Monday 18th February
Driving!
I stay overnight at Cambridge ready for a prompt
start. I pick up Rick and drive over to Ely to collect Gavin and his 2 mini tower
pc's. And 2 monitors. And a network hub to connect them. And a cellular modem
for internet access. And some DVD's, and speakers.
Bernie and Jennifer travel together from Cambridge in another car. We soon meet near Coventry, and drive the rest of the
way in convoy.
The route directions are easy: A14, M6, A74, A75. MapPoint calculates 8 hours 15 minutes for the 409 mile journey. We're there by the evening.
Andrew and Laura drive up together from Milton Keynes. They reached the "Old Place Of Monreith" first. They light a fire, and wine opened ready for when we arrive.
Monreith Arms Hotel
We enjoy an evening meal at the Monreith Arms in the nearby village Port William on the coast.
My initial feelings were: "What a dire shabby place!" If you saw a place like this down south you'd probably leave! (Electric wiring dating from the 1940's: 15 Amp 3 pin, and 5 amp 2 pin, sockets on the wall!)
The bar was busy. We were shown another back room - but we would have to leave as the bus drivers' AGM was about to start. All done in a friendly way.
(Seemed to me like a scene out of the film whisky galore.)
We were lead through a another room where 20 tables with elderly folk, 4 per
table, quietly playing bridge. A surreal scene for my delicate mind.
Then we were led to a cold dining room. A Calor
Gas Superser gas stove attempts to warm the place.
But the food was wonderful! Steak - cottage pie - excellent! The vegetarians
amongst us made do with Omelettes. That's Scotland
for you!
Tennents Velvet - good. Heavy - excellent. The price was very reasonable, almost half the price we pay at home.
This is not such a bad place. The room warms up. I order pudding from their modern kitchen. A round of sticky toffee puddings finishes the evening.
We end up coming here every day. It gets 5 stars. * * * * * No expense spared on this web site!
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