Sometimes she's Cathy, sometimes she's Mum, but generally we all like to call her Nana (she's actually Tanya's Mum), and she's a very special lady who turned 80 last weekend.
And what an 80 year old she is. Fit as a fiddle, full of life, joy and happiness, Nana is one of the kindest and most helpful people you could ever meet. She’s always busy, always doing something, generally something for someone else, and somehow still finds time for a crossword, Wordle or whatever other puzzle needs solving.
She is loved enormously by her children, in-laws and grandkids, as well as by the many, many friends she has gathered over the years. More than anything, though, when I think of Nana I think of her zest for life. She enjoys it, embraces it and brings that sense of fun and happiness to everyone around her.
So it felt only right to mark 80 years properly. The family all got together and we spent the weekend at the wonderful Fettykil Lodge near Glenrothes - eating far too much good food, playing games, laughing a lot, enjoying the hot tub, sauna and BBQ pit, and even managing a bit of a walk.
A brilliant weekend for a truly wonderful woman.
Happy 80th Birthday, Nana. Very much loved - and very, very special. ❤️
My big brother, David, was 60 at the end of last year. Since then he has been milking the decade-birthday thing quite successfully - and why not. My present to him was a trip to Switzerland, Grindelwald to be precise. It was also a nod to Mum and Dad, as it was one of their favourite places to go, so we also took a little of them to scatter.
Now I'm lucky enough to have been to many beautiful places and I thought I knew what I was letting myself in for but really, any expectation I had was surpassed quite quickly. It simply is the most beautiful place in the world.
Anyway, I'm slightly jumping ahead - first things first. Getting there was more epic than planned. Up at 3am for a 6am flight from Glasgow which, for a variety of reasons saw me missing my connecting flight in Schipol and whilst it could have been worse, after 7 hours in the airport I decided that Schipol really wasn't the most beautiful place in the world.
So then on to Swiss transport - many, many leagues apart from the UK. Everything works seamlessly - wherever you are going there's something every half an hour and if you're connecting then you never wait more than 5 minutes. This seems to cross transport modes as well - train, bus, boat all the same. I'm sure someone will find examples where this isn't the case but the complexity and attention to detail here just blew me away. Imagine designing a train station with bus/taxi stops on one side and a port on the other and then ensuring that the trains all pulled in to the nearest platform to meet any connections needed. Insane levels of thought has gone into this. And it didn't stop there, everything in Switzerland just seemed so well thought out and top quality. Massive investment all round I guess.
Anyway - I arrived late at night and we were up early the next day to do the Eiger Trail which descends down at the foot of the North Face of the Eiger - about 1,800m of sheer rock face (which is higher than Ben Nevis!). Its hard to get any sense of scale but when you stand at its base it just blows you away. Then after winding our way down, the evening saw us attend part of the inaugural national youth yodelling festival - an incredible way to be introduced to Swiss culture courtesy of some resident experts sitting opposite us. And yes, yodelling really did originate to communicate across the valleys.
Next day and we got the lift up First, walked to Bachalspee (arguably the best view I have ever seen), then back down to descend the mountain via Mountain Cart and Trottibike. A truly amazing experience. Then a little more youth yodelling before a top quality meal out.
Day Three was the biggest in terms of walking. Lift up to Mannlichen, then the Royal Walk for views into the neighbouring valley overlooking Murren, Lauterbrunnen and Wengen. Then it was the Panorama Trail to Kleine Scheindigg looking on to the Eiger, Monch and Jungfrau and back over Grindelwald. It was on the trail we scattered some ashes. Then the final descent all the way back to Grindelwald. We ended a little weary, but energy was restored with a traditional fondue.
Our final day before return evening flights saw us explore Lake Brienz, take a dip at Iseltwald and a boat across the lake. A quick stop in Bern and then it was Zurich airport.
The whole thing was action packed but without too much intensity, and I loved Switzerland overall - partly because everything seemed very 'high-end' and worked well. However what I really loved was the setting. It's hard to describe. Cradled in the mountains, the North Face towering over you, crystal clear aquamarine lakes, snow capped peaks, fairytale mountain chalets, alpine meadows...you kind of get the picture. I mean it helped we had amazing weather, but honestly, it probably is the most beautiful place in the world.
And it was great spending time with my brother, Back in the day, we did many trips together, often skiing but other things too. It was great to rekindle that sense of brotherhood. A real bonding and a whole heap of fun to boot. Here's to many more (although we haven't mentioned those yet)...
