Easter in Aberdeen - Giving Chocolate to the Rats

Easter was spent with good family friends, the Ratcliffes (the Rats to us), at their home in Aberdeen. Jane spent 18 months in Aberdeen when she was wee and the trip included visits to her old house and school and plenty of deja vu (she was only 5 and 6 when last here).

The Rats have 6 horses including 2 Shetland ponies, 2 cats and a very active puppy, Alfie. We had such a relaxing holiday and were adopted into the family. The Easter bunny even found us!We drove up to the East Coast via Glen Shee , Scotland's best ski field. The wind was blowing everyone away and we heard the following day the ski field closed. Spring had certainly sprung as there were signs of new life all over the place.

Jane's parents recommended a trip to Crathes castle which was worth it from the outside atleast. Building was completed in 1596 and the guide books say the painting inside is a must-see. Unfortunately The National Trust has certainly put the price up from the last time the Mitchell's visited (20 years ago). Something to come back to see.
Although we'd been dreaming of a white Christmas the big man in charge postponed that to a white Easter. It snowed the entire weekend. We were thrilled to see the snow and even went out for a snowball fight, however it did sadly mean a horse ride was out of the question.The horses would have been too cold.Quad bikes were a totally different story and we spent an hour or so hooning around the paddocks.Despite the cold we still got out of the house. John, Marsha, Alice and Alfie took us for a walk around the cliff tops to Hackley Bay. It was the first time either of us had ever been to the beach in so many clothes and in the snow too! The dog had a great run on the beach, chasing tennis balls but we didn't envy him for his ocean dips.
During the walk we passed the stone remains of a church. There used to be a fishing village here but the wintry weather and isolation forced its demise.
The Winter Garden was another jolt to Jane's memory. It is a series of green houses done-up with different themes in each eg. the cactus garden.The garden was opened in 1883 and it's been reminding Aberdonians of colours and tropics from around the world ever since.

More Aussies in Irvine

Zaidee and Hayden came to visit us in Scotland for the weekend, coming all the way from London. On Saturday we took them to see the sights of Glasgow. The city has a hop on, hop off bus service with commentary so we endured the freezy winds (just) for the full tour. We got a taste of the cities major highlights including the big football (soccer) stadium, Merchant City area (see picture below) and the West End (where coffee was needed to defrost).

No we're not back in Australia at the Opera House but at the Glasgow Exhibition Centre or as the locals call it "The Armadillo" (for obvious reasons).Sunday was beautiful weather-wise so we went out for brunch and took plenty of photos of Arran Island to make the most of it and record the unusual sighting of that ball of fire in the sky that's rarely seen in bonny Scotland.