Great Britain

James & Sarah in the Grassmarket-Edinburgh (iphone pic)

So my Dad has taken 5 or so trips over to Great Britain in the last two years. And my brothers have gone on every trip. Typical. Well my lucky card was pulled this time around and I was chosen, along with my husband James. James served a mission in England for 2 years and therefore was well versed with what a 'full english' meant at breakfast time and how to navigate the left side of the road while driving.

My Dad is a photographer. and an artist. and a history buff. Even though I am far from a photographer he got it into his mind that this would be a photography trip. Mostly Landscapes. Big heavy tripods. 2 digital cameras. 1 film camera. James and I each had a big Contax 645 (med format) with a lens by Zeiss and a PhaseOne digital back. We had a splendid time. I even tried Haggis. Got reunited with my sweet cousin Laura and her Fiance Craig McGann in Edinburgh. I left my guitar at home but had plenty of inspiration fill my heart. Here are a few images we left with:

Rape Field near Mull of Galloway
(these flowers are turned into Canola Oil, they
create a stunning contrast to the green pastures found
throughout Galloway)

James Climbing at the Langdale Boulders
(James and I both loved the Langdale Valley in the Lake District)

Lighthouse at the Mull of Galloway
Built by in 1830 by Robert Stevenson, grandfather to
Robert Louis Stevenson.

Cliff by the Mull of Galloway
Southern most tip of Scotland. You can see Ireland
across the water.

Galloway Forrest Park

Galloway (iphone)
This part of Scotland secured it place in my heart forever

The Edinburgh Family:
James, Me, Clark, Laura, Craig

James found a special connection with the St. Giles Cathedral
in Edinburgh. It has some of the most beautiful stained glass windows dated
back to the 19th century.

Laura took us on a walk up Arthur's Seat overlooking
Edinburgh.

We crossed two mountain passes to enter this valley
where we found the beautiful village of Boot.
We stopped in at the local pub and I had the
best local cheese and apple sandwich ever made.
on earth. ever.
If you are ever in the Lake District, go to Boot!

We had a lovely trip. Spent the last two days in London going to 4 different Museums. My favorite was the old Britain Tate Museum, specifically the J M W Turner paintings.
I had about 28 breakdown over missing juniper. only 4 involved crawling into the fetal position.
it is possible that trying to travel the 22 hour journey home with juniper could have caused the same amount of breakdowns in the fetal position.

working on songwriting. more on that to come.

xo
s