Sam's the man!

I wish I had been there to take the photo!

Sam and his classmates put on their show at Sam's school in Leiden.

Pirates of the River Don

Mad as March hares? Our intrepid mariners Paul and Tim take to the water and chance their luck at rafting the River Don from Monymusk to Kemnay.

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Three brass monkeys...

Stan, Tony and Stu wander the streets of Edinburgh, which, as we all know, are paved with gold.

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Thurso again

It was great to see my big sis Dorene again, on a brief visit to the frozen North. (Actually, it was a wee bit warmer than Aberdeenshire.)

I took loads of photos, naturally, mostly of the train journey, which you can see by clicking on the link below.

Great British train journeys!: Inverurie to Thurso

The train journey itself is fab. Inverurie to Inverness takes two hours, passing hills, mountains, castles and rivers as it winds its way north-west into Moray and beyond. Time in Inverness then for a strong coffee and a Danish in the splendid Highland Hotel, right next to the station. An hour later and we're on our way seriously north, passing through Easter Ross, round the Cromarty Firth and into Sutherland. South of Helmsdale, the train practically travels along the beach before reaching Helmsdale itself and turning north to cross the bleak moors into Caithness and finally to Thurso. The four hour journey from Inverness just has to be one of the most spectacular in Europe.