Adventures in Peterculter

Aberdeen's a really amazing city, but sometimes it's nice to go somewhere that's a bit quieter for a bit of a respite. At the end of the Turquoise Line/#19 is a beautiful village called Peterculter. I passed through it for the first time way back in January or February, when I decided on a whim one evening to use my student day ticket to ride the #19 to its terminus - a terminus that was much further out than I had expected. I resolved to go back, and I did so on the 25th of May, where I happened into the Richmond Arms, where Georgia Crawl was playing live. It was such a great experience that I decided to go back at least once more - and to write a blog post about the place!

My next sojourn took place a few weeks ago on the Navigator's last night in Scotland, and we went once again to the Richmond Arms. We enjoyed a great dinner, and the proprietor, Jim, came up with an impromptu creation involving haddock, rice, and peas that was awesome. A couple of weeks later, rather than wait for a bus to take us to the Brig o' Balgownie and St. Machar Cathedral, Ginger Magic and I hopped on the #19 and went out to Peterculter for the beautiful scenery both in the village and on the way to and fro, and to the Richmond Arms for a pint and some atmosphere. One of the things that I like about the Richmond Arms is that, unlike the pub feel of the adjoining Black's Bar, the Richmond Arms sort of feels like you're in someone's sitting room. It's quite literally the kind of pub that people can (and do) take their kids to. One of my favorite memories of Scotland was when the Navigator and I watched as a kid came over to his dad (who was sitting at the bar) to ask when they were leaving, to which his dad smiled and replied, "Just one more." Hilarious, and so quintessentially Scottish.

Even though I'll probably leave Aberdeen having spent just a few hours in Peterculter, I'm glad that I've taken the time to make it out there a few times. It's so easy to get tied into places like Edinburgh, Glasgow, Aberdeen, Inverness, or even Orkney, that you lose track of the fact that Scotland has little villages with people living real lives, just like any other place. For me, Peterculter has turned into a beautiful place to sneak away to in order to remember that.