This week Patti has challenged us to “break the rules and go beyond the traditional realistic image of an object, scene, or element” to post a picture of something abstract. I immediately thought of these photos, taken at Elgin Cathedral in Elgin, Moray, in the northeast part of Scotland.
This is the beautiful vaulted ceiling and column in the cathedral’s Chapter House, an octagonal room in which the cathedral clergy met daily to discuss business. The Chapter House was built in the early 13th century and remodeled in the late 1400s.
It was late afternoon, and Mr. C and I were on our way back to our cabin in Farr, tired from a full day of exploring sites in the Moray region of Scotland. We were driving on the B9089 through the village of Kinloss when I suddenly spotted some intriguing looking ruins out my window. I shouldn’t have been surprised – it is Scotland after all. You can’t drive five miles without coming upon some treasure or another (you think I jest). I had Mr. C turn the car around, and though we were worn out from our long day of adventuring, we ended up spending another hour or so happily exploring what turned out to be the fantastic ruins of Kinloss Abbey.
A few of my friends have popped by today to wish you all a happy Halloween! They may look a little frightening, but I promise they’re harmless. They are the vault bosses who reside at Elgin Cathedral in Elgin, Scotland.
Elgin Cathedral dates back to 1224.
Never heard of a ‘vault boss’? Yeah, I hadn’t either until I met these guys.
Like The White Bridge that I wrote about last week, today’s post features another amazing, serendipitous find. Scotland certainly does seem to be full of those.
One afternoon a few weeks ago, Mr. C and I were driving through the southwest portion of the Cairngorms National Park near the village of Laggan.
We had just turned onto General Wade’s Military Road from the A86 when we spotted the fantastic ruins of a church to our left. Naturally, we pulled over to check it out.
Hi friends. What’s new with you? The countdown to our next Scottish adventure is officially ON! The light at the end of a very long tunnel is finally shining through, and the long wait is almost over. I am more excited than I can say. Oh, what wonderful new things I will have to share with you soon!
Today we are going to make a quick stop in the small coastal village of Aberlady, Scotland, to visit Aberlady Parish Church. Aberlady is located about 17 miles to the northeast of Edinburgh in the council area of East Lothian.
Aberlady Parish Church is part of the Church of Scotland.
In my last blog post, I wrote about Lindisfarne Castle, which sits on the religiously significant Holy Island. By coincidence, today I learned that the community of Aberlady was once on the pilgrim route between the monasteries on Holy Island and the Isle of Iona! In fact, in 1863, a fragment of an ancient Celtic or Anglo-Saxon cross was discovered in a garden area next to the church. The carvings on the cross are similar to the artwork in the Lindisfarne Gospels, which now reside in the British Library in London. How magnificent!
Hello, friends. Do you ever feel like the gears in your brain get stuck? Seriously, I have been trying to put words to paper for four solid days, and I haven’t been able to get past ‘hello’! Maybe it has something to do with the elephant sitting on my left sinus cavity. Anyway, if today’s post stinks, you’ll know why. 😀
“And all I could say was, “hello.” -An Affair to Remember, 1957
Today we’re going to take a quick look at the oldest surviving building in Edinburgh. This is St. Margaret’s Chapel, located at Edinburgh Castle.
Hi, friends. Did everyone had a nice weekend? I spent time planting lots of pretty pink flowers, eating delicious food, visiting with family and friends, and writing a word or two. The long Memorial Day holiday is almost over, and tomorrow it’s back to business as usual.
In today’s blog post, I’d like to point out a fascinating site located on the island of Inchcolm in the Firth of Forth (the estuary off Scotland’s east coast that flows into the North Sea). Mr. C and I first spotted the structure from the grounds of Lauriston Castle in Edinburgh.
As viewed from Lauriston Castle.
We had no idea what we were looking at that day and assumed it was a castle ruin. It wasn’t until we went sailing on the Firth (more on that in a future post) that we got a better view. It turned out to be Inchcolm Abbey, the most well-preserved group of monastic buildings in Scotland.
Is the calendar really turning a page today? It feels like we just celebrated the new year, and here it is already four months in. Not that I’m complaining, mind you. I adore the month of April. The breeze blows softer, the grass turns greener, and the sun shines warmer. With every new leaf and every tender shoot, I am reminded how all things are being made new. Kind of an appropriate allegory for today, I think.
With today being Easter Sunday, I thought it would be appropriate to journey with you to the ruins of a place that no doubt saw many an Easter Sunday celebration – St. Andrews Kirk in Gullane, Scotland.
Hi, friends. Today I would like to take you guys to St. Fillan’s Church, a lovely parish church in Aberdour, Scotland. Aberdour is a picturesque, seaside village located about forty miles to the northwest of Edinburgh in the East Neuk of Fife.
