Dumfries House

The day dawned with lashing rain and we thought "Oh no, not again!" Every time we go anywhere the rain comes too!

It followed us all through Perthshire, past Stirling and Glasgow with the mist so low, you could hardly see the hills.

However, as soon as we crossed the border into East Ayrshire, the sun came out and stayed out for the rest of the day in a beautiful blue sky:-).

We (that's the royal "we", which means me!) had planned a stay in a hotel in Cumnock and a visit to Dumfries House, a few minutes up the road. We stopped for a snack at a local hostelry, but ended up having a delicious two course lunch!

With impeccaple timing, we arrived just in time at Dumfries House for our pre-booked tour, which was packed, mostly with Americans. They ooh'ed and aah'ed at every beautiful room, as did we all. It really is stunning, with so much of the original furnishings, including 10% of all the genuine Chippendale furniture ever made!

Unfortunately, i had to cut our tour short by one or two rooms when I started to feel unwell and had to ask to be shown outside to get some air. The last thing I wanted was to be sick over their priceless carpets:-)

The fresh air revived me and I managed to take this shot of the front of the house (one of the Adams' brothers earliest commissions) with no people in the shot. A real bonus!

Back at the hotel now and rather dreading the thought of the meal booked for 7 pm. Hope they have some lighter options!

If the weather holds, we hope to have a look around Ayrshire tomorrow before returning home and rescuing Simba from yet another stay in the cattery!