Tour Culzean Castle Gardens

Thursday, July 31, 2008

This evening I am presenting several images of the gardens at Culzean Castle.

You can visit the parks and the beautiful Victorian Walled Garden at Culzean, which has a grand entrance gate designed by Robert Adam and dated 1786. The gardens and parks at Culzean are composed with a vinery, glasshouses, wildlife garden, herb garden, children’s adventure playground, deer park, orangery, camellia house, gas house exhibition and the swan pond, from which you can see the pagoda.

The walled gardens were first laid out between 1775 and 1786. They were supposed to provide food for the Castle and estate from the kitchen garden, and to provide a pleasure garden composed with exotic plants for the guests.

The Fountain in the Castle Garden, near the Orangery

The Camellia House

Camellia House

Camellia House

Camellia House

Camellia House

Camellia

The Swan Pond

The Pagoda

The Deer Park

A bit of wildlife


Video





Walled garden and the Vinery


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Tour King's Park Glasgow Scotland

Wednesday, July 30, 2008

This evening I am presenting some images of king's park, in Glasgow.

Glasgow is composed with a lot of beautiful parks and gardens, like this one. King's Park is also a suburb area of Glasgow, situated in the south of the River Clyde.


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Anonymous Things To Do In Glasgow said...

Some great pictures there, well done

July 31, 2008  

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Tour Shawlands Glasgow Scotland

Tuesday, July 29, 2008

I am presenting today some images of Shawlands, Glasgow.

Shawlands is an inner suburb of Glasgow, in Scotland and offers a diverse range of independent shops as well as a wide range of pubs, restaurants, cafes and nightclubs, and serves as an entertainment and shopping hub for many of Glasgow's southern suburbs.

There are bowling clubs and greens and the biggest public park in Scotland, Queen's Park which has allotments, a botanical garden glass house, public tennis courts, a public golf course, children's play areas, a boating pond, farmer's markets and a hill affording unrivalled views of the city.

Shawlands is served by many toddler groups, and kindergarten nurseries. Langside Primary, Shawlands Primary and Shawlands Academy are large old Victorian sandstone school buildings.



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Lake Menteith Tour Scotland

Monday, July 28, 2008

Today I am uploading some pictures of the Lake of Menteith.

Set in The Trossachs, the Lake of Menteith is supposed to be the only lake in Scotland, and is also a site of Special Scientific Interest due to its exceptional fauna and flora, with eagles and ospreys. It is also very appreciated for fishing. You can aslo find the Inchmahome Priory, which is situated on an island in the middle of the Lake Menteith.



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Black Sheep Tour Scotland

Sunday, July 27, 2008

This evening I am presenting some images of some unusual black sheep near Newton Mearns, southside Glasgow.

There are 7.5 million sheep in Scotland, but 5 million people!



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Fintry and Meikle Bin Walk Scotland

Saturday, July 26, 2008

I am uploading today some images of our walk with the Glasgow HF Outdoor Club to Fintry.

This was a 19 km walk called "Meikle Bin", near the Canon Valley Reservoir. The weather was not really appealing, but we enjoyed the beautiful senery and the views.


















Videos



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Scottish Parliament Edinburgh Tour

Friday, July 25, 2008

Today I am presenting some images of the New Scottish Parliament Building and also the other one, which is now used by legal professions. Unfortunately, we were not allowed to take pictures inside the Old Scottish Parliament.

However, it was possible inside the new building. You are also welcome to sit and listen to any kind of debate. Scotland's new Parliament sits at the foot of Edinburgh's famous Royal Mile in front of the spectacular Holyrood Park and Salisbury Crags.

When the Scotland Act 1998 was passed it led to the establishment of the first Scottish Parliament since 1707.



Old Scottish Parliament Building




New Scottish Parliament Building

Video


Inside the New Scottish Parliament

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Tour Salisbury Crags Edinburgh Scotland

Thursday, July 24, 2008

I am presenting today some pictures of Edinburgh taken from the Salisbury Crags in Holyrood Park.

Arthur's Seat and Salisbury Crags are twin rock formations (an extinct volcano and a glacial rock formation) to the north-east of Edinburgh City Centre, in the grounds of the Royal Holyroodhouse Park.

Salisbury Crags are a series of cliffs, reaching up to 150 feet in height. The crags were formed approximately 340 million years ago, around about the same time as Arthur's Seat.

Salisbury Crags are always very popular with joggers, walkers and tourists, as you can get beautiful views of Edinburgh from there.














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Day Tour Linlithgow Palace Scotland

Wednesday, July 23, 2008


I am uploading today a series of images and 2 videos of the Renaissance Linlithgow Palace.

You can find between Falkirk and Edinburgh the lovely little town of Linlithgow, where the palace is situated. The 15th-century ruin is set on the edge of Linlithgow Loch and is associated with James V (1512) and Mary Queen of Scots (1542), who were both born here. James V was also married here, to Mary of Guise, and Bonnie Prince Charlie visited the palace during the 1745 rebellion. One year later, the palace was badly damaged by fire during its occupation by General Hawley's troops, prior to their defeat by Jacobite forces under Prince Charles at the Battle of Falkirk.

Incredible details

Barbican remains

View of the Linlithgow Loch

Swans in the Linlithgow Loch

The Palace from the East

Barbican remains

Stonework Detail

The North Range and Courtyard

The Fountain

Stonework Detail from the Fountain

The Pantry

The Great Hall

The Great Hall

The Court Kitchen

The Pantry

View from the Tower

Linlithgow Loch

Linlithgow Loch

The North Range Interior

Videos


Linlithgow Palace Outside




Linlithgow Palace Inside

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Personalized Edinburgh Tour

Tuesday, July 22, 2008

I am presenting today a selection of pictures and a video of our day tour, with four people on a cruise ship to Edinburgh.

From South Queensferry, we first went to Linlithgow Palace, then had a quick visit of Rosslyn Chapel, as well as the Royal Yatch Britannia. We went back to Edinburgh, enjoying the beautiful views from the Calton Hill. We then visited the Palace of Holyrood House, and the former building for the Scottish Parliament (Old Scottish Parliament), which is now exclusively used by legal professions.

I also took some pictures of the city from the Salisbury Crags, situated in Holyrood park.


Queensferry with Norwegian Jade


Linlithgow Palace

Remains of a castle at Rosslyn Chapel
The Royal Yacht Britannia
Monuments at Calton Hill and views


"New" Scottish Parliament Building


Salisbury Crags and views
Tour of Edinburgh City Centre


Video



View from the Linlithgow Palace

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Visit Luss Scotland

Monday, July 21, 2008

I am presenting today some pictures of Luss Village.

Luss is a very popular village as it is the setting for the Scottish TV Soap "Take the High Road", and is a lovely spot with beautiful views, as the village is situated around Loch Lomond.

It was originally a village built for slate miners. There were several mills including a corn-mill, a sawmill and even a cotton-mill. Around 1850, the laird cleared their old, turf-thatched cottages and built a new model village for his workers. But many villagers worked in the slates quarries, and you can still find the slates on the roofs of many Glasgow tenements. Luss is now a Conservation Village.

The name Luss could be derived from the Gaelic "Lus", a plant, but others have suggested that it comes from the French "Luce", a lily.


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Tour Inchmahome Priory Scotland

Sunday, July 20, 2008

Today I am presenting some pictures of the remains of the Inchmahome Priory, set on an island in the Lake Menteith.

Inchmahome is an idyllicaly-situated Augustinian monastery dating from 1238. Much of the 13th-century building remains. It sheltered the child Mary Queen of Scots in 1547. Rich in wildlife, the woodlands are carpeted in wildflowers and the lake is visited by waterfowl, including herons and great crested grebes. You can also find some friendly ducks, which will follow you around and ask for food.



Video


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Tour of Trossachs Scotland

Saturday, July 19, 2008


I am presenting today some images and videos of our one day personalized tour with a group of four visitors from New York City. We went to the heritage village of Luss on the shores of Loch Lomond, which is supposed to be the largest expanse of freshwater in the UK, and The Trossachs. The Trossachs are often regarded as "the Highlands in miniature". You can find there wild glens and sparkling lochs, like the Loch Katrine.

Then, we went to Port of Menteith, to see the Lake of Menteith, which is supposed to be the only lake in Scotland. We took a ferry to an island in the middle of the lake where the ruins of Inchmahome Priory stand. It is a ruined Augustine (The Black Cannons) priory founded in 1238 by Walter Comyn, who was the Earl of Menteith. Then a light lunch at Lake of Menteith Hotel.,

There is also a selection of pictures of the Stirling Castle and Doune Castle.

Loch Lomond

Loch Katrine

Lake of Menteith

Images of The Priory


Doune Castle

Stirling Castle

View of the Wallace Monument from Stirling Castle

Videos



Loch Lomond


Lake Menteith

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Roman Tour Ardoch Fort Scotland

Friday, July 18, 2008


Today I am presenting some pictures of an ancient Roman site, The Ardoch Fort.

The Ardoch fort was part of the Gask Ridge system, which was actually a frontier system. So the Gsk Ridge is an early series of fortification built by the Romans in Scotland, between AD70 and AD80.

The fort at Ardoch constitutes the most impressive remains of any Roman site in Scotland. After the abandonment of Inchtuthil it formed part of the Gask "frontier system" until that was abandoned in the late 80s. In the Antonine period the fort was refurbished to serve as an outpost for the Antonine Wall, but had reduced to about 5.7acres (2.3 hectares).

You can find 5 defensive ditches on the north and east sides of Ardoch Fort. They are the result of successive reductions in the size of the fort, as it had an area of some 3.5 hectares, before being reduced in the Antonine period.








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Rough Castle and Antonine Wall Roman Theme Tour

Thursday, July 17, 2008

I am uploading today some images of the Rough castle and the Antonine Wall in Perthshire.

In the second century AD, during the reigh of the Roman emperor Antonius Pius, the Romans conquered Scotland and built the Antonine Wall, one of the most massive and important surviving frontier works of the Roman Empire in Scotland. The wall comprised at the time a ditch which fronted it, and some forts and fortlets, which were actually fortified encampments.

About these forts, the most representative one is for sure the Rough Castle. The remains of it are highly visible and very well preserved. You can find the short lenght of military way with quarry pits, designed to surprise ennemies. Excavated in 1902/3, 1920 and 1957-61, this is one of the smallest forts on the Antonine Wall, with ramparts of turf enclosing an internal occupation area.








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Private Roman Day Tour of Perthshire

Wednesday, July 16, 2008


Today I am presenting some pictures of our day trip to Falkirk and Perthshire with a Roman Scotland theme.

We went today to Falkirk to see the remains of the Rough Castle, ( Bonnybridge) from Roman History. You can see its well preserved ramparts, highlighting the fort, and also some stretches of the Antonine Wall, which was built from AD138 to 1442. The Antonine Wall (now a World Heritage Site) was used as a means of defence. You can also find a series of pits arranged in checkerboard configuration. they once contained sharpened stakes camouflaged with twigs and foliage. these pitfalls called "lilia" were used to stop and surprise the ennemy.

Then we went to Dunning, and met a very helpful local gentleman who drove us to an ancien roman site, in the Kincladie woods. You can find there a Roman Dyke which formed part of the outer boundaries of a temporary Roman Camp . After that, we saw the Dupplin Cross, which was before in Edinburgh and then placed to the care of Historic Scotland in 2002, and has been by ST Serf Church in Dunning since that time. The Dupplin Cross dates from arround AD800.

And also, a quick visit to another ancient roman site, Ardoch Fort, which dates arround AD80 in Braco and saw the Findo Gask Ridge and the Library of Innerpeffray, which well worth the visit.

Rough Castle and Antonine Wall

Dunning

ST Serf Church and Dupplin Cross

Ardoch Fort

Innerpeffray Chapel and Library