Tuesday may fourth 2011

Yesterday was amazing. We woke up in Stonehaven Scotland on a beautiful day. Clear sky's, maybe 60degrees and a light breeze. We had breakfast then searched for a lunch to pack for our hike. We found this great sandwich shop called krusts and coffee. Then I came back to the hotel benches outside for some reading. Tons of children were playing on the beach, even in the water. We were amazed but then reminded that this is hot weather for them. This group of three little boys a a mom were making a castle with a mote in front of it. We all started laughing when the youngest pulled his pants down and "added" to the water in the mote. He later was running around pant less on the beach. It was pretty funny. Shortly after we started our mile and a half uphil hike to Dunnotter castle. The hike was on a trail just about the size of a sidewalk and was on the edge of the ocean. One side of the trail was farmland, the other ocean. I kept thinking if this were the U.S. There would be a golf course or a resort instead of a farm. (later that night in the pub, a local woman in the oil industry commented that on April fools the local paper posted that Paris Hilton and other celebrities purchased the land and were going to make a giant helicopter landing. She said the town was outraged and ready to protest), that just proves exactly how sacred the land is to the Scottish, especially local residents, it is beautiful property and they don't want it touched by people that wouldn't appreciate it. On the way to the castle was a war memorial. It was a tall circular monument with openings to see the view, names ingraved and wreaths. When we finally got to the castle, we had to go down the most stairs I have ever seen. It was a bitch coming back up them. The castle was made of stone and the walkways had beautifuln patterns. The castle was featured in the film Hamlet with Mel Gibson and Glen Close or something like that. We ate our packed lunches and had a short discussion on the book Sunset Song. One of the main debates was about the portral of a female main character by a male author. Personally I think he did an exceptionaln job of describing child birth, but I haven't read it all yet so we will see. One of the most interesting parts about the castle was that the crown jewels were smuggled out of the castle and later returned to avoid thievery. The castle had a thievery room and was terrifying. It also had a room for rebellions of the king. It was a room where they were kept in suffereing. The room had a beautiful view but it was hard smiling for pictures In a room where people were planning their escape from torture. I can't handle that stuff. The castle was bombed so some of it was missing, it was still very interesting. One of the girls on the trip said she actually saw a cannon ball lodged in the land near the castle. After a walk around, we headed back home for a bit and got ready for dinner. We waked down to this beautiful hotel and had didnner with a famous Scottish photographer by the name of Andy Hall. After dinner he gave us a presentation of his artwork and his reasonings behind it. His photographs were gorgeous, though they were mostly landscape photos, the portrayed Scotland in a very positive and beautiful light. He noted that he liked to take pictures at all times of day except for the middle because the sun is too much of s spotlight and doesn't provide enough shadow. Dinner with him was an honor, he even discussed Sunset Song. After dinner we went to the hotel bar and talked with locals. That is the best. There is a lot to learn.