Tags
hinges, kincardineshire, Laurencekirk, scotland, snuff, tea, virtual journey
Laurencekirk
Day 2. 14.6 miles.
As we virtually enter Laurencekirk I am parched. Luckilly, in just a couple of days this will be the site of the Scottish Tea Festival so if we stick around we can relax with a virtual cuppa.
Why the big deal about tea here in the Howe of the Mearns? I don’t see any tea bushes or trees or whatever. Allow me to enlighten you. James Taylor – a resident of the area – journeyed to Sri Lanka (altough it was called Ceylon at the time) and more or less founded the Ceylon tea trade. So we celebrate his laudable efforts by taking our elevenses while enjoying bus tours, exhibitions and, of course, cake.
Laurencekirk’s fame also hinges on hinges. It was well known in the day for the invention of some kind of airtight hinge used for snuff boxes. Probably quite a boon if you spend large amounts of money on what is, for all intents and purposes, dust.
We don’t have time for snuff though, After fortifying ourselves with a few gallons of tea we’ll set off on our merry way towards Montrose.