Spending time with old friends and new babies

Last week, Cameron and I drove down south to Buckinghmashire where we spent the week with one of my besties, her fiance and their 4 month old son. 

I spent the following days catching up on chats, going on walks in fields and woodlands, eating wild blackberries and raspberries, subsequently walking into a patch of stinging nettles for the privelege, finding windmills,  making banana bread, eating homemade ice cream, rearranging their kitchen....

Saturday Afternoon in Buchanan Castle Ruins

In a bid to do something on a miserably-weathered weekend, we waited for a break and at 3:30pm Saturday afternoon, we headed off into the wilds! Jks, we drove along some roads for 38 minutes until we reached Buchanan Castle. 

It's tucked away amidst a housing estate, unsigned and fenced off from the public because it's so dilapidated and at risk of crumbling. Buuuttttt we might have found a well-used hole in the fence that Sarah and I slipped through to have a little nosey around the outskirts. We didn't go in too far and paid careful attention to where we put our feet, but it's definitely one of those things that you do at your own risk. 

What we saw was incredible though - derelict and green and so lovely. We only spent 20 minutes there but it was worth it. It was apparently built in 1852-58 as a replacement for the Buchanan Auld House, which burnt down in 1852. It served as the Montrose family home until 1925 and in 1954 the roof of the building was removed. Since then, the building has since (obviously) deteriorated. 

We intended to make a stop at the Devil's Pulpit on our way home, but after parking the car and walking 20 minutes towards the path, we were stopped by a police officer. Another tourist had slipped or fallen and were in the process of being rescued; no more visitors were allowed access. 

It was pretty interesting to see how many police officers and search and rescue persons were on the scene. Roads were blocked, trucks and utes filled the tiny car park that had been blocked to tourist traffic for Covid reasons. It definitely made us more than intrigued to come back one day hopefully to see it. Preferably in sunnier, drier conditions...

(Two minutes from being turned around)

We were home by 7pm and made it in time before the heavens opened back up. It has just been incessant recently - definitely not the summer we were anticipating!

A trip to town

With a lot of stores beginning to open up at the start of this week, a friend and I decided to take a trip into the city to have a wander, stretch our legs and see what the mall looked like as rules shifted.

First we caught the subway, which was a ghost town; we were the only ones in our carriage.

The mall was busier than we expected, with most stores open - exceptions were some department stores, restaurants, beauty salons and some private coffee shops. Every shop that was open had someone at the door monitoring how many people were allowed in and offering hand sanitiser to anyone who wanted it. Speaking of, I need to moisturise my hands....

There were more people without masks than with and walking through the mall, people were definitely not being as conscious of the 2m rule but get them in a line and the distance was maintained. 

We wandered about, ducking in to H&M, Zara and Cass Art, just enjoying the chance to be out and browsing and being in the company of someone not from our household (who I still love dearly, don't get me wrong!).

We saw some cool architecture, found a wicked mural, and then got lunch from Pret - one of the few places open. Takeaway only, of course. 

Then back on the subway to head home, this time sharing our carriage with three others. 

Today was the first day I wore a mask - they're mandatory on public transport - and I can already tell how much of a skill it is, to wear them without fogging up your glasses. Even with the sewn-in nose piece that canbe molded to the shape of my nose, my breath still manages to thwart it and slip up my cheeks to fog my lenses. I am skilled enough that most times I go on the tube, I achieve this effect, but now it's going to happen without fail for the forseeable future....so I've told Cameron that when we start travelling again, I'm just going to take my glasses off and let him lead me around :P 

The only thing I bought today (apart from lunch) were these biscuits, which I had seen recommended by my favourite Youtuber, Zoe Sugg, MONTHS ago.

Verdict? 100% amazing. They're like the KitKat Chunky bars :D Which is amazing because UK KitKats don't taste as good as Aussie ones, so this is the best discovery. What a way to end the day!