Singing seals and displaced Aussies

A lovely place to spend time near us is Findhorn Bay - there is a really long beach and if you're lucky some seals to say hello to. It was a lovely cold crisp day when we went, and even though they were quite a long way out we could still hear the seals singing to each other.  

The picture below is for today's spot the seal moment - there was one seal swimming back and forth nearer the shore so that we could say hello to him.

My beloved and I rugged up against the cold - it's a good beach for collecting a few rocks for painting, and I've already done one fairy door for our hallway.

Two more wildlife shots - a seagull who was making sure everyone knew he was in charge, and in the one below that I promise there are lots of seals on the sand opposite us.  I tried to mimic their singing and that resulted in such a lovely comment from my beloved - I said to him 'you must think I'm crazy', and he replied no, it just makes life an interesting adventure.  He's so lovely!!!

There were lots of dogs out for a walk, and the one below was getting anyone he could to throw his stick for him. I love having a chat to the puppy dogs that we meet.

Lots of people out enjoying the fine weather.

A very windswept selfie - I'm sensible and had a hat on to contain my unruly mop.

The path up through the dunes to the beach, makes it so much easier for those less able to get there.

Here's a few piccies from around the village of Findhorn - it's really lovely and the cottages are very pretty.

Ken found a lovely puppy dog to talk to as well - this one had beautiful eyes that you could gaze into for hours.

Our final stop for the day was Kinloss Abbey which is the remains of a Cistercian Abbey founded in 1150. There are some fabulous gravestones and as it was dusk whilst we were there it was very atmospheric.

In the grounds of the Abbey is a Commonwealth War Graves cemetery with 73 casualties of the second world war. The young men were a mixture of British, Canadian, Kiwi, and Aussies. I always take the time to walk around all the graves if I can, especially the antipodeans, as they've ended up so far from home.

There are 3 Australians buried here, all from Victoria, and all way to young when they died.

Here's a few final shots from around the abbey - the headless Angel is hauntingly beautiful.

Hope you've enjoyed this visit to Findhorn bay and Kinloss Abbey- both well worth a visit if you're ever in the area.

Until next time be good, enjoy life, and be kind to you.

Pamela and Ken
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Exploring the Highlands

This weekend we've been out and about exploring more of our new home. We started off in Nairn and as we were walking around we met this beautiful puppy who was looking after the van for her daddy - her name is Molly.

The bakery which we're yet to test out (I know, you're shocked and stunned), had some very scrummy looking treats in the window but I particularly liked the look of these Highland Cow cookies.

We headed over the Kessock bridge, which opened in 1982, towards the Black Isle....

....ending up in Beauly (the name comes from the French for beautiful place). This is a lovely little town with the ruins of a 13th century priory as the main feature. The monks that lived here were from the Valliscaulian order which originated in Burgundy, France. The monks lived a peaceful life until the 16th century when the Protestant Reformation ended it all.

Here's a few shots from around the priory to show you how lovely it is.

This tree at the entrance is over 800 years old - it reminds me of the Whomping willow in Harry Potter.

As you can see the town makes full use of having a famous priory.

This is the remains of the Mercat (market) Cross which was first erected in the 1400's and is one of the oldest surviving crosses in Scotland.

Arty shot of the ruins, headstones, and old trees.

We found a lovely cafe in a place called the Old School - it's a gift shop with the cafe at the back. I loved the view across the table (my beloved) and the decorations, especially the teapot lightshades.

On our journey home we went past a property that Ken thought was fantabulous - a plane in the front yard and several old cars hidden in the jungle of a back yard.

So that was our visit to Beauly - more to come soon. Until next time be good, stay happy, and treat yourself to a big piece of cake.

Pamela and Ken
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

P.S: Final picture - late afternoon at Ardersier.