A steam engine and posh afternoon tea

Recently we were lucky enough to win a trip on the Strathspey Steam Railway so on Friday took ourselves off to Aviemore for our lovely adventure. We upgraded our prize so that we could have afternoon tea in First Class, and it was definitely worth it. 

I thought I should include a map for you so you can have some idea where I'm talking about - the top purple star is above Nairn, where we live, and the lower star is over Aviemore, where the train left from. 

It was really lovely to see the old steam engine and I wish the journey could have been longer as it's such a lovely way to travel and very relaxing. It was a train spotters dream having the old train there.

This is our carriage before the devastation of us eating our food in it. We had the carriage all to ourselves which was really lovely and quite romantic.

Here is our very scrummy afternoon team selection.

I did have coffee but I also ordered a cheeky glass of Prosecco to enjoy with our feast - well we were sitting in First Class.

The view outside the window was stunning with the gorgeous Scottish landscape spread before us and the beautiful heather is coming out so the land is blanketed with my favourite colour of purple.

Our first stop on our journey was Boat of Garten which we just took photos out of the window of as we were in the middle of eating. There were lots of old trains around and one very old looking wooden carriage.

Now the next photo I'm putting in only to be fair to my beloved. I'm always using pictures of him where he may not be at his most glamorous, so here is one he took of me when he made me laugh just as I was taking a bite out of my meringue - he's lucky I didn't spray it all over him. He sat there taking constant pictures so there is a whole series of very funny photos.

Here is my beloved doing his impression of a posh gent with his cup of tea and a piece of cake.

More scenery shots for you.

The final stop where the train turned around was Broomhill, which in the tv show Monarch of the Glen is the fictional station of Glenbogle. We didn't get off here as it was quite a small spot, and instead got off at Boat of Garten on the way back as the station is really pretty. Loved this water station for steamed up dogs.

Beautiful floral displays along the station front.

Horse and cart made out of metal.

This is the ladies waiting room which was like stepping back in time - all the furniture, the old radio, pictures on the walls, and knick knacks on display.

More lovely flowers with the old luggage trolley and great station clock.

Here's a few more shots of the heather - it's like a field of jewels laid out before us.

After a really lovely hour and a half we arrived back in Aviemore. I would definitely recommend this journey to anyone that is in the area.

As we walked around Aviemore we discovered this wonderful monument in a small park. It's to all the olympians from the area - there have been more from this area of the UK per head of population than anywhere else, nearly all in winter sports.

Despite the town being overrun by Harley Davidsons for Thunder in the Glens (previous post) we still managed to find a few interesting cars for Ken to moon over. This is quite an old Chevrolet.

This is a great off roader which is perfect for this area of the country as in winter they get lots and lots of snow. It's advertising for the Winking Owl which is a restaurant in Aviemore.

I really liked this campervan with it's cute decorations and near the front it had the word Bimble written on it. Bimble is a lovely word for walking or traveling at a leisurely pace.

I took this picture on the way home showing the heather and the mist coming down over the hills.

That's it for today so until next time, be good, stay safe, and do something nice for yourself this week.

Pamela & Ken
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P.S: Final picture that I have to share with you is my poached eggs on toast that my beloved made for me - he's too cute for words.