All posts by billpaterson1@me.com

Scones, Uncategorized

Helensbank

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This post from Helensbank is a little bit different from our usual. It doesn’t involve us travelling very far, it doesn’t involve a cafe or a restaurant. It doesn’t even involve a scone. Okay, you can stop reading here if you like but we think you should bear with us. Perhaps we should explain.

Chance?
A plant at Helensbank
Giant Himalayan lily over 2.5m tall

Attentive readers will remember that last month were were on the Isle of Coll nursing sore bums from bikes that didn’t fit us. That was our excuse anyway, nothing to do with our general state of decrepitude.  We had a wonderful time on Coll and one of the highlights was meeting a couple at the Island Café who were taking delivery of some langoustines  We got chatting. Turned out they were keen gardeners and lived in Kincardine which is just a ten minute drive from our home. To cut a long story short they invited us to see their garden at Helensbank House. And here we are, along with one of our neighbours. She is also a very keen gardener so we felt sure she would enjoy Helensbank.

Another world

Helensbank is sometimes described as a ‘secret garden’ and we totally understand why. Kincardine is not a big place so we assumed there wouldn’t be a problem finding a large garden. Wrong! It is tucked away down a very narrow street and when you arrive at the door there is not even a hint of a garden … just a pavement and a door! When our hosts opened the door, however, everything changed. You pass through to another world. A magical almost Mediterranean looking proliferation of plants … everywhere you look. Turns out that the door on the street is actually the back door. Now we understand … do we?

Old Cedar of Lebanon at Helensbank
Centrepiece is this cedar brought back from Lebanon and planted by a sea captain in 1750

Our hosts open the garden occasionally to the public by arrangement or for charitable events. They have owned Helensbank for twenty years so their knowledge of each and ever plant was astounding.

Helensbank garden
A wedding cake tree on the left with an acer on the right beautifully underplanted with hosts
Portland roses

The garden is surrounded by a high wall and consists of lots of separate secluded little compartments or ‘rooms’. External view of HelensbankEach has its own character. Some shady with lots of foliage plants … few of which we recognised. Others sunny with tables and chairs where you could simply sit and enjoy the peace and quiet of the garden. Portland roses are a favourite and there were lots of beautifully scented examples everywhere. Little paths join everything up. There is so much to see the garden could never be done quickly. Particularly if our neighbour needs to discuss each and every plant at  length!Victor the tortoise at Helensbank

In one of the ‘rooms’ we came across some bantam hens with tiny chicks. Then we were introduced to Victor their tortoise. He is about 12 years old and had been inherited from people who could no longer look after him. For a tortoise he was incredibly agile and seemed to have an insatiable appetite for dandelion leaves.

Hostas at HelensbankConsidering our host’s encyclopaedic knowledge it’s hardly surprising that they organise horticultural courses at Helensbank and elsewhere. Helensbank garden

Cookies

The intention had been that we would have tea and scones at the end of our visit however, circumstances dictated otherwise. Helensbank gardenInstead we had tea from a lovely tea set and chocolate chip cookies. All while sitting beside a huge example of the fantastically fragrant Ispahan rose. Tea nd biscuits at HelensbankWhat a fantastic way to spend an afternoon. We had only met our hosts fleetingly on Coll yet the kindness and hospitality they showed us was absolutely wonderfull. 

Everything crossed

As we often say we are very lucky to be able to spend time like this with such incredible people. Especially when we think of the five folk lost in the Titan submersible. They are two and a half miles down in the Atlantic near the wreck of the Titanic … truly desperate situation. Fingers and everything else crossed for their safe return.

FK10 4QZ       tel: 07739 312912        Helensbank Garden

///armful.shelving.tumble

Ordinary, Scones

The Riverside

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We’re at the Riverside today because we are following Forth Valley Artbeat trail which is a kind of open house for local artists. It happens for one week every year. First we went to see Archie Scott at his woodturning studio in Bannockburn.Spalted beech bowl by Archie ScottWe bought this beautiful little bowl which he had made out of rotten wood. Actually, it’s not as bad as it sounds. Once the tree has died fungi colonise the wood and extract nutrients from it, leaving behind dark lined patterns. The process is called spalting and our bowl is made of spalted beech wood. Archie was a lovely guy and spent ages with us explaining everything he does, it was absolutely fascinating

Harry

After our woodturning experience we carried on to Dunblane where there were more studios to visit. Before that, of course some lunch was called for and that’s how we ended up here at the Riverside. Originally it was the Stirling Arms built in1770. Robert Burns stayed here in 1787and wrote the poem ‘My Harry Was A Gallant Gay‘, It’s about HIghland Harry’s association with the local laird’s daughter, Jeannie Gordon. Nowadays, however, with Harry, Duke of Suffolk’s ongoing legal battles, we think the title might be problematic.Internal view of the Riverside in Dunblane

Pat and I usually share almost everything. Today however we are taking it a stage further and splitting everything three ways with one of our neighbours who had come with us. To stretch the tolerance of the Riverside even further we decided to do a three way split on two scones … their last fruit scone and a plain one. The staff were very understanding … everything we got came with three plates.

It was a very hot day so we sat outside on the balcony overlooking the the river, the Allan Water. Thank goodness there was a large canopy to provide shade.

The balcony at the Riverside in Dunblane

The scones were quite big and came with jam and the ubiquitous Roddas Cornish clotted cream. A scone at the Riverside in DunblaneThey were very enjoyable but half way through I decided to top up my tea from the teapot. I forgot to use the strainer which was right in front of me and ended up with lots of tealeaves in my cup. Our neighbour immediately sprang into action offering to ‘read my leaves’. Goodness, we’ve been neighbours for over forty years and we had no idea she was into tasseography. Just when you thought you knew someone!

It’s all in the detail

Apparently, I am going on a long journey over water amongst many other things. She was having difficulty, however, with detail because the tealeaves were too big. Turns out the tea supplier also provides Riverside with our favourite coffee. We have reported the matter and they have promised to get scissors and cut each leaf in half. Perhaps it was fortuitous that  more detail was not forthcoming. Anyway, although our scones were lovely they weren’t topscones. But if you are looking for somewhere to chill in lovely surroundings and with good food and good service, look no further than the Riverside.

The balcony at the Riverside in Dunblane

Fun guys

A few yards further up the High Street from Riverside is Balhaldie House where Bonnie Prince Charlie stayed as he led his army south in his bid to regain the throne for his dad.  Six months later the Duke of Cumberland was riding past Balhaldie in hot pursuit of the retreating Prince. A pot of boiling oil was thrown from an upstairs window at Balhaldie by a serving lass who had taken a wee fancy to the bonnie Prince. The Duke fell off his horse but no one was seriously hurt. It does show, however, that you can’t be too careful when you make more than political enemies. Just ask Boris Johnson or Donald Trump. Perhaps they should consider a stay at the nearby Dunblane’s Hydro Hotel. The medicinal baths are supposed to calm the nerves of the “worried well”.

FK15 0AA.        tel: 01786 823318          The Riverside

///quit.generated.comical

Ordinary, Scones

Aroma Café

You all know what it’s like, don’t you? You are in a restaurant having afternoon tea and when you go to settle the bill, they say “That’s okay, it’s all paid for!” Well maybe not, but that’s what happened to us here at the Aroma Café in Biggar. A friend had sent us a card when we were celebrating our recent wedding anniversary saying he had booked an afternoon tea for us in this café.  He was our best man fifty years ago but he has a well deserved reputation for being uncontactable and  just a bit random. We weren’t too sure what was booked and what wasn’t. Anyway, hurrah for best men, we love them!Internal view of Aroma, Biggar

Becky was then looking after us and she was great. Our afternoon tea was in front of us almost immediately. afternoon tea at Aroma, BiggarWhat a lot there was! The plates were groaning with goodies! Sausage rolls, quiches, various sandwiches, loads of cakes and, of course, plain as well as fruit scones. We knew right away that we would be defeated by this feast. And so it was!

A scone at Aroma, BiggarWe munched our way through most of the bottom layer but when it came to the scones we had to share one. They were big! We have nothing against big scones, per se, but we do think that they should be relatively small when part of an afternoon tea. Makes sense don’t you think? Anyway, by the time we finished we felt pleasantly stuffed. Thoroughly enjoyed our visit to Aroma Café and made a mental note to revisit this part of the world sometime soon.

Days gone bye

I used to come to Biggar quite a lot when I was Secretary of the STOWA (Scottish Tug-of-War Association) for many years. At that time the world tug-of-war champions  at 640kgs (Tinto TOWC) were from here. Now, apparently the local ladies team has just qualified for the upcoming Royal Highland Show Young Farmers competition. An event that Pat and I used to judge. Good to hear that the sport is still alive and well in the area.

Biggar is set amidst beautiful rolling countryside and still maintains that old market town feel. The town’s slogan encapsulates a slightly independent and defiant air.

“New York is big, but this is Biggar”

After we left Aroma Café we walked along the High Street but it was so hot that we eventually gave up and retreated to the aircon comfort of the car for a leisurely drive home.

A lane in Biggar
A typical little lane off the High Street
Do we care?

While we have been having afternoon tea it has all been going on! Boris and Rishi have fallen out big time about Boris’s Honours List. A huge Parliamentary investigation has found, surprise, surprise, that Boris is a stranger to the truth. The good news is that Boris has also resigned as an MP. Also Donald Trump was arrested and appeared in court  in Miami. Here in Scotland, Nicola Sturgeon, former First Minister was also arrested then released. Silvio Berlusconi died. Manchester City FC won some stuff and Novak Djokovic has won even more stuff. Do the good folks of Biggar care about any of this? We suspect not.

ML12 6DH        tel: 01899 220009      Aroma Café TA

///respect.eager.challenge

Ordinary, Scones

Brig o’ Turk Tearoom

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In the past, whenever we have been here in this part of the Trossachs, the Brig o’ Turk Tearoom has been closed. Today we seem to be retracing events of 1973 when we got married in a Glasgow registry office before driving in HAL, our trusty Citroen Dyane, to the village of Strathyre for our reception.

Pat with HAL in 1972

As we drove over the Duke’s Pass with its multiplicity of hairpin bends we marvelled at the fact that we ever made it to Strathyre. With four of us in the car it must have taken all of HAL’s 602cc to power us up these inclines (he was named after the computer that had a mind of its own in 2001, Space Odyssey). In terms of performance  HAL, with a following wind, could do 0-60mph slightly faster than it takes to soft boil an egg. We loved HAL dearly and were very sad when we eventually had to go our separate ways.

Today we are in another French car but much more powerful … no need to take account of the wind direction. We descended the other side of the Pass and were treated to fabulous views of Ben A’an and  the surrounding hills. We felt we were very lucky to live in such a beautiful part of the world. And as if to confirm that thought, when we reached the tiny hamlet of Brig o’ Turk, the tearoom was open … lucky, lucky, lucky!

Salacious

Externally it looks like a big green shed but it’s a big green shed that’s been here for 100 years. It first opened its doors in 1923 and it’s been fairly eventful.  The tearoom was used as a set in the remake of the film “the 39 Steps”. Brig o’ Turk was also the setting for a famous love triangle. It was between the much celebrated writer,  artist and philosopher, John Ruskin, his wife Effie Gray and John Everett Millais. The affair has been made into a Netflix film “Effie Gray“. If you want more detail you should watch it. The story is much too salacious to be recounted on an erudite, genteel scone blog such as this.Internal view of Brig o' Turk Tearoom

Veggie

Internally it looks quite pleasant but still rather shed like. We were going to be eating again later so for now we just wanted tea and a scone. A scone at Brig o' Turk TearoomIt’s one of these places which is enthusiastically vegatarian. They are determined that you will leave healthier than when you came in. They pride themselves on their local produce … even the menu is limited until their vegetable garden starts to produce. Why then is their Meadow Churn butter not local and from the Iceland supermarket? Of course, there was no cream so just the scone  with the butter and some jam. It was all rather nice though and we were happy that we had managed to  visit the tearoom at long last.Logo of Brig o' Turk Tearoom

Just a few hundred yards from the tearoom lies the bicycle tree. A young man going off to fight in WWI left his bike lying against the tree. It either says something for the honesty of the neighbourhood or the state of his bike that it wasn’t stolen. He never returned to collect it and the tree slowly grew up round about it. Parts of the bike can still be seen about eight feet up protruding from the trunk. In 2015 it was given protected status. It’s not a threat to anyone competing in the Tour de France although the young man probably died there.External view of Brig o' Turk Tearoom

Don’t mess

The Westminster politicians currently messing with the devolution settlement for Scotland should be thankful that they won’t have to deal with Ellen Stewart. She’s a bit of a hero with folks in Brig o’ Turk. In 1650 when Cromwell’s army was blazing a bloody trail across Scotland leaving thousands dead they eventually came to the Trossachs. For safety the locals decided to place their women and children on an island on Loch Katrine. However, when an English soldier decided to swim out and capture their boat he hadn’t reckoned with the women folk in these parts. As he clambered up the rocks on the beach Ellen promptly chopped his head off with a sword. Don’t mess with the Scots … especially the women!

FK17 8HT        Tel: 01877 376283     Brig o’ Turk Tearoom

///crispy.shallower.lashed

ps: the other day, friends invited us round to their house for an afternoon catchup and some nibbles. The nibbles, of course, turned out to be scones.

Half were plain and the other half were fruit. Gently warmed by the sun, lots of jam and cream and the company of good friends … lucky, lucky, lucky again!

pps: recently I was lamenting to a Texan singer/songwriter friend that the older I got the less I seem to understand. She replied that knowing how little you know is in itself, wisdom. Okay, it was never in doubt but I would just like readers to know that although I don’t know anything, I am wise!

Scones

Wee Timorous Beastie Café

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People often ask us how we plan our scone adventures. The answer, of course, is we don’t … they just kind of happen. How we ended up here at the Wee Timorous Beastie Café in Bridge of Allan is a typical example.

A few day ago we received an email from the Major A A Gordon Society, based in Antwerp. They had read one of our posts from 2015 about the Scotch Tea House in Nice. Major Gordon hails from Bridge od Allan and although pretty well unknown here he is a national war hero in Belgium, The Major A A Gordon Society is dedicated to preserving his memory. Their enquiry arose because In 1939  he visited Nice and, according to his letters, had taken tea with his sister-in-law, Dolly, in the “Scottish Tea Rooms”.

Research

They wanted to know if we thought it would be the same tearoom. We had mentioned that its dark cool interior and proximity to the Promenade des Angles made it ideal for Victorian ladies to seek shelter from the sun and partake of tea and scones. Queen Victoria spent a lot of time in Nice. They eventually built a special hotel, the Excelsior, to accommodate her and her entourage of over 100 attendants. She was a fan of all things Scottish so it seemed likely that the “Scottish Tea House” would have also been created around that time. When we replied we also mentioned that we lived close to Bridge of Allan. There then followed a list of requests for us to research in the town. Hence you find us in the Wee Timorous Beastie Café obtaining sustenance before we begin to scour the town for clues to Major Gordon’s existence.Internal view of the Wee Timorous Beastie Café

Of mice and men

“Wee Timorous Beastie’ may seem like an odd name to many readers but, of course, all Scottish folk will identify with it immediately.  The timorous beastie in question is, of course, a field mouse, the description given in the poem,”To A Mouse”, by Robert Burns. He wrote it in 1785 to express his sorrow after he inadvertently destroyed the creature’s nest with his plough.

Back then

Coffee logoThe last time we were here in 2015 it was called  Café 33. Back then it was raining and we were not very impressed with the experience we had there. In addition, David Cameron seemed hell bent on bombing Syria. He had been in power for five years and hadn’t yet managed a war. Surely a significant failure for a British Prime Minister?  Anyway, Syria seems to have disappeared off the face of the Earth and this time we were desperately seeking shade.

In the splendid display of cakes on the counter we noted that there was only one scone. We asked if they had some in reserve but they didn’t so we had to reserve this solitary example. After some excellent lunch the scone arrived with our coffee. This time, of course, we didn’t have any choice but to share. No cream but it did come with plenty jam and butter. Not a topscone but we enjoyed it nevertheless.A scone at the Wee Timorous Beastie Café

We were looking for local people to help us with our research so we asked the lady sitting at the next table. She was no use whatsoever! She was from Northampton and had only moved to nearby Dunblane a couple of weeks previously. Her son had had the good sense to marry a Scottish lass and she had decided to move up to be nearer to them. She was still trying to find her way around. A delightful conversation but eventually we had to take our leave, we had work to do!Internal view of the Wee Timorous Beastie Café

Helpful people

Suffice to say that we now know Bridge of Allan much better than we did before. We poked into most of its neuks and crannies and met some lovely people along the way. The folks in the local library were fantastic. One couple were having lunch in their garden in the sunshine until we interrupted their idyl with our questions. That resulted in them going into the house to bring out some local history books and spending ages trying to help. Wonderful! We eventually got answers to most of our questions and have reported back to Belgium. 

And that’s how we plan our scone adventures!

In “To a Mouse” Burns reflected on life and its unpredictability. “The best-laid schemes o’ mice an’ men / Gang aft agley.” He apologises to the mouse and for the general tyranny of man. Unfortunately, in the intervening 250 years, everything has changed but when it comes to the tyranny of man it’s still the same. 

FK9 4HN        tel: 01786 834998         Timorous Beastie FB

///gurgling.presides.documents

Scones, Uncategorized

Cornish Cream Tea

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We’ve been getting around a bit recently. In the past few months our posts have come from such diverse places as Pleased To Meet You  in Northumberland to the Final Checkout in Shetland. It seems fitting, therefore, that we should now be having a Cornish Cream Tea in Cornwall. Except that we’re not! We are enjoying a Cornish Cream Tea but we’re not at the most southerly tip of England, we’re at home. This cream tea was a gift from friends and it came in a box.

How nice is that? A genuine Cornish Cream Tea from the Cornish Company without the twelve hour drive to get there. What’s more it came with everything required of a cream tea including two wee bottles of prosecco … fab! There was Cornish scones, Cornish jam, Cornish Smugglers Brew tea and a tub of Rodda’s Cornish clotted cream. We normally object to Rodda’s when more locally sourced cream is readily available but in this instance, of course, it was totally appropriate. What more could you ask for?

They are particular about their cream teas in Cornwall so it came with full instructions. Instructions for a Cornish Cream Tea

Step 3 is marked “very important” and refers to the ‘jam first’ rule. A few years back when the National Trust advertised a cream tea at one of its properties in Cornwall it used a photograph of a ‘cream first’ scone. The ensuing outrage resulted in mass resignations from the National Trust. ‘Cream first’ is, of course, the Devon way and totally abhorrent to Cornish folks. A grovelling apology was issued.

No such ridiculous faux pas here however, we already knew how to prepare a scone properly … the “jam first” way, the civilised way, the Cornish way!Our Cornish Cream Tea at home

It was a fine day so we sat in the garden with the only sounds coming from blackbirds nesting in a nearby hydrangea. Our scones were fab, as was everything else. As we have often done recently, we thought how lucky we were to be able to do this and to have such wonderful friends.

What do we know?

We can all breathe a sigh of relief, the Eurovision Song Contest is over for another year. Sweden’s Loreen  won with her song Tattoo. We don’t understand why it won except that people must have voted for it. But then, we have a Westminster government intent on ruining the UK and people must have voted for that as well?

TR9 6TL       The Cornish Company 

Scones, Top

Coll hotel

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Logo of Coll HotelImagine staying at Coll Hotel and not having a scone. We never thought to ask because there was nothing to indicate that they did that sort of thing. It wasn’t until Sophie, our hostess with the mostest, heard that earlier we had had a scone at the Island Café that she informed us that a scone at the hotel was no problem whatsoever. Brilliant, only problem was we were leaving in just over an hour to go and catch the ferry back to Oban.Part of restaurant at Coll Hotel

We were commanded to sit at a table where we could look out over the gardens and Loch Eatherna.

Distress

Before that, however, we should tell you about Pat’s sheep experience that she had just outside the hotel. A lamb at the side of the road started to bleat at her as if in distress. By the time I caught up she was quite convinced that it was trying to tell her something. And it was! Eventually, we figured it out when its mother  appeared equally distressed, bleating frantically. They ran towards each other but a solid stone wall was separating them. In spite of running up and down they weren’t going far enough to get round the wall. Pat eventually shooed the lamb towards the end of the wall. The  reunification was a joy to behold.

Lambs at Arinagour
These two knew where their mother was.

Before you could say Jack Flash we had our scone together with nice little bowls of jam and cream as well as our tea.

A scone at Coll Hotel
View from our scone

The scone was warm and just the way we like them. Everything was perfect. If ever there was a topscone, this was it! The only problem was that we were having to leave all this behind. Sophie, with her wonderful warm smile had looked after us with fabulous carefree ease. Paul, like most islanders was a man of many talents. He would pop up working in the most unexpected places and now he was driving us to the ferry. What a guy!

We thoroughly enjoyed our first venture on the Isle of Coll. Another visit is now beckoning but maybe with a car next time. For those of you who feel that I should treat my wife better and not have her endure these cycling hardships, this is a photograph of her on the Isle of Tiree in 1974 just a year after we got married. See, she loves it!Pat cycling on Tiree

It’s obvious

On that occasion we got these ancient bikes from old John MacDonald. He had a little cottage at the back of the Scaranish Hotel. Pat’s bike was fine but when I peddled mine nothing happened. John was watching us from his door and could see the problem. He was shouting but with his broad highland accent we couldn’t quite make out what he was saying. Turned out he was shouting “just hit it with stone“.  Even when we knew it still didn’t make much sense. He, however, just laid the bike on its side, picked up a fairly large stone and hit the back cog with an almighty wallop … perfect! Why didn’t I think of that.

More distress

Eurovision will be in full swing tonight. This is Australia’s last year in the competition but what will happen if they win. Where will it be held next year. Suffice to say the folks at the Coll Hotel didn’t seem at all worried!

PA78 6SZ        tel: 01879 230334          Coll Hotel

///leaves.inclined.rotations

Ordinary, Scones

Island Café

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When the “Lord Of The Isles” docked at Arinagour, the capital of the Isle of Coll, the hotel came to meet us. Although it’s less than a mile  from the harbour, with our backpacks and general state of decrepitude, the lift was very welcome. Already we had a good feeling that this was going to be a friendly and welcoming place. On the way we passed the Island Café and made a mental note for the following day.

Downtown Arinagour
Downtown Arinagour with the Island Cafe to the right of the row of white houses

Because the island is only 12×3 miles we hadn’t brought our car. The hotel had bikes that you could just help yourself to so that was to be our mode of transport. We had forgotten, however, that a day on a strange bike when you haven’t been on one for years can result in some painful experiences. We decided that we would go towards the airport (flights twice a day to the mainland) at the west end of the island. John, the island postman kept passing us in his wee red van. He, of course, was doing deliveries left and right of the main road so we were kind of leap frogging. Everyone waves here as well … even if you are just walking.

This is the only 70mph road on Coll??

After a few miles of fairly gradual but consistent uphill we reached Acha Mill. John was there too! The road from here seemed to descend quite steeply and obviously, since there is only one road, this would mean a lengthy uphill struggle on the return journey. Oh to be young again! And by this time our bums and pretty much everything else were protesting. As we pondered what to do, as if by some miracle, we remembered the Island Cafe.

Persuasion

We deposited our bikes back in the shed behind the hotel and set off for the cafe … stiffly. We had only gone a few yards when we came on a mysterious black shed. You’ll never guess! It turned out to be a distillery. A very enthusiastic gent insisted that we try their full compliment of gins and vodka.Coll distillery It would have been rude not to so by the time we actually reached the Island Café we were already feeling much better.

Inside the cafe was quite busy so we opted to sit outside in the sunshine. Still feeling the effects of our over indulged hotel breakfast we decided a scone to share would be plenty. It was really nicely presented with a little china tray thingy holding the jam and cream. As we sat looking out onto Loch Eatharna thinking how lucky we were John the postman appeared again. Everything was locally made and quite delicious.  The scone itself was very close to being a topscone but not quite … shame!

You can tell it any way you like

Apparently, one day, three clergy men, one Church of Scotland, one Free Church and one Catholic priest, were out fishing on Loch Eatherna. The Church of Scotland minister at one point got out of the boat and walked across the water to the shore and brought back some provisions. Before long the Free Church minister did the same. Eventually the Catholic priest thought he should give it a try however he immediately sank to the bottom. His colleagues hauled him back on board but he insisted on trying again, As they hauled him out the second time his saviours turned to each other and said “Do you thing we should show him where the stepping stones are?” 

Internal view of the Island Café
the lounge at the Island Café

Speaking of clergy, it turned out that one of the chaps at the next table used to be a preacher on Coll and Tiree. Somewhat oddly he now works in the “fraud squad” for a large accountancy firm and was just back here on holiday. What’s more it turned out that they were both friendly with one of my old staff when I worked for Glasgow University. The previous night we had met someone who was friends with one of my staff when I worked for Edinburgh University.  How weird is that? Coll of all places! 

They told us that earlier they had ordered langoustine along at the pier and that they would have to collect them later. Just then, Andrew the fisherman, arrived delivering langoustines to the cafe. He told our new friends to stay where they were and he would bring the langoustines to them. A few minutes later Rachel, Andrew’s wife, appeared bearing their dinner for that evening. She was absolutely charming and spent some time explaining all about langoustine. We’re pretty sure you only get this kind of service in the Hebrides.buying Langoustine in Coll

Perspectives

Even though the cost of living is a bit higher on Coll due to its isolation the population has increased by more than 60% in recent times. We can easily understand why. After a very short time here you have forgotten about all the problems of the world. And time itself just doesn’t seem to matter at all. Also, it seems like we have got to know almost everyone on the island. There goes John again in his wee red van.

Later, just before dinner, I was lying on the bed listening to Pat giving a running commentary on nothing happening. She was at the window with her binoculars. “I think that sparrow has a nest in that bush beside the helipad“. And “you know that wee red boat on the other side of loch …. it’s moved“. And “one of the seals has gone back in the water“. Excitedly “John’s just gone up that road beside the cafe“. Fantastic, could listen to it all night! I would have one of my usual rants but just can’t be bothered … tomorrow?

PA78 6SY      tel: 01879 230022        Island Cafe 

///dwelled.earplugs.dripped

Ordinary, Scones

Food From Argyll At The Pier

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Whoever thought of calling this place Food From Argyll At The Pier should really think again. Okay, it does food from Argyll and it is at the pier here in Oban … but still? Logo of Food from Argyll at the Pier, ObanOban always strikes us an odd kind of place. Sometimes we wonder if anyone actually stays here? Everyone seems to be just visiting or in transit going somewhere else. Of course, we are one of them. This is the “Gateway to the Western Isles” and we are here to catch a ferry to the Isle of Coll.

Surprise

We’re early, so with time to kill, a scone seemed like the obvious answer to while away an hour. This cafe is part of the terminal building and from here we could watch for our ferry arriving.Internal view of Food from Argyll at the Pier, Oban

The cafe is a fairly utilitarian but then, you don’t really expect anything else in ferry terminals. Not being particularly hungry we chose two teas and a fruit scone to share. No cream so butter and jam would have to do. Very soon it arrived at our table along with our tea in paper cups. Surprise, surprise, the scone came fully loaded and when we say jam, we mean lots of it. We had to get extra paper cups because a single was too hot to lift.

A scone at Food from Argyll at the Pier, ObanNot ideal by any means but that’s just the way they do it here. Not the greatest scone we’ve ever had but not the worst either. Didn’t get anywhere near being a topscone. It did kill the time we had to wait, however, and before long we were being called to board the “Lord Of The Isles”.   As a varied assortment of humanity shuffled up the gangway we wondered why they are all going to Coll but, of course, they were probably wondering exactly the same about us.Ferries in Oban harbour

Dancing ships

As we cast off, our “Lord of The Isles” seemed to get involved with a couple of others, the “Coruisk” and the “Isle of Mull” that were just arriving. However, in what seemed like an expert piece of choreography we are soon clear of the congestion and on our way. Two and a half hours and we would be on the Isle of Coll, yeah!On our way to Coll

Voyaging

As we set off on our mini voyage we’re thinking of Australia’s entry by Voyager in Eurovision next weekend. After all the song contest may seem relatively sane after the absurdity of the Coronation. Having the tattered remnants of Take That as the headliners at the Coronation Concert last night kind of summed it all up perfectly. 

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Ordinary, Scones

The Station Coffee Shop

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Okay, we see all your perplexed expressions asking how come we’ve ended up in the the Station Coffee Shop in Aberfoyle when there isn’t even a railway there? And well you might ask, although of all the things featured in this post that might be the least mysterious and the easiest to answer.

The simple answer, of course, is that at one time the Strathendrick and Aberfoyle railway which ran from Glasgow ended here. It was supposed to go on to Crianlarich but, would you believe it, this was as far as the funding would take it. Funding problems are not new! It opened in 1866 and ran until 1951 so although we regularly visit the village we have never known it to have a station. Now the station building has become the Station Coffee Shop.Internal view of the Station, Aberfoyle

But that’s not why we are in Aberfoyle! That’s a bit of a mystery as well and the people responsible are our Devon correspondents. We haven’t seen them for four years but they came to visit us in Falkirk on their way to the Scottish Taiko Drumming Festival … in Aberfoyle! One of them actually does taiko back home in Talaton hence the big trek north. Bear in mind that Devon is a cream first place when it comes to scones so it’s hardly surprising that they might be into ancient Japanese drumming as well!

This was Scotlands first ever Taiko festival. An opportunity not to be missed to see Kenny Endo, an American musician and taiko master. When it comes to taiko our ignorance can only be described as complete and profound. Did we want to learn? Mysteriously, we ended up buying tickets for his concert at Killearn Village Hall in the evening. 

Taiko stuff

A scone at the Station, AberfoyleAnyway, it’s customary to start every taiko festival with a scone. Apologies, that’s not true, we are just trying to justify ourselves. There was lots of taiko stuff going on across the road in the Forth Inn but it was all for people wanting tuition. We  just wanted a scone hence we are here tucking into a rather handsome fruit scone. To be honest it didn’t look that promising but turned out to be very good. It had a rather strange but not at all unpleasant texture and loads of fruit. The cream came in a jar labeled ‘English’, not advisable perhaps in a week starting with the theft of Scotland’s Stone of Destiny yet again. More of that later.

Never too old to learn!

After a walk round Aberfoyle we headed for dinner to the next village and one our favourite pubs … the Black Bull in Gartmore. The railway used to run through Gartmore as well so there must have been a station here too. No evidence of it today! You may remember that we stayed at the Black Bull when we visited the nearby Devil’s Pulpit.

After a lovely meal it was time to head off to yet another village, Killearn, for the concert. The Village Hall here is a very plush affair and during the day has a lovely cafe called the Kitchen Window. When we got there the hall was packed, presumably with other taiko officianados like ourselves? Unfortunately the stage was far too small to accommodate all the drums so they had to spill over onto the main floor. Pride of place, however, went to a very impressive drum that apparently was made from a single 300 year old tree. It’s called a wadaiko and, rather appropriately, the wooden sticks are known as bachi. See, we do learn!Taiko drums in Killearn Village Hall

Once everyone had settled, a hush fell over the hall as Kenny and his troupe of about ten players entered. We had been told it would be loud … it’s loud! Even sitting at the back of the hall you could feel the vibrations through your body. Kenny Endo in action

At first, it seems like a lot of very loud random drum bashing but very quickly you come to realise how disciplined it is. Every ‘bash’ is coordinated with all the other players and once your ear becomes accustomed it is all rather wonderful. A great experience. Many thanks to J&N.

Escape

The last mystery for this post is the coronation. Why? Turns out less than 30% of Scotland are in favour of the monarchy and they are nearly all octogenarians. We were hoping to escape the proceedings on a Hebridean island without any televisions. That plan, however, has become a victim of circumstance so it will be difficult for us, and indeed anyone, to miss the 24hr obsequious coverage.  

As Charlie places his fundament on Scotland’s Stone of Destiny people in the street outside who simply utter a single word of criticism will be promptly arrested and, who knows, may never be seen again. We are all supposed to swear an oath of allegiance to Charlie while sitting on our sofas. What planet are his advisers on? The most ridiculous  and expensive fancy dress party designed solely to cement the top tier of society in what they regard as their rightful places. Instead of angelic choristers we can only hope that Kenny Endo will be doing the music. At least some of the nonsense being spouted by Archbishops in even weirder hats than Charles, would be drowned out. We’re also being invited to say “God Save The King“. Forgetting of course that, if there was a God, he/she/it would thoroughly disapprove of the entire spectacle.

BREAKING:  wonder of wonders, Edward, yes that completely talentless nonentity, is to be the brand spanking new Duke of Edinburgh. Individually they are all nice people but why are we allowed to do this to them? After this post we fully expect a knock on the door! 

BREAKING BREAKING: Donald Trump has just landed in Scotland. Goodness, this rant could go on forever!

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