The fact it's taken almost 2 weeks to write this one post testifies to just how busy the Autumn term is with us...adjusting to the new school timetable (for Small Fry) and after school activities (all of them) as they've moved up/changed classes which results in a new routine for the whole family...plus the usual international travel commitments both El Puma and I have.
But first, the absolutely Most Important Thing to happen the term, was for our little-not-so-little crevette to lost her first tooth. She has been waiting and longing and hoping for years, but as her first one only arrived at 14 months, I was pretty sure she wouldn't get her big teeth until late...as it turns out, the last in her class.
She was so proud and worked it, worked it that whole last 24 hours until it finally gave up and won her £2 (I know, I know, but last child-first tooth etc etc).
It finally gave up the ghost while we were on holiday. With all of our travel we decided to stay in Scotland this autumn and discover a bit more by bike and foot...which was a super holiday plan until you add in Scotland in October. I was really pleased in general with how the kids just got on with it...those years of walking in the Dolomites seem to have led to a quiet resignation (perhaps not enjoyment yet) that we WILL walk no matter what. And to be fair, Scotland in all its autumnal glory is really magnificent.
Having travelled through Glen Coe on my way to Mallaig on the west coast (more later) in late September, I'd been struck by the beauty and the history of the place, and so we rented a 'loch side' cottage for the week. Yes it was beside a loch but unfortunately there was a busy road between our side and the loch side, which was a pity.
The photos have all uploaded in reverse order, and as I can't be bothered swopping them all round, I'm going to start at the end....which was completing a puzzle we bought on the second day of Scotland. 1000 pieces...and the kids appeared for the last 10 or so.
Proof we biked. Route 76 seems to be one worth exploring in the future, stretching all the way to Oban one way and Inverness the other. It was well paved, totally separate from the road, and with stunning views.
And sometimes when it got too steep, there was a bit of a duathlon situation:
And we walked. It's all uphill round there. Then you hit the top, get blown about a bit, and then hightail it in half the time back to the car. Ah, holidays.
One of the routes we took (the Devil's Staircase...not devilish enough for any of us) forms part of the West Highland Way. Granted I wouldn't want to do it with a tent and backpack on my back, but it was probably our easiest walk.
And on one super special day we walked along Glen Shiel to the waterfall at the end. You can actually keep going and end up on the other side of the Cairngorms, but we did the in and out walk and enjoyed crossing the old steel bridge.
And on the following day we hiked up to the 'hidden valley', where Clan MacDonald used to hide the cattle they nicked from other clans around them. There's not much to take a photo of at the top (it's literally a hanging valley hidden from the road) but it was a good scramble and we all felt a good sense of achievement. Well deserved cake and tea back in the coffee shop.
On the one day that we spent a lot of the day in the car, we drove up to Glenfinnan in time to catch the 'Harry Potter train' ie the steam train that links Fort William and Mallaig if you want to pay vast sums of money (you can do it on a regular Scotrail train for much, much less but without the kudos!).
And the holiday actually began (remember we're going backwards) by listening to and watching Steve Backshall on stage in Perth. He's a biologist, conservationist and host of Deadly 60 and a few other nature and wildlife programmes, and he really brought it all alive over 2 hours on stage using videos, demonstrations, recounting stories and telling facts. It was absolutely brilliant and gave Small Fry a huge desire to give scuba diving a go (you'll have to wait for the next post for that).
And the day before we went on holiday, I got back from project meetings in Vietnam, where the food is always delicious, the people so kind, and the weather pretty hot and muggy (uncomfortably so at times).
Lunch:
We arrived early Saturday morning and went straight to a funding training workshop. The upside was that we were not far from this UNESCO world heritage site, where they filmed King Kong 3. We were able to stop for a visit the following day on our way back to Hanoi. It was quintessentially Vietnamese and also extremely interesting (even without having seen the film).
Where we stayed:
I'd only been gone a day before El Puma sent me this photo...didn't take long for crevette to claim my spot in the bed as hers...and the cat obviously felt it was warranted that he also stay.
Thankfully Moon came over from France to help and keep the kids occupied during the first week of the school holidays (which is unluckily when my Vietnam trip fell) and together with Oma they visited some of Scotland's attractions, including the Museum of Scotland, which we always love.
And before THAT, I had some fieldwork to finish in 3 areas of Scotland (west coast, northeast and Orkney) to better understand fisher wellbeing in the Scottish fishing industry, which meant trips to each of them to interview fishermen - hence the trip to Mallaig. I had been to Mallaig and Peterhead/Fraserburgh before, but never Orkney. Although it was a flying visit, it was mild and interesting (and remote, and isolated, and insular and beautiful).
The final tourist boat of the season docked in Kirkwall:
The Kirk of Kirkwall.
We also had stunning weather in Mallaig and the west coast. Overall, it was a super experience, although my research assistant turned it into an even more memorable one by taking a dip in the frigid waters (but beautiful).
And before even THAT, it was the September/October birthday meet up. Again, by the sea, because, you know....Scotland.
The birthday girls:
And our birthday girl: Fingerling turns double figures with a Harry Potter themed birthday and party.
And a few other things we got up to in September and October. I sprained my ankle the night before a triathlon (admiring my birthday decorations for Fingerling) so only Small Fry raced, but picked up a medal at both that and his fencing competition (silver).
Stirling hosted a literary festival 'bloody Scotland' about horror/thriller writing. Irvine Welsh (Trainspotting) was brilliant.El Puma wondered what it would be like to have more hair:
We had dear friends visiting from Nantes:
Small Fry got a hair cut (yes, this is note-worthy)
My triathlon training was going really well (before I sprained my ankle) with both El Puma and I achieving PBs at the Stirling 10km race...
...and me getting out and about on the bike with my new cycling friends:
And we had an autumn cousin meet up to visit my dad's grave around the time of his anniversary, and pick pumpkins (they were located not so far from each other):
No, not pumpkins, but tomatoes from our garden. Pretty good considering we are in the Michaelmas term. Onwards!
