If you go down to the woods today...

...you'll pretty much be in the woods as I discovered on Saturday when I went for a walk in Countesswells Forest on the outskirts of Aberdeen. And I would like to report to my parents who told me stories when I was but a wee lassie that there were no teddy bears having their picnics in the forest. What a disappointment , next thing people will be telling me that there is no tooth fairy and that the man with the big belly, white beard and red coat is not real. 

But I must say all nonsense (ok well most nonsense) aside the Countesswells Forest walk is like stepping into a time and light trap. When approaching the forest you can already see that the tall huddled together trees fan out stopping the sunlight from making it all the way to the ground. 

Inside the belly of the forest there are trees that look like they were once creatures before being magically transformed into bark and leaves as punishment for some mischievous deed. They stand out from the tall and lean trees as a warning to behave in the forest. 

At times it feels like there is nothing but insects moving, birds chirping and trees that stretch towards the heavens. 

But then you spot an ancient boundary wall, like the ones you've seen in the King Arthur and Elizabeth movies. Yes these moss covered stone walls do exist and can even be found in the forest. 

Following the wall, you stumble to the edge of the forest where flora and fauna of Scotland meet. 

And you can look out onto open lands and nearby forests. 

Meanwhile back in the forest... 

a visitor can be heard approaching....

Well it may not be a bear but at least they were friendly. 

So as it turns out if you go down to the woods today...you will be in a place that allows you to wander both literally and figuratively. It is a place to explore, to relax, to ease your mind, 

to disappear into a cave of trees and escape the concrete of the city. 

And best of all (well at least for me) it is a place where you can watch light dance and filter itself through leaves and branches in a desperate attempt to touch the earth. 

Seen on the streets of London

So in an attempt not to feel too broken up over the fact that I was not able to attend my university graduation ceremony this last weekend I booked a flight to London to get my mind off home and onto the many adventures that lie ahead of me.

London was my first home away from home.  It was in 2004 that an eighteen year old me boarded a plane with my childhood friend, Jenna Berndt, with no job and only a youth hostel in Earls Court booked for a couple of nights. We were off to conquer the world and make our own way and as it turns out fall in love with London.

It's a city that dares you not to love it, with its seemingly unfriendly people and its at first highly confusing transport system.

Whenever I see the tube map I think how it is the incarnation of the city itself and I would not be surprised if it was London herself that inspired Harry Beck to come up with his innovative design for her rapid transit system. The tube map is a maze of coloured lines joining stations and showing where to change to move to other lines but the fascinating and innovating concept of this map is that unlike previous maps it does not conform to strict rules of geography. What you experience underground in London in not always what is happening on the surface.

Arriving in London late Thursday night I went to bed at my gracious friend's Claire and Alan's house thinking how I could spend my weekend in London trying to capture the sense of the city. How I could try and relate to my friends, family and anyone that reads my blog the very notion of being in London. And so the 'Seen on the streets of London' project was born.

I decided to use street photography to attempt to grasp the city in both hands as it allowed me to try incorporate both the city and its people together - hopefully exposing the nature of their relationship. For those unfamiliar with street photography I will get technical for a minute and say that it is linked to straight photography in the way that it is often seen as holding a mirror up to society. It is a form of documentary photography in public spaces that according to Smashing Magazine strives "...to capture the life and culture of city streets, searching for what Henri Cartier-Bresson, probably the most famous street photographer of all, termed the 'Decisive Moment'."

So this is my London project and I will build on it each time that I visit the city. I hope that you all enjoy it and feel that even miles away you are getting to know London a little better.

London - a playground for all ages. 

On the steps of the National Gallery during school break the city is heaving.



London is one of the most watched cities in the world with one CCTV camera for every 14 people (and that is a stat from 2008 so I am sure that there are even more in 2012). But London never loses its sense of humour with these rather odd 'big brother is watching you' statues that are looking out from St Martins in the field over to Trafalgar Square.

A lady browses the breath-taking photographs of London for sale in the market located in the Covent Garden Piazza. 

A passing pedestrian is reflected on a cafe table in Covent Garden. Rushing about is a London prerequisite but so is sitting a street side cafes, sleeping on the grass in the park and sipping a pint in the pub. 

National pride is everywhere in the UK at the moment even painted onto the iconic black cab. All in preparation for the London 2012 Olympic Games. 

"hmmm, hoodies are so last season! Don't you agree Alfred?"

That's more like it!



Polly Taylor on a 'Barclay's Cycle Hire or as Londoner's affectionately refer to them the Boris bikes. They are an exciting way to experience the city but not for the faint of heart and those that don't know the rules of the road. Oh and make sure you Mind the Gap and the pedestrians.  

Alternative ways of seeing London - great heights and street level in amongst the cabs, buses and people.

A city by the river. 

A international food market gives people the change to exchange smiles with faces from all over the world. It is a cosmopolitan city. 

And for those with a sweet tooth you could exchange money for delicious macaroons....

or mouth watering coffee! 

Ground Control coffee from Ethiopia. 

London to me is feeling accepted - like you are home. That no matter where you are from here in London you are part of a city of cities. 

Djamel is from West Africa and was drawing flags from all the countries in the world to raise money to take his sister out for supper. She arrived in London three days ago after being estranged for eleven years. 

Peace and Love 

Dear Shan,

You were scared of water and knew all the best hiding places when it came time to be bathed.

Yet when mom and dad tried to find the frogs keeping them awake,

You would always be leading the hunting party, stalking the pool area and even dunking your head into the water to catch the offending little guys.

No insect, mouse or frog was safe in the house with you around.

You quietly loved us in your own way letting the others fight for attention.

A shadow, always there making sure that we were safe.

You will be missed and forever loved.  

xxxx

Dunnottar Castle - A fortress of memories

As you take the turn off the main A92 and begin to meander along a country road, large stone walls begin to materialize on the horizon. You catch glimpses of a castle tower, and then walls, anchored to the land but at the same time seemingly floating in the ocean. Against all grown up logic my imagination starts galloping ahead and I am sure that with every winding step towards the castle the mystery, adventure and magic of my first Scottish castle is coming alive. It's in the waves crashing on the cliffs below, the eerily coldness of the rooms and the feeling of for a split second knowing how it was to live when Kings and Queens ruled and fortresses like Dunnottar Castle were home to powerful Earls.  

Dunnottar Castle 

Dunnottar Castle from the steps, which may not seem it on the way down but are pretty darn steep.

Long gone are the days when Dunnottar stood magnificently on the cliff top daring any enemy brave enough to  tackle its fortress walls to come charging. But its sense of determination is still there in the Keep that refuses to fall and the Chapel that remembers all the years of prayers. Not surprising then that the name Dunnottar stems from the Pictish word 'Dun' which means hill fort or place of strength. And although the giant stone walls that once were pillars of strength and resistance have crumbled and the grass has laid claim to them, some parts of this place refuses to give up its fight. 

One of the most powerful families in Scotland, the Earls Marischal, from the 14th Century lived in Dunnottar Castle and built the Tower House, also known as the Keep, which still stands today. Yet this is not the thing most talked about or remembered about Dunnottar. Instead what is spoken about in battle stories far and wide is that it was here at the place of strength upon a hilltop that a small garrison held out against the might of Cromwell's army and saved the Scottish Crown Jewels (the Honours of Scotland). The remarkable part of this story is that they did not just fight off Cromwell's men once but held them off for eight months. Can you imagine the isolation, fear but sheer determination the people inside the castle must have felt to survive and somehow sneak the crown jewels out. The jewels which consisted of the crown, sceptre and sword can now all be found proudly on display in Edinburgh Castle.

The Palace reflected in the fountain. 

The Tower House or Keep 

A dinning room in the Palace. This is the  best preserved room in the castle.

Part of the Palace.

Bending through doorways, following narrow spiral staircases and walking down large stone steps into dark rooms where your breathe turns to vapour as soon as it leaves your mouth is slightly unnerving as you enter rooms like the Whig's Vault that house some of the more sinister chapters of Dunnottar's history. In 1685 a group of 167 Covenanters (122 men and 45 women) were imprisoned in the Whig's Vault, suffering deprivation, hardship and torture for refusing to acknowledge the King's supremacy in spiritual matters.  The room is long and narrow but standing there while white clouds dissipate in front of my face I can't imagine the horrific situation of having 167 people crammed in that one room, with no way out. 

The Chapel also has a darker chapter to its history. In the 12th Century it became a Catholic settlement with a stone chapel being built in 1276. Yet according to sources William Wallace set fire to this chapel with a garrison of English soldiers taking refugee inside. The chapel that we see now at Dunnottar was built in the 16th Century.  

The Chapel 

Dunnottar Castle has a history that goes back centuries and it has over time become part of the landscape. Deserted by its residents it has become a playground for the wind and rain, a safe haven for the birds, a graveyard of memories of past inhabitants and a exploration for all those that visit it.