Fife Coastal Walk

This weekend we joined the Scottish Teachers Club on a walk along the Fife Coastal Path. The path runs along the coast for 117 miles, but we just did a short section through the East Neuk fishing villages of St. Monans, Pittenweem, and Anstruther. The weather was perfect as the sun arrived this past week bringing temperatures in the high 60's.

St. Monans Kirk, which is apparently the closest church to the sea in Scotland.

World War I memorial at the church

Making our way through the tiny village of St. Monans

On the path from St. Monans to Pittenweem we stopped at the St. Monans Salt Pan Windmill, which dates back to 1771. The windmill used to pump seawater from reservoirs, which were cut into the rocks along the shore. The salt was used primarily for food preservation.

Will and Ainsley checking out one of the old salt reservoirs which is now a swimming  area.

Approaching Pittenweem

We made a visit to the Pittenweem Historical Society and Will really liked the model ships.

Pittenweem Harbor

St. Fillians cave in Pittenweem. It is thought that pilgrims used the cave on their way to St. Andrews. For us it was a nice shady stop on a warm afternoon.

Something like this must have happened to make this sign necessary.

Making our way to Anstruther

The kids swinging with our friend and past exchange teacher, Wilson.

Anstruther in the distance (can you smell the fish and chips yet?)

A little local folk art

Anstruther is famous for its fish and chips. We branched out and ate at a new place this time (The Waterfront Chip Shop) and it was very delicious! The perfect reward after a long hike.

It was so good we actually went back for a second helping.

Life at St. Columba's - Dounans

Can you find me up there?

Last week I spent a few days in the wilderness with 150 P7's (sixth graders for those of you at home). Each year students from St. Columba's seven feeder schools come to Dounans in the Trossach National Park for a week of outdoor education. Staff members from both schools attend the camp and it serves as a great opportunity for students from the different schools to meet each other and and their new teachers prior to the big jump to high school.

Throughout the week the students are mixed in different groups for outdoor activities and classroom team-building games. The activities include things like raft building, archery, tree climbing, problem solving, ropes course, blind hikes, zip-lines, and survival skills. The week culminates with a Thursday evening dance ("disco") before heading home on Friday morning.

The whole program is really quite impressive. I was there Wednesday through Friday and you could tell the kids were obviously having a great time. In addition, they really seemed to bond with their new classmates and I can imagine that moving on to high school might seem a little less intimidating now that they have a larger circle of friends. My current students excitedly told me stories about their visit to Dounans and ensured me that I would have a great time.

I got a chance to join in as well, taking a turn on the zip line and nervously making my way up the tree you see above. I helped a bit with raft building, but stayed on shore as the kids paddled their way around the pond. Turns out the rafts weren't too stable and the forest echoed with the piercing screams of the kids as they eventually fell into the icy water. Not only was it fun hanging out with the incoming students, it was a nice opportunity to spend time with my colleagues outside of school.

Visitors!

Time for lunch in Anstruther

Before we started back at school, we welcomed Grandma Cathy and Auntie Nancy to Scotland. We only had a few days to show them the sights, so we worked up a mini-tour of Fife and Edinburgh.

We made a return trip to St. Andrews, on the way stopping again at Anstruthers Fish Restraunt for a fish supper.

About fifteen minutes drive from Dunfermline is Loch Leven. The middle of the loch, is the island home of Lochleven Castle. This is where Mary Queen of Scots was held prisoner from 1567-68. It was here that she had to abdicate the throne to her son James VI. The castle itself dates back to the early 14th century during the times of the Scottish Wars of Independence.

Getting ready to set out for the island.

Some swans keeping us company

Lochleven Castle

The Tower House where Mary was held prisoner

Interior courtyard of the castle

Waiting for the return boat

Leaving the island

Both Will and Ainsley had a chance to steer the boat during our return trip.

Zip-lines from yet another great playground on the banks of Loch Leven.

Rosslyn Chapel

This weekend we made our way down the road to Roslin, home of Rosslyn Chapel. Featured in the The Da Vinci Code, by Dan Brown, the chapel dates back to the 15th century and features amazing stone carvings within the church and distinct architecture throughout. We enjoyed studying the array of carvings and listening to a talk about the history of this intimate church. During the talk it was noted that prior to the publication of The Da Vinci Code, the chapel received approximately 25-30,000 visitors per year.  Following the success of the book and film, visitor traffic increased to 140,000 per year.  Rosslyn Chapel is a working church offering a variety of weekly services.  In a strange collision of old and new worlds, two minutes down the road from Rosslyn was an IKEA, a Costco and a 24 hour grocery store.  We went to IKEA afterwards, but I didn't take any pictures.

Side view of the entrance.

View of the roof line. Scaffolding again?!

Photos are not allowed inside, but the Rosslyn Chapel website has photos of some noteworthy carvings. I have included descriptions from the website as well.

Angel playing bagpipes. The carved angels in the Lady Chapel are celebrating Christ’s birth with music. Bagpipes first appeared in Scotland from the mid-1400s and this is thought to be one of the earliest depictions of the instrument.

Carvings of Indian maize. The presence of this plant carving in the Chapel raises many questions: not only is it an exotic plant but it originates from North America, a country traditionally thought to have been discovered by Columbus in 1492, almost 50 years after Rosslyn Chapel was built.

The "Green Man". A pagan figure, the vines sprouting from his mouth represent nature's growth and fertility, illustrating the unity between humankind and nature.

Knight on Horseback -William is said to have brought a portion of the True Cross or ‘Holy Rood’ to Scotland. An alternative theory is that the figure holding a cross behind the knight may represent Queen Margaret whom William escorted from Hungary to marry Malcolm Canmore, King of Scotland, in 1070.

The Apprentice Pillar. This pillar contains one of the most famous and fascinating riddles of the building. An apprentice mason is said to have carved the pillar, inspired by a dream, in his master's absence. On seeing the magnificent achievement on his return, the master mason flew into a jealous rage and struck the apprentice, killing him outright.

exterior carvings

A little video station with stories about the history of Rosslyn Chapel

The end of the season

Warming up before the game

This was the last game of the season for our local team- Dunfermline Athletic. We've had a full year of Scottish and English football, with visits to some pretty impressive stadiums along the way. For all of that, there has been something very special about our trips to East End Park to cheer on our local team. Will was lucky enough to be picked as mascot for the last game. This meant a special tour of the facilities as well as marching out with the team and participating in the pre-game coin toss with the captains. He was a bit nervous, but very excited to part of the match. We've really enjoyed going to the games this year and will definitely miss having a local team to root for. Mon the Pars!

The Dunfermline Athletic Anthem, which is played at the start of each half.

Will in front of the trophy case. Will said "it was surprising they had so many trophies considering how bad they did this year"

Will is posing by the picture of Sir Alex Ferguson. "He is one of the most successful managers in the world (current coach of Manchester United) and it's really cool he played for Dunfermline (1964-1967)". He is a member of the Dunfermline Athletic Hall of Fame.

Will and Ainsley checking out the pitch before the game

The Norrie McCathie Stand, the family section where we sat during most of our games

Kilmarnock warming up before the game.

The boys sitting in the team dugout. "I was hoping they would put me in the game" -Will

Will with L-R (Liam Buchanan, Captain Mark Kerr, and Andy Dowie)

Will with the Pars top goal scorer Andy Kirk

Sammy the Tammy is peaceful one moment...

and an animal the next!

Waiting in the tunnel before the match starts

Will and Mark Kerr leading the way onto the pitch

lining up for player introductions

"It was kind of weird shaking hands with that many adults from the opposite team. I would rather be shaking hands with the Pars. They were friendly but it was weird." -Will

"He said good luck and I ran off so they could start the game" -Will

The Main Stand (can you find Ainsley?)

Game action v. Kilmarnock

The Norie crowd as Dunfermline cling to a late 1-0 lead

Completing our weekend of football, Sunday we were invited to the last game of the season for Celtic FC of Glasgow. Celtic was playing Hearts of Midlothian (Edinburgh) and celebrating its 2011-12 Scottish Premier League Championship. The atmosphere at the game was electric throughout the game as 67,000 fans continuously sang and cheered for their champs. In a year filled with football outings it was a fantastic way to finish off the season.

Celtic Park

Player introductions for Hearts v. Celtic

The game was over early as Celtic charged to an early 3-0 lead.

Entering the stadium after the game to receive the SPL trophy

Nothing like fireworks and confetti cannons

Head coach, and former Celtic player, Neil Lennon presenting the trophy to the crowd

Hard to believe the season is over. Maybe we'll be around long enough to catch some pre-season games before we leave in July!