Alnwick Castle

Next stop on the drive south was Alnwick Castle, historic stronghold of the Percy family, Dukes of Northumberland, a major battle site in the wars with Scotland and also in the War of the Roses. It is one of those privately-owned sites, and we judged the admission price, even for concessionaires (jubilados) such as ourselves, not justified. So we drove by, snapped a few more pix--it is picturesque and historic--and drove on. Some of the Harry Poppins movies were filmed there, as well as many others, but Vicki was not moved. We've seen a lot of castles and great houses...

Alnwick Castle

Ditto

Ditto again

The Treehouse, restaurant omplex that is part of Alnwick 

Return To Holy Island

I don't know what it is that attracts me to Lindisfarne, the Holy Island. Probably the safe, free, wild-camping in a place of scenic, natural, and historic interest. The tides are more dramatic in some other places, but there are only a few where the road disappears completely at high tide, year-round. In any case, we made for the car-park on the mainland side and spent a quiet night there, the only sound being the coming and going of the tides. Next day, we crossed over, snapped a few pix, and resumed our journey south before the next tide trapped us there.

Yes, I know, same sign as in 2009

Crossing

Lindisfarne Castle

Alas, closed when we were there this time; no cockles for Mark

From the island, looking back across the channel-about-to-be-flooded

Do not profane the Holy Island

Back safe we are now on terra firma, watching the beginning of the flood

Maybe it's all the tank obstacles that make me feel safe and secure

In any case, we drove on, stopping for lunch outside Bamburgh Castle; privately
owned but open for paying customers

Farewell, Scotchland

After an administrative day in Edinburgh, routine maintenance on the camper and a new windscreen, we reluctantly turned back south. We might have stayed longer in Edinburgh, enjoying the Festival and Fringe as we did, but we had cancelled our campground reservations and were beginning to get concerned about our time left in the UK, sights to see and things to do and get done. Although we had spent more time on a very good visit to Scotland in 2009, we were pleased with this shorter visit, more quality time in a sense. In any case, we hope to get back, next time spending August in Edinburgh with short trips all around.

For those keeping score, my sampling of the local beverage included Edrador, Ardbeg, Tobermory, Bowmore, Laphroig, Jura, the aforementioned Campbelltown from Cadenhead's, and, of course, still my favorite, Highland Park.

Scottish National Gallery

We had walked past the Scottish National Gallery a couple dozen times over the years. Never again. It is a marvelous collection, mostly Scottish art, but also a very impressive assemblage of European art from the Middle Ages to the present. We stuck mostly to the European collection.

Beautiful Botticelli Virgin and Child

Leonardo's Madonna of the Yarnwinder

Younger Holbein's Allegories of Old and New Testaments

Never miss a Cranach

Vasari's Adoration of the Magi

Claude's Apollo and Muses (but mostly the landscape)

The Greek's Saviour of the World

Several Poussins, including a room full of large scenes
from the life of Jesus; here, something utterly unique: a
Last Supper where they're all on triclinia, Roman-style; not
very likely, I'd guess, but then Poussin spent nearly all his
artistic life in Rome, painting classical subjects

Rubens' Herod's Feast

Vermeer, Christ in the House of Mary and
Martha

Steen's School for Girls and Boys

Rembrandt's Not a Self-Portrait

A matrimonial pair of Hals (male not shown)

Nice Watteau genre

A couple of later Van Goghs

Frank Edwin Church's Niagara Falls; then,
on loan, a room of paintings from his world
travels

More Fringe

It's not the oldest, but it may still be the largest

Easy chairs in the bookfest courtyard

Ditto; Margaret Atwood was the one presenter we would have
paid to hear, but she was long gone; her chair was the best quote:
"The only way you can write the truth is to assume that what you
set down will never be read"

We saw several Fringe performances; perhaps the best, seriously, was Ballet
Central's Be Captivated! the one and only dance performance (contemporary,
narrative, ballet, dance) I have ever really enjoyed; it ended too soon

Another was Upstairs Downton, an improv parody of Downton Abbey

Another was a marvelous little show of traditional Scottish music and step
dancing, "From Galway to G..." [some hideous Gaelic name...]

But the best by far was The Full Bronte, a Free Fringe take-down of the Brontes;
I probably didn't get much of this, but still nearly hurt myself laughing, violently,
uncontrollablly

Edinburgh Fringe Street Scenes

The Fringe spun out of the Edinburgh Festival many years ago and now is by far the largest of the festival's many components--mostly performance stuff, from dance and music and theater and comedy to street acts of every imaginable description. Many of London's comedy clubs simply close in August since the talent's up here.The prestigious Edinburgh International Book Festival has spun off two separate Fringe book festivals. All this goes on throughout the month of August, and pretty much every unoccupied square foot of space indoors and out in the old city becomes a venue for most of the waking hours. When we were in Edinburgh in 2009, we attended mostly the more "respectable" Festival events--symphony, opera, and such. This year, the things that appealed were mostly Fringe things.

Somewhere on Royal Mile, energy, electricity, everywhere

OK, I am not sure which Muse was being appealed to here:
this guy is doing rope tricks; maybe telling jokes...

Miscellaneous adolescent writhing

New interpretation of The Scarlet Letter

Show card for this 200 square foot venue

David Hume takes off his clothes to get into the spirit of things

The long arm of the Law keeps eternal
vigilance

Look closely: in there at the left there's a guy doing balloon
tricks; seriously

And a guy on a unicycle breathing fire

Not every show draws a crowd

Most of it is quite good, however

Quite, quite good

Edinburgh Military Tattoo, 2013

We saw the Tattoo in 2009 and were thrilled. OK, you ask, how thrilled can you get watching a series of military marching bands in what would amount to (in Texas) a high school football stadium? Well, pretty thrilled. These are top-notch bands and entertainers from all over the world that have perfected their performances to the tastes of international audiences. And although the (temporary) stadium seats only 15,000-20,000 (I guess), it is on the esplanade of Edinburgh Castle, the lighting of which (and fireworks from which), is a substantial part of the show. A lot of it is quite folksy and corny (International Corny), granted, but that is part of the considerable charm. And then you have the massed drum and bagpipe bands playing "Scotland the Brave," and if that doesn't get you, nothing will.

Entrance of the massed drum and pipe bands; BBC was filming
that night and were all over

Mass drums and bagpipes: stirring; and that's just the start

The bands this year, or the ones we saw, were from Mexico,
Mongolia (!), Scotland, South Korea, New Zealand...here is
Mexico

New Zealand; their Maori war chants were a hoot; and
watching the Mongolian band march off playing "Scotland
the Brave" was the ultra hoot

Massed bands

On the battlements, the Lone Piper closes the show

Next day we visited the Castle again; here the firing of the
1PM gun by the Master [Matron?/Mistress?) Gunner

And, in the Great Hall, a presentation by this guy on kilts
and warfare in the time of Bonnie Prince Charlie...never ever
seen a better such presentation...