff are really friendly and helpful.
Wednesday saw us leave Edinburgh for Fife. But first took a detour to Culross – again we hadn’t booked but they bent over backwards to find a way for us to get in.
And as I said, the natives are very friendly.
Then to Lundin where we’re staying for a couple of days. A few miles from St Andrews, and great beaches.
After 3 days on the Scottish Riviera it’s time to move on to Edinburgh. Walk on the beach before leaving (see photos from Thursday and Friday – pretty much the same wonderfullness).
Took the scenic route through Moffatt despite the satnav doing its utmost to go the quick way. Found the flat (very, very central and easy to find), and then parked the car (also very central but a nightmare to find what with roadworks and roads that have magically turned into bus routes).
And here we are:
Edinburgh is looking extremely fine and it’s warm. And after all these years never having been to Edinburgh, Eileen loves it!
First day of sightseeing covered some of the familiar landmarks, so here you go:
And the food is sooooo much better here than we’ve had so far. Tapas last night which was fine, but happened across an amazingly good little French restaurant no more than 3 minutes from our flat. Best meal in such a long time.
Was looking pretty good today. Sat in the garden which was lovely.
Then felt we should go out for a bit so returned to Kippford. Even on a sunny weekend, not especially busy.
With a walk round to Rockliffe – a bit like Langland.
And back to the B&B where we found a friend.
Apparently it’s the Scottish Riviera – who knew??
Anyway, a fabulous B&B:
With a decent view from our room:
So the major decision for the morning walk is whether to go right or left!
Oh, and a sitting room if we need it.
Dragged ourselves away for a bit of exploration, and to try to build up an appetite between the hearty (and excellent) breakfast and what undoubtedly would be a hearty dinner.
Theave Gardens which we’d never heard of but it NT so utterly reliable:
Huge numbers of rhododendrons near their peak – and even still a few bluebells and daffodils.
Kirkcudbright (pronounced Ker-coo-bree) didn’t inspire but ended up at Kippford – not unlike Cornwall if you use a bit of imagination:
And fish & chips – hearty enough for a portion to feed an entire family!
Summer is coming. Little prospect of any immediate foreign travel, with Portugal suddenly coming off the green list. So it is a great opportunity to see Scotland. It’s June so the days are long, the midges haven’t woken up and the weather forecast is not too bad (even for Scotland).
So a very early start and we’re on the road at just after 6.00. And with no holdups we were here shortly after 1.00.
So where are we. In the Borders just south of Dumfries. It was a bit grey to put it mildly, but at least it wasn’t raining (much).
Staying in a fabulous B&B, and here’s the view from our room.
That’s a little tempter for now. More tomorrow.
Dinner in the local pub was a bit iffy. Actually, the culinary style could best be described as “hearty” which worked fine with my pie and chips but didn’t really work with Eileen’s salad!
Exploring tomorrow.
