More of Alan's picks from Scotland and Northumbria

  The ruins of a castle seen from a break in the hedgerow along the bikepath near Amble, England.  We passed many ruins of old fighting fortifications.  The history was full of wars between the English and Scottish, the Romans and the Celts, the Vikings and everybody, and clans against each other.

Teahouse at a lock along the Great Glen Cycle Way in Scotland.

Run by a woman who made all the cakes herself.

Cyane in front of the remains of a railway line along the Great Glen route.

The rail line was put in speculatively in the 1800's, but no links were ever built from Inverness, so it was never used.  The metal was torn up for scrap and other uses.

Sheep grazing along the shore of Loch Ness.

Sheep were common everywhere, even more than cattle.

Grazing pressure seemed less than in New Zealand.

The purple flower is purple loosestrife.

Alan's Picks from Scotland and Northumbria

Here are some of Alan's favorite scenes from Scotland and England, that did not make it into short blog postings previously.

The first scene is a small cottage near the Tweed Valley.

Much of the land seemed to be consolidated into large estates or farms.

These often had small tenant cottages associated.

This is just such a tenant cottage, not special or different.  It just gives a taste of the relaxed and exuberant gardening style known as the "Cottage Garden."

The inhabitants of this Fox Hound Kennel were very interested in us.

Near Wooler in the Tweed Valley - England by this time.

Floors Castle in Kelso may look grand and pretentious and unrelated to any scale of normal housing.

However, this approach to landscaping has influenced very much the ideals and aspirations of the suburban yard.

We saw numerous demonstrations of English and Scottish engineering genius.

This pedestrian bridge from the 1800's was just one small and useful example.

Newcastle on Tyne: July 16 & 17, 2008

  After a long day of cycling, we arrived at Newcastle, for the ferry on the 17th.

Newcastle has a gritty industrial past, with coal mining, ship building, metalworking, etc.  It is hard to tell how robust that economy is now.

  The downtown of Newcastle has had a complete makeover, with upscale housing and eyecatching architectural wonders.

Here is a photo along the Tyne of cranes from the shipping works.

Alan cycles into Newcastle beside the "winking eyelid" pedestrian bridge to the redone art museum.  The music hall glows in the sunset, like a metal catepillar.

The central streets of Newcastle have been turned into a pedestrian mall, that throngs with people, flowing around the old architectural edifices.

The DFDS ferry to Holland.  We wait in the line with a few other cyclists, mostly Dutch.  There are many more motorcyclists and the cars behind us.

From Melrose east and south: July 13 & 14, 2008

   National Cycle Route 1 starts in Edinburgh and goes south over the Lammermuir Hills into the Tweed Valley.  It follows the Tweed Valley east to the coast and then turns south towards Newcastle on Tyne.

  We said goodbye to Frank in the Tweed Valley, shortly after the picture below was taken.  It was at a baronial estate:  this was the gardener's cottage, built to look like a castle.

Landscape with clouds in the Tweed Valley.

Thank goodness the strong wind was behind us!

Alan in front of Bamburgh Castle, near Lindisfarne.

There have been fortifications at the site since the sixth century AD, around the time the Romans were leaving England and Christianity was arriving.

Biking off-road on the cycle route near the coast.

Heading South from Edinburgh with Frank: July 12, 2008

  Frank accompanied us again on bikes, heading south from Edinburgh on National Bike Rt 1.

We headed toward the Lammermuir Hills of the Borders region.

Strong tail winds blew us up the hills and we dodged rain.

  Very friendly pig who begged oatcakes from us.  This is a smart pig, who has a very rewarding schtick along the bike route!

Sheep on the road in the Borders.

Photo taken on bike of Frank while descending the hills

Frank at the Scottish Borders road sign, Alan in background.

This area is famous for raiding and lawlessness over many centuries, as well as the fighting between England and Scotland.  It is also the site of the opera "Lucia di Lammermoor," and the Walter Scott story it is based on.

Great Glen Bike Route: July 7-9, 2008

  The Great Glen is the rift valley slashing Scotland almost in two.

It cuts the country from Fort William in the southwest to Inverness in the northeast.

Loch Ness is the deepest and most famous lake in the United Kingdom, right next to Ben Nevis, the highest point.

The naturally occurring lakes have been connected with a working canal system.

Boats use the waterway to go from the Irish Sea to the North Sea.

Along the canal is a bikeway and hiking path.

Here is a shot of Alan and Cyane at the Banavie hostel before starting out near Ft William.

Cyane at the highest point in the Great Glen Cycleway

Our trusty bikes with the canal in the background, waiting at a lock/bridge/teashop stop.

Shot taken while riding on the bike on a forest path, blurry because of bumps and speed.

Much of the route is unpaved.

Glasgow, Scotland: July 6, 2008

  Alan and Cyane made the most of a short day in Glasgow.

This is the place for Charles Rennie Macintosh - Glasgow architect around 1900.

Macintosh worked with his wife Frances Macdonald and were leaders in a Scottish Art Nouveau/Arts and Crafts approach to architecture, interior design, textiles, and furniture.

Below are shots of the Glasgow School of Art, designed (mostly) by Macintosh and built in the 1890's.  Macintosh and Macdonald both had attended this school.  It still exists today.

The exhilarating design may come through a little in these shots.

  Although Macintosh was recognized as a leader abroad, he was not accepted or successful during his life in Scotland.  He and Frances left Glasgow, moving to England and France.  Macintosh largely gave up architecture and concentrated on producing beautiful luminous watercolors of flowers and landscapes.  Charles and Frances both died early, poor and unappreciated.  Recognition of their vision and genius has really come much later and much of their work has been lost.  The remnants now left in Glasgow seem to be the biggest single cultural draw of the city.
  

Edinburgh to Glasgow: July 5, 2008

  Frank accompanied Alan and Cyane on the 65 mile bikepath from Edinburgh west to Glasgow.

It rained most of the way, and we all ended up covered with mud.

Still, a great ride and an introduction to the engineering wonder of the Falkirk wheel - a ferris wheel for canal boats, designed to get them from one canal to another at a different level.

Here is a picture of Frank in the rain with the Falkirk wheel behind.  It is hard to tell how enormous it is - that is a canal boat the size of a train car at the top of the question mark!

Edinburgh, Scotland: Visiting Frank

  Cyane and Alan did not originally go to Scotland for the usual reasons of art, architecture, whisky, or golf.  We went to visit Cyane's cousin Frank, the tall and handsome fellow shown biking with us in Scottish pictures.

  Frank is a cartoon animator and has an 18 month gig creating a BBC TV series with an international team based in Edinburgh.  Frank was a great host, introducing the wonders.

  Edinburgh does have great art and architecture.  Further, it has an impressive network of biking and bikeways, a waterfront that is being rebuilt, and an international mix of talent.

1)  Below is a door lintel made of good old red Scottish sandstone used in many buildings.

The lines of structures have a reassuring and substantial glow.

2)  Alan and Frank on the canal bike path starting in Edinburgh

3)  Port area of Edinburgh, being rebuilt for upscale residential and retail - where Frank lives

4)  Another ace mechanic transplanted from England, Dan Thompson of Thomson Motor Co.

Dan trained at the Rolls Royce factory and now has a "Freds in the sheds" repair business in Edinburgh; he kindly helped Cyane with a bicycle problem.

Alan is the one on the Triumph motorcycle and Dan is the chap in red coveralls.

Two Days in Dublin: July 1 and 2, 2008

  Alan and Cyane arrived in Dublin July 1 - six months to the day after arriving in New Zealand.

Ireland was intended as a layover; however it's vibrant spirit made it much more.  

Here are some shots showing:

1)  street scene showing Abby Street near the famous Abby Theater

2)  gorgeous flowers and a proud Celtic history

3)  fine Georgian architecture, shown here in the doorway