24th
July 2016 (Sunday)
.... 10.30 I got a pleasant surprise
when I went down to the beach this morning .... four ‘big’ yachts leaving Elie,
probably making or North Berwick. It’s
a nice morning, but not for sailing ... there’s nae wind, at least
 |
| The start of the 'Ferry Passage' race. |
not just
now; the sea is like a mirror. Although it’s ‘nice’ it the sky is
overcast, with a threatening greyness in the West. I don’t think the rain is supposed to reach
us until midday. We’re going up to St
Andrews, so I do not want rain... not until I’ve got a few photos of the
Swilcan Brig.
21.00 In spite of the weather being a bit ‘iffy’,
we manage to have a walk around the first, seventeenth and eighteenth fairways on
the Old Course (St Andrews) while it was still ‘fair’.... i.e. not
raining; there isn’t any golf played over the ‘Old’ on
Sunday’s: apart from extra special occasions
such as ‘The Open’. The fairways were ‘busy’
with holiday makers, from all parts of the world, enjoying being able to walk
over the ‘hallowed turf’; and take
photos of family and friends on the course, and especially on and around the
world famous Swilcan Brig. St Andrews
has been a town of pilgrimage since medieval times; the early pilgrims travelled long distances
to pray at the Shrine containing relics of St Andrew, the modern pilgrims
travel long distances to walk on the same turf as the world’s Golf
 |
| Michael and Janice on the Swilcan Brig |
Champions
have done over the years. The shrine to
St Andrew is long gone, and with it most of the Cathedral, destroyed by ‘extremists’
after the Reformation, but I can’t imagine that fate happening to the Old
Course ... unless nature does something drastic. It is not easy for visitors to Elie and
Earlsferry, to realise that the famous Swilcan Brig at St Andrews, and the
remains of the Pilgrim’s Pier, and Chapel etc. at Earlsferry are of the same
vintage. We need an interpretation
board at Chapel Green, Earlsferry, explaining The Royal Burgh of 'olden times’.
By
the time we had finished our short walk on the old course the rain was
beginning to ‘spit’ so we made our way over to the ‘Jigger Inn’ for lunch ... one
of Maggie’s favourite eating places.
Michael ‘paid’ .... I’ll get the ‘fish suppers’ tomorrow! I
 |
| ... in front of the Royal and Ancient Clubhouse. |
think I might have gained out of this
deal!
It
was raining when we left the ‘Jigger Inn’ and has been ‘on and off’ for most of
the afternoon. The weather forecast
for tomorrow is much brighter, literally;
“bright and breezy” early with showers creeping in later... some of the
showers might be heavy and of the thunder variety!
Photographs
: Top – Yachts setting off for North Berwick, on the ‘Ferry Passage’ race, Middle
– Michael and Janice in front of the Royal and Ancient Clubhouse, and Bottom – Michael
and Janice on the Swilcan Brig.
This
has been an emotional time for us at Ivy so I’ll finish today with Charlie Landsborough’s
version of “Maggie”.
