Tuesday, January 24, 2006

Scotland

During our brief time in Glasgow, Scotland, we decided to visit Roslyn Chapel. I had read about this place long before "The DaVinci Code" was ever written and had wanted to visit ever since. It was a doomed trip...

To get to the Chapel, we traveled 40 minutes by train from East Kilbride to Glasgow, another 55 minutes from Glasgow to Edinburgh and yet another 45 minutes by bus to the small town of Roslin. When we finally arrived at the Chapel, my son asked me why there was a hearse there. It turned out that there was a funeral in process and access to the Chapel was closed until its conclusion. Time was running short for us to catch the next bus back to Edinburgh when we finally were allowed in. We had a fleeting 20 minutes to look arouns and to make matters worse, the batteries in my digital camera were fading out and half the photos that I thought were taken were lost. None the less, the meer 20 minutes were well worth it and we have promised to return again someday. All Masons visiting Scotland would do well to visit. Pictured above is the Apprentice Pillar.

Back in Edinburgh, it was my sincere hope to at least pop into the Grand Lodge of Scotland - well by the time I got there, it had already closed down for the night. I guess I have will have to visit Edinburgh again as well.

2 comments:

Greg Stewart said...

It sounds like a great trip brother. I was there some 11 years ago, and didn't visit Rosslyn, and I regret it. I'm glad to hear it was worth it.

Russ Bonchu said...

Hey brother! Nice Blog you have here! I just wanted to add that if you go back, I've been told you should visit Mother Kilwinning Lodge. This is one of the oldest in the world, and is creditted w/ being the 1st "Grand Lodge" because they chartered other lodges for centuries before the GL of Scottland. Very interesting history. BTW, I checked out your rings, and I must say you do very interesting and unique work (I mean that in a good way, as in your rings are not the usual designs you see all the time). And the fact that they are so affordable and durable is highly commendable. Keep up the good work!

Russ Bonchu
JW Cleveland Lodge #781
russbonchu@bluebottle.com