Dunblane

Dunblane Library on a very wet morning.
Two days ago we were in Glasgow. After a blogging session at the modern gallery we went to Kelvingrove Art gallery and Museum on the hop on hop off bus. Kelvingrove is a magnificent building. We had lunch - soup and a bread roll - (our standard lunch) in an interesting cafe in a glassed in exterior section that made a nice bright place to eat. We then viewed a special exhibition called 'The Glasgow Boys', a loose group of Scottish artists who worked in the late 1800s and early twentieth century. Their work and subject matter was similar to our Heidelberg school. Several artists were influenced by Japanese art just as the Impressionists had been. Melville did some vibrant, strong watercolours of Italy. It was an interesting exhibition of Scottish pioneering artists whose work I had not previously encountered.
We needed a break after this so had afternoon tea in the grand hall. An organist provided wonderful music on the huge pipe organ for our enjoyment. The museum also has quite a good collection of Dutch, French and Italian art, however, their famous Dali painting was holidaying, on loan to another institution. Afterwards we wasted time taking wrong turns but eventually got back to our hotel to collect our luggage and then caught another bus to Queen St station for our trip to Dunblane.
Our stop at Dunblane was primarily to see where Piran had done his gap year but we had not expected such an enchanting town. We found a bus at the station and it took us to the Cathedral without charging. I think tourists are a bit of a novelty. Our B and B 'Chimes House is just delightful. Moira Campbell and her husband who farms Angus cattle are lovely. We have a room on the top floor- two flights of stairs overlooking the cathedral. Another bath and excellent facilities including full Scottish breakfast. Have had black pudding on several occasions, something I had forgotten since childhood. Our first night's tea was at The Dunblane Hotel which is a charming old time pub overlooking the river. Had wandered down the little main street on the way to the pub. This has the most fantastic looking pie shop as well as a quality jewellers and best of all many op/charity shops! Yesterday we mountaineered to Queen Victoria School so we have now seen the wonderful place where Piran worked. After this exercise Roger walked to the station while I did the shops. I bought a woollen jumper at one of the op shops and this was to prove fortunate as I needed an extra layer in the biting winds of Edinburgh Castle. The Queen was hosting a garden party in Edinburgh so the hop on hop off bus had to make some detours. It was good to see guests in their finery. We did the whole bus trip and then had lunch at Jenners, Edinburgh's main Department store. This was a beautiful building with an Art Deco glass domed roof and superb carving on the facade. We then took the bus to the castle and had an informative guided tour. We retuned to Waverley Station by bus for the train to Dunblane. We chatted to a lady who had been to the garden party. She was a gardener so was interested in what I did.
It is daylight so late that it was almost 8.00pm before we returned to Dunblane. The other pub had finished meals so we returned to the Dunblane Hotel to try other dishes on their menu. We also have a little pub under our B and B. This is called the 'Tappit Hen'. It doesn't serve food but had a great folk band playing. They were great so we had a real Scottish experience. A man next to us was working on his computer- he was a conductor of a youth orchestra that had a camp at QVS. He actually sang as a boy chorister at the opening of Coventry Cathedral. His father was an organist in St Mary's in Edinburgh. If you are looking for a quite, charming spot to stay in Scotland, Dunlane is for you. Free Internet at the library too. Have been hear since 9.00am. We are now off to do the galleries in Edinburgh before catching the train to Newcastle on Tyne.
All the best
love Jo and Rog