rachel.blog

Category: Journal

  • Allan Park and Newton Dee

    Ben is away in Germany doing some maths at a maths institute in the Black Forest and so the three of us caught up with some friends today and went cycling. We cycled out to Newton Dee which is about 5 miles from Duthie Park along the Deeside Cycleway. Newton Dee is a village for adults with…

  • My kids’ views on war

    Daniel has been asking me questions about the world wars. We’ve been reading the Chronicles of Narnia and the children in the story were evacuated to the country from London at the start of World War II. I’m pretty sure this is what sparked his interest. I’ve had questions ranging from why did the wars start and…

  • First-world kid problems, owls, and cargo bikes

    This morning I found Daniel sitting on his bed looking very forlorn and crying to himself. I immediately asked him what was wrong and he said, “I can’t find a good mod”. A mod is an add-on for the computer game, Minecraft. This is definitely a first-world kid problem 🙂 There was an event on…

  • Hair cut just outside the red zone

    Originally posted on rachel.blog: We ventured into South City yesterday so that I could have a hair cut. South City is in the CBD just outside the cordoned off area, otherwise known as the red zone. I’ve never seen this part of town so quiet. My hair-dresser has been busy she says but one thing…

  • A new cycle path for Aberdeen

    A new cycle route opened up in Aberdeen this week. It’s a shared walking/cycling path which runs right next to the River Dee. I went and checked it out today and it was just lovely. It’s hard to believe this is in a big city (maybe big is not the best word for Aberdeen?) because it’s…

  • Teenage boys and lacy knickers

    Ben’s mum and partner left this morning which was sad as we all had a great time last week and enjoyed their visit very much. Elizabeth in particular was very upset and even a bit teary as they departed. Then Ben left for Cambridge so I decided to take the kids to the movies to lift their spirits. We…

  • Stromness to Aberdeen by ferry + train

    My post yesterday about Skara Brae and the Ring of Brodgar was rather rushed because we had to dash for a long day of traveling. But both places were absolutely fascinating. Skara Brae was particularly good. How often do you get to see the house, including furniture, of a Neolithic human? All the walls were…

  • Ring of Brodgar and Skara Brae

    We visited some more neolithic sites yesterday. First stop was The Standing Stones o’ Stenness and the nearby and well-known Ring of Brodgar. Both are stone circles about 5000 years old. The stones are huge and heavy and would have been quite difficult to move and stand upright in their positions. Why did humans build…

  • Orkney and the Tomb of the Eagles with puking and ticks

    We’re in Orkney. We caught the ferry from Aberdeen yesterday afternoon and arrived here just before midnight last night. The ferry stops in Kirkwall, Orkney a few times each week on its way to Shetland. Here’s a map showing the route we took on the ferry and also the route we plan to take back.…

  • Magmanimous

    I want to make a comment about the scientist Tim Hunt, who was recently sacked for making some disparaging remarks about women. They weren’t exactly disparaging but they were not complimentary and although I think his intention was to be funny, they were not. However I don’t think this is a good reason for him…

  • Castle Fraser

    We went to another castle yesterday, Castle Fraser, which is about 16 miles west of Aberdeen. It’s a Scottish baronial castle built in the 15th century. Like all of the castles we’ve visited so far it is surrounded by gardens and woods with lots of lovely walks. There was also a wonderful children’s playground which was…

  • Mr Lemon

    Elizabeth drew a face on a lemon the other day and now takes the thing with her everywhere. She even took it to school today. Unfortunately the waxy surface of the lemon is not a very good surface for drawing anything permanent and the face invariably rubs off. Last night she woke up in the middle of…

  • To Aberdeen by bicycle via Drum Castle

    We cycled back from Banchory to Aberdeen yesterday and it was rather hellish. I thought I was going to die. We arrived home and I collapsed in a heap with a very sore butt and feeling sorry for myself. I’ve decided to give up cycling for good. Just kidding 🙂 We thoroughly enjoyed our stay at…

  • To Banchory on the Deeside cycleway

    We stayed in Banchory last night and I’m typing this from a very comfortable hotel bedroom. For a little while now we’ve been wanting to extend our cycle ride on the Deeside cycleway but felt that Aberdeen to Crathes and back was about our limit given we’ve got small kids and the Bakfiets. If wanted…

  • The Hövding invisible helmet – a review

    I’ve been using the Hövding – the invisible helmet – for a week now and I thought I’d write about the experience so far. I’m wearing it in this next photo (NB: the helmet is the black collar around my neck. It’s an airbag which deploys in the event of a crash): When I first put…

  • Duthie Park and buying a house

    I took this photo of Duthie Park back in April this year just before all the buds on the trees opened up for spring: Today I went for a run through the park and took some more photos. Here’s how it looks now: I love watching the plants and trees change with the seasons. Duthie…

  • We bought a house and Slains Castle

    We went out for a celebratory dinner tonight because we put an offer on a house today and it was accepted! We decided it was probably a good time to buy because interest rates are ridiculously low (<2% for a two year fixed term at the moment) and a dip in the price of oil…

  • Countering extremism with truth and reason

    Sometimes it seems like half of the people are desperately trying to leave Syria while the other half are trying to get there. News this week of another group of women leaving the UK for Syria was even more astonishing that the last because this group took young children with them. A society that condones slavery and crucifixion is…

  • How dangerous is cycling?

    One of the biggest barriers to cycling is the perception that it’s dangerous. But is it dangerous? Public perception of risk is often quite different to real risk but it’s also difficult to change. I’m speaking from personal experience here too: I know that flying is one of the safest modes of transport but knowing this doesn’t make…

  • From Aberdeen to Crathes on Deeside Way

    This is my last day of the five-day blogging challenge and because I’ve had quite an eventful day I’m going to post a number of photos. I am absolutely knackered. We went out for a cycle ride on Deeside Way today all the way out to Crathes. According to Map My Ride it was 22km…