Menoffagainorrhoea; Northerly Drift

Bertie receives a belated Christmas gift.

The drive from Edinburgh to Aberdeen is around three hours. It is attractive enough to not be boring, and the traffic was surprisingly light; lots of folk still on leave from the festikkuls! Not much in the way of white stuff, but lots of the wet stuff.

I (and my wee chum Loother) arrived at Bertie and Gail's place a little after 13:30h. Following greetings and a cuppa, it was back out the door to take Bertie for a trip around the block and to get a lungful of fresh air. The evening was spent in warm comfort and good conversation, plus some planning for the next two days. There were places to go, things to see and do.

Saturday morning dawned bright-ish, but with the promise of overcast and showers, plus a bit of icy wind. The decision was to visit the seaside town of Stonehaven.

It is true that the equinox is past and the days grow longer - but the sun doesn't seem to have received the message to rise in the sky. As we walked the beach, a sleet shower dropped and the wind whipped; but it was exhilarating and beautiful. Bertie has the sit and pose routine well-practiced!

We had left the car some five hundred yards behind the YAMarazzi (who is not so grand a photographer as Bertie would have you believe), and we were to walk all the way round to old harbour, which is top left of this photograph. A mere hop-skip-jump for the locals, but a proper hike for this ol' gal. Do you know, though... I managed it quite well and was thoroughly enjoying myself!!!

There were numerous dogs and their peeps enjoying the promenade and beach, and Bertie made sure to say hello to most, as well as exchange plenty of peemail. One of the joys for myself was the photographic opportunity which presented. Multiple wire sculptures adorned the walkway and celebrated the culture of the sea. There will be a 'retrospective' presentation of these on next Tuesday's post, but here is a teaser;

Well, this one you would have spotted over at Bertie's 'posing' post. He liked that it showed his well-formed rear, to complement the full-frontals which Gail was taking.

We made use of the facilities at the harbour before dropping into the little museum which takes up the ground floor of the Tolbooth.

To say it was eclectic would be putting it mildly. Both Gail and I were interested in learning one particular fact - that the term 'screw' for prison officers may have come from their giving out certain types of punishment. One of these penalties was a crank machine used as hard labour. This would involve the inmate having to turn a handle on a drum which would be filled with sand or water to make it more cumbersome. 

The prison guard could tighten a screw in the drum to make turning the handle harder. Thus began the slang word 'screw' in reference to a prison officer. There is an example of a crank machine at Stonehaven Tolbooth Museum, but I neglected to take a photo. (This was also different from my memory of being told that the term 'screw' was old slang for the type of key used in prison cell doors...) 

Our visit was not long, but cheerful, as we looked at ships, geology, bicycles and fishing stuff, as well as my having a wee hop around the room to some Scottish dance music. It warmed us up ready to go in search of lunch. On the way, we passed the barometer which Bertie has told us about before.

We came to the "Cool Gourmet". Dogs Welcome. Very welcome, with a water bowl and crispy chicken-skin treats!!! A wide range of soups and sandwiches and home baking were on offer. Gail had the ham and lentil, and I had the purple sweet potato and coconut soup. A toastie of brie and cranberry sauce and a small salad completed the meal. OUTSTANDING! It bolstered us for the return walk to the car. 

There was a short drive to the South of the town to take in some images of Dunnottar Castle.

After that, it was a road trip around this South side of the 'Deen. There was an attempt at a high, scenic road - but the snow gates were closed. Not, we suspect, because of snow, for there was little about; but there was a substantial frost, and it was likely that ice was a problem on that steep and winding track. Not to worry. We got adventurous and took a few other turns instead. It was pretty and different to what I see around the Hutch.

In the evening, we watched a cycling movie which, as Gail said, left us wanting more, rather than less!

We slept well that night and were ready next morning for our next adventure. Come back Monday for more! To finish today, a wee 'promotional' for Stonehaven in summer...