Stonehaven and Dunnottar Castle

Dunnottar Castle is a ruined medieval fortress located upon a rocky headland on the north-east coast of Scotland, about two miles south of Stonehaven. The surviving buildings are largely of the 15th–16th centuries, but the site is believed to have been an early fortress of the Dark Ages. Dunnottar played a strategic role in the history of Scotland from the Middle Ages through to the Enlightenment, because of the location: it overlooked the shipping lanes to northern Scotland; and is situated on a narrow coastal terrace that controlled land access to the coastal south via Portlethen Moss to Aberdeen during the medieval period.

The ruins of the castle are spread over 3 acres, surrounded with steep cliffs that drop to the North Sea 160 ft below. The L plan castle is accessed via a narrow strip of land, joining the mainland to a steep path leading up to the gatehouse. The cliff and headland formations, which extend to the north and south, is a notable bird sanctuary to pelagic birds.



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Crathes Castle

Crathes sits on land given as a gift to the Burnett of Leys family by King Robert the Bruce in 1323. In the 14th and 15th century the Burnett of Leys built a fortress of timbers on an island they made in the middle of a nearby bog. This method of fortiification, known as a crannog, was common in the Late Middle Ages. Construction of the current tower house of Crathes Castle was begun in 1553 but delayed several times during its construction due to political problems during the reign of Mary, Queen of Scots.


It was completed in 1596 by Alexander Burnett of Leys, and an additional wing added in 18th century. Alexander Burnett, who completed the construction of Crathes, began a new project, the early 17th century reconstruction of nearby Muchalls Castle. That endeavour was completed by his son, Sir Thomas Burnett. Crathes Castle served as the ancestral seat of the Burnetts of Leys until gifted to the National Trust for Scotland by the 13th Baronet of Leys, Sir James Burnett in 1951. A fire damaged portions of the castle (in particular the Queen Anne wing) in 1966. Another historically important structure in this region linked to the Burnett of Leys family is Monboddo House.

The castle contains a significant collection of portraits, and intriguing original Scottish renaissance painted ceilings survive in several Jacobean rooms: the Chamber of the Muses, the Chamber of Nine Worthies and the Green Lady's Room. The last of these is said to be haunted by a green lady. A green smoke or mist is said to have been seen by visitors. The ancient jewelled ivory Horn of Leys residing in the great hall above the fireplace, was gifted to the Burnetts by the king along with the castle grounds in 1323

The castle estate contains 530 acres of woodlands and fields, including nearly four acres of walled garden. Within the walled garden are gravel paths with surrounding specimen plants mostly in herbaceous borders. Many of the plants are labelled with taxonomic descriptions. There is also a grass croquet court at a higher terraced level within the walled garden. Ancient topiary hedges of Irish yew dating from 1702 separate the gardens into eight themed areas. Crathes and its grounds are open to tourists throughout the year. A visitors centre provides information about the castle and its surroundings.


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Merry Christmas!

It's definitely looking like winter these days in Aberdeen. We've received 2 major snow storms since I moved here 5 weeks ago. Knowing that I won't be here forever makes me appreciate winter and I've actually enjoyed watching the snow fall. I was able to get a more "snow worthy" vehicle. It drives like a tank but definitely does the job!

My dad arrived safe and sound on Christmas eve. We haven't been able to get out and about yet to do some site seeing due to the fact that I've been having to work. Such is the life of an operations geologist. We've got 3 more days together and I am determined to get out and start exploring my new home. Keep your fingers crossed that it happens. We did manage to walk around some of the more elite neighborhoods on Christmas day and I've posted the pictures from that walk on my Picasa site. I'll try to keep the pictures coming but can't promise anything. I have a very long list of places to go and sites to see. I hope that work doesn't keep me from my list for long. Enjoy the rest of the holiday season!

http://picasaweb.google.com/mtwildflower/2010AberdeenScotland

3 Weeks down and ?? to go..

When it snows here it pretty much shuts everything down and the locals use the “severe weather” as an excuse for weeks after the storm has broken. I was supposed to get my TV installed on Dec. 7th. After contacting Sky regarding my installation I knew that the technician was due to arrive at my flat between 12:30 and 2:30 on that Tuesday afternoon. I walked home at noon so that I would be there well before he might show. I cooked myself some lunch and sat down with some reading material for work that way I could kill two birds with one stone. By 2:45 pm there was still no sign of the technician. I emailed my admin back at work to see if she thought I should just come back. When I got back to work I phoned Sky to determine what had happened. They told me that the technician had cancelled the service call due to the weather. I then proceeded to explain to the Sky customer service agent that it was in fact a clear and sunny day here in Aberdeen and that the roads had been clear for the past 5 days! To make a long story short, I needed to reschedule my appointment but there were no available appointments until the end of January!!! I was told to keep calling back every day to see if there was a cancellation spot that I could grab. After 3 days of calling back I was able to get a rescheduled appointment for December 23rd.

The Sky saga continues… I was scheduled to receive my phone and broadband on December 13th. I called Sky the morning of the 13th to verify what time the technician was scheduled to arrive. The Sky operator told me that for this particular appointment, a home visit by the technician was not required but that my phone line would be on and working by the end of the day. And that within 72 hours my router would be dispatch to me via the mail for my broadband. I asked the Sky operator again that no technician was in fact actually needed to visit my flat. I was assured by the Sky operator that this was the case. At 2:30 pm on that day I received an email from Sky stating that I missed my appointment with the technician and that I would need to reschedule and pay a 105 GBP fee to do so. I phoned Sky to figure out what the heck had occurred only to discover that yes in fact a technician was needed to switch on the phone line in my flat. At this point I explained what had occurred earlier that morning on the phone and was told that they would waive the 105GBP fee but that I would still need to reschedule for a technician. The kicker is that the earliest a technician can come out is January 14th!!!!!! I am so infuriated with by this!!!
The “severe weather” excuse roars it’s ugly head again but this time with a package that I am waiting to receive. I ordered a mattress topper for my bed since it’s like sleeping on a plank of wood. I ordered this mattress topper on November 29th, it was dispatched on December 2nd. The storm that blew in did keep the mail system from moving for a few days and I can completely understand this. The attempted delivery of the package occurred on December 9th. Because I live in a flat, no carrier will actually leave packages inside the main entrance, instead they leave a post card saying attempted delivery in your mailbox. The day after this attempted delivery I logged into the website on the post card to either rearrange delivery or find out where I could pick up my package. Both their website and their toll free number state the following: “We apologize that we are having to temporarily suspend the ability to select a redelivery date or arrange a local depot collection as a result of the severe weather conditions. Please be assured that your local depot will deliver your parcel at the earliest opportunity possible.”