I just went through the Blairgowrie photos with a fine toothcomb and there’s eighteen I want to use, so I’m afraid it’s two posts, but the second one features a Peanut Butter stout so that’s something to look forward to, I guess. Back to Sunday night, when I left Mrs RM with her second mini… Continue reading TWO OUT OF THREE (NBSS >3 SCORES IN SCOTLAND) AIN’T BAD
Month: July 2021
BLAIRGOWRIE – PICKING THE LOW HANGING FRUIT
Fear not, dear reader, I near the end of my A Scottish Life diary; epic landscapes, exotic dishes and unfathomably bad beer. Our last overnighter, back in the campervan, came in bucolic Blairgowrie. If you’d never heard of Blairgowrie, you’re not alone. Type “Tell me something interesting about Blairgowrie” into your search engine, and you… Continue reading BLAIRGOWRIE – PICKING THE LOW HANGING FRUIT
KEEP THE ENGINE RUNNING
After Cromarty we headed south, powered by the fumes of a fuming Mrs RM. For a while it looked like we’d run out of fuel before reaching Aviemore, having failed to spot a single service station on the A9 from Inverness down. But Mrs RM’s spotless directions led me to the BP garage just past… Continue reading KEEP THE ENGINE RUNNING
“And send them home, tae think again”
Mrs RM said she’d divorce me if I didn’t tell THE TRUTH about the Cromarty Arms, and since I also observed that truth I have no choice but to tell it. But I will preface this by saying, for the record, most Scots are lovely; see this post on Inverness. But having overdosed on loveliness… Continue reading “And send them home, tae think again”
AN EMOTIONAL RETURN TO CROMARTY
30 years ago, in the weekend that it looked I might be conscripted to fight the first Gulf war (we really did think that), I flew up to Edinburgh to meet a girl called Siobahn (i.e. Shivawn) I’d met on the Christian dating site. We drove up to Cromarty the next day, the furthest I’d… Continue reading AN EMOTIONAL RETURN TO CROMARTY
ALL HAGGIS, NO DOLPHINS
The beer at the Anderson was good, but the food was even better. How we resisted the American Crack Pie I’ll never know. And in the morning, after admiring the public bar, we again succumbed to the pleasures of the flesh for breakfast. Specifically, the flesh of the Haggis and the Black Pudding. You won’t… Continue reading ALL HAGGIS, NO DOLPHINS
AT LAST, THE ANDERSON
I like this home-made GBG 2020 (from the year the GBG was delayed) so much you can see it again; Perhaps the Anderson will be the only pub in the Guide in an uncertain future where real ale drinkers stay at home waiting for Covid restrictions to be fully withdrawn and Dark Fruits rules the… Continue reading AT LAST, THE ANDERSON
A NIGHT ON THE BLACK ISLE
And on and on the Scottish trip goes; 677 miles now as we reach Fortrose on the Black Isle. Today’s football quiz, especially for our American readers; Name the Scottish Premiership team in the OS extract below “Ah, but do you mean the Cromarty Under-11s Premiership ?” asks reader D. Mackay. We’d booked a night… Continue reading A NIGHT ON THE BLACK ISLE
A PHOENIX FROM THE ASHES
Yes, still in Scotland, heading for the coast, and our first hotel of the trip in Fortrose. But first, a stop for essentials in Inverness. For the first time EVER, Mrs RM and I had the same essentials in mind, as we spent an hour six minutes replenishing our wardrobes in the Eastgate Centre. That… Continue reading A PHOENIX FROM THE ASHES
A LOCH NESS MONSTER
Click bait ! Actually, I wanted to bring you Nessie, but my Mum failed to find the actual one I brought home from Inverness 30 years ago (of which more later). I’m sure the coast of the Loch is attractive, but when your sight is fixed on an endless dark blue lake it’s hard to… Continue reading A LOCH NESS MONSTER