Rule Brittania

It is with very mixed emotions that Rita and I leave Edinburgh for Kassel as our experiences in Britain have really impressed us.  We are very much looking forward to seeing Rita’s parents but it means the adventure through Great Britain is over.  England and Scotland have definitely exceeded   expectations.  We knew there would be a lot of history to see and we were not disappointed.  Windsor, Cambridge, Bath, Blenheim Palace, York and Edinburgh were all historic gems.  But for such a small Island (you can put 4.5 Great Britain's into BC) with a population of 60 million (BC would need to have a population of 250 million to match its density) we were amazed at the amount of unspoilt terrain and scenery we experienced. The majestic white cliffs of Beachy Head; quaint, hidden harbours in Cornwall; fairy-tale villages in the Cotswolds; nature’s lush, green playground in The Lake District along with the rugged, isolated and moody countryside of Scotland all managed to inspire and amaze us.  There was also so much more we wanted to see and do, including spending more than an afternoon in Wales and touring Ireland, that we will definitely return to the wonderfully diverse British Isles.

A Little East Neuk

 The fishing village of Anstruther stretches out along its harbour

 Crossing causeway of a small cove during low tide with retaing seawall and houses in the background

Old house encrusted with thousands of seashells in intricate designs

New section of tiny Cellardyke Harbour with the original older section on the right

A few kilometers south of St. Andrews lies East Neuk (pronounced "nook"), a collection of small fishing villages hugging the coast.  We did not have a lot of time so we focussed on the main village of Anstruther.  We parked at the top of a hill and walked down to the village that stretches along and around its harbour.  It was low tide when we arrived and so we were able to cross a small cove via a stone pathway that lead to some of the older houses in the village.  Unfortunately, we had eaten lunch in St. Andrews as Anstruther's main claim to fame these days is its fish and chips.  The village "chippies" are regularly awarded the prestigious "UK Fish and Chip Shop of the Year" award.  People have definitaly taken notice as all the Fish and Chip shops we saw had long lineups.  After strolling through the main part of the village we followed a narrow street that paralled the ocean for a couple of kilometers and ended up at tiny Cellardyke harbour originally built in 1452 by a group of Dutch dyke builders.  You can clearly see the original section of the harbour's retaining wall as the Dutch laid the stones horizontally instead of vertically, the tradional way in the UK.  We headed back to our car as we needed to get back to Edinburgh and start packing for our noon flight to Germany in the morning.