New Job, New Location

Hello all, I know it’s been a long time since I last posted. It’s been a busy several months, so let me bring you up to date.

As you may have surmised from previous readings I’ve spent the past 3 years working as a technical writer in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia for Saudi Aramco – the Kingdom’s oil company. For a variety of reasons it was becoming clear that it was time for a change. Then an opportunity showed up right after Thanksgiving when a friend emailed me a job listing and insisted I look at it because it was meant for me.

I looked, I agreed, and that set into motion events that led me to leave Saudi Aramco early in February, spend a lovely month at home with Dana, and then arrive last week in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates, right after the worst thunderstorm ever here.

An auspicious start, right?  At least I saw a rainbow afterward, something I never saw in Saudi Arabia, so I’ll take that as a good sign.  For the past week I’ve been getting started at work, also a technical writing job. I’ll be creating flight manual documentation for the UAE Air Force C-130s, an airplane I spent many years flying. It should be very interesting work!

For now, I’m staying in the very nice Crowne Plaza hotel on Yas Island, just a few miles from my work. Staying in a resort hotel has its up and down sides but all in all it beats the heck out of the place I spent my first 1.5 years in Saudi Arabia, so I’ll try to make do. I’m about 20 miles from the main city of Abu Dhabi.

The day after I arrived I needed to get in some activity after my long flights, so I went for a walk toward the mall and Ferrari World. I haven’t been inside the place, but it is somewhat eye catching, and appears to be part museum and part adult amusement park - with roller coaster! More on this later, I'm sure.

In Saudi a group of us built and flew quadcopters and raced them for fun – pretty cool hobby! The second day after I arrived here one of my team members invited me to go with him to Dubai for an international quad racing event. 

 

A most-of-the-day trip to one of the biggest cities in the Gulf area was not really how I thought I’d start off here, and the “race” was kind of a bust (although most of the finalists went home with some serious prize money, so great for them!) but I had fun, got to see some very cool quad flying, and got some great iPhone shots of the place. Note, this is the very southern part of Dubai, and these beautiful tall residential buildings are not the any of the giant ones in the main city. Hopefully I'll be able get some photos of them while I'm here.

 

I’ve been asked what it’s like to be in Abu Dhabi, and while it’s too early to give you a really good answer on that, let me describe a short outing yesterday afternoon. I went for a walk, about 1.5 miles round trip from my hotel, and these are a few things I saw.  Boys and girls and men and women in normal swimming attire at the pool.  An Arabic couple lounging by the pool – him in white robe (thobe) and head cover (Keffiyeh), her in black gown (abayah) and face veil (hijab).  In addition there are dozens of physically impaired men and women here for a hand-powered race, and they have some of the coolest machines I've ever seen - like recumbent racing bicycles but with a hand-crank.  

I saw these car brands going by on the street: Honda, Hyundai, Chevrolet, Toyota, Dodge, Mercedes, BMW, Audi, Ferrari, Jaguar, Bentley, Maserati, and McLaren, to name a few. Just normal traffic.

I saw an auto race taking place at the Yas Marine Circuit Formula 1 racetrack across the street – not a formula 1 race, but they use the track for everything they can think of, including the hand-powered race.  I didn’t attend the race, but from an overpass I could watch and listen as what I can guess were modified street cars raced around a short segment of the track.   

The overpass I was on crossed over a segment of the raceway to reach a giant luxury hotel right in the middle of the race track grounds. This place is beyond words to describe here – I will provide some images soon. But accessible from the hotel grounds, also within the raceway compound, is a marina where I saw everything from a 15-foot skiff with dual outboard Mercury engines, to motor yachts that would cost more than your house just to operate for a month, to a lovely two mast schooner, to a UK flagged, 110-ft (estimated) ocean faring yacht that my whole house would fit into.

On the walk back I passed an Arabic family going the other way – all in normal everyday clothes, and a 6 year old boy in a brilliantly colored American flat shirt!  Welcome to Abu Dhabi!   

One of the coolest things about being here is that, unlike in Saudi Arabia, my wonderful bride will get to join me sometimes, and that will be a blast! More to come soon, best to all, Mark

#worlddroneprixdubai, #yasmarinacircuit, #ferrariworld, #yasisland

Scotland 2015 - Kilchurn Castle

While researching our September trip, either Dana or I came across a reference for Kilchurn (pronounced "kill kern" with the accent on kill) Castle, an "ancient Campbell stronghold." It's visible on Google Maps on the A85 highway between Oban and Tyndrum on the shore of Loch Awe, and since we were planning to go that way we thought we'd stop and take a look.

The castle is shown on the maps at one end of Loch Awe, which we drove along for quite a while on the way - narrow, dark water with beautiful tall hills on either side of the valley. We reached the point where the map showed it should be and expected to see a sign, but must have missed it. We went back and looked more carefully - nope, no sign. Hmm.  There was a side road just ahead and we took it, thinking maybe the access was that way.

Umm, nope, no access or sign here either. But we reached a point where we could see through the trees and there it was, a kilometer away, across fields and water and fences. There was a small pull-off, and there was a stair built over the fence. I was pretty sure this must be the way to access the place, but we couldn't tell how to get there, even though we had clear line of sight to the castle. Dana was pretty sure this couldn't be it, so we got back in the car and went back the way we came.

 

Back on the main road and going slowly now that we knew where this place was, I spotted just a small gravel road in about the right place and said, let's try this.We pulled off onto a very rough lane, full of deep ruts, but after a few hundred meters we came to a car park with half a dozen cars and a small bus. This must be the place! At the end of the parking area was a simple sign that said, essentially, enjoy the sights, clean up after yourself, close the gates behind you, and stay off the train tracks! (I love Scotland!) That was all the invitation we needed and headed down the path.

Of course, I'm not a flower guy so I have no idea what these are, but it was a beautiful path through this wooded area and these lovely flowering bushes. Here's a closeup if someone can identify this flora.

Another hundred meters through the trees and we came out next to a stream leading into the loch, with a train bridge going over it. Since we weren’t supposed to go over the track, we went under the bridge and I saw a nice spot for a photo. It was a totally overcast day, some might call it gloomy, but I think I imaged pretty well what I saw.

 

On past the tracks and through a gate built to keep the sheep in, not the people out, and we saw the castle ahead across a pasture. We later learned that the castle used to be on a small island, but a decade ago they lowered the water level on the loch so now it is accessible by foot.  All in all I think it was about 1.5 km hike in from the car park – an easy stroll on a lovely cool day. This was not like Castle Campbell, which was restored 60 some years ago – this place has stood alone for centuries and the wear was immediately apparent.

 

Still, we could see people high on the walls so we hoped for a good view and trekked on. Despite the age, the lower walls are in good shape even though the upper floors have suffered. Yes, this was at least 3 stories tall, gauging from the windows high off the ground and the indents in the inside walls meant to hold beams to support the upper floors. These structures were some seriously engineered places, meant to withstand the test of time, or a determined enemy. The lintel stone over the doorway attests to the durability.

 

This 15th century castle was home to Campbells of Glenorchy, and was a magnificent structure at its height. Surrounded by water on a rocky outcrop it would have been a safe and secure location. Time has taken its toll, though. Still, it was a magical place to visit. Like Castle Campbell, you can climb all the way to the top of Kilchurn for stunning views, but here they have built wooden stairs and platforms to accommodate visitors - the original stairs and upper floors are long gone.

Here are two views from the top, the first to the east down the length of  Loch Awe, then to the west to the end of the loch and the path we walked in on. This would have been the Laird's view to survey his property.

As you can see, the cloudy day worked out great for us! The interior spaces of Kilchurn are open, and most of the original walls are gone. But you can get an idea from the shots below of the towering building it once was, with two spiral staircases built into the walls to reach the upper levels.

    

Funny story about the right hand image above, with the large round object.  When we arrived there was a Scottish guide with a group of German tourists, and I can only imagine how much trouble they must have had interpreting his heavy brogue accent. But they were in this courtyard as we entered and we heard him share the tale that some 300 years ago came the biggest, worst thunderstorm anyone could remember, and in the middle of the night lighting struck the tower, which at the time was topped by the round stone structure. This was blown clear off the tower and thrown 15 meters away into the courtyard, where it remains to this day. The guide reported that in the morning the Laird came out, saw this laying here, and said that the Lord must now want us to live here anymore. They packed everything and left and never returned!

One chamber with intact, curved walls still overlooks the loch to the north. It's not a big space but would have made a great lookout.

Below is a panoramic view of Loch Awe and the eastern most castle wall.

As we wrapped up the visit to this family heritage site, it started a gentle rain - no worries. We had jackets and an umbrella, so we just tucked our cameras under our wraps and walked hand in hand back to the car. This was a great location and we had a lot of fun climbing all over this castle. Here's one more shot on the way out.

And yes, I'm still in Saudi Arabia, but will be heading home for the holidays in a week! I can't wait to see Dana, and our daughters and son-in-law will be there too, so it should be a wonderful visit. Fall/winter has finally arrived here. Late last week the lows were in the upper 30s F (4C) with highs in the 60s (15C). It's warmed up a bit since then, but will be right back to that by the weekend and will stay this way and a little cooler through January. This is the lovely time of the year!

Best to all, more soon! Mark

Addendum: Dana sent me this link about Kilchurn - good stuff if you're interested:
http://www.scottish-tourist.com/kilchurn-castle/

All images copyright 2015 by Stone Ridge Photographers, USA.
 #ScotlandCastle, #KilchurnCastle, #ClanCampbell, #whatanadventure  #HistoricScotland

Castle Campbell

After a few days in Glasgow to be together and get acquainted to being in Scotland, Dana and I set out to the west toward the town of Oban.  But first we had to go northeast to the village of Dollar, and Castle Campbell.  We’d rented a car but refused to almost double the cost by renting a GPS from Avis. Our first purchase was in the airport – a Scotland road map. We’ve been driving with maps for decades now and we figured we could manage. Well, as it turns out, yes and no.

While we were in Glasgow we worked out some tricks to use our iPad and Google Maps to map out where we wanted to go before we left the flat. This amazing little tool became a “kind of” GPS, because once we saved the route and kept the app open, it kept track of where we were with astounding accuracy! We made good use of this until we were ready to head out of town, and for backup we got a data package for Dana’s iPhone, then we could get active instructions when we needed the help, or if we changed plans. Still, we used the map every leg of our journey.

My mother’s family name is Campbell, and is linked to Clan Campbell. I’ll not try to give the clan history here – too much over too long a time with too much conflict to try and sort out. Depending on where we were, I was either welcomed or cautioned not to claim Campbell too loudly. But on this day we would go see a heritage site of my family, and we didn’t know what to expect. We stopped at the Dollar Museum and saw exhibits of the valley, the village history, the castle, and the Campbells.

We turned left from the museum, went about 10 yards, and turned left again. Of course, in Scotland, once you turn off any main road you are in a lane, which in most of the US would barely qualify as a bike lane. This lane twisted and turned and wound its way up the hill until we reached a car park. The road went further after a sign that cautioned that it would be narrow in places, and we decided to risk it. I’m glad we did because this was a steep uphill stretch, and at the top was another car park and a gate. We parked the car and walked up and down a path for about a kilometer to reach the castle site.

The place is so shrouded in trees there was only one spot on the drive uphill that we could glimpse the structure, and we didn’t have too many other glimpses until we turned a final corner and the tower was in clear sight.  What a sight!

This castle was started in the 15^th century, and was likely built on a previous fortification. Defensively, it is in a very powerful position, and these structures were built for defense in an age when an army could literally come marching into your valley any time. I have dozens of images of this castle, far too many to share here, but let me show you a few things of interest.

The Tower House – this is the oldest part of the structure, and it isn’t known who built it. It has very thick walls for strength, fortification, and to contain staircases and small closets. The original staircase was located within the nearest corner in this image, but it was replaced in about 1600 by a larger stair.

The Hall – this was the first floor above the basement, which was for storage. The hall was the most public room of the tower, with a vaulted roof and fireplace at one end. There is a pit prison at the far end of the room – not a happy place to be from the looks of it.

This window in the hall (above) faces west to get the afternoon sun. Note the wall – this is about 5 feet thick!

The First Chamber – the next floor up, which may have been the “living room” for the Laird and his family. The wooden beams support the floor for the second chamber above, most likely the owner’s bedchamber.

Staircase – I know, this is not your normal view. This is the new and improved stair that was added in the 1600s. It certainly is broader than the original, but is still not quite up to modern code. This bottom-side view shows amazing craftsmanship that goes into carving out the stones to make steps for this spiral. Wow.

The Roof – this was rebuilt in 1948, and is in great shape still. I’m sure the slate panels will last decades longer. This offers a spectacular view on all sides of the tower. 

(the Great Hall from above)

(the great hall from below)

 

 The Great Hall – this large space was added around 1500, with two floors, kitchens, chambers, and a spiral stair at each end. This is what remains after it was burned in a family dispute.

We were fortunate to visit the castle on a cool sunny day – a hot sunny day might have done us in! But we climbed from bottom to top and back down, and all over the grounds, and then had to hike back out. So if you go, remember to pack in some water and snacks (which I didn’t) so you aren’t parched and empty by the time you leave. 

We romanticize the age of the castles, and I suppose it was a good life if you were the Laird or part of the immediate family. Otherwise, I think it was a harsh, brutal, short life. I’m thrilled for the opportunity to have seen my family’s ancestral home now, but I’m really glad I wasn’t here then!  

We finished our visit dry and hungry in the middle of the afternoon.  Back in the Dollar there were two restaurants, and of course we chose the best, the Bridge Street Kitchen, for lunch. Oh, it was a good choice! BTW, we didn't eat at a single fast food anything on this trip, and the food was fantastic!  After a great lunch we headed for Oban, on the west coast, for the night - here's one shot from the harbor at twilight.

Best to all, More soon, Mark

All images copyright 2015 by Stone Ridge Photographers

#ClanCampbell, #CastleCampbell, #BridgeStreetKitchen, #Oban, #DollarScotland, #Scotland