On Tuesday 13 August we left Scotland and headed to Spain – taking the tram to the airport (very easy to get there). We didn’t have a great experience arriving in Barcelona though – we had a mad rush through Schiphol airport (which is absolutely massive) to make our connecting flight (thanks KLM) and then our bags got left behind so we had to wait for them in Barcelona. In the end we arrived pretty tired at the apartment we had rented.
Tue-13-Aug-2024
Our second day in Dunkeld and Birnam started with a big thunderstorm – luckily it stopped just before we headed out on a long hike up Birnam hill. I sketched this when we made it back to the village and sat in a park for something to eat before going back to Edinburgh (slight trouble on the trains). This is a view of the hotel where we stayed from the Beatrix Potter garden. The hotel was built in 1850 and was visited by the King of Spain and the French Empress…though these days it seems a bit timeworn.
Mon-12-Aug-2024
On our first day in Dunkeld (before checking in to our hotel and after our lunch) we visited Dunkeld Cathedral and then sat by the river with this glorious view of the bridge over the river Tay. This bridge was built between 1805 and 1809 by Thomas Telford – a Scottish engineer most famous for a cast iron arch bridge that crosses the River Severn in Shropshire. After checking into to our hotel we went on the Hermitage and Braan Walk, through beautiful wooded glens and fantastic countryside.
Sun-11-Aug-2024
After spending a few days in Edinburgh we took the train up to Dunkeld and Birnam. This sketch was done while we had lunch in a little cafe in Dunkeld on the day we arrived. I ate vegetarian Stovies (basically smashed potatoes) served with oatcakes. I added the colour to this sketch later, using watercolour pencils.
Sun-11-Aug-2024