16/05/08

After saying goodbye to Merrill & Dan, it was back on the road with an
aim of getting somewhere past Edinburgh. First stop was Hawick
(charmingly pronounced 'hoik' - as in the act of removing flem from
one's throat) where we found a farmers' market and bought a few veges
& fish for dinner.
Then off to Selkirk where we visited a museum and read all about
Selkirk Common Riding traditions. We've previously been aware of
Common Riding thanks to Dan & Merrill, but unfortunately have never
experienced the very very old tradition of waking up at around 0430 in
the morning, to a flute band parading around the town, then horse
riding round the borders of common lands to ensure they are all secure
and ship-shape, then of course there is the celebration that I can
imagine lasts all night long.

Next stop was Borthwick Castle (those who know Dan & Merrill's last
name will know why we stopped here, those who don't know Dan & Merrill
should be able to work out their last name now ;-). This castle was
like no other we have ever seen! The castle is now a working hotel
and we were lucky to be allowed a look around. Unlike most other
castles, which lie in a state of ruin, this one was very grand with an
amazing banquet hall and a couple of knights' full body armour suits.
The doorways between each room were between 1 & 3 metres thick we've
seen this in other castles, but because we were walking into bedrooms
still in use - there was something more amazing about it!!

Finally we made it past Edinburgh and found a quiet little spot by the
sea in East Weymss where we finally got around to making a few overdue
repairs and improvements to the Red Baron. Now everything should stay
in place instead of ending up on the floor during transit:-)