First weekend in June

Photos: http://picasaweb.google.com/meredythhw/8June2008?authkey=gxkilgwXTPM

Once again, the weekend went by so fast. In between naps on Saturday, we went to the Taste of Grampion festival here in Inverurie. It was a gorgeous, sunny, and warm day--and it was perfect for wandering the stalls at the fair. We were expecting to eat lunch at the festival, but there were only a couple of food stands--and mostly it was fried (just like festivals at home--but fish and chips here). So, we opted for cheeses, jams, beers, and a few other things to take home. As Andy noted, you can really tell a lot about a culture from a festival. And, there are many tiny differences, but for the most part, it didn't seem so unusual...except for the live sheep up on display on the stage--that was a little weird.

Our Sunday outing was another castle trip and a drive through more countryside. This time, we headed northwest about 20-30 minutes from Inverurie to Fyvie Castle. The castle was owned by a man who made his wealth in the American steel industry. Unlike others, it was much more of a display of the "laird's" fancy furnishings and opulence than the castle itself. Once again, Kort loved it. This time, though, we were smart to bring the Baby Bjorn rather than carry him up all the stairs. Mostly, he whooped and hollered throughout the whole tour. Luckily the staff were mostly older with their own grandkids and didn't mind his excitment. In fact, one man congratulated us for starting an interest in history early!

On our way home, we of course, found another private castle on the map and went to check it out. This one required a little more backroads driving, and soon we found ourselves trespassing on private property. As we drove down a long drive, a huge tree branch fell from a giant tree just feet behind our car. So much for stealthily checking out the castle!

The noise brought out people we think lived on the property, and Andy had to get out of the car to talk to the people (there was NO way I was getting out!). After a little bit of back and forth, we were ok'd to turn around and drive on the grass around the broken limb, though it didn't seem like they liked the idea--nor did they like that we were on the property! Luckily, Kort slept through the whole deal...and the rest of our drive home was a little less exciting:)