160-miles

25 May 2007

I was starting to think I'd never get out of town! When I picked up the hire car, I fully intended on stopping in Queensferry for a few pictures of the Forth Road and Rail bridges. Unfortunately, road rage and the 90 minutes to get out of town got the best of me - I hit the bridge with a lead foot! Get outta my way!

I headed north with nothing more than a mental map of Scotland. Once I passed Perth, the majority of the drive was along B-roads so I could take it all in and stop for a wander.
No trip is complete without Heamus and Seamus, the highland cattle. Did you know, originally they were black but, Queen Victoria preferred the ginger ones hence their modern abundance?
I stopped in Pitlochry to enquire about the weekend weather and distance to Aviemore before rejoining the highway. A few miles outside Bruar I found this wonderful vista – windswept and ever changing due to the impending hailstorm. What I wouldn’t give for a quiet retreat such as this.

After winding around the River Spey and over the steep Northern slopes of the Cairngorms I arrived in Tomintoul, exactly 160-miles from my front door, just in time for dinner. Hidden in the Cairngorms at an altitude of 354m (1160ft), it is the highest village in the Highlands - a tranquil, one-horse town perfect for exploring Speyside.

"Roads? . . .

Where we're going, we don't need roads."
-Doc Brown, Back to the Future (Amblin Entertainment, 1985)

Well, we might need roads, but burn the map!

In our fast paced, 24-7 global economy it can be hard to find stillness. Some find it behind a bolted front door, or a wee dram, or meditation. When I get a bit stir-crazy, I tend to head for the hills – fresh air, viridian landscapes, and vast cobalt skies. Nothing tops it for clearing the head and heart.

Over Memorial Day weekend (sorry to my Scots friends – the last weekend of May will forever be the start of summer and Memorial Day for me), Enterprise gladly handed me the keys to a brand new Ford Fiesta, black this time, and away I puttered. With only a mental map, and hopes of seeing dolphins at some point, I headed north on B-roads.

What follows is vintage Gnome… as soon as a couple of the panoramas are assembled. Needless to say, 567-miles and 4-days later, the trip was a fantastic success – cloths and trainers so dirty & smelly they could walk on their own, hoarse from singing with the radio/CD player, and some rather amusing antics in the wilds of Scotland...

Amsterdam III - Gables

It just wouldn’t be right to leave Amsterdam without a few more pictures.
I stayed at a smoky, but quiet, hotel in the Southern Canal Belt. Every morning started with a quiet stroll along Reguliergracht, culminating with a look down the canal at the 15 bridges that cross it. Often, tourists rent pedal boats to tour the canals (look toward the mid-left to see one).

The ornate detailing and variety of canal house gables was amazing. To my surprise, it was rare to see a straight building – most were leaning towards the canals or supported by their neighbors. Certainly never to pass a survey in the States!

But, grandeur didn’t stop at the door. Often restored to their 17th century glory these old houses remain jaw-droppingly beautiful – dining room of the Geelvinch Hinlopen Huis, now a business centre (left); garden room in the Museum Van Loon (right).

Through a tiny and unadorned doorway one might stumble into an hofjes or almshouse. The Beijnhof is a typical almshouse built in the 14th century for the Begijntes many of whom were unmarried or widowed women. Rent was paid by caring for the sick or educating the poor and the residents were required to follow three rules – no hens, no dogs, no men. Its hard to believe this quiet oasis is still inhabited by Begijntes less than 20 feet from Amsterdam’s biggest shopping street.

No trip is complete without at least on ‘kirk.’ It is said that genuine Jordaaners were born within earshot of the Westerkerk. Incidentally, Anne Frank took refuge next door.

Finally, for SCH… Blissfully pink tulips.

If you’d like more information, to hear more stories, or see more pictures drop me a note.

Amsterdam II - Tulips

When I think of Holland, two images come to mind – fields of crimson and buttercup tulips and Delft blue and white windmills. Don’t ask me why.


Traditionally, the first week of May is the perfect time for viewing ‘late’ tulips and bicycling along the Bloemen Route (flower route) between Haarlem and Lieden. However, as you’ll recall from my April adventures in Scotland, it seems spring came earlier setting temperature records through out Europe. As a result, the peak of the tulips (both in gardens and the fields) was around 10 April.


Thankfully, in Lisse (the heart of tulip country), the horticulturists have planted over 17-acres in the lovely Keukenhof Gardens to ensure that at least a few blooms persevere the eight week season.


On a very windy and ominous morning, I ventured out to see if any blooms remained…

Tulips were originally imported from Turkey in 1559. Over the following 70 years, their popularity and variety gained so much momentum that "Tulip Mania" swept the Netherlands in the 1630s. The rarest bulbs were auctioned for the equivalent of €4000 in today's money! Imagine the tech bubble of the late-1990s, only with flowers. Eventually, the bubble burst, and with it the fortunes of vast sways of the population.

Often the most outlandish shapes and variegated colors are the work of viruses.

I have never seen petals quite as curly as this (with the exception of another specimen called "Pink Panther").

Enough to make even the prettiest swan a wee bit jealous.

My favorite. I absolutely adore the soft pale 'blue' of these tulips. It reminds me of sterling roses... also a favorite.

There are, as ever, more images than space. But, I hope that gives you a flavor of the beauty and variety on show. Given that this is the closing weekend of the Chelsea flower show in London, I reckon these tulips could easily challenge any of the specimen plants on show.

Next up... some quirky gables and the likes from Amsterdam.

Amsterdam I – Canals

After calling Schiphol airport my second home for the best part of five years, it was time to leave the departures lounge and explore the Dutch capital. Better known for its vices, I strayed from the tourist trail of the Dam and Red Light district to find a genteel and tranquil beauty.

The Western and Southern Canal Belts are a walkers (and bicyclers) haven. Away from the tourist trade, the “Venice of the North” developed to house the growing wealth of 17th century merchants while the Jordaan became home to their artisans. (Even nosed around inside at the grandeur.) After watching Edinburgh develop into a thriving tourist hub, I was amazed at the quietness I found in Amsterdam and the fabulous local cafes. Even Queen Beatrix welcomed me. (Apparently in residence, I caught a glimpse of her on her way to a reception.)

I had the good fortune of meeting a local who was preparing for a visit from Canadian friends to show me around the Western Canal Belt and Jordaan one afternoon… canals and hidden almshouses… apple cake and coffee…


This is quite possibly the smallest doorway in Amsterdam at 1.8 meters, although it does open into a full 5-meter wide building behind. So what? Well, residents are taxed on the width of their property rather than the square meters. So, tall and lanky is all the rage! The only way to get your mattress up to the forth floor is via a hook and pulley conveniently placed on the gable. (Imagine trying to remove a bathtub from the fourth floor, as a few builders in the Jordaan were one sunny afternoon. Hysterical!)


Even floating homes have a bit of a giggle. (Although I’m dying to know how tall wooden ships with masts and sails manage to navigate the low clearance of some of the bridges.)

The world’s oldest floating flower market on the Singel.

I skipped most of the major museums (those are for rainy days or Friday nights when the Van Gogh Museum has live jazz and canapés – absolutely fabulous way to see art, in my opinion) in favor of street markets on a lazy Sunday afternoon…

Chess on the Leidestraat (left); hide and seek at an homage to Rembrandt’s “The Night Watch” in Rembrandtplien (right).

I’ve never seen an instrument quite like that before – street theater at the Dam (left); Bourbon Street Bar just off Leidestraat (right).

But where are those illustrious tulips?

Flowers

Seems the spring blossoms have come and gone. Silly me missed them as I was working so hard on my thesis. =(

But, in honor of my annual anniversary I'm off to Amsterdam to track down some tulips. Pictures next week!

Ume

Close your eyes. Imagine a gentle breeze rustling the branches of a budding plum tree. Can you feel the breeze? How does it sound? What does it smell like?

Over the weekend, I wandered out of the office and away from the troublesome computers to discover ~in the field’s sublime installation piece, ume, tucked away in a stairwell at Stills (on Cockburn Street). In seconds flat I was transported from the confines of cosmopolitan Edinburgh to an emerging spring orchard.

In the artists statement they explain, “ume captures the precise moment of the cyclical transition from winter to spring... ume comprises self-contained revolving images of plum blossoms in the form of thaumatropes [a popular Victorian toy] powered by solar cells.” Each thaumatrope is connected to a solar cell on the roof of Stills and twirls independently to the changing light conditions.

I’d say I'm a bit of a traditionalist when it comes to art. I prefer it to occupy the space of a frame on my wall rather than an immersive experience. However, ~in the fields has managed to transcend my stalwart view with amazing success. My only regret is not finding it sooner – last Sunday was the final day of the exhibition. Definitely, one to watch!

For more information & movies of the exhibition:
http://www.in-the-fields.org/works.htm