Thursday, May 7, 2015

Exploring the Coastline - Blog 8

May 7, 2015

What is really nice about having a car is being able to explore anywhere we might want to go. But, one must never head out on a journey without ample fuel. In our case that means a good breakfast. Today we both chose the traditional breakfast which means we start with cereal, yogurt, and fruit. Fresh squeezed orange juice was out when we arrived and coffee showed up as soon as we sat down. Earlier this morning the smell of fresh home made bread worked it's way up to our bedroom. Sure enough it was waiting for us when we arrived.

Normally, that is all the breakfast we might need. However next came a plate filled with bacon, sausage, cooked tomato, sautéed mushrooms, haggis, and an egg! Other than a mid afternoon apple, we were good until supper!

With bellies and fuel tanks full, we were ready to explore. We headed toward St Andrews on the coast through the Kingdom of Fife. I love that! I want to tell everyone, when asked, that I live in the Kingdom of Ashland! As we drove through hillsides covered in green and yellow foliage with stone farm houses scattered around, we knew it would be a breathtaking day.

Kathy read that there was a castle in the city of Kilmaron, so we set out to find it. We found no help in the signage but did find an unmarked road that was about in the right place. We wandered along past lush fields and curious cows. We ended up at a cluster of buildings that, in our minds, looked kinda like a castle. We were taking a few pictures and about to leave when a man pulled alongside our car to see if we needed help. I thought we were about to get booted out. He was very friendly and explained that there was indeed a castle on the property. However the current owner got fed up with the maintenance and built a new home in the 60's. The castle is now a storage area for wood products! 

Having satisfied our castle search, we moved on toward St. Andrews. This very old college town is also known for the origin of golf. Using one of our travel guide walking tours, we walked throughout the old town area.

On the shores of the North Sea and only a couple blocks from downtown is the famous St Andrews Golf Course. The official headquarters of all things golf was right on the 18th hole. There must be a major golf event coming soon, because they were erecting large bleachers everywhere. We walked out on the fairway for a quick picture and no one seemed to mind.

Back in the middle ages and later during the time of the reformation, the golf course was no where to be found. Instead, you would have seen a huge castle and a nearby cathedral. These stone walls went through many changes as the protestants reformed the people and destroyed the idolatry of the Catholic church. Tall towers, underground tunnels, stone dungeons and many graves can still be seen today as historical proof of life in another time.

The North Sea joins the Firth of Forth along this coast line. We explored the fishing villages and harbors of Crail and Anstruther in the East Neuk of Fife. All of these towns are so picturesque  with their medieval churches and stone houses.  After a must have dinner of fish and chips we gradually made out way back to our Bed and Breakfast on Loch Leven.

I became a little more accustomed to driving by the end of the day. Our only major mistake was a parking ticket in St Andrews! I guess it is good to support the local economy!

Well, Kathy has the map out and making final preparations for tomorrow and I need to get the GPS pre-programed and ready to go.

Tim and Kathy

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