Beith

I landed in Glasgow at 5:30pm yesterday (Monday), and thankfully I had just hours before found a place to stay in a small town about 40 minutes out of the city. From the airport, the 500 bus took me to the city center, and from there the X36 bus hauled me 40 minutes out of town and dropped me in Beith (pronounced Beeth). My new friend, Breandan picked me up at the local co-op (market) with his friend Frankie and we walked to his house which was about 5 minutes away.

Breandan is a very interesting guy. He's 21 and is already a widely traveled fellow. Not to mention he's a world champion speed-cuber. If you don't know what that is, let me just say that Breandan can solve a Rubix Cube from any starting pattern in around 7 or 8 seconds. Needless to say, that's a pretty impressive feat, especially to me, the guy that gets a headache just looking at a Rubix Cube. When his mum got home from work, they cooked me supper and we ate together. Pauline is no less interesting, a self-taught harpist who not only writes music, but even wrote a country-western song on the harp, covers songs from the Foo Fighters to classic Irish ballads, and runs marathons across Scotland. AND she's a Bob Dylan fan. Anyone who knows me knows that I really enjoyed myself.

After supper, Breandan suggested that we take a drive from Beith over to the sea coast. The roads we took could have been in any calendar, picturesque and winding. Sheep dotted the countryside , and Breandan tried his hand at shepherding a lamb that was blocking the road back into the pasture . The sun set behind us as we turned way from the coast and back home. After a cup of tea, and a few episodes of Family Guy, I we headed to bed. Though I met these fine folks though couchsurfing, they offered me an open bed, and I slept better than I have in a long time. I woke up to a wonderful surprise. Blue skies and sunshine! After hearing about how pretty weather is so hard-earned and highly appreciated here in Scotland, I'm really soaking up the sun and vitamin D while I can. I had a shower this morning, first in a few days, and hand washed my clothes in the tub. It reminded me of hand washing my clothes on the Camino de Santiago with Emily, my sister, and I wish she was with me.

I left Beith this morning and bid farewell to Breandan and Pauline around 11:15am. After getting the bus back into Glasgow, I boarded the train at Queen Street Station bound for Oban. The next post will pick up from here. Breandan and Pauline, next time I see you I would very much like to hear the harp, see some juggling, and try that famous French toast I've read about. You'll always have a place with me, and I hope our paths cross again sooner than later.

 

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