Dumfries & Galloway: September

We have made a number of fun day trips out into the Southern Scottish countryside from here in Southerness. A majority of these trips have involved visits to medieval castles and great stone ruins, as well as a few picnics and walks through the emerald forests and along the windswept coast.

We actually became members of Historic Scotland and thus was born a mission to visit all the castles we can, flaunting our free entry. Castles have been prominent in our travels since Germany and the ones in Scotland are really pretty old. Softened sandstone, fireplace remnants, everywhere another battlefield with those bloody English.

A Lighthouse Love Story: August 29, 2006

And now the post you've all been waiting for...

I imagine it won't exactly come as a huge surprise, but Craig and I decided in a more official way to get married/get engaged on August 29th. We've both talked about it for years now and I spent the past 2-3 years slowly trying to work it all out a bit more, especially the whole proposal bit. We've discussed some hows and wheres etc. of an actual wedding but somehow always side-stepped the actual asking and exposing and commiting. I had been ready to make this commitment from some time ago, and for a while I sensed Craig wasn't quite ready and thus I didn't want to do the asking and exert strange pressures on the relationship which had always been very organic and natural and slow. But then again, I didn't like being so traditional by having him propose or sort of waiting in limbo. So I just tried to leave it open and thought I would do it if the time and place seemed right.

There were lots of amazing and romantic places and situations allong our travels but not enough time to consider and plan things more slowly. But, when we arrived here in Southerness, Scotland, I had an instant flash of an idea to propose to Craig up in the lighthouse here. The lighthouse is actually owned by Craig's family. It's the oldest one in Scotland and very cool. (You can kind of see it here: http://www.lighthouseleisure.co.uk/)

So, the 29th was the 11 year anniversary of the day we met, and I organized a surprise dinner up in the lighthouse. The anniversary bit was really just a cover for doing the proposal part. Lots of secret work went into it, I got someone to ask Craig to do some work at the arcade/craft shop so I could get away and plan and cook, had another friend do the shopping for me, get the key and help decorate the place. Somehow, it miraculously managed to stay a surprise (to Craig anyway)the whole time.

I sent Craig off on a sort of riddle treasure hunt while we lugged all the food, the table and dishes, candles, flowers and gas burners to keep things warm etc. up all 66 steep steps. The treasure hunt eventually had Craig arriving at the lighthouse with the key in his hand at about sunset. He unlocked the door and climbed all of those stairs in the candlelight. The whole buildup was really cool, I was so into the surprise of it. So, we had a good laugh and had dinner up the top, with a wonderful view overlooking the sea and a really neat space to have all to ourselves.

I had prepared a Robertson crest kilt pin instead of a ring as the engagement token but hadn't set anything about the whole asking, just thought I'd feel it out and save some spontanaeity there. As I was getting ready to propose however, Craig beat me to it and asked me first. It was quite funny. Craig had had a similiar idea when we were still back in Japan to propose in the lighthouse but hadn't pursued it yet. I was all prepared and had put weeks into the planning of it so I don't think I was as surprised in some ways, though usually it's the person asked, not the asker, who is surprised. But I was surprised by the ironic outcome, we had back-to-back proposals, a sort of joint engagement.

It was really lovely, and ended up being quite true to the organic, natural and fair nature of our relationship.

The next couple of days, as we spread the word a bit, we realised that just about everyone in Southerness already knew. It is a pretty small town and we had become their soa opera. One person watched from their window as Craig strolled towards the lighthouse with the last clue in his hand. Craig's uncle James said he saw the flickering of the candles up in the lighthouse at about midnight. Even a neighbor down the road who we hadn't met knew about it.

We'll start to think more about the details of a wedding and celebration over the next few months. It's likely to happen in Pennsylvania due to my family being much more rooted, and likely to happen in autumn (Northern Hemisphere Autumn), maybe 2007, possibly 2008.

5 Best Sleeps of Trip to Date

1. Beautiful simple hut to ourselves overlooking the Swiss Alps
2. Staying in a nice simple room in a traditional Bavrian family's farm house that overlooked the fairytale castle Neuschwanstein and the Austrian Alps
3. Cute yellow room complete with flower boxes in Hotel Regina, Tours, France
4. Austin's grandparents house in Coral Bay, Cyprus. The pool was the main attraction here.
5. Michael and Rike's apartment in Hamburg, Germany. After not sleeping at the Fusion music festival we slept for hours it was so comfortable and quiet

5 Worst Sleeps of the Trip to Date

1. Overnight bus from Manheim to Hamburg. Only managed to get a backache and maybe a whole hour of sleep
2. Overnight train from Basel to Paris. Overnight travel sucks.
3. Camping during the Fusion music festival in Germany. The thumping of the trance was pretty obnoxious
4. Munich Camp Ground just before the Australia vs Brazil World Cup game. So many drunk Aussie and Brazilian fans screaming at each other at all hours of the night
5. Ibis Hotel, Heidelberg. Ibis Hotels have absolutely no soul

5 Best Eats of the Trip to Date

1. Dinner of Bavarian duck and great steak on the lake overlooking the most spectacular castle (Neuschwanstein) and the Austrian Alps in Hopfan an See, Southern Germany
2. A 3 course fiesta in Bistro d'Arnie, Loire Valley, France
3. Picnic of salmon and duck patte, cheeses, salads and wine by the awe inspiring Chateau du Chambord, Loire Valley, France
4. The massive spread put on for Michael and Rike's wedding, Northern Germany
5. More French food and wine, this time in Paris with Morgan and Rachid

5 Worst Eats of the Trip to Date

1. Dinner of only peanuts & chocolate bar on the overnight bus from Manheim to Hamburg
2. Rushed dinner at the airport in Cyprus that caused us to almost miss our flight
3. Really bad falafel in Bern
4. Dinner at the service area on the highway after Fusion music festival on way to Hamburg
5. Plate of just melted cheese (disguised as an expensive delicacy) in Bern

Family in Edinburgh: August 22-26

Craig, Maggi and James Dignall, and Great Aunt Nita


During our time in Edinburgh, not only did we cram in as many shows as possible, we also caught up with some of Craig's family who live there. The matriach of Craig's family: his Great Aunt Nita has just moved out of her lovely large house in the city centre to a nursing home. So we visited her there. She is just about to turn 90 and is in great spirits. We also had lunch with Craig's family: James and Maggi Dignall at their son Kyles' hip restaurant. And we were lucky to stay with Malcolm.

Edinburgh Festivals: August 22-26

Visiting Edinburgh while all the festivals, especially the Fringe Festival were on, has been something of a long-cherished dream of ours. Craig has thought about it since his first visit to the city eight years ago and it was one of the deciding time factors in our travel and arrival in Scotland.

The Fringe Festival is the largest arts festival in the world. There are over 260 venues in and around the city and this year about 1.5 million tickets were sold. (More details: http://www.edfringe.com/ ) The Edinburgh Festival Fringe itself includes comedy (what it's most famous for), theatre, dance, music and a bit of film. As if that was not enough, Edinburugh also hosts the Edinburgh International Festival (more established and well... just more expensive acts than the fringe), the Art Festival, the International Film Festival, the International Book Festival, and the Edinburgh Military Tattoo (pipes and drums and hours of live entertainment inside the castle) during the same period in August.

The city is vibrant to say the least. Zoe was overwhelmed by the amount of good things going on everywhere all the time. It made her feel almost restless, jumping around, reading all of the thick festival catalogues. We saw some great theatre, comedy, art exhibitions, films, and street performers, seeing 2-4 shows every day. Some things were free, others discounted or full price. Some shows were great. Others not so; one show we walked out of.

The theme of the 2007 fringe was a festival of spirituality and peace so we saw some very moving, thought-provoking pieces on war in Iraq and other recent and ongoing conflicts in the world.

Edinburgh is a beautiful city, gorgeous old stone buildings and hilly streets, all presided over by Edinburgh castle which sits on a crag in the middle of the city. We really enjoyed wandering the streets, and tried to balance our festivities by planning on the shows we were keenest to see and also allowing ourselves to stumble across things.

On one wander we actually stumbled across Zoe's friend from Bennington College in the US, Shandoah. They hadn't seen each other for 8 years and it was really wonderful to catch up.

Last Day of Summer Vacation: August 21, 2006

These are some images from our trip to Mabie Forest with cousins Glen (12) and Dan (9) and their pal Andrew on thier last day of Summer Vacation. We tore them away from computer games, the trampoline and the arcade to take in some of Scotland's green forests.

Glen, Andrew, Dan


On, the trail, counting the wildflowers in bloom


Glen


Elfin Dan

Southerness, Scotland: August 6 onwards, 2006

With cousins Cath and Will


Zoe and cousin Dan (Cath and Will's son)working in the craft shop


Craig and Uncle James, with yet another cup of tea


Walking by the Solway Firth


Dinner by the Solway with James and Marion


Looking down the main street, an old pub and the lighthouse


Craig up the lighthouse


Green Hills allong the coast


Craig’s family (uncle James, cousins Cath & Will and their kids Glen and Dan) have been based in Southerness, a small village on the coast of Southern Scotland for a long time now. Although Zoe had met all these members of the family 2 Christmas’ ago in the Philippines, it was her first time to Scotland. It’s a gorgeously green and blustery place, Scottish weather living up to its reputation. Cath and Will own and run a caravan park in Southerness so Craig and Zoe are helping out here at a little, basing themselves in Southerness whilst exploring some of the beautiful Scottish countryside. The small town of Southerness itself is not much to write home about. It is a holiday town that attracts a lot of retirees from Glasgow. Not the usual scene we would choose to spend time in. But it is great to spend time with family and it is a great base from which to see the countryside. We can ride or walk along the coastline or in the surrounding green forests, or head out to explore ruins and more castles. Without a doubt, the nicest part of Southerness is the lighthouse overlooking the Solway Firth (a narrow sea inlet). We can see straight across the Solway to the twinkling lights and mountains of the Lake District in England.

London: August 1-6, 2006

From Tours, France, we RyanAired it to London where we were graciously hosted in Notting Hill by our good friend from Ireland, Simon (that we got to know 8 years ago in Melbourne) and his Irish flatmates John and Michael. Actually, the whole time we were in London we may as well have been in Ireland, and though we also met Brazillians, Senegalese and Kiwis, we didn’t meet any native English people at all. The Irish lads’ apartment was on Portabello Rd., famous for it’s weekend market, which was a great atmosphere to soak up. We borrowed Simon and John’s spare bikes and spent our 5 days in London cycling from one end to the other through great parks, by various waterways and along the main roads, where avoiding the red double-decker buses was something Zoe struggled to come to grips with.

We cycled along the Thames, catching Big Ben at sunset before dinner and a William Blake outdoor theatre promenade performance that was quite spectacular and atmospheric. It had been a while since we had seen theatre since it isn’t such a common thing to do in Japan.

We cycled from Notting Hill in the West End to Broadway Market in the East End along the canal, stopping briefly to check out a market in a grungy part of town and Little Venice (or more accurately, losing the path along the canal and surfacing onto the streets to “check it out”). We were lucky with the English weather. It was even nice enough to swim at some lakes in a park.


It was great to catch up with our friend Abdou and meet his fiancé. It has been 8 years since we had seen Abdou, after Craig and Abdou studied together at Hitotsubashi University in Tokyo.

The highlight of our time in London was probably the ride home from the free Fruitstock Festival and great performance by Arrested Development at a park. Speeding along the canal in darkness with 10 Irish lads after a few drinks was quite an invigorating experience.

Loire Valley: July 27-August 1, 2006

Paris and all of France have a certain reputation for being a romantic place. This part of our travels, through tiny villages in the countryside, visiting stately chateaus and medieval castles along the Loire River, certainly lived up to this reputation. It was a truly romantic setting, causing even pragmatic workaholics to get all dreamy-eyed and romantic.

We rented a car from Paris. Everyone told us not to do it. Even Craig’s mum warned us about the perils of driving in Paris. But we went from the Louvre around the super dangerous roundabout at the Arc de Triumph and miraculously tumbled out of the city. We spent most of our five days in hot pursuit of more castles. When we weren’t visiting castles we were gaping astonished by the fields of sunflowers or picnicking on baguettes, cheese, wine and other delectables. Long live French food.

Highlights of these days were two spectacular castles. We visited Chateau de Chambord, with its magnificent roofline of imaginative towers and turrets, and luckily caught a summer musical event. We watched a mandolin and bagpipe duo play on the roof terrace of the castle and even joined in a bunch of group dances. Then we went down to the gardens to have a picnic at sunset. When darkness fell they had a fascinating light show of images projected straight onto the castle façade as well as 3D Star Wars like projections of figures onto sheets of water in front of the castle. A play of shadows and colored lights also illuminated profiles of people dancing in the castle windows.

Our other amazing castle was the Chateau de Brieze, which is an underground castle. A really interesting look into life during the dark medieval ages, driven underground, and an amazing feat of architecture was made even more interesting by our tour. We arrived at the castle to discover that the English tour wasn’t held for another hour and a half. So, we did our own tour underground first and then did a fairly rushed winetasting at the wine cellar on site. We realized the wine went straight to our heads about the time the above ground English tour was starting. The tour guide had an exceptionally thick French accent and nobody could understand him at all. The looks on everyone’s faces and the wine swirling through our heads could not stop us from cracking up.


We finished our camping and touring through the Loire Valley with a wonderful night in Tours. It was a very perfect little summer trip.

Paris: July 24-27, 2006

The overnight train had us arrive somewhat sleepy and stunned in Paris at 7 a.m. We hit a famed café for a croissant breakfast and sought out a nice park to nap the afternoon away. The Jardin de Luxembourg was a pristine garden/park dotted with artworks, but the well-maintained lawn was apparently for looking and not napping. Park police had to kick us and other exhausted tourists off.

It was so great to be back in Paris. It was Craig’s first time ever and Zoe’s first time in 13 years since a one-month high school exchange. Paris, though a bit sweaty and sultry in July, is a mecca of a metropolis, and it’s wonderful just to walk the streets and take everything in.

We stayed in a cool little apartment in Belleville with Zoe’s long-time friend Morgan and her Parisian boyfriend Rachid. It was great to catch up with them and Rachid was an excellent guide. We also had dinner with one of our neighbours from Urawa, Japan, Nobuko.

We went to art museums, walked a lot, ate some amazing food and felt enchanted by Paris. The highlights (apart from food) included: a visit to a hamam or Turkish bath, an amazing jam session in a great jazz club which is actually a subterranean cave and a picnic under the Eiffel tower as a humungous storm brewed and struck us. The big storm drenched us (see photo below)and delighted us with a show of lightening and fierce gales that howled through the tower so loudly that the tourists who had climbed up (and Craig) screamed like they were on a roller coaster. It was exhilarating.

Hitching and Other Forms of Transport: July 23, 2006

Our plan from Bern, Switzerland was to hitchhike our way towards Paris, stopping for a few days in Dijon. We extended our stay in Bern twice and finally left early one Sunday morning. We were able to hitch the first ride from within the city; a very kind middle-aged Turkish man stopped to pick us up. He could not speak any English and we couldn’t converse in German so we ended up battling in limited and broken French, a good sign though, as we were headed to France that day. He was actually a political prisoner and was living in exile in Bern. Through a strange mixture of French, German and English, we got a glimpse of his life, 13 years unable to return to his native country where his family still lived. He took us to a large service area/rest stop on the highway, just before Basel. Based on all of our hitching experiences in Japan, this seemed an idea spot where we were guaranteed a ride.

We had some lunch, updated our sign for Dijon and started waiting. And we waited. And waited. A few nice people stopped to explain that they were going North into Germany. One uni student tried to persuade us to come to Basel instead and swim in the nice river there and take a cheap night train to Paris. But we had only been hitching for about an hour and I had become insistent about getting into France. Switzerland was lovely and a brilliant surprise, but we kept extending our stays and the country seemed to have some kind of magical hold on us.

Three hours later, we decided to change the sign to a large and desperate “FRANCE”. I had started to insult the various drivers simply to amuse myself, and we shook our sign fiercely at every car with an F on their license plate. I was adamant they must at some point be headed to some destination in France. I was eager to eat French food, speak my rusty French and see loads of art. But the frogs disappointed us.

The next sign change was a sign of defeat. We took down the FRANCE and wrote Basel, the nearest city, only about 10 km away. We got a ride about 10 minutes later, these Swiss people were just too nice, and spent another day in Switzerland.

We swam in the Rhine in Basel and saw a film and walked through the whole city. Then we boarded the night train for Paris.

We are still huge believers in hitching, and certainly had an exciting ride in the back of the cow truck in the Alps, but I guess the train/bus infrastructure in Europe was too developed for most people to even notice us.

The night train was like the other all-night journey we had in Germany, pretty crap. It was too dark to take in any scenery, below zero (air conditioning sadists) and not much sleeping happened.

We used many forms of transportation on our travels. The trains were efficient but costly, bikes were by far the best (especially the free ones in Switzerland, though sometimes there weren’t any bikes left and we had to take scooters or kids bikes). Our own feet were hard to beat, boats/ferries were pretty fun, hitching ended up being mixed and night journeys took the bottom rung.

Bern: July 19-23, 2006

We hiked down from our hut in the Alps, and caught the train back to Bern, where Viveca and Tillman had offered for us to stay in the empty apartment they were about to move into. The apartment was furniture free. Even free of lights, so we camped out there and had candlelit dinners. We planned on staying just a couple of nights, but we enjoyed Bern so much we extended our stay twice. The coolest thing in Bern was the beautiful, clean and turquoise river Aare that flowed around the city. With hundreds of Bernites, we walked upstream for about 30 minutes, then dove in and floated down in the very fast current. The tricky thing is getting out, though. If you miss your exit, you can end up in a lot of trouble downstream. The weather was great the whole time we were in Bern so we swam in the river 3 times. We also rented out free bikes or scooters everyday, exploring the city and the nature just outside of Bern.

Milk Bath: 16 July 2006

We were fortunate enough to have a luxurious milk bath in the big bronze cauldron while we were up in the Alps. To be precise, it wasn’t milk actually. It was whey: the milky liquid that remains after the curds are taken out to make cheese. Apparently it is really healthy for you to bathe in. So we jumped at the opportunity to bathe in the warm silky liquid about an hour after all of the cheese had been made.