Ayr, Scotland

Posted 21.June, back dated for chronological order.



Continuing our journey North from that Lakes District, we spent a week in Ayr, Scotland. It's a quaint seaside town and the campground (Craigie Gardens) was an easy bike ride from town. Famous Scottish poet Robert Burns lived in Ayr and it's the home place of Tam'O Shanter. The area is probably better known for its world class golf courses, including nearby Royal Troon. Neither Dan nor I play, so we enjoyed the view of the courses from the train. ;-)

Not a lot to report - the visit to Culzean Castle and the addition of a 3G modem are covered in separate blog posts. Interesting is the length of time the sun is up. We are quite far North and noticed that at 11pm, it's still fairly light out. The sun streams through our windows around 5am, making me wish our room darkening shades were a bit darker. It's strange to have it bright out at 10pm and later.




On the path to town - looking at the inlet from Firth of Clyde


We spent some of the time as "down" time - including a fantastic play day at (yet) another indoor playground. The girls love the freedom to run and be as loud as they want. When our two hours were up, we walked out of the building and ran into yet another playground - this one ocean-front and free. It has some awesome equipment. Dan wants to build a swing like the one below in our backyard.




Dream Swing


Now that's a fort

An encounter with a Scottish school girl left me smiling. She asked if America was nice and said she always wanted to go there. I asked her "why?" Her response, "Because Scotland is boring." She didn't like my response that she was lucky to live in such a beautiful part of the world and that every town can be "boring." I truly am getting old if I can't sympathize with a bored kid.

We ventured out to Largs via train. Largs is the site of the last squirmish with the Vikings (Battle of Largs, 1263). We skipped the "Vikingar" movie/experience and spent a pleasant afternoon exploring the town. Best stop was the city museum (free). We were the only visitors at the time and the curator was quite friendly. She admitted us to Skelmorlie Aisle, Largs Old Kirk (the old church cemetary). Skelmorlie Aisle is all that was left of the church when it was demolished in 1802. It was built as a masoleum and the coffins of Sir Robert Montgomerie and Dame Margaret Douglass are interred in the vault. The ceiling of the building is ornately painted and includes paintings of Largs through the seasons with the autumn painting including an image of the old church. Sir Thomas Brisbane is also buried in the cemetary - in the Brisbane Vault next to Skelmorlie Aisle. Very cool experience.


Our "all inclusive" travel pass didn't cover the ferry to Cumbrae -- which would have required another bus ticket to get to Millport. With the day getting late, we headed home. Maybe next time. ;-)





Loved this iron work from a church entry in Largs



Viking statue - Largs


Skelmorlie Aisle


Ceiling of Skelmorlie Aisle - showing the coat of arms of Sir Robert Montgomerie and Dame Margaret Douglass

On Father's Day we visited the Ayr market, held at the nearby race course. We resisted the urge to purchase from the "Meat Auction" -- my favorite quote as we walked by was, "It might be prime rib, but I don't know. Who'll give me a 10'er for it?" They literally were plunking meat down on the scale, not cleaning it after the last batch, then dumping the contents of the scale into ordinary plastic grocery bags. We did find some cute new dresses for the girls - a bit on the big side, but both are so pleased with their new formal-wear, I can hardly get them to wear anything else. Late afternoon found us back on the mega playground - which was quite busy this time. It was fun to see so many families out together. The weather, while not super warm, is enjoyable for outdoor activity - though can be quite windy in this region. A nice end to a mellow week.



Meat Auction at Ayr Sunday Market


Chasing Dad on the beach





All dressed up and nowhere to go

All for now - ciao!