Autumn colours

I was in Scotland for a few days last week, in Dumfries and Galloway, which quickly became known as ‘the land that time forgot’. It’s the corner of south west Scotland that most people pass by as they head for Glasgow, Edinburgh and the highlands, so it’s very un-commercialised. We first realised this when trying to find a pub to stop for lunch on the way up. Many villages just didn’t have one, and when we finally found one (with a very friendly cat, who joined us for lunch), it had décor that looked like it hadn’t changed since the 70’s, and we were the only customers, apart from a couple of locals, but it did serve lovely homemade soup.

The whole area was a bit like that – old fashioned shops, the type that sell a bit of everything, and grey houses. We stayed in a little country hotel along the coast, which was simple, but comfortable, and served huge amounts of food at dinner – so much so that I never managed to finish two courses. I did manage a few wee drams of single malt though (lovely!)

We had quite a bit of rain (well, it was Scotland), but had a lovely sunny day on the day we’d planned to go walking. Oh, yes, I walked, and through the countryside, not just round shops! It was over two miles, which was quite a long way for me, particularly when not punctuated by a pub or a coffee shop. I was relieved to find a nice little gift shop in the village we walked to, though, phew!! It was very peaceful, and pretty, and we had a lovely wander along the beach in the autumn sunshine, with the sun on our backs, listening to the waves break on the shore. My friend even recorded the sound on her phone, to listen to when she’s back in London. It was hard to believe it’s November.

We even saw red squirrels in the wild – though there was nearly one less of them as one dashed across the road in front of the car.