50th Anniversary Trip to Scotland

Dodds Clan

Keith's parents had been talking about taking the grand kids on a "beaches of Scotland" trip.  We parlayed that idea into a Dodds family holiday / golden anniversary celebration to Scotland.  A save-the-date was sent two years prior and we were set!

Berwick

Accommodations:

VRBO in Berwick: There was only a single VRBO in Berwick that offered 5 bedrooms.  It is located at 40 Ravensdown - only one street behind the old town hall.  The house has a living room in the front, a small kitchen, and a dining room that could seat 12 if needed.  There was also a patio off the dining room though we never used that.  The bedrooms were on the 2, 3, and 4th floors, with a bedroom off the kitchen separated from everyone else.  The house was very nice and in a great location.

Tillmouth Park Hotel: A 14 room hotel in Cornhill-on-Tweed, this was our base for the anniversary weekend.  We had rented all 14 rooms for the Friday and Saturday so had the run of the place.  Built as a stately home in the late 1800s, it was converted to a hotel about 70 years ago.  Keith's mother had been there as a kid and held her 18 and 21 birthday parties there.  Keith was a frequent visitor to Tillmouth during his summers in Scotland, and Jean and Dick held their 25th anniversary at the hotel (in conjunction with Jean's dad's 80th birthday).  All the rooms we saw were quite large and full of light - we stayed in room 4 (which apparently Nicole Kidman also stayed in).

Tillmouth Park Hotel

Activities:

Visiting Friends
While the trip was to Scotland, we decided to fly direct from Phoenix to London and drive north.  Keith had been in Seattle for work immediately before so was only home for 24 hours before we departed.  We were at the airport 3 hours early to catch the British Airways flight and as we were checking in, we were offered business class upgrades for an incredibly reasonable price...so we said yes!  A side benefit is that we got to use the BA lounge with complimentary wine - though the lounge was not quite the same level as Etihad was in DC!  We had dinner on the flight, each watched a movie, then settled in for a fantastic sleep in our lay-flat seats.  We both woke up an hour before landing, quite refreshed.

Royal Border Bridge in Berwick

It took longer to get the Hertz rental car than it took to clear customs and get our luggage - but roughly 2 hours after landing, we headed west to Hungerford where Rachel, Emma, and Amy were staying with Oliver's parents for a week of "summer school" at Marlborough College.  We had a quick shower and then all drove over to the college for a dinner.  Rachel was in a "singing for pleasure" course with a concert that night, so we sat in the audience with Emma and Amy to see Rach sing with a group of 30.  After getting back to the house we had a couple of glasses of wine and went to bed.  It was a wonderful night sleep - we were officially on UK time with no jet lag.  The next morning we all had breakfast before we headed out.

Rachel, Amy and Emma

It was a 3 hour drive to Birmingham to see Charlie - and since he was working, we killed some time on the way by stopping in Oxford to see Shawna's old stomping grounds when she was there for a summer program during college.  Shawna could not remember which college she was in so we walked around to see if Shawna could remember.  We even tried to use the old photos from her camera to guess which college, but that did not work.  We ended up at the Bear Inn where we did have an old photo of Shawna.  We were too early for lunch, but not too early for a couple of lagers!  It was there that Shawna had the idea to google "Georgetown Oxford exchange" which showed that it was Trinity.  We'll have to go back to Oxford for a proper tour.  To take care of lunch, we stopped at a roadside service for cheese and crackers which Shawna made for us as Keith was driving.  We arrived at Chez Charlie around 2pm - Charlie and Lena were already home.  Not surprisingly, we started with a few drinks - but asked for a nap before the evening began.  It was then back to the living room for champagne before heading out to a lovely dinner.  The next day we all opted for a hike in Clent Hills.  After the hike we each went our separate ways: Charlie and Lena down south to a wedding and us heading north to Leeds.

Charlie and Lena

The last stop on the tour was to see Loveday and Tim at their place in Leeds, as well as their three girls we had not met (though seemed to know them well from Facebook!).  We arrived at the house at about 6pm and joined them for beers in the back garden.  Dinner was a fantastic seafood stew courtesy of Tim, followed by an almond blueberry crumble.  It was then bedtime as we had a busy day in front of us.

Loveday and Tim

Berwick and Surrounds:
It was a 3 hour drive from Leeds to Berwick.  The family were all in Spittal so stopped there to see them, walk on the beach, and do a bit of "crabbing" before going back to the VRBO.  We loaded our luggage into our room and were set.  We were based in Berwick from Sunday afternoon until Friday morning.  Most mornings Graham was the first up...making us coffee as well as bacon and egg rolls.  We both often got a walk in around the walls/pier before the day began.

Cocklawburn Beach

Sunday and Monday were all about Berwick.  Our time here was focused on showing Owen, Josie, Boone, and Lily the old childhood haunts.  We walked the old walls built in the 1500s, walked the pier, saw Keith's grandfather's original workshop (now residential homes), walked the Tweed up to old castle where we all climbed the same places we did as kids, saw Billy's old house, walked up the black hill, and saw 20 the Meadows (with the garden in some serious disrepair now) which is the house in which Jean grew up and where Keith spend many summers with his grandparents. 

Dodds Clan in Berwick

20 The Meadows

We also saw the Trinity Church, built in 1660, where Jean and Dick were married (and recreated some of the photos from that day), as well as the school that Jean attended (as did Graham and Margaret during their summers in Berwick).  We also visited Cocklawburn beach where the kids did some crabbing and we relaxed a bit.  Jean, Margaret, and her kids walked back to Spittal while the rest of us drove - though we picked up the hikers in Spittal to give them a ride the rest of the way.  Graham cooked a delicious dinner of lamb that night.

Trinity Church

On the Tuesday, we  went to Edinburgh for the day.  While the rest of the family had been to Edinburgh the day of their arrival, we opted for another day there.  The first stop was to hike Arthurs Seat via Salisbury Crags, where Hutton founded modern geology. 

Arthurs Seat

We walked the royal mile, had lunch at a pub (while the kids had lunch at Pizza Hut much to Graham's chagrin), and walked up the steps of the Walter Scott Monument.  The family walked over to the gardens as Keith waited to meet with Anne Watson, his old Kandersteg friend.  Anne spent the rest of the afternoon with us as we walked Princess Street Gardens.  We then walked up Calton Hill, then we went to The Inn on the Mile pub with Anne for pre-dinner drinks.  Dinner was with Valerie, Lorraine, Audrey, and Tara, with Anne leaving after dinner.  We then went over to the Greyfriars Bobby statue outside the Greyfriars pub, saw the Elephant House café where JK Rowling wrote the Harry Potter books, and then walked the Greyfriars cemetery to find the grave of Thomas Riddle, who eventually became He Who Shall Not Be Named in Harry Potter.  The last event of the day was the Edinburgh Ghost Tour which lasted 1.5 hours and was one of the favorite events for the kids.

Anne

On Wednesday, we went to Chain Bridge Honey Farm where we saw Daphne, the owner.  Keith's grandparents were friends with Daphne's parents and Daphne actually visited Dick in Los Angeles when he was at UCLA in the '60s.  We had lunch (complete with Honey Ice Cream) and then walked to Chain Bridge with the kids - it is the oldest suspension bridge still carrying road traffic in the world.  We then drove to Eyemouth, where Keith's grandfather grew up, but it started raining the second we arrived.  We did go to the harbor and fed the seals before going back to the VRBO.  Dinner that night was with the Parry clan (sans Kirsty who was still in Edinburgh).

Chain Bridge

Thursday was scheduled to be a Dodds/Parry reunion.  The day started at Alnwick Castle, where we signed up for the Harry Potter broomstick lessons (the first two Potter movies were filmed here).  The kids were great and Keith managed to participate as well!  We also did the Dragon Quest, saw the estate rooms, and also walked the gardens.  

Alnwick Castle

We then drove over to Bamburgh Castle so we could go for a swim on the beach.  We all then drove to Wooler where Sharon had made a dinner reservation for the whole group.  One the way home, we stopped by Tillmouth to make sure that the marquee actually was up (we were told it was but Keith wanted to put his eyes on it).

Bamburgh Castle

Parry and Dodds Clan at Dinner in Wooler

Friday morning was all about packing up and heading over to Tillmouth for the weekend event!

Tillmouth
The capstone of the week was the anniversary event at Tillmouth.  It had taken a couple of years of planning to make sure that all went well: in addition to booking out the hotel for both nights, we needed to coordinate a marquee, photographer, AV equipment, and flowers.  The service responsiveness was not always the best in the planning phase...though once we were there, it was seamless.

Tillmouth with Marquee

We arrived at the hotel first to make sure all was good.  The rooms were all ready early so we were able to get everything to the room before anyone else arrived.  We also had a lot of the family stuff that we were able to get in our car so all that was loaded in Jean and Dick's room.  The AV company was installing the speakers in the marquee (which had actually been installed since Tuesday) so we were able to meet the installer and make sure we understood the system.  Keith was able to play some of his tunes before Dick showed up with the oldies!  We had arranged afternoon tea in the living room, so when people arrived there was coffee/tea, sandwiches, and possibly the best scones we have ever tasted (with raspberry jam and clotted cream of course).  Ruth/Scott and Lynn/Phil were the first to arrive, followed shortly by the Dodds family and then quickly the rest of the guests staying at Tillmouth arrived.

Ewan sharing the love!

That evening, cocktails were served outside between the hotel and the marquee - while it looked like a potential for rain, we stayed dry.  Everyone then moved to the marquee for dinner where we had a buffet with carving stations.  Jean and Dick introduced the guests that night (almost 50 people attended the Friday night).  We ended the evening with a slide show Keith had put together of ~900 old photos that had been scanned from both Dick and Keith's slides and prints.  Many of the guests had never seen these pictures of themselves!

Group Photo

Saturday was the big day.  We started with breakfast and then a few of us went for a walk to Twizel Castle.  We then had to go back to Tillmouth to ensure we were ready for lunch inside the marquee - which was a Tweed salmon buffet with salads.  Dessert was a fantastic fruit cake provided by Joyce and Rachel.  Everyone chatted, with the kids playing soccer and hula hoop in the grass next to the marquee.  We broke up at about 3pm to all get dressed for dinner - with many of the guests (74 in total attended Saturday's festivities) in kilts, including Dick, Graham, Keith, Owen, and Boone.

Twizel Bridge

We hired a professional photographer to shoot the event, including taking family portraits.  The Dodds family went first so we could chat with everyone during cocktail hour.  At 6:15pm, we then took the group photo (the one 25 years earlier was on the staircase).  We then adjourned to the marquee for some reminiscences - starting with the 4 grand kids, then Ian, Rab, Pete, Joyce, Keith/Graham/Margaret, and finally Jean/Dick.  We then moved into the hotel dining room where 8 tables were set.  It was a wonderful plated dinner.  Afterward some of us adjourned to the bar downstairs for a last round (or two!).

We had to get up early so we could leave by 9am.  We had a quick breakfast, packed up and said our goodbyes to those who were up.  We had to drive to Glasgow for our 2pm flight - which went home via Reykjavik, Seattle, and then an emergency medical stop in Boise before landing in Phoenix at midnight.

It was a fantastic trip, exceeding our expectations.  It was wonderful to catch up with some of our friends at the beginning of the trip, fun to have a few days in Berwick seeing it through the eyes of the nieces and nephews, and the anniversary weekend was just what we hoped it would be.

Attendees:
We were fortunate to have a large contingent of friends and family make the event.

• Clan Dodds
• Jean and Dick – with their kids:
• Keith, and his wife Shawna
• Graham, along with his children Lily (11) and Boone (5)
• Margaret, along with her children Owen (10) and Josie (9)
• Ian (Dick’s brother) and his wife Val, along with his daughter:
• Claire
• John (Dick’s brother) and his wife Peggy, along with their son:
• Giles and his partner Polly

Claire, Ian, and Val Dodds

John, Peggy, Polly (Quinton) and Giles Dodds

• Clan Parry - Jenny and Rab (Jenny & Jean shared a flat in Harrogate in 1964), along with their kids:
• Kirsty
• Ewan, and his wife Sharon, along with their children Lewis (13) and Madeline (11)

Lewis, Sharon, Madeline, Kirtsy, Rab, Jenny and Ewan Parry

• Clan McCormick - Stewart and Alison (who lived across the street from the Leiths in Berwick), with their children (who were friends with Margaret, Graham, and Keith during their summers in Berwick):
• Kevin, with his wife Linda, and their kids Ross (13) and Katie (9)
• Ian, with his wife Becky, and their kids Alexander (12), Matthew (10) and Rachel (7)
• Jonny, with his wife Joanna, and their son Ewan (10)

McCormick Clan

• Clan Palmer - Laurie (Jean & Dick’s friend from university) and his wife Kate
• Clan Carr - Ruth and Scott (longtime hiking friends from Texas)
• Clan Millner - Lynn and Phil (longtime hiking friends from Texas)
• Clan Hooper – Joyce (who went to Berwick grammar school with Jean and was a bridesmaid) and her daughter
• Rachel

Rachel and Joyce Hooper

• Clan Anderson - Heather (Jean’s cousin and bridesmaid) and her husband James, with their two daughters:
• Gill, with her partner Ian
• Lorraine, and her partner Richard
• Clan Hogg – Valerie (Jean’s cousin) and her daughters
• Audrey (the flower girl in Jean/Dicks wedding), along with her daughter
• Tara
• Linda, along with her partner Dave and their son
• Shaun
• Clan Tainsh - David (Jean’s cousin, and Heather/Valerie’s brother)

Anderson, Hogg and Tainsh Clans

• Clan Baker - Pete (Dick’s best man), his wife Paddy (Margaret), and their kids:
• Alasdair, with his partner Alyssa, and their daughter
• Darcy (9)
• Catherine, with her children
• Alex (14), Clem (12), and Grace (4)

Baker Clan

• Clan Huntingford – Dave (Jean & Dick’s friend from university) and his wife Jillie
• Clan Ramsay – Sandy (Jean & Dick’s friend from university) and his wife Sybil
• Clan Baker – Jane (childhood friend of Jean) and her friend Mary Oliver

Restaurants:

• Marlborough College - Dinner our first night with Rachel, Emma, and Amy.  We had the buffet in the main dining room and were able to order a bottle of wine to share.  
• Harborne Kitchen (Birmingham) - Enjoyed a 6 course dinner, though we skipped the wine pairings and just ordered a couple of bottles of wine to accompany.  
• The Advocate (Edinburgh) - Just off Bridge Street on the Royal mile, we had a pint of lager - Keith with fish and chips and Shawna with a burger.  
• Vittoria on the Bridge (Edinburgh) - Keith had been here two years ago with Valerie, Linda, and Lorriane, and the rest of the Dodds clan had been the first night of the trip.  But, with the kids happy with the food and the price right for Dick, we went back for another meal.  
• Queens Head (Berwick) - Had dinner with the Parrys where we shared the crab appetizer as well as the sea bass entrée.  
• Alnwick Castle Cafe -  We had lunch here, the food was average at best.  
• Milan (Wooler) - Pizza restaurant, good food, Keith and Ewan were relegated to the kids table!