Rathen, birthplace of Frederick Stewart

This time last year there was cherry blossom overhanging  St Etheran's Kirkyard dyke, the daffodils on the bank on the left were in full flower and the lane over Gallows Hill had violets in bloom. This year the daffodils are scarcely in bud and the lane is white with snow.A farmer was busy attending to his new lambs, using a quad bike and trailer to take some back to the shelter of the yard.


This cottage small cottage next to St Etheran's Kirkyard was originally Rathen parish school. It was attended by Frederick Stewart, (1836-1889) son of a Rathen tailor who eventually went on to reform the education system in Hong Kong. 

George Halket, author of the poem, later set to music, Logie o' Buchan was for a time school master, precentor and session clerk at Rathen. Halket was a suspected Jacobite sympathiser who in 1715, is recorded, as being required to give security to guarantee his  future loyal behaviour.

Frederick Stewart and his siblings walked to Rathen School along a this lane. they must have looked at this view, minus the telegraph poles and wind turbines of course, towards  Mormond Hill.

Lesser Celandines at last

Today began as a real Spring morning at last, the temperature reached a relatively respectable 8.5c, since there was virtually no wind this felt very pleasant.

The Wastart has a lot of dry, dead grass away from the burns, bogs and temporary winter lochans. Yesterday we saw a grass fire break out and rapidly take hold on the dunes beneath Tiger Hill in Fraserburgh. This phenomenon has been widespread across Scotland during the last week, partly due to muir burn getting out of control due to the relatively dry conditions.

Abundant Coltsfoot (Tussialgo farfara) flowers by the Swine Burn

 It was quite noticeable that the several patches of coltsfoot which we saw in flower today were all on slightly west facing ground which caught the sun.

At last Lesser Celandines (Ranunculus ficaria) are just a starting to come into flower, whereas on Monday the celandines at Philorth were hardly open in today's  bright sunshine  those by the Swine Burn were opening.

Spring, still unsprung

Snowdrops at Philorth

The wood at Philorth is still carpeted in the white drifts of snowdrops. By the end of March last year they had almost all vanished to be replaced by celandines and the first of the wood garlic.This year the are only a very few celandines in bud and the margins of many of their leaves are brown and frosted. The wood garlic has not yet started to open, nor has the grass started to grow and there was still ice on shaded puddles at mid morning. Most trees have enlarged buds which have not yet started to open. Only the raucous rooks busily fussing about their nests and the very occasional daffodil seem to be aware that it is actually spring.

Bomber Command and Women of World War 2 Memorials

 The Bomber Command Memorial overlooking Green Park

'This memorial is dedicated to the 55,573 Airmen from The United Kingdom British Commonwealth & Allied Nations who served in RAF Bomber Command & lost their lives over the course of the Second World War.'

The aircrew statue.

Grey Granite's father served as a navigator and instructor  and her mother was in the WAAF so this, and the visit to the Women of WW2 Memorial  was something of a pilgrimage.

The controversial Women of World War 2 Memorial close to the cenotaph in Whitehall.
The memorial was unveiled by the Queen on 9 July 2005 and depicts 17 empty jackets and uniforms symbolising the work done by women during the war. It commemorates all the women who served in any capacity during the second world war, often in jobs which they had to relinquish once men had returned home.

The Tank Regiment Memorial

London:The City Ice Age

Grey Granite made several expeditions into central London during her visit.

She attended a couple of Guardian Masterclasses at the Guardian Building in York Way, overlooking Regents Canal

The canal from the Guardian Building, yes that is snow of the roof tops on the left.

Central atrium of the Guardian building 

Alan Bennett in a typical pose, this from a picture in an interview room.

Big Ben in the rain, or was it sleet?

The British Museum, Grey Granite was fortunate to be able to get a ticket for the excellent Ice Age Art exhibition

 
Grey Granite's favourite piece from the exhibition, an extraordinary  mammoth tusk carving of a female bison. This is probably at least 25,000 years old and must have taken many hours to carve.This exhibit was displayed alone, slightly above eye level and with two upward shining lights subtly  flickering over the animal's head and forequarters to give the effect of firelight in  a cave.The tiny animal carvings were extremely detailed, full of movement, exploiting the shape of the material from which they were carved. It was deeply moving to consider that so long ago  unknown, totally forgotten artists spent hours producing such exquisite carvings.   There is an excellent article, from which this image was copied,  reflecting on the exhibition by Kathleen Jamie at: http://www.guardian.co.uk/artanddesign/2013/feb/16/ice-age-carvings-british-museum

'Youth on a Horse' in the  British Museum. Note the ceiling.

Arch over the Whitehall entrance to King Charles Street. Since Grey Granite was last in central London the City has been spruced up for the 2012 Olympics, details such as this are far more visible.

The entrance to the Cabinet War Rooms by the Clive Steps, King Charles Street.

The war rooms are well preserved and  highly evocative. There is an excellent audio guide to this hugely fascinating  site. The Churchill exhibition, including footage of his state funeral was particularly interesting. A link to the website:
http://www.iwm.org.uk/exhibitions/churchill-war-rooms/the-cabinet-war-rooms

The facade of the Paul Hamlyn Building Covent Garden

The Bridge Of Aspirations linking the Ballet School with the theatre.

Kew Green

Grey Granite was based in Kew for her recent London trip. Throughout her visit it was bitterly cold, with regular flurries of sleet and snow. In icicle outside her friend's house on the Green persisted for several days. This was a complete contrast to her March visit in 1911 when the daffodils were almost over and there were brimstone butterflies in the grounds of the National Archive.

St Anne's Church, Kew Green from the north showing the Duke of Cambridge's Mausoleum. The mausoleum,in the form of a semi domed apse,  was built in 1851 but moved to its present position following extensions to the chancel in 1884.

Grey Granite went to St Anne's specifically to see if the vivid sweet violets she remembered from  her previous March visit as carpeting the graveyard were in flower.

Interior of St Anne's. Grey Granite found  a side door open so wandered inside to look  for Joseph Hooker's memorial (in front of the window on the left) and to escape from the cold. 

Memorial to Joseph Dalton Hooker, arguably the greatest of the Victorian botanists, friend of Charles Darwin,  succeeded his father William as Director of Kew Gardens from 1865-1885.

In the graveyard lesser periwinkle, here a variegated form, wandered amiably among the tombstones along with sweet violets. Crocus and a few brave daffodils showed signs of suffering from  the cold weather, dog's mercury was just opening in the shelter of the building.

Tapestry pew cushions tell the story of St Anne's Church and reflect its botanical and royal associations.
More embroideries on a botanical theme are planned to mark the tercentenary of St Anne's in 2014.

The Pond Kew Green.

The pond was originally fed by a creek leading from the Thames and in the Middle Ages was used as a fish pond before becoming a dock for the royal barge. Later, in the 19th century, the ramp in the foreground enabled carters to water their horses, wash their carts and to wet there wooden wheels when the iron rims worked loose

The Secret Garden in Kew Gardens making a brave attempt at Spring.

Spring?

This morning at 10.30 the temperature over the Wastart was around 0c, although an eye watering,  biting East wind made it feel much colder. The coltsfoot and celandines which we had seen in bud a few days ago were buried under a thin layer of patchy snow and ice.  We looked in vain for frogspawn and Rufus took great interest in the dyke where we we told there are mink at present. There are more herons in the area which probably accounts for the lack of frogspawn over recent years.

Quite unabashed by the rough sea eiders bobbed on the waves like elegant corks. There were several ships sheltering in the bay.