Power cuts and days off.

On Wednesday, we all got sent home from work early, as there had been a fire in a sub station, and all the power in the work went out.
The next day the place was still closed, so there was an unplanned day off. So, I jumped on the bike and cycled through Pollok Estate towards Shawlands, with the idea of grabbing some breakfast there before heading home.  That's when I got a text from a mate from work saying that there was a couple of folk who didn't know the place was closed and had turned up, and they were in a bar in the town, so I changed plans, and headed into town, and had breakfast in the bar with them before heading back home.

Breakfast in Alfredo's

When Karen got home from work at lunchtime, we decided to head to Hill House in Helensburgh.  It's a house designed by Charles Rennie Macintosh, and it's one of the National Trust for Scotland properties.  I'm not a fan of Macintosh, but it's a really nice house.  Well worth a visit if you're in the area.

Hill House in Helensburgh

On Friday, we headed to Callander to do a wee walk from Callander to the Falls of Leny.

When we set off from the car park, it was a bit overcast, but all the way to the Falls, it was pretty nice.  The route follows a cycle path, and ahead of you, Ben Ledi looms in the distance.

Eventually, you come to a concrete seat, and to the right is a little path leading down to the falls.

Falls of Leny

On the way back we followed a wee path through the woods, along the side of the river.  Eventually this lead back to the cycle path, and back to the carpark, where, it started raining just as we got to the car.  Fortunately it didn't last long, and we had a wee wander round the town before heading back to the car with a bag of chips.  Once again, just as we got there, the heavens opened, and we sat eating chips and waiting to see if it would clear up.

When it became obvious that it wouldn't, we just headed back to Glasgow.

All in all a good day, despite the rain.

What we did at the weekend

On Saturday, we had the usual karate class in the morning (using bo's), and then met up with a couple of friends for a curry at the Ashoka at the Phoenix.  The food there is really nice.

Sunday, we had planned to head into town, but it would probably have worked out as Karen wandering round shops, and me sitting in Lauders with a book and a pint, so scrap that.  Instead, we jumped in the car and headed to Inchmahome Priory.   If you've never been, it's well worth a visit.  It's on a (very) small island on Lake of Menteith (Scotlands ONLY lake), and is really really tranquil.  Take a picnic, as you could spend a really nice time just sitting in the grounds.  It's a seven minute boat trip, and that's included in the entry fee (£5 each or free if you're a Historic Scotland member).

After leaving the island, we decided to head somewhere for lunch.  From Inchmahome, you've pretty much got the choice of Drymen, Aberfoyle or Callander, and as Karen had never been to Callander, that's where we went.  I'd not been for a few years, but it still seems to be a really busy little town.

All in all, a good weekend.