CHAS’ & RUBY’S 2006 UK TOUR Thursday, June 01: Airth Castle Breakfast & Ruby Returns to Stirling

OhMyGawdess!!!
I had the BEST BREAKFASTS o’ my LIFE while in SCOTLAND on this trip!
During this – my first 2006 Scottish Breakfast – I discovered that,
contrary to ONE previous experience with it, HAGGIS CAN BE YUMMY!

Thereafter, I enjoyed HAGGIS at EVERY breakfast during the remaining trip!
(Until I was back in England, anyway.)

At 11 o’clock on this plate: A delicious, savory-spiced, “mush” = THE HAGGIS!
9 o’clock: “Blood Pudding” – aka “Black Pudding” – which I fell in LUV with in 2004.
(It tastes like the TURKEY DRESSING my Grandpa made!)
[See the Black Pudding description from my Liverpool, 2004, page.]

1 o’clock: a “TATTIE SCONE” – Sort of a thick POTATO TORTILLA (Yum!!!)
3, 4, & 5 o’clock: Sausages, Fried Tomato, Sautéed Mushrooms.
Hello! Color me FAT but INCREDIBLY HAPPY!!! LOL

This is a pic I took of the WEIRD chandelier in the Airth Reception Center Dining Room. WHAT IS IT? A SEA URCHIN? I HAVE NO IDEA! If it IS a SEA URCHIN … what the HELL is it doing in a “LOWLANDS” Scottish Castle?! LOL

Apparently, they have PIANO MUSIC in the Dining Room upon occasion!

OK. Ruby didn’t want to go with me to tour tonz o’ CASTLES with Brodie.
(There was an awful LOT of “trudging” UP and DOWN inclines and stairs on our tour.
So, considering her BACK INJURIES, I think she made a WIZE CALL! LOL)

INSTEAD, Ruby took a cab back to Stirling to do some more shopping and sightseeing.
While there, she got on a “HOP-ON-HOP-OFF BUS TOUR!”
Between OUR experience with such tours in London, and STEVE’S (my brother’s)
experience with them in DUBLIN, and RUBY’S experience with them in STIRLING:
I HIGHLY RECOMMEND THEM!!!

The “HOP-ON-HOP-OFF” Bus Tours are FABULOUS!
You can get OFF anywhere you wish, and wander about for as long as you like.
Then, you can hop back ON another bus after you’ve toured something.
(Most cities have another BUS arriving every 30 minutes, or so.)
OR, you can just STAY ON the sucker, and enjoy
a DRIVE-BY TOUR of the WHOLE CITY!

During her Stirling BUS TOUR, Ruby got off to visit the exterior of Stirling Castle.

Once back on the bus, she took pix of

THE WILLIAM WALLACE MONUMENT from the city …
and enjoyed multiple other sites in Stirling.

OH! During her cab ride back to Airth Castle,
RUBY’s driver stopped and let her visit the exterior of

THE DUNMORE PINEAPPLE!
“Described as the ‘most bizarre building in Scotland’ this is a summer house built in 1761 with a first floor of cantilevered masonry in the shape of a realistic, prickly pineapple which is 45 feet high. Four chimneys are disguised as stone vases on top of an adjoining wall because the summer house was heated by a furnace which circulated hot air through cavities in the wall. There are 16 acres of gardens with an orchard and the property has been restored by the National Trust for Scotland.”

[The pic above was snagged from the Internet]
Yet another place I would have LUVED to tour! Ah, well.

GO TO THE NEXT PAGE:
MEANWHILE, … BRODIE takes CHAS on a PRIVATE LOCAL TOUR
OF SITES & CASTLES … Beginning with the incredible village of CULROSS!

If you have information or suggestions for Ruby & Chas’ 2006 UK TOUR Website
– or PHOTO contributions for it! –
PLZ Email CHAS!
c-d-miller@neb.rr.com
That’s: c-d-miller@neb.rr.com –
those are hyphens/dashes (-) between the “c” and “d” and “miller”