The trip to Scotland

The beauty from Ruskin’s View along the River Lune to the Devil’s Bridge in Kirkby Lonsdale was re-affirmative in some deeply needed way. It set the expectations let alone the hope in the right direction. Even the rain did not matter.

A night in Glasgow was next. The BnB we checked into was run by a chap who had known John.  We left our luggage and visited the Hunterian Museum for the Antonine Wall slabs and altars and then the Hunterian Gallery for the Whistler. The following day, in splendid sunshine, we explored the Botanical Gardens and walked along the River Kelvin to the Maryhill Locks before  joining Marion and Leslie in Arden along yon bonnie banks o’ Loch Lomond. Dinner at the Duck Bay Marina, the farmers’ market  the next day at Lomond Shores in Balloch followed by a climb to the summit of Stoneymollan.

After two nights with our dear friends, we drove to Plockton that had been recommended by a couple we had talked to in the Royal Hotel in Kirkby Lonsdale. Because of the Gulf Stream, it has something like palm trees. Two flat tyres within the space of seven minutes after changing the first resulted in the car and us being transported back to Fort William where we ended up purchasing not two but three new tyres. Basically in Plockton, we relaxed for two nights and the intervening day before traversing on to the Ilse of Skye where we stayed in the splendid Skeabost Bridge Hotel. Despite heavy rain, we managed our first day to visit the Talisker distillery. The second day was with much better weather which was spent making an enchanting drive first to the standing stones of Sornaichean Coir’ Fhinn overlooking Loch Eyre, followed by the lovely Fairy Glen of Balnaknock, the Quiraing of Brogaig, the view from Lealt, and the Old Man of Storr. After cappuccini in Portree, we were back to the hotel. And at some point during this marvelous time, the unbelievable happened, and America capitulated to Donald Trump – basically another Brexit-type horror.

From Skye we drove to the ferry to Orkney and were met in the dark and rain by Yvonne and taken to her BnB in Stromness. The following day with decent weather we thrilled over the magnificent Stones of Stenness, the Watchstone, the Ring of Brodgar and its adjacent tumulus, the Neolithic village of Skara Brae, the Maes Howe tumulus and finally the interesting and different Cathedral of St. Magnus. In all we spent three nights at Yvonne’s and on the day we left Orkney we visited the distillery of Highland Park before leaving.  It was dark when we reached the mainland but we drove to Tain to spend the night. It was at this point that, because I have not been a major fan of Hillary Clinton either in the American elections that Phyllis whom I have known since 1960 broke off our friendship.

We returned to Arden where Marion and Leslie had allowed most graciously for us to use their apartment. We stayed for five nights.  Then it was Edinburgh but for only one night. We visited the Edinburgh Castle and had dinner with Ralph’s friend Rosemary in the Voodoo Rooms that evening. We then had one night in York with Natacha and  Jonathan before driving back to London where I attended a fascinating session in the House of Lords on the History of Germany.  Since then it has been a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner at the Sloane Club, the death of Fidel Castro, Abel Gance’s 333 minute 1927 film Napoleon, a showing of North By Northwest at the English National Opera introduced by Eva Marie Saint, a presentation on  ‘Psychotropics & Conscious Dying’ at the October Gallery, lunch with Hamish, Tom Forde’s Nocturnal Animal, a splendid performance of Puccini’s Manon Lescaut at the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden, the Sophia Conference, and a visit from Marco and Elizabeth.

Another computer snag, so this is coming later than it was intended. There has since been a concert at Cadogan Hall by the London International Orchestra. The performance of Rachmaninov’s Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini was utterly beautiful and magical – a completely mesmerizing and moving moment. The young pianist was Ukrainian Sasha Grynyuk. There has also been a black tie dinner in the sumptuous Goldsmiths Hall with Meg. A dazzling and stunning affair. And still to come is a Nonsuch Singers concert at Holy Trinity, Sloane Square.

And then it is the Yule.