Snowdrops in the cold

Yesterday the weather was chilly and damp, and we swithered (good Scottish word meaning that we kept changing our minds) about joining the walking friends - hoping, frankly, that someone would decide to call it off. However, no one did and we pulled ourselves together and went. It remained cold and damp but didn't actually rain, so our virtue was rewarded. There was a smirr in the air; nothing more. This is another Scottish word, which means water particles just hanging, like a very fine but invisible mist. It's a handy word for our climate. 

We walked along by the sea. Can you see it, or the land on the other side? Well, quite. 

We passed the oldest house in Portobello.

and walked on into Musselburgh, where this old phone box has been adopted by the community as a sort of - what would you call it? A shelved plant stand. 

Then we reached Inveresk, a pretty little village, where we visited the garden of Shepherd House. This is a 18th century house which has been lived in since 1957 by a couple, Sir C and Lady F, who have transformed the garden into a thing of beauty, and they open it to the public to raise money for charity - but also, I suppose, because gardeners love to show their plants to other enthusiasts. They're now well into their 90s. 

They have something like 150 varieties of snowdrops, including this one that I really love, with a yellow, um, bit. I thought it might be the calyx but have just looked it up and it isn't. 

I blogged about this garden last year, when we also came to admire the snowdrops.

Sir C, the owner, came out and walked round the garden with us. He's a real pet - 96 and still full of beans. The garden is full of quirky touches, such as this sheep. 

He's better with hellebores than I am. 

This is a window in his summer house. 

He very kindly said we could eat our lunches in their conservatory, which was excellent because we were quite chilly.

So I'm very glad we conquered our laziness and went. It was a lovely day out with nice friends.