As Mary Anne has often said, a great way to see and learn about a new city is to take the ’Hop On, Hop Off’ Bus, which we did the next morning. Edinburgh is roughly divided into the old town, which is on one side of the river and includes the Castle , and the new town, which is still older than anything in Victoria, and is closer to the ocean.
Then came our next surprise…. Peter and Ann had planned a parade! It turned out to be National Armed Forces Day, and our bus crossed the parade route just after a Pipe and Drum band went by. ‘Hopping Off’ the bus, we watched some of the finest sounding military bands we’ve ever seen, interspersed by various platoons of soldiers, veterans and youth groups, most identified by banners and flags, impressive in their dress uniforms. Most touching were the older vets, still marching proudly. And pulling up the rear came the cadets, striving valiantly to march in step over the cobblestones. Even Prince Charles turned out for our visit….oops, I mean the parade. The downside of his presence was that Holyrood House, the Scottish Royal Palace, was closed to visitors, that is, visitors of the likes of us.
However, since we were in the neighbourhood, we walked up and had a look at the castle, and on the way were saluted overhead by the Red Arrows. A mighty roar and then streams of coloured smoke - red, white and blue, of course. When I taught strings at Lansdowne, the school’s sports teams were all called ‘Flyers’ since Lansdowne School was built on an old WW II airfield. In fact, the gym used to be a hangar. So we music teachers got on board and named our various orchestras and bands after acrobatic flight teams. My grade 5 orchestra was the ‘Red Arrows’. Thanks, Peter and Ann, for arranging that treat, and also for the next fly-by: a couple of old WW II Spitfires and a Wellington.
The castle itself sprawls across a high rocky outcrop. Its oldest sections date from the 12th century, and have survived many an attack. We didn’t have time for the whole tour this time. If we have more time, on our next visit, I’d like to see the castle and ‘Our Dynamic Earth’ centre. It’s a hands-on exhibition of the evolution of the earth, and was a millenium project.
North Shields, and South Shields…..two important towns.
Newcastle is the main city, and I often say that my Mom was born in Newcastle-on-Tyne, but in fact she was from South Shields, a nearby Tyneside town. And Peter grew up in North Shields with his father Roy, my mom’s brother, and his mother Eileen. So, after having a quick look at the shore and beaches, with the famous twin piers that I’ve seen in my Grandfather’s paintings, our first stop on our ‘heritage hunt’ was at Peter’s old house. We attracted the attention of the current owners as we stood, camera in hand, on the sidewalk. When they learned of our mission, Sylvia and Jed welcomed us in with open arms and generously chatted with us, catching Peter up on the news of the neighbourhood and showing him around the place. They’ve lived there almost since Peter’s family left, and they assured us it has always been a happy home!
My Uncle Roy, Peter’s dad, had such a dry sense of humour. Although I only met him once, he and Aunt Eileen were dear to me, and our next stop was very meaningful. Peter took us to the family grave, which holds our grandparents, May and John Allen, Peter’s father Roy Allen and his mother Eileen, and Mom’s older brother, Martin, who died as a child of 7. The graveyard is a large and beautiful place….peaceful, and purposely a bit overgrown to allow for birds to nest and raise their families. It was good to honour the ancestors’ memories by clearing and cleaning the engraved markers, and leaving flowers.
In South Shields we found the house where my mother was born. Just a little row house, but in a lovely little town, where folks keep their gardens well and name their houses….hers was now called Sunnymede Cottage, and looked just as it had when she lived there. What a feeling…
We finished our visit with a meal and drinks at one of Peter’s favourite old bars, the Wooden Doll, and wished him and Ann a fond farewell. I hope we see them again very soon.
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