Postcards

Was in Roslin to see the chapel and the castle. The town is Roslin, but the chapel and castle are Rosslyn. Chapel is under repairs and renovation, and does not make for a pretty picture. Here is a picture of the castle ruins:

More bliss: night out around town with friends, followed by the customary stagger up Arthur's seat at four in the morning. Lovely lovely.

After about two hours of sleep, I'm off again - to Linlithgow on a train with my bicycle. Linlithgow Palace - from the other side of the loch:

Then a bicycle ride all along the canal took me to the Falkirk wheel. Was just in time to see it spin round for the last few times before it shut down for the day:

The second of the long weekends in May sees me back in beloved Scotland. Tried to see places I managed not to see during my year and half in Edinburgh.

Went up the Scott Monument - highly recommended. The winding spiral staircase is one of the narrowest I have been up. The views from the top are, unsurprisingly, breathtaking. It is Edinburgh after all

The Crags, Arthur's Seat, North Bridge, Edinburgh Waverly amongst others:

The Castle, the Mound and the National Galleries of Scotland:

Can any place be prettier?

A flying visit to Sandefjord, courtesy of Ryanair.

The (unfortunate) whaling monument in Sandefjord:

Day two; time to get out of the city and walk around in the mountains. It is amazing how easy it is to get out into the wild from Oslo.

There was still snow up there in the mountains:

Sognsvann - a very picturesque lake:

The first of May's long weekends sees me in Oslo. My first visit to Scandinavia! Walked around Oslo all day today, and it has some very pretty sights.

Statues in the Vigeland Sculpture Park:

A very pretty evening at the very pretty Opera House: