Lindisfarne Castle

Lindisfarne Castle must be one of the most isolated castles in the world. It has its own island which can be cut off completely by the causeway; and is built on a gigantic mound. It has a classic winding path climbing upwards; perfect for defenders to chuck rocks or boiling oil down on its attackers. There’s also a large cave area, perfect for a secluded secret dock; or to be used as a storage room for food during sieges. Its round towers offer views for miles around of both approaching ships and also traffic from the mainland. Eric and his Vikings would have had a hard time storming this castle! But if they did storm it; it would have to be during high tide so that reinforcements would not be able to arrive from the mainland. I’m not sure if that’s a flagpole or a transmitter protruding from its highest tower…

Lindisfarne Priory

In pursuit of St. Columba, we followed the eastern coastline southwards across the English border to reach Lindisfarne on Holy Island. Here we were able to drive across the causeway to reach the Priory. This beautiful twelfth century building has some amazing archways and pillars amongst its architecture, as well as the remains of the traditional chimney. It’s quite strange how some of the lower arches have been bricked up; though this is more likely restoration work to keep the structure standing rather than something sinister hidden deep within its vaults. There are also arrow markings on one of the pillars, as if constantly reminding worshipers to keep looking up. The gardens are well kept with hyacinth plants, and there’s even a lighthouse to climb and explore the nature of the North Sea. I half expected to see a rabble of rabbits hopping about, but sadly Channel 4 filmed that sequence elsewhere.

The Long Dark Tea-Time of the Soul by Douglas Adams

The Long Dark Tea-Time of the Soul by Douglas Adams
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Dirk Gently returns for another occult mystery; this time with the Norse gods, though he seems the only character to care as to why the crime occurred. The style of this book is a lot livelier than its predecessor. The conclusion is so abrupt that I didn't actually realise that the book had ended. I never could work out the significance of the eagles other than as a decoy to cease the advancement of the plot. And it’s a real shame that Kate never gets her questions answered; which allows Adams to stall or advance the story as much as he likes. In short, you have to become a detective to discover the narrative yourself. Still, the story does give some very useful life advice; such as what to do if you need your car fixed in a hurry; or what to do if you become lost down a countryside lane.

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The Lantern

Lights flash in a vertical pattern, slowly getting brighter and brighter. The torso begins to revolve silently in a clockwise direction. As it completes its first revolution, it comes to a halt. The triangular sections of the upper and lower panels of the light begin to fold outward. Two lights can be seen flashing intermediately; a blue light emitting from the top; and a red light from below. The room suddenly grows dark. An electronic siren sounds as the remaining light panels slide open; together with the iron railings below. As the siren ceases, a spiral staircase emerges leading down into the ground. Yellow lights replace red and blue, illuminating each step. The topmost panel flashes yellow. Then the opportunity passes. The spiral staircase descends back into the ground. The panel slides shut, and the lantern revolves once in an anticlockwise direction before coming to a halt and the light dims.

Prayer Wheel

On the ground floor of the National Museum of Scotland sits this very colourful prayer wheel. Rather than write their prayers down to be recited from; these wheels could mark the progression of a monk’s spiritual journey. Perhaps he is only allowed to turn the wheel when he or she has achieved a special stage in life. The carvings on each wheel means that the reader must take a precise amount of time to reflect on each symbol before they are allowed to turn each point of the wheel. Perhaps the wheel could summon a particular spirit or demon if turned in the correct manner; or reveal a passageway if turned in sequence. Perhaps treasure or ancient scrolls could be hidden in each wheel; or maybe the roof sheltering the rack could raise or rotate to be a wooden canvas, or be used as a boat. You could even spin each wheel to see what you’ve won from the temple; a line of five means you’ve won a goat!  

The Millennium Clock

Hidden at the far end of the Scottish History Museum is the Millennium Clock. This magnificent grandfather clock depicts several scenes of myth and folklore throughout the ages.  Although the inner workings of the clock aren’t in motion; the figures are magnificent. At the bottom, we have the devil urging the tin man to spin the cogs faster and faster to impede mankind to fall. You can almost hear the figures come to life; urging each other to work harder to increase mankind’s suffering. The pendulum in the centre ridden by a human skeleton reflects the modern age; watched by the animal kingdom as man makes his mark upon the world above; with models of cannon and warfare. At the very top of the tower is the golden angel representing heaven. It’s as if these figures are the guardians of time; who choose to accelerate or slow the clock as and when they please.

History Museum, Edinburgh

Hidden away from the hustle and bustle of city life is Edinburgh's History Museum. This building had an amazing atmosphere as it was playing host to a free fringe event; and the acoustics were fantastic in the main reception hall. The animal room was amazing; with skeletons hanging from the ceiling and a complete model shark floated above us as if caught in its own Sharknado! We also got up close and personal with meteorites in the space room; where metals from another world have been captured and cased for all to see; alongside a giant model of our DNA. We also saw a Chinese prayer wheel; a full scale 18^th century locomotive, and a huge furnace (which sadly wasn’t in action today, though I had seen it before). There were many other floors of the museum that we didn’t get a chance to visit; you really need a full morning in order to view everything.