Camping holiday 2016 - Part One: Achindarroch Touring Park

As some of you may or may not know, I love my summer camping holidays to the West Coast of Scotland which I've been having since I was born. I'm lucky to have been brought up in a family with a strong passion for the scenery of Scotland, the history and a love of the outdoors.  It's also the reason for my name!



This year we headed to Achindarroch Touring Park with the tent on an incredibly warm July day. Achindarroch comes from the Gaelic, 'Achadh nan Darrach', which means 'Field of Oaks'. It is a small village in Duror, not far from Ballachulish and Glencoe Village. From here you can easily visit wonderful sights, such as the aforementioned Glencoe, or you could head along to Fort William to see Ben Nevis.  You could also travel to Oban from here as we did and work your way along the coast.  It's an excellent location to be based at for travelling and also has a cycle path running alongside it which is not only great for cyclists but also for dog walking and exploring the area on foot.

The touring park itself was excellent. We got a very friendly welcome to the site which has spacious open grounds for camping as well as areas for caravans and motorhomes, all with the wonderful view of the mountains and forests surrounding you. The facilities were always clean and tidy and there was also a kitchen area for washing dishes which included a washing machine, tumble dryer and microwave too. The site has a peacefulness about it and we all enjoyed sitting taking in the scenery. We got the tent up in good weather which is always a bonus and I watched the dog as she always gets a bit bored while all that is happening. To be honest she was mainly trying to find someplace sheltered to lie down since it was so hot. I managed to get sunburnt on the very first day!

The campsite welcomes dogs which of course was good news for our dog Keira.  She may not be a fan of travelling in the car, but she loves being in the tent. The cycle path and local walks were perfect for her and getting to sit at the tent door and watch the world go by seemed to be her idea of heaven.

 Along the cycle path there were lots of signs of wildlife.  We noticed marks at the side of the ditch which we thought may have been left by otters which have been seen in the area. There were lots of wild flowers and the air gently buzzed with bees and hoverflies. It was nice to get some fresh air and my knees hardly complained at all.  I think they enjoyed a bit of proper walking.

We were really lucky with the weather, but even on the rainy days it was nice to sit huddled up in the tent with a book listening to the rain hit the tent. We were also out and about during the rain too, as the weather no matter rain or shine, never fails to add an atmosphere to the landscape.

I loved spotting the different mushrooms around the campsite. I've no clue about mushrooms but I love their shapes and colours. Some were spread out in what looked like 'fairy rings', dotted about under bushes here and there.

We were only a short walk away from some fields of sheep and it was nice hearing them bleating away in the background as we relaxed in the tent. At night you could also hear owls hooting and I'm sure I heard foxes barking too. 

I found this wee moth who had drowned in a splash of water at the toilet sinks and tried to save him but alas he looked too soaked. A friend of mine who is doing the Angus Moth Project said that it may well be an Antler Moth. I popped him in the grass, hoping that he'd maybe come round at some point.  To my surprise he vanished so hopefully he felt a bit better and wandered off.

There were two beautiful ponies belonging to the campsite owners who were just a short walk away to say hello to. It was quite fun to watch them galloping around the field together and when they'd finished having a run about, they'd come to the fence to say hello. They had the best hairdos! 

Here's Keira's face again, just because she's great.

Here's a photo below of our Outwell tent in the sun. As you can see we had a perfect view of the mountains. We kept staring at them, trying to spot any caves. This area is home to the 'Cave of the Skulls' as well as many others.

Camping is pretty good for relaxing and apart from going walks and drives, I really just enjoyed having the time to sit and read, have cups of tea and draw. We had wifi at the campsite but I just used that for uploading some of the photos I'd been taking during the day. Other than that it was nice being cut off from regular responsibilities for a while and having time to just enjoy the beautiful surroundings.

 On heading back to the campsite on our last night I was overjoyed to see this stunning stag standing staring at us from the field next door. I didn't manage to get a good picture as it was getting dark and my camera zoom isn't too good but you can still see him a bit in this photo.  It was a lovely send off for the end of the holiday.

So that's a wee post about the campsite and I want to say a big thank you to Achindarroch Touring Site for our lovely stay.  It really was one of the best holidays we've had in a long time. If you want to find out more about the campsite, head over to their website which is www.achindarrochtp.co.uk  I highly recommend staying here if you're looking for a campsite to stay at in Scotland. It's in an excellent location and is a welcoming and peaceful spot to stay. 

As you can see from the title of this post this is part one of my holiday posts and I'll continue popping them up during the coming week. Do stay tuned to find out more about the rest of my holiday. 

Trip to Edinburgh to see The Celts Exhibition and the new Art, Design and Fashion galleries

It was an overcast but pretty warm Friday the other week when I headed off to Edinburgh for the day to visit The Celts exhibition at the National Museum of Scotland.  I don't think it ever really matters what the weather is like in Edinburgh as it always looks so beautiful.  I must have taken hundreds of photos over the last few years just of the buildings alone.

I headed along to the National Museum and I have to admit my mind was primarily on food first of all since I had been up since 5:15am to get there! I therefore headed to the Museum Brasserie for a bite to eat.  I loved the little details such as The Celts exhibition signs on the table and even additions to the menu for The Celts. They had specials which were modern takes on Celt inspired dishes.  These were, 'Pan fried Highland game venison sausages, sweet potato mash, roast silverskin onions, smoked Ayrshire bacon and red onion gravy'. The second option was 'Sticky Ayrshire pork ribs baked in Eden Mill Golden ale, honey and star anise, apple and fennel slaw, bucket of rustic chips'. I am certainly going to go back and get the venison sausages option, but on this day I opted for something a bit lighter but still incredibly filling which was homemade asparagus soup with an Isle of Mull cheddar cheese scone. I absolutely love how they mention where their different ingredients have come from.  I think it really adds to the dish to know you're eating delicious Scottish produce.

The Celts exhibition itself was a no photography zone but I took some photographs of my souvenirs which you can see here. The exhibition was quite busy and there was so much to see so I'm thinking of going back again before it finishes. I did however see a lot of incredible objects.  These objects for me are really hard to get my head around.  Their vibrancy, detail, and the sheer skill it took to make them have survived in such incredible condition after all these years. I have to keep reminding myself of just how old they actually are. I also love the mystery around The Celts, and how even after all the research that has been done, trying to work out their imagery and symbols, we really will never truly know what they mean.  We can get a good idea and possibly we're quite close, but we can never ask them to find out a definite answer.  I really like that.

I have a few favourite objects although it was difficult to pick. I like intricate small objects as they're the kind that I like to draw and one of those was the Ashmanhaugh boar figure which you can see in the postcard on the top left in the photograph above. What this object was used for isn't fully known but they think it may have sat on the top of a helmet. They think that boars may have been a symbol of courage and protection in battle so this would fit with it possibly having been from a helmet. I personally love its face and stance with the details added along its back. 

My other favourite piece not pictured here was the Gundestrup cauldron. Here is a link to the British Museum's tumblr with photos of the cauldron. The piece is vast and as you walk up to it the eyes of what look to be Gods of another time stare out from the sides.  It was found in a bog in Denmark where it had been buried around 2000 years ago. The sides both inside and out are lined with panels of long forgotten stories. It's incredibly mysterious to look at, a powerful object that isn't and will never be fully understood.

Many of the souvenirs for The Celts exhibition were designed by Emily Hogarth who is a wonderful paper cutting illustrator from Edinburgh.  I picked up one of the tote bags designed by her along with a lovely paper cut card.  You can see more of Emily's work at www.emilyhogarth.com. As you can see I'm quite into the colour orange just now! I also picked up some postcards, a bookmark and one of the catalogues, 'Celts Art and Identity' by Ian Leins. I'll certainly be heading back again before it finishes on the 25th of September. 

I headed into the rest of the museum after my Celts visit to see the new Art, Design and Fashion galleries, first though I had to stop off to visit Dolly the sheep in her revolving case.  I picked up this rather pop art looking postcard of her on the way out. 

Then it was onto the new Art, Design and Fashion section which was stunning! Ever since I was very wee, I've always loved looking at clothes in museums, mainly because I like to try and imagine the person that once wore them.  I think it's incredible that we have pieces such as these that have been kept in an incredible condition for centuries, allowing us a small glimpse into a time so different from our own. 

Above you can see on the left a pair of women's gloves from around 1610 to 1630.  The detail on the gauntlets includes a Tudor rose, embroidered on to white satin and trimmed with gold lace. The women's shoes on the right are thought to be Italian from around 1660 to 1670 and were originally embroidered in black silk across the front of the foot.  These two pieces look incredibly beautiful now  so in their original state they must have taken your breath away!

Above top left we have a women's dress in white cotton which has been printed by wood block. The material is Indian and it was from around 1740 to 1750.  I love the shape of this dress and to think of the skill that went into printing it with woodblock.

The outfit on the top right is for a little boy, a matching coat, waistcoat and breeches all made in brown silk velvet from around 1760 to 1775. I can't imagine this would have been the most comfortable outfit for a child to wear.

On the bottom left was what I thought, quite an usual dress from around 1810 to 1820. A black net embroidered piece hangs over a white cotton dress.  I've never seen this sort of dress before from this period. 

On the bottom right is a dress that looks to be from the 1920s to 1930s.  I didn't quite manage to catch the details of this one but it's very much a flapper era style with lovely bead work.

I really liked the set up of this whole gallery as the lighting and mannequins made it feel like a fashion show with various catwalks cutting through the room.

I didn't get the details about the outfit on the left (slaps wrist) but I love its shape.  The dress on the right is from around 1810 and made me think of Elizabeth Bennet! I think this would be a really pretty dress to wear. 

This ladies cotton dress above in yellow cotton has such an abstract design that it almost looks modern if it wasn't for the overall shape.

This woman's dress above from around the 1740s has a mirror repeat pattern of foliage and has a sacque back style meaning it is unfitted and sort of hangs down. Yet another dress which would have looked stunning on the wearer.

 

This American ball gown by Ceil Chapman from the mid 1950s is made of a gorgeous pale beige taffeta with curving pleats lined by stiffened paper. It's hard to see in this photograph but the way the light hit it gave it a beautiful pearlescent sheen.

The magenta corset seen in the top left photo is beautiful.  It's from around 1890 to 1900 and has a lovely little yellow ribbon detailing the front. It's made of silk satin and trimmed with cream lace. 

The women's blouse covered in war time slogans in bright coloured panels, dates form the late 1930s to 1950s and is designed by Bianca Mosca.

Below these are two more mannequins really adding to the layout of the exhibition. The mannequin on left revolved on a platform, allowing you to see the full form of the dress.

This Mantua dress from the 1750s stole the show for me though.  The print on it was so beautiful and those hips are huge!

 

Two more pieces I loved were 'A la Rusee Kokoshnik' by Anya Caliendo dated 2016 on the left and this Vivienne Westwood jacket and bondage trousers on the right from Autumn/Winter 93/94.

I moved on to the sculpture and ceramics section and by far my favourite piece of sculpture was Angel by Claire Curneen, 2005. The face is just perfect and the gold glazing on the textured terracotta really shines in the lighting.

These two pieces were brilliant too.  I didn't catch the name or the maker of the one on the left but it was so tiny! The piece on the right is Rocket Boy by Karen Akester which I really liked too. 

 I again (slaps wrist a few more times), didn't get the name or maker of this piece above but I loved the simplicity of it. It's difficult sometimes to put into words why something has caught my eye or why I like something more that something else.  My reasons for listing some of these pieces may not be very in depth but it really is difficult.  Sometimes I just like something...because I like it.

 This collection of objects above made me want to draw. What a brilliant display of handmade hooks and to be honest you may see my own drawn version popping up on here soon.

 So after spending my day at the National Museum I made my way back towards the train station.  I was planning on going to the RSA Open Exhibition to see my drawing on display but unfortunately my floating knees had other ideas.  I didn't fall over or anything but I could hardly walk and it took me a long time even just to get to the train station.  I plan to head back through in August though to see my drawing.

I popped into a little antiques shop on Cockburn Street that I've been visiting for years and found these two amazing old photographs that you can see below.  They are perfect for my collection and I was even more excited to find writing on the back of both of them.

The first one below is very faded but incredibly beautiful.  The back has writing that appears to read 'received this on 2nd/3rd? April 1911'.

 The second is again, beautiful and the writing on the back says 'christening of Violet...Narci & Rose, Julia'. Two very special photographs that I'm so happy to now have in my collection.

 I also stopped by Hannah Zakari which is a lovely little shop on Candlemaker Row selling jewellery and accessories by independent designers. I got myself two new enamel pins, one from Finest Imaginary and the other from Stay At Home Club.  I saw others too and it was very hard to choose so I'm going to have to go back and pick some more.

It was a really lovely day and apart from my floating knees, even the rain didn't put a damper on the day.  Always a pleasure Edinburgh, and I'll be back soon!
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