Ye'll Tak The High Road...

The Young Fogey has been exceedingly busy in recent days and has been unable to attend to his blog. Last week saw Young Fogey driving up the High Road to Scotland to visit friends and attend the annual Aboyne Highland Games. Although a London resident for many years, this was the first time that I had taken the wheel in the United Kingdom and the event was memorable. For a seasoned and experienced North American driver it is a strange affair to find oneself driving on the "wrong" side of the road. The mental switch requires some adjustment. Nevertheless, the experience was enjoyable and mildly enlivening, although one suspects it was more of a white-knuckle ride for my travelling companion.

On my first full day in Scotland I travelled to Edinburgh's New Club to meet 9 other friends for luncheon. Twas a very jolly affair and I was pleased to bump into another old acquaintance (a herald) in the bar. A very enjoyable luncheon was followed by al fresco post-prandials (Scotland being one of the first countries to have embraced the sinister smoking ban) after which we sauntered along to the Balmoral Hotel for a champagne tea. Exiting the Balmoral a few hours later we decided that we were enjoying ourselves far too much to end the festivities and so we hailed a couple of taxis and merried our way to the Indian Cavalry Club for dinner.....and so to bed.

The next day saw most of us travelling three hours into the remote Highlands to attend the Aboyne Highland Games. The Young Fogey, always keen to blend in with the locals, decided to go native and don appropriate apparel (pictured).

The Games were highly enjoyable and covered all the necessary competitions. Our host, a patron of the Games, entertained us generously in the private tent, from which position we were afforded prime viewing of the various heats.

Of the various persons who visited the tent during the course of the day, this Canadian Young Fogey was particularly pleased to meet Lady Tweedsmuir, daughter-in-law of the author of The 39 Steps, John Buchan, 1st Baron Tweedsmuir, GCMG, GCVO, CH, PC, Governor General of Canada. The Young Fogey also enjoyed conversing with the Marquis of Huntly, Chieftain of the Highland Games (pictured here in yellow socks).

The remainder of the Young Fogey's time in Scotland was spent visiting Falkland Palace and St. Mary's Haddington ("The Lamp of the Lothians") and enjoying a most memorable dinner party, complete with foot-stomping piano sing-a-long.