Plastic

Onwards to Dundee and Edinburgh

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Having stayed a couple of nights at the small, tasteful and quirky Taybank hotel, Long-Suffering Wife (LSW) and I moved on and stayed for further couple of nights in Dundee at a large, modern Premier Inn.  This was right on the Tay estuary, over which we had a great but very windswept view. 

The Tay Bridge At Dundee

It was also conveniently close to the new V&A Design Museum outpost in Dundee.  This is a wonderful building, designed by Kengo Kuma.  The museum provides a video explanation by Kuma of why the museum looks like it does and that made it even more interesting for me.

Dundee’s V&A

The weather was intermittently very wet (dreich is the appropriate Scottish word I believe), so we went to the dry comfort of the V&A twice.  We took in not only the standing exhibitions, but also the temporary ones including a very comprehensive and wide ranging one about Plastic: ‘The Remaking of Our World’.  Fortunately that was every bit as interesting as the big exhibitions I have seen in recent years in the V&A London.  It’s great that Dundee has such an impressive centrepiece.

The V&A And RRS Discovery And Some Sun!
V&A Dundee: Part Of The Plastics Exhibition

While in Dundee, LSW did start to eat again following the illness she had picked up from First Grandchild (FG) the previous weekend.  However, she quickly regretted it and, with the rain still persistent, our movements were limited.  Then, for a while, the weather relented and we did make it to the McManus Art Gallery and Museum.  This is a lovely looking building exhibiting proudly the seafaring and industrial history of Dundee, its art and its most famous people.  Then,, as the weather closed in again, we visited the Dundee Contemporary Arts (DCA) centre. 

The McManus Galleries, Dundee (And More Sun!)

At the DCA we saw an exhibition by Manuel Solano.  He became blind after contracting AIDS and, incredibly, the exhibition contained just work that he had produced since losing his sight.  Another interesting hour was passed out of the showers. 

Manuel Solano In The Big Spaces Of The Dundee Contemporary Art Gallery

While at the DCA we also saw Living, a new and very moving film starring Bill Nighy.  He is perfect for the lead role and is supported by excellent acting all-round in a really lovely film.  We both enjoyed it hugely. 

It was great to have visited Dundee and to see a different Scottish city.  The weather changed our plans of what to do there and the rain reinforced our impression that the car was king along the city’s coastline since we seemed to spend a lot of time getting wet waiting for the little green man lights and for the traffic to allow us to cross.  But, given the tricky weather blowing in from the East, and given that LSW wasn’t fully operational, we did a lot of good things in Dundee. 

View From Our Dundee Premier Inn Room (When It Wasn’t Sunny!)

On our way back to Edinburgh via the coastal road around East Fife we had to take a couple of diversions to avoid flooding.  We spotted the huge waves off the coast as we passed the famous golf course and lovely buildings of St Andrews and decided to stop at the fishing village of Crail on the easternmost coast of Fife to take a closer look.  We parked and walked down pretty, narrow lanes to the harbour.  As I rounded a corner to get a closer look at the breakers and take a souvenir picture, I was astounded to be instantaneously splattered by sea spray even though the sea was 40-50 yards away.  It really was startling weather.

Crail Harbour

We drove on along the coast and stopped at a recommended coffee house in St Monans (The Giddy Gannet) where LSW managed half a scone.  Then we pressed on and had lunch at The Ship Inn right on the coast in Elie where LSW watched me eat a tasty plate of fish and chips with all the trimmings.   Then, with one of us rather more stuffed than the other, we set off for a final 36 hours or so in Edinburgh.

Back In Edinburgh: The Royal Mile

Remarkably given the pressures and events of the last few days, Eldest Son (ES) and his wife were entertaining again (with help from her Mum), this time to celebrate her Dad’s birthday.  It was a lovely evening with, as usual, lovely food and a chance to meet one of ES’s new uncles-in-law and his wife.  Gradually LSW and I are getting to know our newly extended family.

To round off a momentous and lovely week in Scotland, (lovely despite what viruses and the weather occasionally threw at us), we had a few hours with FG including a visit to the National Museum of Scotland.  We had taken him there earlier in the year and he loved it again even though he was still recovering from his illness.  I previously vowed to take him to this wonderful museum whenever possible when in Edinburgh and that vow stands; it is so exciting for him and, as he grows up, I think it will retain his interest (no pressure FG!)

Ups And Downs Of Walking

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Anyone who has read this blog over the last few years will know that one of the greatest pleasures I have taken from retiring, and therefore having more discretionary time, has been in walking around the vicinity of our home in Gloucestershire.  That has continued in the last few quiet weeks of Covid-19 semi-lockdown.

Typical Local Cotswold View From A Local Walk

The weather has become distinctly Autumnal.  Now there are puddles and a sogginess underfoot on some of the footpaths that is requiring more care and more mud and waterproof footwear.  However, the weather has been largely good and recent walks have continued to be full of interest.

Autumnal Sunrise From Our Bedroom

The berries on the trees and hedgerows remain vibrant and fungal growths on tree stumps seem to have become more extravagant. 

Autumn Fungal And Mushroom Blooms

The local streams have become little gushing torrents again following the rain and the birds are noisy with their staking out of their territories. 

Local Streams And Waterfalls Are Filling Up

The changing seasons are bringing shifting palettes of colour to the views from walks where the green of fields and trees has previously dominated.  I am hoping that the warmth of the summer that accumulated in our woods has allowed trees to make the sugars that will bring out even more brilliant browns, reds and yellows as the month progresses.

Harvest Time!

The only irritants on my local walks have been the increasing prevalence of discarded face masks and dog poo bags along the way.  I have read that the standard plastic face masks take 450 years to decompose.  In recent years I have seen a raised consciousness of how the oceans are filling up with our plastic waste and I feel that we have begun to understand the potential (all bad) implications of this for the food chain and wildlife degradation.  Suddenly we have found a way of reversing that progress through carelessness in disposing of face masks; frustrating!

Perhaps I shouldn’t get started on dogs and their owners’ misuse of poo bags.  It makes my blood boil and I’m sure the issue is getting worse.  Of course, no-one wants to step in dog poop.  Picking it up and disposing of it safely should be a basic requirement for any dog owner.  But many choose not to do so when their dog is on a footpath crossing a field.  That endangers not only my shoes but also livestock in the field.

Locally Bagged Deposits Including The Particularly Egregious Example Pinned On A Stile Behind A ‘Please Clean Up After Your Dog’ Sign

Some dog owners are diligent in picking up their mess.  However, when they do, most use plastic bags that usually take centuries to decompose and create micro-plastic particles that simply end up poisoning the earth or flow into the oceans.  Googling ‘dog poo bag decomposition’ produces pretty frightening results.  Then there are the worst dog owners who pick up the poo and then, astonishingly, leave the bag swinging in a nearby hedgerow or lying by the side of the path; disgusting!

Disappointing Use of A Grit Bin In Our Lane – Dog Poop and Plastic!

Of course, dogs bring huge amounts of pleasure to millions of people.  But I worry when I read that people in the UK alone have bought 2.2 million dogs in the last six months of Covid-19 lockdown.  Will spotting discarded poo bags be the norm on any outing?  And what about the meat consumption of all those pets and the impact on greenhouse gasses that has?

I know – I shouldn’t have started my rant.  Rant over!  I’ll focus on enjoying the views during my walks by looking upwards and hoping my mud-proof footwear deals with the rest.