Bergesens - back in Scotland!

Well, we're back into the swing of things after the excitement of our trip to Scotland, the end of the school year and the loss of my internet connection.
Scotland was absolutely fantastic. The flight was very easy - the kids are at such a good age for flying, they just find their seats, strap themselves in and get straight into the onboard entertainment. They love being able to watch TV or play games for 8 hours solid - they've requested that we only do daytime flights from now on!
The flight path the plane took into Edinburgh was over our part of the coast, so we could look down on Gullane, North Berwick etc and point out the landmarks to the kids.
We picked up our car from the airport, and were surprised to find it was a brand new one - only 6miles on the clock! Bit risky hiring it out to a family, I thought.
We had no trouble finding our way home; it was as if we had never left. And that feeling continued the whole week. Everything was exactly the same - except there was a new fish and chips shop in the high street and Catriona was living in our house! And doing a very good job - the house looked far better than it did when it had 3 small kids and a dog living there with two people who don't garden! Catriona is a keen gardener and the garden really looks great.
On the Friday after we arrived, I went to Ladies Day at Musselburgh race course. We all dressed to the nines and lost loads on money on the horses. Actually, not so much, as we all placed the minimum bets. Our method of choosing the horses was pretty good : a - nice name, b - nice jockey, c- nice colours, or d - using Mike's tips. It was a very busy day on that day, there must have been thousands of well dressed (or not so well dressed!) women there, and a scattering of men. Sally's hubby had booked a "picnic table" for us, which gave us, apart from a guaranteed table in a private area, a very fancy picnic lunch and a couple of bottles of wine. It was great.
Afterwards, we met up with some more friends and went out for supper - it was a late night but a fantastic welcome back to the village!
Saturday Darrell was playing golf with the men and we took the kids to the big park in Dunbar - and true to my memories, it was freezing there. The kids loved the parks in Scotland, they are really 5 star compared to the ones here.
Then we spent the rest of the week exploring Gullane and surrounds again. We took the kids to the Seabird Centre - which Darrell had never visited while we lived there and he was fascinated. We climbed Law, and walked from Gullane to Yellowcraigs (3 hour walk) accidentally. When we arrived there, I stayed with the kids in the park and sent Darrell home to fetch the car. He came back with swimming things and a picnic and we spent the afternoon exploring the forest and playing on the beach. Not swimming - it was far to cold for us, spoilt as we are with temperature controlled pools.
Clare brought her ponies up to the cottage and called the kids out to have a ride. Steph was fascinated when she was on the ground, but threw a wobbly when put up on Titch (you may guess from the name that he is not a big pony). Alex had fun on both ponies, trotting around Goose Green - he wanted to canter, but we wouldn't let him.
The kids spent time with their friends, Alex picked up with Harry etc. as if he was playing with them last week, and being a lot older than he was when we lived there, he had a lot more freedom. He borrowed a bike and careered round the village and up the hills with a group of his old classmates. Steph and David didn’t remember their old friends so well, but soon formed new friendships and renewed some old ones.
We started an impromptu braai on Muirfield station (even though we weren't living there) and the kids had a whale of a time, all playing together and in and out of all the houses. The grown-ups had a good time too - I believe it was after 11 when the last of them went inside - and on a school night too! There was a meeting of my old book club as well, during my visit – I’m so impressed that it’s still going, and going so well. We had the meeting in Adria’s garden around a fire. It was a lovely evening for it, but I did have to wear my trusty puffa jacket as the night wore on. What’s Gullane in summer without a puffa? Practically no-one had read the book, so the actual literary discussion was pretty minimal - I did offer an analysis, but as I hadn't actually read the book either (couldn't get it in AD yet), my offering was rejected by the few who had better knowledge.
Our final night we took fish and chips (OK, I ordered pizza) from the chippie up to the top of Gullane Hill with our particular friends. It was magic. That was where we celebrated getting our citizenship, with the same bunch of friends, all those years ago.
I really wept when we left. Again! We want to visit again next year, but stay for a bit longer - we'll have to organise it for during the holidays this time round.
Oh and the weather! We had warned the kids it would be cold and rainy - and on day one, everyone got sunburnt! We came back from Scotland with tans!! Not a drop of rain the whole time. Steph pointed out that it was almost like winter in AD, but a bit colder. No need for the shorts I'd packed!
Our last step before leaving was to buy a lottery ticket – the children were determined we would win it and then buy a farm in Scotland and settle down there. I’m up for it, totally, but I think Darrell is a bit dubious as to whether his qualifications and experience can be adapted to crops instead of construction!