So here is what has been happening in our lives over the past 2 months. Ian and I did go to Perthshire for Christmas. We stayed in a lovely cottage in the middle of nowhere pretty much. We had a very white Christmas and the snow lasted well into the new year. Being from Tennessee, I had not ever truly experienced living in a snowy area until now. We had well over a foot of snow on the ground consistently until about two weeks into January. It was quite fun to play in and look at, but very, very cold! Imagine that, snow being cold . . . but really it seemed like just consistently having the snow and ice on the ground made everything so much colder. That sounds so stupid, but if you have ever felt it, you will know what I mean. The dogs enjoyed it, until it turned to solid ice for a few weeks and then they just had trouble walking around outside.
Here is a picture of the snow on our street.
These are from a day in the park with the dogs.
Anyhow, back to Christmas . . . the cottage was so far in the middle of nowhere that we couldn't get our car up the mile long driveway because of all of the ice. We walked a good bit and had the owner of the cottages help us to get our stuff in. It was all part of the fun of it though and made it much easier to not want to leave the comfort of the cottage. The dogs had a great time running around in the snow and barking at the sheep, horses, and grouse.
For Christmas dinner, we went to our friend Barry's parents' house near Edinburgh. Everyone was so welcoming and nice that they made us feel like family instead of guests. We had one of the best meals that we have eaten since we arrived in Scotland 7 months ago. Take that back . . . the best meal since we arrived. Barry's mother Fiona is a force to be reckoned with in the kitchen, it was AMAZING! Their hospitality made it a little bit easier to be so far away from family and friends over the holiday.
Our New Year's Eve was pretty low key, but we did manage to take in a truly Scottish tradition in the evening. We went to see Stonehaven's Fireball Festival which is something very different to any New Year's celebration than we have been to. It is so difficult to describe, but basically a parade of people walk through the town streets swinging these giant fireballs around their bodies for about 20 minutes and then throw the fireballs into the ocean. Following that they have a short fireworks display. To read the history and significance of the fireballs, check out this website, they are much better at explaining it than I am. www.stonehavenfireballs.co.uk
It was really a neat thing to experience, but I have to say that I think that I was the coldest that I have ever been in my life that night. That was during the time period of excessive snow and ice and that particular night was very stormy. Ian keeps telling everyone that I must have been really cold because at some point I stopped talking to him altogether and just focused on staying warm. You all know how difficult it is for me to stop talking, it was very cold out!
In Scotland, January 25th is celebrated for the birth of poet Robert Burns. The traditional celebration of Robert Burns is a Burns Supper in which a meal is served along with Robert Burns poetry readings and toasts with whiskey. It sounds kind of boring, but it is definitely not boring. Ian and I attended a Burns Supper hosted by the local Aberdeen Council. It was open to the public so there were a couple of hundred people there. The tradition is to serve Haggis, Neeps, & Tatties for the meal, which translates to Haggis (you don't want to know), turnips, and potatoes. In addition to the meal, the poetry readings, and toasts, we got to experience our first ceilidh dance. Ceilidh dancing is comparable to country line dancing, with a lot more jumping and spinning. At this particular supper, they taught the dances prior to the start of each song, so of course Ian and I participated. It was so much fun and very tiring! The place that the dinner was held in had a spring dance floor so you literally bounced through the entire dance. And to top the Scottish experience off, most of the men were wearing kilts!
So 2010 is off to a good start for us in Scotland. I hope that the same is true for all of you. Know that we miss you and are thinking of you often!
dear Amber and Ian. I have just found your last blog. ti was so good to here from you, We are so pleased to here from you, and that you have experienced the winters like we had over there.I expect you didn't like the haggis. nor would I, give me some roast beef and yorkshire pudding anyday.are you enjoying the fish and chips? I hope you have taken some more pictures of Oscar and Grace in the snow, it must have been funny to see them on the ice.so try to keep warm, as we are doing, it is very cold here too. and also in Florida.our friends are over at this time and are not liking the weather at all,we are going to try to see them before they go back.so bye for now, still miss you, love Betty.
ReplyDeleteHi Amber and Ian.I seem to be having difficulty in sending a message to you.this is the 4th time, I don't know what I am doing wrong,so here goes again. we went to Florida the 5th of marchto see some friends,the weather was good, they had had some very bad weather till then. it has been cold since we got home.Have you found a new home yet, you said you had to move? we are looking forward to seeing you in the near future, so for now bye bye Betty and Fred.
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