Menotwaiting; menowtouroppurayshunul

(...say it out loud at speed...)

Failte! 'Tis I, Brom of Dun Omhain (Dunoon, temporarily), here to tell you about the big day we had with YAM-aunty's foot-sore and travel-weary cousin D from Down Under.

We were up early for breakfast and, as it was looking like a bright day, though a strong wind, aunty and D decided it was necessary to get out and about along the Lothian coast. All the way to North Berwick actually, then scenic drive back Westwards along the coastal route. By mid morning they were organised, said farewell to the father and off we went in the Ren. The main road was quite busy, but not awful and we were at our destination in less than an hour. Tantallon castle was our first port of call. From here it was possible to see a long way, especially as it was very bright and the sun was actually shining.

However, as we opened the doors in the carpark, they were blown from hands and paws with great force. The 'wee breeze' of earlier was now a full gale-force wind! It wasn't cold, surprisingly, but it was so strong, aunty and D had trouble standing up straight. When we paid the man at the desk for our tickets (I got in free, as I was wearing my kilt - and I got a stamp in my passport!), he said to the gals that they ought to keep to the lower levels in case of being blown off the castle ramparts and over the cliff. The 'gals' giggled and said they had no intention of leaving ground level and that they still feared they might be blown over that cliff!!!

Me, Brom, with cousin D.

It was quite a long walk, over uneven and grassy ground, from the entry to the castle. The ol' gals had to make several stops along the way. D only had sandals on as her feet were so sore and it made things a bit difficult for her.

There were lots of very useful info boards - YAM is only going to put thumbnails here and you can biggify if you are interested to read them. (Or you can read a bit HERE.)

It's all really rather interesting, if you are interested in how society was and how it relates to today. Not a lot has changed really, just the style of building!













There were quite a lot of visitors and there were even quite a few dogs; this fellow came right up to aunty and said 'hellohellohello!!!' then  ran off again.

D needed lots of rest, so I mostly stayed with her to make sure she was okay

Tantallon is an imposing place; I would have loved to have climbed all the way to the top, but aunty said that might be one adventure too far, given the amount of steps involved and the big wind up there. Hey ho. I settled for one flight of stairs and a sit in an ancient window seat; no glass, so the funneling of the fresh air there made things wither a bit beneath my kilt!!!

To be very honest, it was enough to wither the stone as well - look how it is marked by the centuries of such weather...

On this side of the great big walls, we were a bit protected, though it was still draughty! There were six floors in this castle. That bit you see on the 'inside' was the great dining hall and stores and kitchen area.

...but it was when we turned around from here that things got really awesome. Come back Monday where I shall share some more of my big Tantallon adventure! Cheery-bye the noo. Brom xx