Susan Solo – Photographer | Traveler | Adventurer

Tag: doors

The Castles and Cows of Stirling

Stirling is a super easy day trip from Edinburgh, and we simply couldn’t pass up the opportunity to tour Stirling Castle on a gorgeous September day. Chris and I hopped on the train Thursday morning and found ourselves in Stirling in under an hour. With colorful storefronts along curvy streets and homes that look like gingerbread houses, I found the town to be completely charming.

I came across plenty of colorful doors for my photo collection.

After walking around the town a bit and having a fantastic lunch at the No. 2 Baker St. pub (I had the Belhaven Steak & Ale pie – so good!), we headed up the hill to the castle. It’s a bit of a walk, so we easily burned off those lunchtime calories.

Guided tours and audio tours were available of the 12th century castle, but we chose to wander the grounds at our own pace armed with a map. We loved lingering over the spectacular views.

We didn’t feel like we had enough time to get over to the Wallace Monument. It’s a couple of miles from Stirling Castle, so if you want to see both you need to plan for it time-wise. There’s a great view of it from the castle though, so Chris took this beautiful photo (on the right) with a telephoto lens. We’ll have to visit it another time since I had an additional mission planned for our time in Stirling (see below).

I want to be the person who went to Stirling strictly for the rich history, magnificent castle, and culturally important monument. However, I’m the person who went to Stirling in one last-ditch attempt to find a red Highland cow on this trip to Scotland! Okay, so we did have Stirling and the castle tour on our must-see list before I realized it was my final opportunity to see the hairy coos. I’m pretty sure I drove Chris nuts during our Islay weekend, craning my neck in the car to look for them. A photographer friend of mine who had recently been to Edinburgh also took a day trip to Stirling and said she saw cows there. I didn’t want to get my hopes up because I couldn’t imagine that we’d actually find them, but we did!

Two sweet babies trotted right over to us alongside a fence, and were just so curious about us with our cameras.

We even saw a blonde one! So with the black one that we found on Islay, plus these guys, my Highland cow obsession was quite satisfied. If only I was allowed to bring one home! (Don’t worry, I didn’t try. We really don’t have the space.)

November 23, 2015
Falling in Love with Edinburgh

I’ve admitted before that I’m not generally a fan of big cities. I get anxious and overwhelmed in crowds, and I tend to prefer a more tranquil environment. Edinburgh though, full of charm and history, is a big city that I could fall in love with pretty easily. Chris and I spent four days in Scotland’s capital and second largest city, and I can definitely say I would be thrilled to visit this big city again someday. Armed with comfortable shoes and personalized recommendations from my brother who used to live in Edinburgh, we covered as much ground as we could in our short stay.

Our Airbnb flat put us only a few steps from High Street, so we covered the Royal Mile from end-to-end. We wandered the side streets and popped in and out of touristy little shops. And thank goodness for all of that walking, because we also ate our way up and down the streets of Old Town, including a fried Mars bar (which was disappointingly not as good as it sounded).

In addition to the fantastic weather we had during our week in Ireland, the weather continued to hold up while we gallivanted around Scotland, too. After all of the effort I put into searching for the perfect rain jacket for Ireland and Scotland, I never really needed it save for one chilly afternoon in Northern Ireland! We had clouds on the first day in Edinburgh, and then it was sunny blue skies and even a little on the warm side for the rest of our visit. So the lesson here is that if you want great weather in Ireland and the UK, spend a good bit of time and money on a rain jacket search.

There are plenty of places to duck in though if you aren’t so lucky with the weather: the Scottish National Gallery, the National Museum of Scotland, or maybe one of the underground ghost tours. If you’re interested in cathedrals, St. Giles’ Cathedral is breathtaking inside (and photography is allowed in exchange for a small donation).

We didn’t tour Edinburgh Castle or Holyrood Palace because of the crowds while we were there, but it was enough for me just to see the beautiful architecture from the outside. I’ve put both tours on the list for next time. And speaking of crowds, now that I’ve seen what Edinburgh looks like on a typical day, I would actually be willing to go back during Fringe Festival, the world’s largest arts festival that fills the streets with over two million attendees. (My brother attended and loved it, and I think he was disappointed that I purposely avoided it this trip.)

With only a limited amount of time in the city and a long to-do list including a day trip to Stirling, I knew we needed to choose our tours carefully. We decided on The Real Mary King’s Close tour for a dose of history and we enjoyed it. Unfortunately, photography wasn’t allowed on the tour (one of my least favorite things to hear), but I highly recommend it for a fascinating and slightly creepy look into Edinburgh’s hidden streets and underground world. After returning home with one of the worst colds I’ve ever had, I couldn’t help but wonder if being in a dank room on the tour where people actually died from the pneumonic plague was the culprit. But I can assure you, as I’m writing this post two months later I have fully recovered.

My most favorite areas of Old Town were beyond the Royal Mile. We loved exploring Victoria Street and the Grassmarket area, and we hung out at Sandy Bell’s one night for a traditional folk music session. A Harry Potter-inspired tour of Edinburgh also took us through some of the southside area, but more on that in an upcoming post.

We didn’t spend a ton of time on Princes Street, but we did go visit the gardens and took a pricey-but-fun spin on the ferris wheel. And I grinned goofily over this bagpipe player more than I care to admit.

On our last morning in Edinburgh, I took an early stroll up Calton Hill for some fantastic views of the city. Poor Chris came down with a bad cold the last few days of our trip (the one I caught once we returned home) so he stayed behind.

One of my most favorite moments in Edinburgh happened there while sitting on a park bench behind the Nelson Monument. I had the hill all to myself for a good ten minutes before any other tourists showed up. I ate my banana in the quiet and watched the sunlight slowly wash over the buildings. Having a quiet space to myself, even for just a short time, gave me that tranquil feeling I often crave and it was nice to know I can find peace even in a bustling city. And a bonus, I’m pretty sure I worked off that fried Mars bar with the hike up and back.

So there you have it, the city that just might have changed my mind about big cities! I’m ready to take on a few more next year as we head back to Europe. We’re even planning to attend a couple of festivals!

November 11, 2015
I Heart Doors

Over the years, I have always been drawn to photographing doors. I wish I could tell you that it has some deep meaning for me like the symbol of new beginnings or a pathway to the great unknown, but I simply just enjoy finding interesting doors to photograph. It started as early as my film SLR days, and they continue to be a subject I return to often no matter what camera I have in-hand. I also love exploring the little details such as knockers, handles, hinges, and locks. I’m looking forward to wandering some new towns this year in search of photogenic entryways – Belize, Vieques, Ireland, and Scotland should have some good ones!

“We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new things, because we’re curious and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths.” – Walt Disney

February 23, 2015
A Day in Reykjavik

After a crazy start to our Iceland trip, Chris and I were incredibly happy and relieved to be in Reykjavik, and I instantly fell in love with this adorable, colorful city. Well, okay not instantly. First we took a nap since we landed at 6am and neither of us got any sleep on the plane. But then around lunchtime we felt refreshed and ready to explore, with cameras in hand! Our hotel for the first night was several blocks from the main city center, but a walk in the chilly Iceland air woke us up even more. The day seemed typical of what we expected for Iceland weather in late August – low-to-mid 50s, gray sky thick with clouds, drizzle off-and-on, and a breeze with the occasional gust. The cheerful buildings of Reykjavik made up for what the sky lacked in color though!

After walking around a bit, our first order of business was lunch, and I had this local staple in mind – the Bæjarins Beztu hot dog stand. I had read from several sources that this is a must-try Icelandic snack/meal, and it really did hit the spot. Just FYI, they’re meant to be eaten with everything on it – mustard, ketchup, onions, fried onions, and remoulade – but I admit to skipping the mayonnaise-based sauce and ketchup. It was still delicious!

We wandered the city center streets for the rest of the day – it’s a very walkable city with lots of little shops and restaurants in close proximity. I also found several interesting doors for my door photo collection.

Of course, we spent some time photographing some of the most recognizable sites in Reykjavik. We walked along the harbor to see the Sun Voyager sculpture which I initially thought was inspired by a Viking ship, but some further research corrected me – the sculpture symbolizes a boat in search of undiscovered territory, hope, progress and freedom.

We also visited the Hallgrímskirkja church where we paid a fee (700 kr each; about $6 USD) and took an elevator to the top of the tower for a fantastic 360-degree view of the city. It’s where I photographed the first photo in this post. See those windows at the top of the tower? You can poke your camera through there on all sides for photos of the city center and the harbor. (Note: there is a short staircase to climb after the elevator lets out.) We didn’t get to go inside the church itself because there was a service in progress, but the photos I’ve seen are stunning so if you’re planning to visit maybe just double-check the schedule.

Our day wrapped up at the Harpa Concert Hall and Conference Center, also situated along the harbor. The iconic building was not only an interesting subject for photography and an excellent way to escape the rain, but we decided to see a show called How to Become Icelandic in 60 Minutes so that we could truly experience a bit more of the Harpa. I bought tickets online in advance, so it’s one of the things I had to reschedule because of our canceled flight, but luckily the Harpa Center was gracious enough to allow us to switch dates. The interactive one-man comedy show includes quite a bit of Icelandic history that caters to a tourist-based audience. Chris and I had a few good laughs and learned some fun facts about Iceland including how to pronounce Eyjafjallajökull, which I had been practicing for several weeks before we arrived. I’m happy to say I was really close to having it down pat! The show currently has a schedule posted through the rest of this year, so if you’re visiting I highly recommend it as a fun way to learn about Iceland and see the Harpa at the same time. And again, not a bad way to spend some time indoors when the weather isn’t your favorite.

As for the building itself, the intricate kaleidoscopic design reflects the pattern of the basalt columns found in Iceland – a geological phenomenon created as a result of volcanic activity. Chris and I saw some of them on a beach south of Vík, so I’ll be posting about that soon!

We noticed several museums in town that looked interesting, but we ran out of time after seeing the classic Reykjavik sites. Our original schedule had us spending an additional day in Reykjavik at the end of our road trip, but we lost that day after our first flight was canceled. We’ll just have to go back another time! There is plenty more to see and do, and I would definitely love to visit again. Also? I just realized we didn’t take very many pictures of us on this first day – on top of looking jet-lagged and red-eyed, the wind and rain did quite a number on my hair so I think I mostly avoided the camera. I’ll talk more about this in a post on packing for Iceland, but for the rest of the week I relied heavily on hats! For documentation purposes, here is the one photo we took of us in Reykjavik:

Up next: our whirlwind Ring Road trip kicks off with The Golden Circle where we saw geysers, waterfalls, and geothermal activity!

September 1, 2014
Puerto Rico 2013

Happy almost-end-of-summer! (It’s not officially fall until September 22nd, right?) Chris and I just returned from a sort of unplanned trip to Puerto Rico last week. I say “sort of unplanned” because I am an obsessive travel planner and I usually have trips booked or at least outlined a year or so in advance. We originally thought we’d drive to Toronto for the long Labor Day weekend, but we decided a few weeks ago that we could use a longer vacation. Being close and on a direct flight path from Dulles International Airport, Puerto Rico fit the bill. Plus, we found an amazing deal on flights + hotel through Travelocity. So off we went!

We knew that we might run into some bad weather since it’s prime hurricane season, but we figured that staying at a huge resort hotel in the city would provide us with enough to do on a rainy day if needed. It turns out that a few of our booked activities did get cancelled due to a tropical wave that turned into a tropical storm, but we did have good weather most of the time and we found plenty of things to do.

The second full day, we took our little green rental Fiesta and drove to El Yunque rainforest for some hiking. The waterfalls were amazing. We hiked the trail to Cascada La Mina, and even got in the water beneath the falls. It was cold! And a little scary – I couldn’t see what I was stepping on.

That evening we headed into Old San Juan and took a ferry across the water to the Casa Bacardi rum factory. The tour was brief and we only saw a replica of the distillery process, but there were free drinks at the end!

Because our sail/snorkel trip was cancelled, we were able to spend a little more time exploring Old San Juan. What a cute city! The buildings are so colorful with ornate details. I took several new images for my collection of door photos.

We toured the two castles in the city, Castillo de San Cristóbal and Castillo San Felipe del Morro, and enjoyed learning about the history of each. We may also have played House Hunters, saying things like, “This is a great space! It has good light, and plenty of room for a king size bed. Oh, here’s where we could put our office…”

The last full day of our trip, we drove to Seven Seas Beach and spent the afternoon snorkeling right off the shore. It was definitely my speed – I like when I can just pop out of the water if when something freaks me out. Thankfully all of the fish were the friendly kind, although I did see my first spiny black sea urchin! I forgot to photograph or video it, you know, on account of being scared of it. I’m getting a little more brave each time I go snorkeling though, I promise. I’m not committing to it, but I may even try scuba diving soon.

Puerto Rico 2013 from Susan Marks on Vimeo.

September 10, 2013