Timing is everything, and on our way from Inverness to Edinburgh our
timing was a bit off. When we arrived at the Inverness station we
discovered the trains were cancelled because of flooding on the tracks.
There had been very heavy rain during the night. Two harried railway
officials, who didn't appear to know much more than we did, directed us
to stand outside and wait for buses which would take us to Edinburgh.
From an initial group of about twenty-five, the waiting crowd swelled to
three hundred in the next hour and a half. Finally one solitary bus
pulled up. We were two of the fortunate ones as were able to secure the
last two seats on the bus timing and our location on the sidewalk where
the bus parked was everything.
I might add that the bus only took us as far as Perth and then we transferred to a train for the rest of the trip. When we finally arrived at Edinburgh we were greeted with torrential rain, and in spite of our raincoats we were soaked to the skin. It was not our day.
However, the next day, Thursday, the sun was shining and the sky was blue. This was great for us because it was our ticketed night to attend the Edinburgh Tattoo.
Now I mentioned that this was a Thursday. This is important because on two Thursdays in the month the Tattoo organizers offer a Touch Tour for people who are blind or visually impaired. I had registered for this.
Prior to the performance, a small group of us gathered near the drawbridge at the castle. It was great! To this point on our travels we hadn't seen a single white cane user. Suddenly there were about ten of us as we gathered together, plus one man from Carlisle with a guide dog. I met Toby and Natasha. Toby was from Australia. He was excited to learn that we were from Canada. He wanted to know if I skied. He loved to ski and the freedom of movement that skiing offered.
Natasha lived in Scotland. She and her guide were curious to know about the red marking on the bottom of my cane. I said I thought it was just for contrast. They told me that in Scotland, the red marking would indicate that I was also hearing impaired.
I will have more to say about the Touch Tour and the performance in my next post. For now, here is a picture of me standing in front of the castle with my new friends Toby and Natasha.
I might add that the bus only took us as far as Perth and then we transferred to a train for the rest of the trip. When we finally arrived at Edinburgh we were greeted with torrential rain, and in spite of our raincoats we were soaked to the skin. It was not our day.
However, the next day, Thursday, the sun was shining and the sky was blue. This was great for us because it was our ticketed night to attend the Edinburgh Tattoo.
Now I mentioned that this was a Thursday. This is important because on two Thursdays in the month the Tattoo organizers offer a Touch Tour for people who are blind or visually impaired. I had registered for this.
Prior to the performance, a small group of us gathered near the drawbridge at the castle. It was great! To this point on our travels we hadn't seen a single white cane user. Suddenly there were about ten of us as we gathered together, plus one man from Carlisle with a guide dog. I met Toby and Natasha. Toby was from Australia. He was excited to learn that we were from Canada. He wanted to know if I skied. He loved to ski and the freedom of movement that skiing offered.
Natasha lived in Scotland. She and her guide were curious to know about the red marking on the bottom of my cane. I said I thought it was just for contrast. They told me that in Scotland, the red marking would indicate that I was also hearing impaired.
I will have more to say about the Touch Tour and the performance in my next post. For now, here is a picture of me standing in front of the castle with my new friends Toby and Natasha.
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| Toby, Sue and Natasha in front of a castle. |
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