Sunday, April 09, 2017

G is for Golspie

The end of the first week of the A to Z blogging challenge and we're up to the letter G and so far I'm coping remarkably well.


Golspie lies on the east coast of the area of the highlands called Sutherland and is 64 miles away from our home. It's a really lovely drive through beautiful countryside.


Just north of the town is Dunrobin castle which has been home to the Dukes and Earls of Sutherland since the 13th century. You can go through the castle and the gardens, and there is of course the obligatory shop and a cafe.


We just went into the cafe but got to see a little bit of the castle to get to it - very impressive doors.


Very large stuffed stag in the castle.


We then went into Golspie and it has a wonderful long beach. We walked out onto the little pier to take this picture back along the town front.


The water around the pier was incredibly clear - almost like we were somewhere tropical.


Above the village on top of Ben Bhraggie (a Ben is a mountain in Scotland) is a statue of the first Duke of Sutherland that is 100 feet high. It was built in the 1800's and can be seen for miles. The Duke of Sutherland was heavily involved in the highland clearances where people were forcibly moved off their lands so that the wealthy landowners could make more money by grazing sheep - click HERE if you'd like to read more about this.


As we walked through the town we came across the war memorial which is a Celtic cross with brass plaques attached to it - it's lovely.


Here's a picture of the two of us enjoying the sun - it was a gloriously sunny spring day.


In the park there is this fabulous stone person reclining against a wall - I love the hands and how it looks like they're shading their eyes from the sun.


There's also a lovely modern standing stone circle.


Around the town there are several row boats that have been turned into lovely flower beds - it's such a nice way to brighten up the area.



Here's the lovely Bramble Jelly who really enjoyed her day out exploring Golspie - she was loving the beach and did go in and have a swim.


Here's some of the cute houses in the town.



Just to make it a perfect day out we found a church with a fabulous graveyard. I'm a bit of a lover of graveyards, as shown by last years post for this letter, G is for Graveyards. This is St Andrews which was built in the 16th century.



This is one of the many great headstones in the graveyard - I love all the symbolism on old graves.


To finish up here's our attempt at a family selfie and no Ken is not trying to strangle Bramble.


So there you have the lovely seaside town of Golspie. Before you go, why don't you pop over to the A to Z blog to see what my fellow bloggers have come up with - click HERE to visit.

Until next time, be good, stay safe, and do something nice for yourself this week.

Pamela & Ken
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12 comments:

  1. All these great places of history you and other A-Zers have been sharing are making me a bit jealous. I live in such a young country. I'll bet the view from one of the top rooms in the castle is breathtaking. And turning rowboats into planters is ingenious.

    Of course, I love the graveyard images. Ivy can make stones difficult to read, but I love the "aliveness" of it. And one stone with every symbol of death is a pretty neat find.

    Glad we made it through the week. Best wishes for the rest!

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    1. Thanks Stephanie. The graveyards in some of these little villages are just amazing and I love the ivy and moss on them as well. Good luck for week two.

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  2. Looks like a very pretty place and great for a relaxing day out. That statue must have been quite controversial at the time due to the actions of the Duke. And who knew they were still making stone circles?

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    1. I think it's still a bit controversial with some people. Yes, people still make stone circles - we even have one in the garden that our landlord had made.

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  3. Beautiful pictures! I love visiting old graveyards so those pics were cool. And the reclining woman :)

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  4. Hi Pam and Ken - that looks an amazing place to visit - and what a name .. fascinating. Yes that gravestone and old graveyards offer wonderful ideas - that's a bit gruesome ... but obviously important enough to be carved. Love the stone man - he's amazing ... and then seeing real people with Bramble Jelly - gosh that sounds good right now! - real bramble jelly!!! Cheers and have a good week ahead ... Hilary

    http://positiveletters.blogspot.co.uk/2017/04/g-is-for-goose-gobbling-or-otherwise.html

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    1. Thanks Hilary - I have a bit of a food thing when it comes to naming pets. We also have a Cookie and we did have a Muffin.

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  5. Someday. Someday I'll get there to see it in person. I really have no excuse not to since my godchild is living in Bristol right now.

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    1. You'll definitely have to visit - there's so much to see.

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  6. Your pictures are beautiful! And I love your dog! Thanks for the visit to my blog yesterday!
    ~Katie
    TheCyborgMom

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  7. Very informative and lovely pictures :-)

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  8. What a charming town. I also love old churches and graveyards. And using old rowboats as flowerbeds sounds like a great idea! Also, your dog is adorable. :)

    A to Z 2017: Magical and Medicinal Herbs

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