We're in the land of rain...

I go into a Boots chemist this morning looking for something for my top lip. A cold sore has developed right on that corner where the manky water bottle nipple normally goes.  Before entering the chemist David the Gentle Giant warned me to be careful with my 'accent' as we're now in his home town of Milngavie (means Gavin's Mill but pronounced Miln-guy), a pretty little number atop the slag heap that is Glasgow. 

In the chemist I carefully peruse the shelves and eventually ask the lass behind the counter if she has any Zovirax (pronounced Zovi-ray in this neck of the woods).  She walks back to where I was looking, grabs a tube and hands it to me.  So I ask her if she has any cream for my eyeballs too (pronounced Ebay in this neck of the woods) being that I must be totally blind.  She giggles and gives my face a little 'watchit mate' slap as might be done by wise young girls with big hands and horse teeth who have been approached by the older and generally more dominant men of Glasgow (pronounced Glas-gay in this neck of the woods)

It's a bit dreich today.  For sure this morning is not as bright nor as sunny as it has been for the last 7 days.  WOW!  7 days of SUNSHINE in SCOTLAND!!  Today is the day when 'awesome' can officially be used in my book.  Who's ever heard of that.  Seven days?  Sunny?  Scotland?  Together?  Nah, summers around this neck of the woods normally last for 7 hours in a good year.  David the Gentle Giants wife Fiona (pronounced Fo-gay to match the standard summer weather conditions) is outside sunbathing in the rain.  'It's a great drying day today!' declares David with much enthusiasm.  So I wash my unmentionables and other unmentionable things in their washing machine having backed them into a corner with a whip and a chair before netting them and throwing them snarling in the open glass porthole door.  Then hang them outside for their second and 3rd rinse. 

Last night London Alan stayed at a Premier Inn as David could only put up two of us at his house.  Me in the piano room and South Side in the shower.  With a water bed.  We had arranged to meet London Alan in town for coffee and perhaps breakfast so off we go.  We see London Alan at the bottom of the hill of shops striding up it looking for us.  He's still wearing his ultra chromatic Ray-Ban sun glasses in the murk which must be polarised cos he completely didn't see David, caught a glimpse of me and South Side, declared that he had not yet had his breakfast, turned left, entered the chemist and asked for an egg and bacon sandwich... 

Yes, we've reached Glasgow!  YAY!  Thats approx 350 miles in seven days, about 30,000kcals consumed for me and approx 14.000ft ascended.  Zero punctures and zero crashes.  YAY!  Hard going in places with many many up hill climbs, some on fiercesome trails.  But we've made it, somewhat burn't / cooked in oil depending on the amount of oil applied to oneself of course.  It's a rest day today, so I thought, before David the Gentle Giant took me and South Side out for a 'wee walk'.

Here's a photo of David.  Mr floaty heed as he's known by the locals.  Trying on my cycling jacket.  Now he truly is a Gentle Giant of a man but after his most recent accident where he left himself out to dry for the week after a hot wash, well, I think he's shrunk a bit.  

By the time we set off the rain had lifted sucfficiently to leave us walking through muggy wet air.  Now David is a softly spoken man with an incredibly lilting voice.  I have already noticed that there were loads of dental practices in Scotland, especially here in Milngavie.  Sadly no dental hygenists though.  However, London Alan did find a salon up the road who were offering to do full body massages to help our weary legs.  I dunno though.  After reading the small print I recon that my argument that a full body massage means full body massage and so includes Balloon Dog might work as the T's and C's didn't specifically exclude pets.  

But David's voice.  Yes for sure he should have been a dentist.  We're on our way up a gnarly hillside with David's soft tones saying, 'Dinae worry Wayne.  Och, isn't it beautiful here, just a small wee way up the way Wayne and then its all the way downhill back home.  Isn't it a lovely day today'… just before pulling my molars out.   God I need crampons!  Feck!  3.5 miles in muggy weather with a fleece on covering at least 3,500ft of ascent.  I'm wet with more sweat on the inside of my fleece than South Side has water in his bed.  Gahhh!

It's been lovely staying with David and Fiona.  Thank you so much :-)  So kind :-)  

So to finish, firstly a map of the fantastical in all of its meanings route we have taken so far.  Which includes John O Groats, Wick, Helmsdale, Tain, Muir of Ord, Inverness, Aviemore, Pitlochry, Strathyre (the Trossachs) to Milngavie (Glasgow).

Followed by a couple of video's.

Firstly of me and South Side spinning with loaded tour bikes along a cycleway at the side of the anagrammic Garbh Uisge river as it runs towards Callander in the Trossachs.  A beautiful part of the world. 

Then to prove my point over perspective and skinny legs, a video of a couple of snakes trying to crawl into one of my shedded skins :-)  You cannot see it but I then put it on to show everyone that it fits me rather well :-)

Tomorrow we start the run south to Moffat then on to Carlisle, Kendal, Preston, Chester, Shrewsbury, Hereford and Bristol then the final legs down Devon and Cornwall for the summer solstice at Lands End :-)

And the forecast says it's gonna rain :-(

Hmmm, Scotland...  No suprises there then.. :-)

Ciao for now..