Orkney is full of interesting things to see and the Mainland has a huge number of prehistoric monuments, mostly from the Neolithic Stone Age 5000 to 4000 years ago. Its an archaeologist´s dream with ancient village remains, burial mounds, standing stones, Iron Age broughs and viking and pictish sites. There are also unique remnants from World War II and a vibrant local arts and crafts scene. We´ve got a car today so we can take in a bit of a selection. It also proves to be handy for sheltering from the biting North wind that has come up. We visit a number of standing stones sites, the most impressive being the Ring of Brodgar, with 36 of the original 60 stones still remaining. The stones sit in the middle of a windswept plain between two lochs ... read more

The invitation says “ Loch side Saturday, rain, hail or shine”. That's my kind of invite. Thing is there is no hail and no shine just lots of rain, perfect for me but not so ideal for humans. Keith's family stronghold is in the Moy area just a quick drive to the south east of Inverness. Typically the family needs very little excuse for a party and our visit warrants one. We head off in a borrowed car with the freshly-made pizza competing for space with bottles of beer and wine in the back. Ten minutes from our destination the car splutters and stops dead. Yikes. There´s silence in the car except for the rain drumming on the roof and we have one bar of cell reception. Hmmm. Eventually the cavalry arrives in the form of ... read more

We´ve been lucky with the weather so far and its another fine day on Barra. We catch a local bus up the West coast of the island, the driver of course is another MacNeil. Its great to hear local people speaking Gaelic to each other, although sometimes with the strength of the accent we´re not quite sure what language they´re speaking. We pass some stunning white sand beaches and cute little cottages. We hop off the bus at the Barra airport at Eoligarry. This is not your standard airport - the runway is the beach. When the windsock is flying, you´re not allowed to walk the beach, and from beside the terminal building we watch a commercial flight coming in to land. Pretty unique. Guess its quiet there at high tide. We walk some white sand, ... read more

Now that we´ve bagged our fist Munro we´re feeling pretty full of ourselves. There are plenty of walks around here, many including ancient ruins and historic sights as well as woodlands and great views. Some of these walks have curious histories. In times of economic depression or famine sometimes ornamental building projects were conceived, not taking work from already employed workers but providing additional employment for others, meaning they could put food on the table for their families. Today we can still see the remains of these follies, the fruits of their labour. One of these is the Fyrish Path, near Evanton, a track which passes through forests with moss-covered ground, wee toadstools and big black ridged slugs. As we ascend the hill, gradually the trees are replaced by heather, tinting the landscape purple with flowers. ... read more

Its festival time in Edinburgh. As we navigate our way into the city, its great to see so many street and place names on the map that remind Tessa of Dunedin, back in New Zealand. We manage to snag a fantastic park beside the castle - perfect for a few hours of exploring the city centre and experiencing the Fringe Festival. The tattoo venue is set up right outside the castle and above the tiered seating, many flags from around the world are flying, reflecting the participation. We imagine the atmosphere in the evening performances. We walk with the crowds of festival goers down the Royal Mile to the Scott Monument. The buildings are conservative old stone, but we pass a colourful variety of street performers from William Wallace to mime artists, human statues, dancers, musicians, ... read more