Homes-from-Home. How to Holiday in Scotland

Scottish self-catering holidays

2011-06-07T02:25:00.000-07:00

It really doesn't seem like a year since I let my little self-catering business go. I almost miss the routine of weekly or even twice weekly changeovers and chatting to new guests as they arrive. But I'm enjoying the freedom to visit my grandchildren more or less when I like, to take a break and go away without worrying whether I will be able to keep an eye on bookings and, most of all, I'm enjoying the opportunity to write. Having a few years of self catering experience under my belt now, I can pass on some hints and tips to other would-be holiday cottage owners. Check these out on a couple of other sites I write on. It's true that the tax situation for self-catering cottage owners is not nearly as generous as it once was but, possibly, the healthy demand for UK accommodation can more than compensate.

A good self-catering cottage really does beat any other type of holiday accommodation for flexibility and all the more so if you have young children with you. A Scottish vacation in a well-run, self-catering cottage is the way to go.

Pic is of Flodigarry and is by Ben Leto

They make it look so easy!

2010-07-18T03:40:00.000-07:00

I manage my self-catering properties myself so there is always a good deal of ironing to tackle and I usually watch a bit of telly through the clouds of steam. Normally I wouldn't watch golf on TV but this year, with the Open Championship on our doorstep, I'm finding my finger straying to the BBC2 button today. The pace is fast, the commentary informative, unbiased and non-partisan (how refreshing!) but, above all, I find myself marvelling at just how easy the top golfers make it look.

As someone who has struggled to master her own particular sport of carriage driving for many years, I know how envious those lesser golfers spectating at the tournament must be because, oh yes, we know just how hard it is to make it look that easy!

Wall to wall sunshine

2010-06-27T08:44:00.000-07:00

I hardly dare say it. The sun has shone for more than a week now which means happy visitors and residents alike. Ice creams and cameras are the accessories of choice for those enjoying the promenade in front of The Moorings. Rory enjoys people/dog/seagull watching through the window from his vantage point on the back of the settee. He isn't a small dog and I'm not sure how he manages to balance there with legs splayed in all directions.

Bill's collie, Ben, on the other hand, enjoys encounters of the closer kind down on the harbour. He definitely shows favourable discrimination towards any visiting dog that looks vaguely like a collie and they are given a courteous welcome. More negative discrimination tends to be suffered by black labs.

The lawn is beginning to look a little parched while the weeds look disgustingly healthy - why is that? I checked the water barrel this morning and it's almost empty so we'll need that shower of rain soon to keep the patio plants alive. What am I saying - I can't believe I'm hoping for rain now!

The painters are here - it must be spring!

2010-05-07T03:02:00.000-07:00

At last the weather has settled enough for the painters to risk tackling the outside of the The Moorings. This is a job that didn't get done after we moved in last year simply because we ran out of reliable weather.

It's really good to get the back of the house looking as tidy as the neighbouring properties. So many people stop on the wynd on the way up to the main street to take a picture of the backs of the cottages and the sea beyond. Now The Mooring's 'derriere' will appear in all the pics looking as neat and presentable as everyone else's!

But it's not just chores that become easier now that the weather is better and the evenings are longer. We can take more leisurely walks with the dogs and linger a bit longer on the skerries peering into rock pools and watching for seals in the harbour. Unfortunately it also gives Rory extra time to scavenge among the rocks for his favourite dead-crab snack and I've had to invest in a muzzle for him. It's comfortable and roomy on him but stops him from munching unmentionables, although we've had some wary looks from passers by. The muzzle makes him look really hard! Nothing could be further from the truth although it's done his street cred no harm at all.

And just when we thought it was safe to put out the parasol....

2010-04-05T12:16:00.000-07:00

Yes, we were lulled into thinking that spring was just about here. Sunny, still, albeit frosty weather seemed to promise that winter was gone at last and maybe, just maybe, those daffodils in our courtyard would commit and flower.

But it was not to be, at least not yet. At the end of March (and, thank goodness, during a few days when we had no visitors) we had truly ferocious storms. The weather forecasts seemed to do nothing but dwell on the fact that snow was once again likely in some parts of the country ("winter returns", etc) and seemed to make little of the possibility of storm force winds.

Once more the photographers gathered and the tripods came out as some truly apocalyptic waves smashed themselves against the harbour wall. What a show! But some were less impressed. "That storm was nothing," we heard a few of the locals say. "We've seen waves coming over the lamp posts!"

The storms died away abruptly and left behind some damaged sections of sea wall in the old West Shore and a great deal of debris. And among the sand and seaweed and jetsam washed far up on the bank above the sea wall, a few clumps of daffodils could just about be seen, a bit battered but doing their darnedest to flower.

Humble seaweed....?

2010-03-17T12:22:00.000-07:00

Picking my way gingerly over the skerries the other day while trying to recapture Rory (wayward Vizsla pup), I was struck by just how much slippery seaweed there is when you could really do without it. Rory had found a dead crab...probably dead for several days and he badly wanted to eat it, hence my efforts to recapture him. (I really didn't want its reappearance on the carpet at two in the morning....) But the seaweed didn't make it at all easy and there was just so much of it. I vaguely remembered seeing pictures of people collecting it in the island communities but couldn't remember for what purpose so, on retrieving Rory (crabless, thank goodness), I headed for home to check up on it.

It would seem that many coastal communities in Britain, including those of the East Neuk, collected it as a useful fertiliser. In fact, many locals still do. Its collection reached almost industrial proportions from the late seventeenth century when valuable soda and potash were extracted from it. The Western Isles and Orkney were mainly involved in this industry but records also link Anstruther to its early production.

It also seems to have been widely used as a foodstuff and there are numerous traditional recipes to be found. Several appear on the Flora Celtica website http://193.62.154.38/celtica/recipesb.htm along with a warning about the effect on the plant of modern day pollutants which suggests caution in your culinary experimentation! Dulse (seaweed) soup seems to be the classic dish of choice.

It would appear that extracts of the plant have a wide and ever-increasing array of uses from thickening ice cream to creating luxury cosmetics. And, of course, if you miss the breakfast TV forecast, you can always use it to predict the weather.

However, by far the most exciting, and possibly controversial, use for seaweed is as a biofuel. It needs no irrigation and doesn't divert land from food crops or lead to deforestation. As an island nation we have easy access to an extensive coastline so supplies of the fuel are local. Apparently the large kelp species which are best suited to biofuel production grow well in our waters. Electricity and heat are generated from the combustion of methane produced from the seaweed through anaerobic digestion (phew!) This technology is already well established.

Seaweed could be harvested from the wild or cultivated, as it is in China, where it is a food crop. But if our own abundance of seaweed is to be harvested wild from our deeper waters this would clearly need to be done sustainably. If that is possible, there is boundless potential for this amazing plant in the renewable energy 'mix'.

Something I'll have to keep in mind the next time I slither about on the skerries, cursing the stuff...

Photo by Adrian Tritschler

Spring seas

2010-02-27T06:10:00.000-08:00

For wild wave watchers (and there are quite a few regulars here!) the past few days have seen a bonanza on our coast. The sea has put on a display at its wintry best with plenty of breakers and spray best watched from the comfort of your car (not too close to the sea wall, mind) with flask of coffee and cream bun in hand.

Sometimes a really big wave will hit the harbour wall with a casual power that makes fun of stone and mortar and with a boom that sends a shiver down your spine. You feel very small indeed. And reach for another cream bun...

UPDATE - on Cambo Snowdrops by Starlight!

2010-02-11T05:14:00.000-08:00

SNOWDROPS BY STARLIGHT - an exciting Flagship event as part of Celebrating Fife 2010 12-28 February (except Tuesdays and Wednesdays)

The following is taken from a communication by Lady Erskine of Cambo Estate:

The lights are up and the woodlands at Cambo are looking magical. It is even more lovely and exciting than I imagined.

Tickets are on sale at the Byre and may be collected at the Byre or at the Museum in Crail. Last minute tickets will be on sale at the Museum each night. The Museum will be open from 5-9pm. Tickets are timed. Buses will transport visitors to Cambo at 20 minute intervals. Visitors may spend as long as they like at Cambo and return on whichever bus they like. There is no parking at Cambo except for disabled visitors and the Byre will need prior notification of this.

Hot drinks and stovies will be available at Cambo after the walk. The gift shop and plant sales will be open as well.

MEALS

Cambo Estate have been referring enquiries about evening meals to the Golf Hotel, but at the moment it seems that last orders will be 7.30pm as usual, so advanced booking is recommended. The East Neuk Hotel is now open also. The Honeypot will be open in the evening (at least 7-7.30pm) for snacks and hot drinks, and it will be illuminated and has a display of bulbs provided by Cambo which literally bloomed overnight. Crail Gallery do not intend to open, but will be available as usual on 450316 (home, not gallery) and will open by arrangement if they are available. Jerdan Gallery will have their opening Friday 12 from 2-8pm, and which will run til March 14. It appears that The Marine, the Balcomie and the Harbour Gallery Cafe will all be closed (Harbour Gallery will open 27 Feb).

Grey Seals on the May Isle

2010-01-30T06:27:00.000-08:00

I managed to catch part of BBC's Countryfile last week. They were looking at a study, helped by aerial photography, of the Grey Seals which breed on the Isle of May. The island can be easily seen from Crail and Pittenweem and visits, outwith the winter breeding season, are popular. (Trips go regularly from Anstruther harbour and if you're not lucky enough to see seals, you'll be sure to see puffins.)

Seal numbers have increased from the dangerously low levels of the 1980s when culling was acceptable to their current healthy population numbers. In fact, the island hosts 40% of the world's population. The females give birth to their one pup each year. The babies grow rapidly due to mum's very rich milk gaining about 50% in body weight in only around three weeks. Mum then leaves them to fend for themselves when she returns to the sea. The males spar for territory and mating takes place a few weeks after birth. The seals will return to their own spot on the island nine months later to give birth and, indeed, return to the same place time after time. Most of the year is spent feeding out at sea where they can travel large distances to their favourite feeding grounds.

Spectacular snowdrops

2010-01-16T03:33:00.000-08:00

Coming very soon! The first wee sign of spring - snowdrops, and lots of them. Cambo Gardens, only a few minutes' drive from Crail on the St Andrews road, will once again host their hugely popular Snowdrop Spectacular from the 1st of February to the 15th March. Seventy acres of woodland will be carpeted in snowdrops, snowflakes and aconites and there is a lovely walk down to the sea. Planned for this year is a 'Snowdrops by Starlight' illuminated walk from the 12th to the 28th February. Trees, buildings and bridges in the beautiful grounds will be lit up. Not to be missed!

Cambo is listed in Historic Scotland's inventory of designed landscapes and the Victorian gardens will be fascinating to keen gardeners (and hopeless amateurs, like me). You can buy unusual and reasonably priced plants, including snowdrop bulbs. A gift shop and tea room are open Friday to Monday. There's something to appeal to the wee ones too.....piglets! For more information on Cambo have a look at www.cambosnowdrops.com

Pic: http://www.freedigitalphotos.net/images/view_photog.php?photogid=178" Image: Tom Curtis / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Winter harbour

2010-01-15T12:16:00.000-08:00

The harbour is as busy as ever now after the festive season lull. Once again we can wake up to the sound of fishing boat engines made softer by the noise of the wind. Looking out of the window into the morning darkness we can see the boat lights getting smaller and smaller as they pull away around the harbour wall and off into the firth.

In the daylight they look tiny and vulnerable and light as corks shrugged about by the waves. But once in the harbour they look very different. In the summer my toddler grandson stood with me on the quayside. He was transfixed by the boats lined up and almost filling the space between the harbour walls. There, without the softness of distance, they must have looked huge and hulking. Maybe he found it hard to believe that the vessels tethered there were the same as those we watched from the distance of the beach looking a bit like brightly coloured bath toys.

But, thank goodness, they are working boats and, although the industry is hard pressed, it's good to see that it's still got a toe-hold in Fife.

A guid New Year!

2009-12-27T03:53:00.000-08:00

Season's greeting everyone! The East Neuk was looking very seasonal indeed a few days ago. We stuffed our cameras in our pockets and set off with the dogs along the coastal path towards St Monans with the aim of taking a few shots of the village and coast line in the lovely late afternoon light. It was one of those crisp, still, snowy days that just beg you to get your boots on and get out there! The only difficulty we had was in elbowing ourselves into position for the best shots amid all the other photographers who obviously had the same idea. Bill oggled some of the more expensive cameras in evidence while I simply tried to stop Rory from pulling me over while I snatched a couple of random shots. (Bill's pic of the snowy West Shore turned out a lot better than my effort to capture the distant East Lothian hills across the water.)

Bass Rock - Scotland's Alcatraz

2009-12-21T09:19:00.000-08:00

Viewed from Pittenweem, The Bass Rock looms out of the sea like a black carbuncle even on a sunny day. But today it looked even gloomier against the snowy backdrop of the North Berwick coastline. These days it is best known as a bird sanctuary which hosts a huge colony of gannets. In fact, over 10% of the world's North Atlantic gannets have their nest sites here. It's history is colourful to say the least as this extract from the Northern Lighthouse Board website http:www.nlb.org.uk/ourlights/history/bassrock.htm illustrates:

'The Bass Rock is a massive crag rising out of the sea to a height of 350 feet and it is about a mile in circumference. Through the Rock, from the East to West, runs a natural tunnel, but this is not accessible except at low tide.

Halfway up the Rock stands the ruins of a Pre-Reformation Chapel which was dedicated to Saint Baldfred, and was consecrated in the year 1542. Saint Baldfred was said to have his cell on the Bass Rock, dying there about the year 606. The Bass has a long and varied history. It is mentioned in writings dating back to the region of Malcolm Canmore and the first recorded owner was Sir Robert Lauder, who was granted a charter for it around 1316. This family (Lauder of Bass) retained ownership of the rock for hundreds of years and must have been connected with the erection of a Pre-Reformation Chapel which must be dedicated to St Balfred in 1542, as well as being responsible for the building of the fortress.

Earlier, in 1671, Charles I claimed the Bass as Royal Property and it was sold to the crown for the sum of £4,000 sterling by the then owner, Sir Alexander Ramsay of Abbotshall, Provost of Edinburgh. The bloody pages of the Bass Rock's history now unfold when, under another Lauder (dale) known as the Captain of the Bass, the fortress was turned into a prison for Presbyterian ministers. Between 1672 and 1688 some 40 political/religious prisoners died in the dungeons of the rock. In 1691 during the reign of William and Mary, a party of four Jacobite prisoners escaped from their calls and captured the fortress when all the garrison was engaged in unloading coal. For the next three years they held the Bass for the Old Pretender and defied all attempts by Government forces to retake it. Aided by supply ships from France, this unique quartet even carried out raids on the Fife and Lothian coasts! In 1694 a more effective blockage finally starved them into submission, but they negotiated favourable terms and walked out free men! The fortress continued as a State Prison until demolished seven years later. In 1706, the Bass was sold to Sir Hugh Dalrymple, whose descendants still own it.

From then, up until the First World War, the rock was let out to tenants who earned money by fishing, grazing sheep (Bass Mutton was a famous 18th Century Edinburgh delicacy) and by killing young sea birds and collecting eggs. The last tenant of the Bass, a Mr Easton, was a North Berwick fishmonger.

But the true owners of the Bass Rock are, of course, the birds, for almost every available inch is occupied by razorbills, guillemots, cormorants, puffins, eider ducks and various gull species. But the bird of the Bass is the Gannet or "Solan Goose" with a breeding colony of 30-40,000 pairs, making the Bass a mecca for international ornithologists. It is thus only fitting that this superb sea bird's latin name "Sula Bassana" should be derived from the word Bass. '

Wonderful winter beaches!

2009-12-16T13:29:00.000-08:00

The great thing about The East Neuk in winter is that all the things you really enjoy about it, the beaches, the coastal walks, the inland scenery and many of the outdoor activities are all still there to be enjoyed, but often in near solitude! OK, so the wind is colder and the sky often greyer, but there are days like jewels when the low sun sets everything sparkling and the shadows bring the contours of the land to life. The local folk, possibly under less pressure from the number of visitors, seem to have more time to stop and chat.

However, many of the little cottages appear to just sit and hold their breath waiting for their owners to return in the spring and the villages seem quieter by far than they should be. There seem to be few positives about this other than that the older houses and cottages are, in large part, being renovated and preserved. The planning constraints imposed on those carrying out work on properties in the conservation areas are pretty strict. As a result the options available on, eg choice of replacement windows are very limited and may be outwith the budget of local young couples. The result is numerous attractive, well-renovated but frequently empty second homes.

Fear and ignorance

2009-12-12T06:30:00.000-08:00

The other evening I walked up the wynd to the house of the community council treasurer to purchase a copy of the recently republished 'Annals of Pittenweem'. Excerpts of records within it date from 1526 to1793 and I was looking forward to delving into it. There was a somewhat shocking price tag of £30.00 on this slim volume and I enquired of him if it wasn't available on CD. He replied that it wasn't because it had cost a few thousand for the council to republish it and people would just, "Take it off the internet and not pay anything." I resisted saying, "Bah...humbug" or pointing out that there were ways around that problem and that a more reasonable price would attract more purchasers.

On bringing it home I started to read the original preface (written in in 1867) to the Annals where the writer claimed that he was, "agreeably surprised to find that they contained much curious and interesting matter."

Indeed they do!

Accounts of the accusation, trial and execution of many women (and men) for witchcraft are obviously among the more engrossing details to be found in the book. It is so easy to read these ancient accounts and shake your head at the fear and ignorance that led to such a frenzy of violent persecution.

Yesterday morning, however, while driving and listening to the radio, I heard the presenter tell the story of a gentleman in his sixties who, along with his wife, had been verbally abused, had their home vandalised and eventually had been hounded out due to accusations of paedophilia which were later discovered to be totally unfounded. Nevertheless he continued to be accused and later committed suicide.

The story of the Newport paediatrician whose home, a few years ago, was targeted by vandals and who was forced to flee as a result should also be remembered. All because her persecutors got 'paediatrician' and 'paedophile' mixed up in their minds!

So when it comes to fear and ignorance, has anything really changed?

Lower Largo's famous son

2009-12-08T12:47:00.000-08:00

Just a few miles down the coast from Pittenweem is the village of Lower Largo. It's probably not as well known as some of the coastal villages but nevertheless has a very famous son - Alexander Selkirk. Never heard of him? Well I'll bet you've heard of Robinson Crusoe!

The famous story is based on Selkirk's reluctant adventures. He grew up in Lower Largo but, at the age of 19, fled to sea as a result of a family feud and became a privateer. After some particularly ferocious fighting at sea and after falling out with the commander of the ship on which he sailed, Selkirk found himself marooned on a small island more than 400 miles off the West Coast of Chile. By all accounts he took only some clothing and bedding, a musket and powder, some tools, a bible and tobacco. He survived for almost five years by hunting goats, eating their meat and using their skins for clothing. He was finally rescued by a British privateer ship that had been alerted by Selkirk's signal beacon.

He became a privateer once again and returned to Largo in 1712 with a fortune of £800 to the astonishment of his family who had given him up for dead. His journals were the basis of Daniel Defoe's famous novel published in 1719. Only a year later he joined the Royal Navy and returned to the sea only to die of fever off the coast of Africa.

More walks on the web and dog debris

2009-12-05T03:31:00.001-08:00

Found a great outdoor/walking site today specifically for Scotland. These sites seem to on the increase which just reflects the growing popularity of walking as a pastime - great! It's http://www.walkhighlands.co.uk/fife and has good walk descriptions, pics, maps and directions for quite a few Fife walks including the coastal path ones. I'll be visiting it regularly for new ideas for pooch walks.

And talking about pooch walks: the situation re dog fouling could be better, particularly close to the villages. To give them their due, Fife Council have tried an initiative called 'Green Dog Walkers'. Participants are asked to sign a pledge always to clean up after their dog, carry extra doggy bags and hand these out to anyone who asks. Also, they are expected to encourage others to clean up after their dog. Pledgers can be recognised by their bright green armbands. Hmmmm.....I have yet to see anyone wearing one of these locally and have to confess to leaving mine at home! The reason for this is that dog owners (I believe) fall into two camps, ie those who do and those who don't. The ones who do will already have bags with them and the ones who don't may not take kindly to being 'collared', even politely.

Until dog fouling is viewed as being as antisocial as, say, smoking in restaurents, I can't see much changing as the Fog Fouling Act 2003 must be almost impossible to police in more rural areas. However, a start has to be made somewhere and this initiative is, at least, a start. Find out more on http://greenvoice.com/campaigns/324-green-dog-walkers-leave-only-pawprints

Ghoulies and ghosties

2009-12-03T11:53:00.000-08:00

I came across an article in www.fifetoday.co.uk entitled 'Beware the Witching Hour' illustrating that this picturesque coast was once blighted by fear, superstition and intolerance. Although these are 'ghost stories', some of the unfortunates described in them have suffered through ignorance and cruelty. Enjoying a walk about the pretty wynds of Crail and Pittenweem where all seems safe and peaceful, it's hard to imagine a time when fear stalked these streets:

Tortured and crushed by the baying crowds...
Witches play a huge role in the East Neuk's grisly past with Pittenweem shouldering much of the shameful burden.
Between 1597-1705 the fishing village tortured and killed scores of women for practising witchcraft, some based on the flimsiest of evidence as the hunts reached fever pitch.
The most celebrated case was that of Janet Cornfoot who was tortured before escaping.
But she was betrayed by a minister who sent her back for trial and the baying crowds got hold of her.
She was taken to the shore where she was ducked in the sea before a board was placed over her and she was crushed as stones were slowly placed on top.

Other stories are amusing or simply weird:

Put your red shoes on, we're going out...
In Kellie Castle there is the infamous, if rather bizarre, resident, lurking in the tower.
Many have witnessed the strange sight of a pair of dainty red slippers running up and down the stairs.
There have also been reports of the sound of a cradle rocking in the topmost room but there is little history to explain these strange phenomena.

The fish possessed by the soul of a man...
While many stories are frightening, gruesome or tragic, others are simply bizarre.
In St Monans the fisherfolk had a deep-seated fear of pigs which almost caused a civil war between themselves and the farmers.
But at Crail, something even more bizarre occurred.
Many years ago some of the fishermen were much alarmed by a skate they had caught.
This fish, having been brought on shore, lay quiet but when they began to cut it, and prepare it for the market, it leaped from the table, biting and wounding many of them, and the pieces they had cut off leaped from place to place into the street.
Eventually, they collected the pieces and buried the fish. As the skate was enormous, they all supposed it had fed upon some human body at the bottom of the sea and had imbibed some part of the nature and feelings of man.

I'll be a lot more wary of those seagull gifts in future!

Fish from heaven

2009-12-01T03:39:00.000-08:00

A fabulously clear dawn meant scraping the ice off the car window this morning for the first time this year. Because we live only yards from the sea, you would think that all the salt that's around would make this unnecessary. Just shows how cold it was last night. The sky as I came out was a glorious colour as you can see in the pic I took at the front door.

Later in the morning, while hanging out some washing in the back garden, I spotted a small flatfish lying on the grass! This is not the first time I've found fish lying around and I can only imagine that gulls, squabbling over their catch, drop them and fail to find them again. It isn't a problem unless we don't find them either! During the summer a large flounder, courtesy of the gulls, had lain on the yard steps for some time before being discovered and, because of the warm weather, it was not too pleasant to dispose of!

Luckily we don't have to rely on the gulls for our supply of fish. One of the real bonuses of moving here is that you can purchase fish that tastes truly heavenly. Locals pointed me in the direction of the wholesalers at St Monans just five minutes drive away. You have to dodge the fork lifts but you can buy wonderfully fresh fish, dressed crabs, scallops, etc. Should make dinner parties a doddle!

Visiting Naboland

2009-11-29T12:45:00.000-08:00

A freezing cold north-easterly kept me, my partner Bill and my son Paul glued to the wood burning stove today. The dogs got walked, the pony got mucked out but as soon as we were indoors again, it's back to the fireside.

Once the Sunday papers have been read, however, I remember that the East Neuk Open Studios weekend is on and decide to drag Paul out into the icy wind to see the 'Naboland' art installation just a couple of minutes walk (dash!) from our house. Bill and I had seen this in August during the Pittenweem art festival and I was keen to have another look.

Paul was fascinated, as I knew he would be, by this mythical Himalayan-like world and the expeditions of a little torpedo boat (which also flies!). It travels throughout this mystical land and, indeed, on through many Asian and European landscapes and art traditions encountering all manner of situations all linked by the appearance of this incongruous but charming little machine. Go to www.naboland.co.uk ; it's fascinating, gentle and totally absorbing.

Anyone for a swim?

2009-11-28T04:04:00.000-08:00

Walking on the coastal path yesterday in the November sun, I couldn't resist taking a pic of Pittenweem's old swimming pool. Sadly it's no longer maintained but its concrete terraces still provide a lovely sheltered nook to enjoy the odd glimpse of winter sun out of the wind and reflect on the hardiness of bathers in past decades. I remember at the age of seven or eight holidaying in our camper van in St Monans half a mile down the coast and swimming in a pool just like it. My sister and I had to wear plimsolls on our feet because, of course, fed by the tide, the pool base was a mass of limpet-covered rock and shingle. I can remember also, and very vividly, the water icy even in July shocking the breath out of me and making my teeth rattle audibly. I must have been blue from head to foot. Yet amazingly the pool was full of people, young and old diving and splashing, oblivious to any notion of health and safety! Ah....those were the days...

Heron hound

2009-11-27T02:43:00.000-08:00

Poor Rory! On Tuesday my Hungarian Vizsla pup had a visit to the vet for a couple of ops - one at each end so to speak. He was born with entropian (an inturning of the lower eyelid) which leads to all sorts of eye problems if it's not treated. I got him at 14 weeks by which time his eyes were a bit of a mess but there was no permanent damage, thank goodness. My vet stitched back the lower lids to hold them away from his eyes slightly making him look as though he has rather glamorous navy blue lashes! He will need to keep these stitches in until his head is fully grown when he will have a more permanent mini 'celebrity face lift' done. While Rory was under the same anaesthetic, my vet suggested neutering him at the same time......not a good day for Rory!

However he has bounced back and my main problem at the moment is stopping him from bouncing too much. He has to have walks on a short lead until he goes back to the vet next week and is thoroughlydisgusted that he cannot indulge in his favourite piece of naughtiness, ie 'pointing' the herons to see who gives in first! I should explain that we enjoy walking in the stubble fields on the headland above Pittenweem and this seems to be a popular meeting or resting place for a group of herons (anyone know the collective noun?) . There are often as many as four or five sitting there about 10 yards apart often with their backs to each other as if they have taken the huff. They are large birds, don't attempt to hide and don't intimidate easily! A seven month old Vizsla pointing at them from 20 yards away, with however much menace and determination, makes little impression. They seem to know that he is just too chicken to come any closer. Now that he is on a short lead, they can ignore him completely!

Introductions first

2009-11-26T12:26:00.000-08:00

Hello and welcome! We (my partner Bill and I) moved to Pittenweem just a few months ago from the next county to be closer to my small holiday cottage business in the East Neuk of Fife in Scotland. It's like nowhere else I've ever lived before, so I'd like to share a little of my everyday life in this wee fishing village.

Mind you, quite a lot of that 'little' involves walking what seems like endless miles in my attempts to douse some of my pup's bottomless energy. So if you don't like dogs, don't like walking, and don't like glorious coastlines....look away now!

If you can put up with the hearty outdoor bit, I do somehow manage to fit a few other things into my life. Bear with me, though, as it gets worse before it gets better! Yes, I have a horse too! The poor dear gets the bits of time that the partner and the dogs don't get. I have ridden all my life and am a qualified instructor too, but in recent years carriage driving has become my passion. But more of that later...

Other things I enjoy are reading and gazing longingly at art I can't afford! From that point of view Pittenweem is sheer hell as it is crammed with talented artists and hosts numerous exhibitions in its lovely little galleries as well as open studio days that set the would-be (but impecunious) art collector's mouth watering!