Far Away

Here are two very different long-distance awards I’ve picked up on my travels so far this year.

The first one is from an event in Ireland and features old-style Irish coins from before the country's adoption of the Euro. The second is from one in Wales and is a working glass clock which has now been installed in my shed.

Both events were organised by friends in the MZ Riders Club and, as I had arrived at both events on my Aprilia, I was pleasantly surprised to be considered for any award at all.

Amerique

Weekend Roundup

(From the pages of the Internet)

Keg Party

(Spotted online)

Korean War Memorial

Venturing a little further afield, I rode just along the coast to Linlithgow to visit the Korean War Memorial. I’d only just found out about the place and thought I’d go have a look.

It’s in a large park, and the countryside nearby is meant to remind veterans of the conflict of the terrain over which they fought. It’s certainly tucked away and you’d be hard pushed to find it if you didn’t know where to look.

The memorial was created by the Lothians and West of Scotland branch of the now defunct British Korean Veterans Association as a tribute to the memory of their fallen comrades.

The Memorial is an arboretum of 1,114 native Scottish trees, one for every man who died, and a shrine surrounded by two mounds in the shape of the Ying and Yang on the Korean flag.

The shrine is built in the traditional style of a Korean shrine and contains name boards listing all the 1,114 men who died.

It is the only memorial in the UK dedicated to the Korean War that does this. The mounds have 110 Korean firs on them; one for every ten men who died.

Not just combatants

There are two seats and a picnic area for those who would like to spend a little time in reflection.

The site, in the hills overlooking the Firth of Forth, was donated by West Lothian Council, who maintain the memorial.

You can squeeze your bike through the gates and ride up to the structure itself for some photos, I’ve seen it done, but I left the bike outside as I didn’t think it was in the spirit of the place.

(History in italics from VisitWestLothian website)

Testing Times

At the test station

Time to MOT* the beast. Happy to say that it sailed through, so I took it for a bit of a run to celebrate.

View along the coast showing the bridges

These shots were mostly taken in South Queensferry, just outside Edinburgh.

The original Forth Bridge features quite regularly on this site as I think it's worthy of photographing.

This, on the other hand, I have no idea about. It appears to be the Loch Ness Monster in ceramic tiles.

*annual inspection