Proper holidays - well, nearly

I'm back home after a whole SIX DAYS away. I know it's not long really, but for me it felt like an age. So many people have said to me 'you need a break', but it's hard to get back into the habit of taking holidays of any length when for so long it's been necessary to stay close to home.
It's only now I can take holidays again that I've considered how long ago my last proper holiday was. There've been short breaks - a couple of nights at Curious Arts Festival, another two in Edinburgh with my daughter - but 2015 is the most recent that I've been away for longer (three nights in Edinburgh, and four nights near St Davids in Pembrokeshire). As my parents' health deteriorated it just wasn't possible to leave home.

Free Fringe on the Royal Mile

Now I'm free to go away where and when I choose - and it's strange. Amongst other concerns, I find there are so many places I want to re-visit, and so many new ones to discover, that I don't know where to begin. We spent two nights at Timber festival in July, tested the whole 'going away' idea at the beginning of this month with two nights in Norfolk and now we've taken a whole five nights away from home!

Portobello beach

Loch Crinan - somewhere in the distance Iain Banks
 situated the fictional town of Gallanach

This time we headed North, first spending two nights just outside Edinburgh, hoping to see some of the Fringe festival and a bit of the coast. Then, while so many visitors to Scotland are heading off to the North Coast 500 route, we went west to Argyll, the setting for Iain Banks' novel, The Crow Road. (I took so many photos I had to split this section into two posts - Loch Fyne and Crinan; part one ; part two )I think folk are definitely missing out by dashing straight up north, but it keeps this lesser known area free of the tourist bustle.

Loch Sween

Both are places we know well, and have visited several times. Unfortunately it meant we knew of so many things to do, and places to visit, that attempting them all was impossible in the short time we had. Edinburgh was fun though, but Argyll was better, especially with our daughter along and persuading me to go swimming one evening in a sea loch. There'll be more photos to follow - but none of the swimming :)