Tag Archives: Black Lives Matter

Artizan Café – Again

22 July 2020 billpaterson1@me.com 3 Comments

Okay, we’re not quite back in the swing of things in terms of brand new scones so this is yet another one of our island reposts that you have all come to know and love?? This one from the Artizan Café in Stornoway is from our 2019 trip around some of the outer isles. Seems like an age ago! Theresa May was still clinging on like some demented rabid dog and we were still hopeful that Brexit would just go away. What fools we were! And we had never heard of COVID-19.

Anyway, you have all heard of BLM, Black lives Matter, the movement that swept the world in the wake of the death of George Floyd. Without wishing to diminish BLM in any way, in this post we want to raise awareness of BPM, Black Pudding Matters. So let’s go back a year.

Doubtless, you will all heave a huge sigh of relief when we say that our trip to the Outer Isles has finally come to an end. To get back home, however, we had to drive back through the hills of Harris and across the moors of Lewis to get to Stornoway. There we could catch a ferry to Ullapool on the Scottish mainland.

View of Stornoway harbour — Stornoway harbour

Tom, Dick and Harry

We aimed to leave a little time, however, so that we could see if there was more to Stornoway than black pudding. As you are all very well aware this town is the home of this delicacy. That mixture of beef suet, oatmeal, blood, onion, salt and pepper that’s become a favourite of fine dining establishments throughout the world. It’s good for you because it’s high in protein, zinc and iron. Now, it’s very future is endangered by Brexit. You probably have not been aware of Westminster debating the future of black pudding … because it hasn’t. Stornoway Black Pudding is a PGI (Protected Geographical Indication) under the EU Protected Food Name Scheme. Once we leave the EU that protection has gone. Any old Tom, Dick or Harry in Manchester, or wherever, will be able to produce inferior black pudding and call it ‘Stornoway’. If ever there was a reason for cancelling Brexit, this is it.

We went to Macleod & Macleod’s shop to view the genuine articles in their native surroundings, We didn’t buy. Pat’s not a fan so I would have had to eat all 1.5 kg myself. Too much even for me. Across the street from Macleod & Macleod is Artizan, a rather nice café combined with art gallery and jewellery shop.

Technological scone location

At this point perhaps we should explain the addition to the info at the end of each post. Traditionally we have provided postcode, phone number and web address. However, our correspondent, the Pedant, has complained that this only gives a vague idea of scone location … a matter of concern to him … him being a pedant and all that. An app called What3Words provides much more accurate information and will locate a scone, or at least the table it was on with a unique combination of three words. The three at the end of this post ‘calculating.sweetened.blossom’ will not only take you to the Artizan café but to the table we were sitting at in the café … provided you have the app, of course. No other table on earth has these same three words. Either a wonder of modern technology or a complete waste of time … it’s up to you. It is remarkable though and it’s free so give it a whirl if you want to know exactly where our scones are.

Anyway, Artizan was one of these places which just gives off a good vibe as soon as you go in. Everything about it feels good. When our scone came it was complete with butter, jam and clotted cream. It was delicious. Just the right amount of crunchiness combined with an excellent fluffy soft centre. No problem awarding a topscone here. At last, our long run of ordinary scones had been broken. The lovely lady who actually baked them chatted to us while she cleared our table. She was great as well!

All good things ..

And so we have come to the end of our trip. It has been great. A bit windy perhaps but we didn’t get rained on once. We have been able to provide our readers with a much more accurate scone locating system and discovered the home of black pudding, the best reason, if ever there was one, for cancelling Brexit altogether. As Theresa May contemplates dragging her battered and bruised ‘Deal’ back to the Commons for an unbelievable 4th time, someone really needs to take her aside and speak to her about black pudding.

HS1 2DH tel: 01851 706538 Artizan

calculating sweetened blossom

PS: If you have downloaded the W3W app and look at ‘rake.tacky.fronds’ that’s where we are on a ferry in the middle of the Minch … see, no postcodes out here! When we reach ‘reap.scored.twitchy’ we’ll be home!

LEWIS SHEDS

Peat cutting booth's on the Isle of Lewis — Three peat cutting bothies not far from Stornoway. One far away on horizon extreme left. There’s standing room only on the Sabbath … apparently!

Readers will remember our previous post about pumpkin scones, sent by our Aussie Bathurst correspondent. Well, here’s the sequel: “Following our recent treat of pumpkin scones, I decided to have a crack at cooking some myself. Same recipe as our hostess made on our recent excursion, but unfortunately, they did not turn out as well as expected. See photo with a one-pound coin for size comparison. What’s more, the one-pound coin was also slightly easier to chew. More of a biscuit really. Possibly because we used gluten-free flour to placate some gluten-free friends we had staying.”

Ten out of ten for a very admirable effort. While we acknowledge the consistency problem, we think the size is fine. Ideal for a genteel afternoon tea. But then, do Aussies do genteel?? We’re sure they’ll let us know.

Niceties

Apparently Westminster is getting in a frenzy about the burgeoning threat of Scottish Independence. So worried they have decided to send Boris on a dangerous mission north of the non-existent border. He won’t meet any real Scots though, only fellow rich tax-avoiding folks, then he’ll scurry off back to safety. They haven’t told Nicola or the Scottish government about the visit yet which just about sums up the relationship perfectly. Scotland doesn’t and never has had a voice so why bother with niceties?

Scones, Uncategorized

Kinloch Castle – Again

24 June 2020 billpaterson1@me.com 3 Comments

This coronavirus Kinloch Castle repost is from July 2017. We were visiting what is known as the Small Isles and today it was the turn of the Isle of Rùm. Back then Theresa May was Prime Minister but had lost all credibility and power. Unfortunately, she was the only one who hadn’t realised and was still grimly hanging on like a dog with a bone. At least she started off with some credibility which is more than can be said for the present incumbent. Bitchy or what?

You wouldn’t think that this, one of the remotest Scottish islands, would have much in common with the Black Lives Matter movement but you would be sooo wrong. It illustrates, perhaps better than anywhere else in the world, just how much money could be made off the back of the slave trade. Okay, back to 2017!

Another beautiful day and this time we are on the Isle of Rùm. From where we are staying on Eigg, Rùm dominates the view from almost everywhere. Before we go further, perhaps a little background info on Rùm is called for. Many moons ago the island had a population of around 450 but in 1826, the owner loaded 300 on to the ships, Highland Lad and the Dove of Harmony, and sent them to Canada. The following year the rest of the population were dispatched on the good ship St Lawrence along with 150 from the Isle of Muck which he owned as well.

A local shepherd related “The people of the island were carried off in one mass, forever, from the sea-girt spot where they were born and bred... The wild outcries of the men and heart-breaking wails of the women and children filled all the air between the mountainous shore of the bay“.

Just deserts

The people were replaced with what was seen to be more profitable sheep. But the whole enterprise failed when the owner declared bankruptcy about twenty years later and ended up in a worse state than his previous tenants … just deserts, maybe?

Approaching the Isle of Rum — Approaching Rum on the Sheerwater ferry

Alligator ponds

More recently the island was owned by the Bullough family who made their fortune in Accrington from manufacturing machinery for the cotton industry. They wanted to turn the island into their own private playground and sporting estate. George Bullough built Kinloch Castle in 1900 using stone brought from the Isle of Arran. He didn’t scrimp. Fourteen under-gardeners, who were paid extra to wear kilts, worked on the extensive grounds that included a nine-hole golf course, tennis and squash courts, heated turtle and alligator ponds and an aviary including birds of paradise and humming birds. 230,000 tons of soil for the grounds was imported from Ayrshire and figs, peaches, grapes and nectarines were grown in greenhouses.

Party central

The interior boasted an orchestrion that could simulate the sounds of brass, drum and woodwind, an air-conditioned billiards room, and a jacuzzi. It even had electricity and flushing toilets when these things were almost unheard of on the mainland. Kin

Internal view of Kinloch Castle on the Isle of Rum — the entrance hall to the castle

loch became party central for the aristocracy and the shenanigans that occurred there became the stuff of legend and drove a massive rumour mill into a state of near hysteria. They renamed the island “Rhum” because Bullough did not like being called the “Laird of Rum”. The island was eventually bought by Scottish Natural Heritage and currently has a population of around 30. In the last couple of years, SNH has arranged for land and assets around the village of Kinloch to be transferred to the community giving individuals control over their own destinies. Let’s hope it is as successful as a similar venture on Eigg.

Crisps??

The tearoom on Rùm is in the village hall just next to the castle. We asked for a scone but they said they only had cherry cake. Faced with Hobson’s Choice we agreed to have a piece of cake with our coffee. When we made our way outside to sit in the sunshine we were regaled with the news that they didn’t actually have any cherry cake. Would we like a packet of crisps?? The lady, seeing our disappointment, said that she could have given us a piece of chocolate cake but she hadn’t had time to put the icing on it. Eventually, she agreed to let us have a piece of plain chocolate cake. It was very nice.

Plain chocolate cake

Apologies, we would have loved to have brought you a Rum scone. They do know when the ferries come in (there must have been at least 60 people on ours) so it is not as if a sudden influx comes as a surprise. Difficult to explain such a situation. Hey ho, chocolate cake it had to be!

Just to ease your disappointment, however, we can provide some pictures of a lovely K6 telephone box we came across. It was made in the Lion Foundry, Kirkintilloch and used for growing geraniums. It is in a stunning location and has a lifebelt and an anchor decorating its exterior. Could be in line for the prettiest K6 award … unless you know better, of course?

While we were having our uniced chocolate cake we met a lovely couple from Yorkshire. We met them again on the ferry going back to Eigg. When we asked them why they had nettles sticking out of their bag they said they were making a ‘holiday cord’. They did it with nettles from all the places they had visited. And you thought we were mad! In another attempt to make up for the dearth of scones we offer you a pictorial guide to nettle chordage.

Demonstration of nettle cording — A demonstration of nettle cording on the ferry back to Eigg

Chordage instructions

First, you remove the leaves (unless you are some sort of masochist, use gloves). Then split the stem with your nail or other similar implement. Throw away the internal woody bit then let the outer fibrous sheaths dry for a wee while before twisting as pictured. Your cord can end up as long as you like by carefully pleating all the stems together. It ends up very strong. By the way, Pat got a Sea Eagle and some kittiwakes to add to her bird list. Very happy girl again.

Skye from the Isle of Rum — Skye across the Sea of the Hebrides, black Cuillin in the middle, red Cuillin to the right

Seventh scone

Theresa May is still hanging on! This is our seventh scone post since the election and she is still there. Almost admiring her tenacity … or is it just sheer stupidity? Don’t let the dire scone situation put you off visiting Rùm. It is quite simply spectacular. Maybe by the time you get there, they will have got themselves sorted out with scones! Don’t forget your nettles. Hopefully we will have better luck on the romantically named Isle of Muck.

PH43 4RR tel: 01687 462037 Kinloch Castle – Rum

PS: Our Trossachs correspondents decided that in order to celebrate Father’s Day and our F our Hundred milestone they would bake some scones. Apparently this was the first time this century they had donned their aprons. They used the Royal recipe from the Royal Garden Party post. The scones were reported as being absolutely delicious. They certainly look delicious and beautifully presented with flowers, fantoosh teapot and all. How the other half live! Well done.

BREAKING: The £5.36 I have been carrying around in my pocket for months has changed. It is now £6.36! Don’t ask, I have no idea, it must just be gaining interest!

RUM SHED

island, Scones, Top

Robertson’s Coffeehoose 2

9 June 2020 billpaterson1@me.com 5 Comments

This visit to Robertson’s Coffeehoose 2 was in the winter of 2017. Perhaps we should have known better than visit Orkney at that time of year but, by the end, although completely cobweb free, we were feeling wonderful and exhilarated by the whole experience.

Importanter

First, though the “Black Lives Matter’ controversy brought about by George Floyd’s death has taken an unexpected turn. After events in Bristol it has now expanded into a debate over statues. Goodness knows we have enough inappropriate statues in Scotland to fill Bristol harbour but that is probably a debate best left until Scotland has garnered enough self-respect to determine for itself, who, if anybody, it wants to celebrate in this way. When someone said that “education was important but beer was importanter” it made us think that none of us is perfect (okay, sconeys are perfecter than most) but perhaps statues of people of any kind are simply not appropriate any more. Anyway, let’s go to wild and windy Orkney.

As we headed out from the shelter of Gills Bay near John O’ Groats on the Pentalina ferry we could think of no better description of what lay ahead than that of Neil Gunn. “Beyond the mainland the blue of the sea was more intense than the blue of the sky, and the Islands of The Orcades lay at anchor like fabled ships: long shapes, with clean prows to the west, with sheer sides, not riding the sea but crouching to it with that odd menace which, like tenderness, is for ever at the heart of strength”. Gunn also says that “all adventuring races have been drawn to these islands”.

After the Romans and Vikings, now it was to be the turn of sconologists! In the name of ornithology (Pat has started a new list) and sconology, we were enduring the remains of Hurricane Maria. Boy, it was windy. So it was that, somewhat relieved, we sailed into St Margaret’s Hope on South Ronaldsay.

The Hope

And our first ever encounter with an Orkney scone at Robertson’s Coffeehoose. Just the spelling announced that we were somewhere a little bit different. The interior reminded us of Ireland. When we lived there you would go into a grocery store and find a few beer pumps gracing the end of the counter. It was the same here. Turns out that it used to be the general store but has recently been converted into a café/bar. It now plays a significant role in the local nightlife. We were served by a young girl who not only made us feel very welcome but also regaled us with stories of the history of Robertson’s. She also told us about The Hope, as the town is known locally.

Hard to stand up weather

The town may have got its name from Margaret, Maid of Norway and uncrowned Queen of Scotland, who died here from the effects of seasickness in 1290. She was on her way to her coronation. Luckily, we had no ill effects on the crossing but we deeply sympathise. It may have been the warmth of the greetings or maybe it was to do with the ‘hard to stand up in’ weather outside, but our scones were particularly welcome and tasted delicious. They were warm and served with butter and a generous pot of jam. No cream but hey, we were out of the storm so who cares? All things considered we thought that this scone just slipped into the topscone category. Well done Robertson’s.

Two equal countries

After the Maid of Norway’s demise, the disputed succession sparked the Wars of Scottish Independence. When we read of the extraordinary goings-on in Catalonia, you realise that it should be so much easier for Scotland to become a self-respecting independent country. After all, that is what most people under sixty want. As stated in the Treaty of Union, the UK is a union between two equal countries, Scotland and England. Scotland is already a country in its own right. In 1707, when the Speaker of the House of Commons said: “we have won Scotland … and we will bind her fast“. He wasn’t joking. The democratic deficit, designed to subjugate Scotland, has worked well in ensuring just that. Of course, in Catalonia, there’s also a lot of unionist sentiment. However, we can’t help feeling that, like Scotland, the problem will not be resolved with anything less than independence.

Dead eagles

In our previous post from Hotel Montefiore in Israel we reported on a K6 made in the Saracen Foundry. Lo and behold, on our way to the Tomb of the Eagles at the southernmost tip of South Ronaldsay what should we come across but another. This one was being used as an exchange library for books, CDs and DVDs.

Be warned, we are on Orkney for a few days so there may be more Orcadian scones to follow. By the way, the Tomb of the Eagles was closed so not even a dead eagle for Pat’s list!

KW17 2SR tel: 01856 831 889 Robertson’s Coffeehoose FB

You know how they say that “necessity is the mother of invention”. Well, our son has proved the truth of that statement. In the current pandemic, he is not only having to isolate but shield as well. This means that his five-year-old daughter has been unable to give her granny a hug for several months now. So, for granny’s recent birthday he made COVID hugging arms. Happy granny!

COVID-19 granny hugging arms — COVID Granny hugging arms in action

Following on from our last post on the Royal Garden Party, Pat has baked some scones to the Royal recipe. She didn’t have any buttermilk so used cream instead. They were absolutely delicious. We sat in the garden and shared them with a neighbour accompanied by lots of homemade gooseberry jelly and cream. This is how to deal with coronavirus! Clever granny!

Scones, history and a dollop of politics