Road Trip! 50th Birthday for Lovely Husband- 1
It didn’t look promising when we set off north through Cumbria.
I had to take some pics of these gorgeous Highland Cattle.
My school had a herd of these.
They were usually in the fields by the A40 road in Burford.
Beautiful gentle creatures.
Our next stop was Gretna Green.
It must be 20 years since we were last here on our way up to the Cairngorms to ski. There are now new buildings.
And sculptures.
All with a romantic theme.
The front of the Old Blacksmith’s Shop of course is still there.
But we had no need of it having been married for nearly 22 years.
Being in Scotland (just) it was a place where people under 21 could marry historically without parental consent. They couldn’t in England as the law was different.
Even today you can marry in Scotland if you are 16 or over without parental consent. It is 18 in England.
People still get married here. Wiki says 1/6 of all Scots marriages!
You can pay to go in and see the anvil which witnessed thousands of marriages.
Going though the Lucky Arch.
I can see the sculptures making a wonderful backdrop for the wedding photographs.
This one was my favourite. Such a clever way of making the birds seem to rise in flight.
You can see for yourself what a complex the place now is with shops.
It was hard with all the modernity to think of those desperate couples hundreds of years ago,
who fled from disapproving parents by stage coach or horse back.
Of course some were bound to have been fortune seeking seducers, taking in young heiresses.
But I like to think, that for the bulk of them, it was true love.
The back of the Old Blacksmith’s Shop.
After getting change from one of the shops we of course paid the piper. (He had stopped by then- it was blustery cold). I did video him but the file was too big to upload. He played beautifully.
We felt that we really were in Scotland then.
I have found a you tube link of his playing if you would like to listen.
Isn’t it amazing how music can create such an atmosphere.
Lovely hubby casually announced when we were looking at the different clan tartans, that a branch of his family on his mother’s side came from the Isle of Arran just off the coast of South West Scotland.
It just shows, you can know someone for 27 years and they can still surprise you!
So let us now leave Gretna Green and head East zig zagging between England and Scotland.
I should’ve bought the Arbroath Smokies being such a fan of fish. I didn’t see them again on the road trip, but I was worried about how they would keep in the car for a few days.
Ah well. I can get Manx Kippers locally. They are delicious!
Craft News
I made a little coat set (3-6m) for Daughter’s friend who is due on the 5th November.
I made booties and mittens with a 2 2 rib out of the left overs in the same size.
The buttons came from my local shop as I didn’t have 6 which matched in that size. I think the slight square shape goes well with the rice stitch (1 1 moss stitch) trim.
This is my current knitting WIP, I am working on the last sleeve. It is a jumper for a 1 year old.
It is inspired by Peruvian Textiles. I made the children this jumper when they were little. It is going to go in the “One-day Grandchildren” box.
My hope is that in the next decade or so when the children have grown up and settled down, that I can just give them the box to sort through and they can then choose which ones they would like. Ideally I would like to eventually make 2 of their favourite jumpers so they can have a box each. For now though, it will be just the one.
When it is finished, I will add it to my Craft Olympic finishes. Maybe I can squeeze the hat out of the leftovers?
So what are you making?
Posted in Travels by House Elf with 6 comments.