It’s been over a week now since we’ve been on the road and it’s quite astonishing at the distance we’ve covered so far. Most people are shocked at our plans of covering the country in just three weeks, though compared to the size of Australia; the UK is tiny. We’re used to driving long distances and being on the move so I think our ambitions aren’t too out of reach.
We left Edinburgh and made a quick stop at the Kelpies before heading onto our destination for the night, Anstruther. The Kelpies are 30m high horse heads made from stainless steel that are a monument to horse powered heritage across Scotland. The name Kelpies is reflected from mythological transforming beasts with the strength and endurance of ten horses. Sculptor Andy Scott took this and shifted the mythological reference towards a more contemporary response by designing a socio-historical monument intended to celebrate the horses role in Scotland’s industry and agriculture. That, and that they look damn impressive from near and afar!
Jumping back into the car and continuing towards Anstruther, we were in awe of the size of their cows and chased the sea along the highway. There was no real reason why we chose Anstruther for our nights stop. Mum just spotted nice accommodation in the little town on reliable old Booking.com, so here we were. Anstruther is the epitome of a sleeping fishing village. There’s just not a lot happening here. The town lines the harbour and the houses are squashed in beside each other, as if to protect each other from bitter winds. The docked boats are only in water half of the day as the huge tides draw out the water far into the ocean, leaving the boats balancing on their frames in the dark sand.
We unloaded our stuff into our room at the Boathouse and went out in search of dinner. We didn’t have to look far, as four shops down the street were Scotland’s best fish and chips. No really, The Anstruther Fish Bar had won the prestigious honour four times! We were getting good at stumbling upon little gems such as this. I guess that’s one of the things about travelling without a plan, you never know what you’ll find! I’m no fish and chip expert but the melt in your mouth battered fish was obviously what got them the gold. We heaved ourselves back in our rooms with a belly full of deliciously bad food and had a game of cards before retiring to bed.
The following morning we woke early and found some breakfast at a café on the corner. Eavesdropping in on another table’s conversation, I tried to understand their heavy Scottish accents and they sucked back their coffee and smoked cigarettes until it was time for them to go to work. There is the obvious small town vibe here in Anstruther, everyone seemed to know everyone and if they didn’t, they still would gossip about them!
After finishing our brekkie of scrambled eggs and toast, we had a walk around the town, which took all of 15 minutes and jumped in the car for our next leg up to Aberdeen.
J. x
A Blonde and Her Passport 