On my recent coach trip to Pitlochry my fellow passengers and I had a day out in Stirling. the last time I was there was in 1968 when my late Scottish wife and I were ‘courting’ and had a day out there.
I could not remember much of it from then but spent most of my time there in Stirling Castle. I bought the audio guide which was downloaded via a QR Code to my mobile phone. The commentary was excellent and I thoroughly enjoyed my time in the castle.
In July 2022 I went on a nostalgic coach tour holiday to the Isle of Man (IOM). It was where I met my dear late Scottish wife, Christeen, on holiday in July 1967, almost 55 years to the day – the first time I had been back. I and my brother, Rob (our other friend…
The weather was lovely in the morning and I spent it in Pitlochry, walking do the River Tummel and viewing the Dam and Salmon Ladder. The dam is part of the Tummel hydro-electric power scheme, which is an interconnected network of dams, power stations, aqueducts and electric power transmission. I took the photo of the…
Top left, my friend Vladimir on the ramparts of Ljubljana Castle which stands on Castle Hill above downtown Ljubljana, on the first evening of my visit to Slovenia. It is a key landmark of the town. Originally a medieval fortress, it was probably constructed in the 11th century and rebuilt in the 12th century. Top…
We spent the Monday in Ljubljana, commencing with crossing the Butcher’s Bridge on which many “love padlocks” adorn the bridge, placed there by lovers as token of their love. After that we went to the old town and on the way called into the Ljubljana Roman Cathedral of St Nicholas (katedrala Ljubljana), like the other…
I have been doing my family tree, concentrating on my paternal side. My grandmother, Rose, was an Emmett from Longridge in Lancashire. She was daughter of John Emmett and Alice Chapman. In a stroke of serandipity a DNA match with a man living in Canada, threw up clues to my Gran’s maternal family which I…
I drove to the Hydro Hotel, Pitlochry on what should have been Freedom (from Covid restrictions) Day. It was not to be but the restrictions did not impact too much on my stay – apart from having to wear the hated mask! I had stayed at the Hydro last year and realised that it is…