HOGMANAY!!!!!!!

We had been thinking a while ago that we'd go something different for New Year. We'd looked at going to Vienna, but decided on going to Edinburgh instead. To Hogmanay!!!

We headed off on the evening of December 30th, after a relaxing day at home ( and after the Aussie cricketers capitulated in the Melbourne test - WE WANT BLOOD!). We caught the bus to the airport. The day was really hazy, so we were able to look directly at the sun through the haze, which looked huge and orange. The airport was really quiet, 'cause Cardiff Airport is a big package tour and business hub. We checked in on-line, so made very sure of the measurements of our carry on luggage. BUT the measurements on-line didn't match the measurements the airline used at the airport. Talk about a rip! £20 later, after having to check in Matt's luggage and Kathy getting really cranky with having to cram her handbag in to her bag. We were talking to another passenger whose bag was allowed on as carry on in Edinburgh, and who wasn't allowed to carry it on from Cardiff. So why does bmibaby have different gauges at the different airports?!?!?

After dramas at the airport and a fairly uneventful trip, we get to Edinburgh. And it was frosty - frost on roof tops, frozen cars, the works. Brrrrrr. We get to the hotel, check in and go up to our room. It's huge, and the bathroom is huge. We open the curtains and see a castle!

Edinburgh Castle from our hotel room

How fantastic was that! All lit up on the top of it's rock. It was brilliant.

After checking in, we head out to find dinner (an OK Indian, but too rich) and wandered around in the cold for an our or so. We walked down near the Castle (it's hard to avoid),

Edinburgh Castle at night

found our way to Princes Street, and the Christmas Carnival. It was so much better than the one Cardiff had - lots more rides, and bigger.

Carnival rides

Preparations for the next night were well in train, and those poor blokes were working hard in the cold and dark. Well, not completely dark with the lights from the Carnival, and also in the trees and shrubs. With the trees, the lights were up the trunk and along the main branches, which looked pretty amazing.


On our way back to the hotel we stopped in to a pub for a drink to warm up (whisky, of course). Odd little pub - all old blokes. We walked past the next afternoon and there was a mobility scooter parked outside, which gives you an idea of the type of place it was. We didn't stay for long, so it was back to the hotel and off to bed.

31 December

The day dawned cold, grey and misty. Breakfast was at a nice cafe, then we stopped in to an ATM - hooray, we'd been paid!! Then we went off to look at the Castle.

Matt on the way to Edinburgh Castle

When we got there, after walking up the hill (well, a granite plug - imagine having to build the Castle, lugging stone all the way up there)



and up lots of steps, then negotiated our way in to the Castle

Matt outside the Castle

Kathy outside the Castle

we were soooooo glad Kathy had bought entry tickets on line. There was a massive, huge queue for tickets, so we felt very smug walking past and in. Did you know that there'd been a fortress there since 600AD? Just spectacular. It also held prisoners of war, from the American war, through the Napoleonic wars right up to WWI. We saw the Honours of Scotland (the former Scottish Crown Jewels), and the Stone of Destiny!! And the Museum of the Royal Scots Guards, which was pretty amazing - the regiment in it's various forms goes back to the 17th century.

At the Castle is a really, really big gun (Mons Meg)

Kathy with Mons Meg

and cannonballs,

Matt with some big balls

and the one o-clock gun which goes off at, oddly enough, 1pm every day. We were standing watching the soldier preparing for the blast. We were waiting,




waiting,



waiting... then it went off!

Surprise! The gun went off!

Matt jumped just a bit

Job done

And there were Aussies everywhere!! Sydney was the last time we came across so many Aussies. What gives? And not just gap year backpackers, but people right up to their 50's and 60's.

The Castle was also in a state of chaos, with preparations for the party that night - both the official party and the unofficial party for the regimental officers stationed there. There were big fireworks cannisters on the ramparts, and BBC outside broadcast trucks everywhere.

After wandering around the Castle and the top part of the Royal Mile for 2 or 3 hours, we sat down and had a refresher at a pub called the Jilly Judge, where we had McEwans 80. Small wee pub, but quite cute. Lunch was at Whiski, where we had haggis, tatties and neeps, Bullmans Best Bitter, and finished off with a glass of Oban for and a glass of Laphroig for Kathy. We thought Haggis was just delish. Yes, it's rich and offally, but that's the point. It's savoury and spicy, and great on a cold day.

After lunch we wandered around to walk it off,

top of one of the oldest churches in Edinburgh

Ouch - that's gotta hurt

Morningside for Life!! Thank you Bro Town

popped in to a couple more pubs, then headed back to the hotel to change and get our zillions of layers on. After layering up, we had dinner at a Thai restaurant, and felt a bit underdressed, especially when a pair of guys sat down near us, very spiffy in their formal kilts. Hmmmmm. Anyway, the food was great. We had heaps of time before the Hogmanay kicked off, so we went to a couple of pubs to get the party started. One of the pubs reminded Kathy a lot of the Opera Bar, which used to be in Wellington - it was the age mix of the crowd, the mutton dressed as lamb, the music... scary flashback.

The party venue had lots of people there, of course.

Matt's entry bracelet

We got very confused about how to get in, but finally got there. We bought tickets to the celidh - Scottish country dances.

View of the dancing

Another view of the dancing

It was down in the gardens off Princes Street, in a bit of a bowl (apparently it's drained swamp). Matt wanted to have a go at dancing, but Kathy couldn't get the courage up, as people seemed to be taking things very seriously and most knew all the dances. So we watched and enjoyed the atmosphere. Mulled wine and beer helped.... Close to midnight we wanted to get up higher to see the fireworks, so we walked up to the entry point, and just in time, too. The fireworks shot off from the Castle, and they were pretty spectacular (not as spectacular as Sydney New Year, but pretty good).




We enjoyed them, and a big hug and kiss in the cold. After the fireworks, we decided to head back to the hotel, and the walk back took ages. Matt had to queue for simply ages to go to the toilet (Kathy hung on). This may just be a sign that we're getting older and a bit more mature, but we feel we have to comment on a couple of people we saw - touch of sympathy and concern: There was a really pissed girl walking the same way we were - she was hanging off her boyfriend's arm (or was he dragging her along by the hand? We couldn't decide), and her handbag was hanging off the other arm, or what was left of it. It was open, and it looked as though she'd lost her purse, phone, keys, the lot. Poor thing. The other thing was this young chap. We were nearly at the hotel, when we heard running footsteps behind us. This young bloke went haring past us, and bumped past Matt, 'Bastard', we thought, until we caught up with him leaning up against a wall - blood was pouring down his face, and he looked really shook up. He refused our help, so we think he got pissed and got biffed by someone. Poor lad. The night ended with Matt ringing Sheeds to wish him all the best for the New Year. Nothing like a drunk call to your mate half way around the world to start things off.

On the 1st, we decided to breakfast at the hotel. Kathy had real Scottish porridge, and some fruit, while Matt decided to listen to his inner demons and had black pudding AND haggis with his bacon.

Greedy pig

In an effort to walk off our breakfast, after checking out of the hotel we walked back up towards the Castle, and visited the Camera Obscura. It was really, really excellent! Apart of course from viewing the Camera Obscura, there were a lot of other displays, such as plasma balls, holograms, tricks of the eye, and so on. It was fantastic! Matt had not laughed so much, or so loud for ages. One really cool thing was a flash screen, which you stood face towards the screen, and a bright light flashed and left your shadow on the screen for ages. Very cool. Brilliant for kids of all ages.

After that, we just wandered. We had thought of going to an exhibit of a part of the town which had been blocked up during a plague (with people still alive in it when it was blocked up, so they starved to death - charming!) and which is said to be haunted, but it was fully booked out. Our smugness from the day before rapidly wore off. By this time we were starting to get a bit foot sore and hungry, so we found and tried a pub that the Lonely Planet had recommended - the Royal Mile. The Lonely Planet said they served good food. When we got there we were told that the kitchen would be opening in 20 minutes. Cool, no worries, we ordered a beer and sat down to wait. An hour later and the kitchen was still closed. So we left, and found something elsewhere. Poor show guys. Anyway, we ended up having a light lunch, with more haggis and some mulled wine. By this time the sun was out for the very first time on our trip. So we headed back up to the Castle to take some more photos, just as the sun was starting to set.

Grubby church tower near Edinburgh Castle

Edinburgh skyline at dusk

Edinburgh Castle at dusk

Our airport dramas continued. Because we were unable to check in on line, we turned up at the airport early so that we could check in and sort out the luggage thing (we knew that we'd have to pay for check-in, so we didn't mind that). But.... check in wasn't open. We were only 2 hours before departure! Don't cheapo airlines always tell their passengers to turn up about that time?!?!? Sigh! Anyway, when the check-in desk eventually opened, the ladies were lovely and helpful, and we were able to carry on both of our bags. On the way in to Edinburgh we'd spied a champagne bar. So, after passing through security we made a bee-line for that - to sooth our harried nerves, you understand! Mmmmm, half bottle of Veuve Clicquot and a yummy seafood platter for 2 later (mmm, smoked salmon and gravalax), nerves were soothed, tummies were full, and it was time to make our way to the gate.

Getting home after our adventures, and the house was FREEZING COLD. It didn't warm up until the next afternoon, but that's OK. We'd had a great time, ate a lot, drank sufficient (not quite enough whisky, though), and will put a return visit to Eginburgh on our list of things to do.

Ho, ho, ho, 'tis December!

So, this is Christmas. Sun rises at 8.15am, sets at 4.05pm. Fabulous.

Actually, the month started with both of us crook. Matt brought it home, then lovingly shared it with Kathy. Ah, the 'joys' of marriage - share and share alike. Hey, c'mon, there are some things which are better to keep to yourself! Matt had only 1 day off work, and struggled through the rest of that week, whereas Kathy had a whole week off (great start to her new job - 1 week on, then 1 week off). Matt had only the 1 day off, because one of the people he meets at the Voorburg Group meetings was visiting. Christian, from Austria, was visiting with 2 of his staff, Christian (the younger) and Barbara. They were here for several days, plus most of the weekend. We went out for drinks with them on Thursday night, which was good fun. They went to the rugby on Friday night (we didn't go because we were both feeling poorly), which they quite enjoyed even though they had no idea what was going on. Christian (the elder) was taking photos. One guy said to them "why are you taking photos?" "We're tourists - we've never been to a rugby match before!" "Why did you stop taking photos!" I think they got on with the crowd! The next day they went to a Bluebirds game with Matt, who then took them to St. Mary's Street on a Saturday night (scary) then to Chippy Lane (scarier). They were horrified.

The weather started turning colder, except for the shopping. OMG, OMG, OMG. Terrifying. We really missed the Xmas parties in Australia, partly because there weren't as many of them, but partly because the parties here seemed to be different - more boozing? No that's probably not it - but some of the groups in the pubs- not us! - were seriously pissed. Matt had his work lunch, then a 'floor party', and Kathy went to the Vice Chancellor's lunch (everyone disappeared about 2pm. Mind you, it was on the last day of work for the year). Friday the 19th (amazingly called Black Friday, because it is the last Friday before the Christmas break) we had drinks with Craig, Lewis and Sarah. A couple of days after we were at the Halfway, and there was a bunch of festive guys, all dressed as dalmations. On their way out they stopped at a table where there was a family with a young girls, so they sang to her! The found on what her name was, and incorporated that in to their song. She loved it.

That weekend we went to the Pontcanna Christmas Fair, which was on at Plasturton Gardens. It was pretty good - evening on a Saturday. It was dark, there were kids about having a great time and going on rides, we had mulled wine, and bought a holly wreath.

Christmas Eve we went to the pub, and had a fantastic time. We chatted to a lot of the other regulars, and had lots of fun. Kathy rang her Grandparents later that evening (morning NZ time), which they loved. Christmas Day we had a typical 'Matt and Kathy' special breakfast (cava and home-cured gravalax), before being picked up by Les to have Christmas lunch in Barry.

Guess who had his first Christmas?

All tuckered out

While it was great to have lunch with family, it was an odd sort of day compared with the Xmas celebrations we are used to in the Antipodes. There was much more focus on a single meal, with a near-military operation in the kitchen. After lunch there were parlour games, like charades. Very different from what we are used to. It was really good, though, to catch up with people including his aunt Val.



We went home on Boxing Day. We had intended to go out to Newport to watch the rugby. However, there was no public transport running. What the...?!? So instead we went out for a walk.


In the morning in Barry it was grey, but in Cardiff it turned in to a beautiful sunny day.

Matt walking in the sunshine

So we walked in Bute Park.

River Taff in the sunshine

Trees in the sunshine in Bute Park

There was a rugby match on,

and we still can't work out who was playing - there was a really odd mix of ages. We think it was probably students v old boys, or something. It was a really chilly day, and there were guys with their hands down their shorts to keep them warm - not to do other things!

On the 27th we walked down to the Bay in the cold and the wind

Sculpture down at Cardiff Bay

Kathy in the cold and the wind

and had a lovely lunch at an Italian restaurant.. Matt had a yummy seafood stew and Kathy had a seafood risotto. Mmmmmm. We got so cold afterwards that we got a taxi home, and were very glad we did. On the 28th we walked some of the Taff Trail again.

A frozen puddle

Wintery Taff Trail

Misty River Taff in the sunshine

So, there we were walking along, and we could hear a jogger behind us. No ordinary jogger he turned out to be. It was a 6'4 bloodnut rugby player, former All Black who curently plays for the Cardiff Blues.


Kinda cool.

We spent a little time watching the cricket (Australia v Sth Africa) -last session is on early in the morning here of course. We were shocked and disgusted with the results. 1 was bad. The other was worse!! WE WANT BLOOD, and lots of it. Punter's head on a pike would be good for a start, and Matt Hayden needs crucifixion.

No, not a Life of Brian cricifixion

More like this (which Matt took in Mexico)

or this - you know, painful (likewise taken in Mexico)

We also revisited some of the Pontcanna pubs we don't normally go to, which was fun. We went to the Robin Hood, and to the Conway. The Conway has recently changed hands, and has been turned in to more of a bistro. The bar part of the pub we thought was cold - not just temperature but atmosphere. It was the middle of the afternoon, and there was almost no-one in there. Sad.

So, that was Christmas.

Wine of the month: Villa Solaris Vermentino de Sardegna DOC 2007
Food find of the month: Pomegranate