“Only by going alone in silence, without baggage, can one truly get into the heart of the wilderness. All other travel is mere dust and hotels and baggage and chatter.”
Up too early for breakfast, we walked out through the beer garden. Why we wanted MORE walking, I cannot say. Anyway, I was amused by the redundant tag.
A mile away, we reconnected with JMW (I think I got through the whole day without calling it Cotswold) at Callendar House. We walked uphill through Callendar Woods, which seemed to include Sequoia trees, to the Union Canal towpath.
It was six miles of flat paved walking, lovely but not worth another picture. These next three give the sense, but this was an exciting spot
Because this is an aqueduct. We’re walking over the Avon River.
Shortly after this, we turned aside and followed the Avon down to Linlithgow.
The area is important to Scottish and English history.
A bridge, a stream, woods, fields, people killed, people died, people ran away, yada yada.
A rail bridge over the Avon wetlands reminded us of Harry Potter, but this one wasn’t in the movie. We walked on into the heart of the city.
We’re staying at the West Port Hotel. At check in we learned that tomorrow is a huge holiday here, The Marches. The pubs have special licenses to open at 7 AM. A pipe & drum band is scheduled to come by here about then. And the thing goes all day.
It has to do with this being the home of Mary Queen of Scots.
.
St Michael’s church is still active, but the churchyard was locked, so I could get no closer to the graves. Since we could only view them from the west, we only saw the backs.
This cool green man is an anachronistically dressed statue of a guy who was respected around here, but fumbled his job in Australia.
St Michael’s message seems to us like the motto of all Scotland. Everyone is really nice. We’ve asked bartenders questions they couldn’t answer & they shouted to patrons or got someone else.
The answer we got wasn’t always right (Neck Oil IPA is brewed in London, not Edinburgh), but still.
We had cask ale at the West Port Hotel, more beer at the Old Post Office (pictured).
More beer and supper at the Four Marys, named for Mary’s ladies in waiting. Next to the West Port we had a night cap whisky at the Willow Tree, recently renamed in a controversial move. We drank a blended whisky contract created with the old name. It’s from a story about a loyal dog who brought food to her chained-up master and was sentenced to share his fate.
She has a statue nearby.
Here’s another Robert Burns poem to conclude:
Here’s a health to them that’s awa,
Here’s a health to them that’s awa;
And wha winna wish gude luck to our cause,
May never gude luck be their fa’!
It’s gude to be merry and wise,
It’s gude to be honest and true;
It’s gude to support Caledonia’s cause,
And bide by the buff and the blue.
Here’s a health to them that’s awa,
Here’s a health to them that’s awa,
Here’s a health to Charlie, the chief o’ the clan,
Altho’ that his band be sma’!
May Liberty meet wi’ success!
May Prudence protect her frae evil!
May tyrants and tyranny tine i’ the mist,
And wander their way to the devil!
Here’s a health to them that’s awa,
Here’s a health to them that’s awa;
Here’s a health to Tammie, the Norlan’ laddie,
That lives at the lug o’ the law!
Here’s freedom to them that wad read,
Here’s freedom to them that wad write!
There’s nane ever fear’d that the truth should be heard,
But they whom the truth would indite.
Here’s a health to them that’s awa,
Here’s a health to them that’s awa;
Here’s chieftain M’Leod, a chieftain worth gowd,
Tho’ bred amang mountains o’ snaw;
Here’s friends on baith sides o’ the Forth,
And friends on baith sides o’ the Tweed;
And wha wad betray old Albion’s right,
May they never eat of her bread!
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