Romantic Notions

Dunure Castle

    I find that when I visit some place new, especially if it has a historical past that my mind goes into overdrive. One such place was Dunure Castle in Ayrshire, sitting high above Ayr Bay, overlooking the Firth of Clyde. Just a short 5 mile drive from the town of Ayr on the west coast of Scotland, I found myself emerged into a world that Devil slaying fantasies are made of.

    The castle itself is now in ruins and has a play park next to it, but nevertheless I felt it could be easily the setting for a story of romance, tormented souls and murder. Bronte's, Heathcliff and Cathy or Shakespeare's, Romeo and Juliet would feel at home here.

    The backdrop of the Carrick Hills, the white horses riding high on the Firth of Clyde and thunderous sky cry out to be written about. The Kennedy Clan, called this place home and was there powerhouse in times gone by. Each large stone that remains in the building today must have a story to tell. However, as it refused to retell its secrets, I'll just keep the romantic notions it left me with, alive in my imagination to tell another day.

   

Togetherness

   
How long have we been together?

Maybe ten.

It's hard to think a way back then.

You walked into the room.

Was it your eyes? Was it your face?

I don't think it was one of those things,

I could put my finger on and outline trace.

I tried to avert my eyes, when you hovered near.

At that time it was only a dream,

 That you would ever become someone dear.

You finally came over, we chatted and danced.

My heart might as well with an arrow been lanced.

From that night forward,

We became a team.

Me the strawberries, you the cream.

It was one year on and the 14th February came,
The restaurant was picked, the table booked.

Not one detail had been overlooked.

The wine was poured, the waiter smiled,

I couldn't help but feel like a child.

Before the kitchen served the main,

I hoped my excitement hadn't been in vain.
You took my hand,
You stumbled over your words.
But that didn't matter, I said Yes.
 So now and forever there is nothing but togetherness.

   

Planning Some Me Time

   

Playa El Medano, Montana Roja in the distance

      Over the next couple of weeks my blog will only be updated on Fridays. That's because I'm having some downtime, otherwise known as me time. It wasn't something that I had really planned for, so this last week I have been frantically been trying to get ahead of the game.

The boardwalk edges Playa El Medano

 

    I've been planning my blog posts for the weeks that I won't be around much and pushing to finish editing my current work in progress. After all, it's not as though I can temporarily hand my responsibilities over to a colleague. Yeah, the buck most certainly stops here with me.

    The pictures I've included this week are of the seaside town El Medano on the south coast of Tenerife, Canary Islands. I will be hopefully spending some time there, soaking up some sun in the coming weeks.

    Whilst I'm there, La Tejita Beach, on the western outskirts of the town will be where some scenes of the upcoming Fifty Shades movie will be shot. Since I didn't get a call saying I had got the job as a body double, I can only assume that the production team weren't impressed by my last holiday snaps. The bathing suit didn't flatter my curves at all.

    Remember next post 14th February, see you then!

Freedom to Choose

    When February comes around, the display racks in stationary shops are crammed with cards decorated with red hearts. The florist's order books overflow with orders for roses; as well as the jeweller's windows being chock a block with sparkling diamond rings in velvet boxes.

    The weeks running up to Valentine's Day fills many a teenage girl's imagination with dreams of romance, love and ever lasting friendship. But for girls in the underdeveloped world romance, or courtship will never play part of their lives.

    As gender inequality continues, young girls under the age of 12 years old are being made to dropout of school, forced into marriage and endure difficult pregnancies that sometimes lead to their death. If that isn't bad enough they face the risk of contracting HIV, Aids and often live a life violent abuse.

    This year UNESCO has drawn up a 7 year action plan focusing on gender inequality and we can only hope and pray that the work this organisation and others like them do, will help stop these girl's childhood years being stolen from them. Eventually allowing them to have the freedom to dream and choose who they want to be with, when they are of the age to have romance on their minds.

www.unesco.org      www.savethechildren.net

The Year of the Horse

    Happy Chinese New Year, the year of the horse. The year of the wooden horse to be exact. To honor this wonderful creature, here are a list of some well-known horses and how we got to hear about them.

The Trojan horse      - Greek mythology

Silver                       - The Lone Ranger

Black Beauty           - Anna Sewell books

Meg                         - Robert Burns (Tam o'Shanter)

Bess                        - Dick Turpin (Famous
                                    English Highwayman)

Tornado                    - McCulley's (Zorro)

Rocinante                 - Cervantes's (Don Quixote)

Black Nell                - Wild Bill Hickok

The Black (Stallion)  - Walter Farley books

The Kelpie               - Celtic folklore

       HAPPY NEW YEAR! 

My Gothic Interest

   

York Minster, York, England

      Death, Heaven, Hell, angels and demons feature in my published novel, Salvation No Kissing Required and in my current works in progress.

La Seu, Palma, Mallorca, Spain

    Therefore it won't be any surprise to you I'm sure, that I like to read books where death has a habit of cropping up. I'm especially a lover of Gothic or fiction with Gothic influences. Some of my favourite authors are Carlos Ruiz Zafon, Edgar Allan Poe, Daphne Du Maurier and Stephen King.

York Minster, second largest Gothic Cathedral in Northern Europe



    So, searching through my stock of photographs the other day I don't know why it came as a surprise to me, that my love of the Gothic style doesn't stop at literature. It seems I have a great interest in Gothic architecture too. After all the years I've been around, I had no idea until now. It goes to show you can learn something new every day, even about yourself.
   



    La Sagrada Familia, Barcelona, Spain

A Bard's Tale

A celebration supper to Robert Burns, haggis and whisky included.

        I couldn't let the 25th of January come and go without mentioning Robert Burns, Scotland's famous bard, in my blog. Last year I shared some facts about him along with various photographs of Scotland, but this year I wanted to do something a bit special.

    So I made the 120 mile round trip to his birthplace in Alloway, Ayrshire. While I soaked up the atmosphere, I took lots of photographs in the hope that you could share some of the experience with me.

 

    My first stop was the Robert Burns Birthplace Museum, www.burnsmuseum.org.uk where I found a fantastic exhibition of the belongings and works of the man himself. His chair balancing on its back legs and pages of a manuscript floating eerily above his desk where he penned some of his famous works, instantly caught my eye.



Tam o'Shanter being chased by a witch

    Paintings depicting his colourful characters, bring the collection of handwritten manuscripts alive.  A 3D, digitised version of the book known as the Kilmarnock Edition, is also displayed in the museum. Allowing the visitor to sample Burns's, Poems Chiefly in the Scots Dialect, as though it was written yesterday.  

 

    The limited edition, published by John Wilson a firm based in Kilmarnock in 1786, showcased Burns's talent for writing and led him to stardom. Each display cabinet certainly has a story to tell about this celebrated individual and the recordings of his poems and songs that you can listen too create an electrifying ambiance.

Alloway Auld Kirk



    After lunch we set off on foot to explore the rest of the site. A short walk and we found ourselves at Alloway Auld Kirk, which famously features in Burns's poem Tam o'Shanter.

William Burns's grave



    Inside the gates of the Auld Kirk, a group of young school children gathered around Burns's father, William's, grave. They were listening to their guide, who was reading aloud the inscription on the rear of the worn headstone which was composed by the poet.

Burns Monument

     On leaving the grounds of the Kirk and looking left, the skyline is dominated by the Burns Monument. Entering through a turnstile iron gate, we found ourselves surrounded by beautiful memorial gardens, pathways zigzagging here and there.

Tam o'Shanter (Left) Sooter Johnie (Right)

    The path we chose led us to a building that houses life size statues of Tam o'Shanter, Sooter Johnie and Nance Tinnock. Leaving here we went straight to the monument itself, however it is in need of some restoration inside, but a worthwhile visit nevertheless.

Inside the monument

    With Tam o'Shanter's image and poem now in my mind, we headed for the Brig O'Doon. The bridge where Tam on the back of his trusted grey mare, Meg, crossed the river to escape the clutches of chasing witches. Luckily, both Tam and his mare successfully escaped with their lives. Unluckily for Meg she lost her tail in the process.

 

Brig O'Doon





    Our last stop was the cottage that Burns was born in, with its whitewashed walls and thatched roof. Built by his father, two of its four rooms were used by the family themselves, Burns being born in the box bed in the kitchen.





Burns's Birthplace

    The remaining rooms were utilised as a byre for their animals and a barn to store the tools needed on the small holding. He lived here for the first seven years of his life before his Mother, Agnes and father  moved the family to Mount Oliphant Farm, near Alloway.

The bed Burns was born in

        This was the end of my trail, but the tales and poems of the Scottish bard will live on forever. 

   

River Doon