Culzean in the Rain

(The title has more resonance when you know that Culzean is pronounced Cull-ane!)

The rain in Spain may have stayed mainly on the plain, but in Scotland it pours everywhere and we've had more than our share today! Not a day to be walking out and about, so we decided to visit Culzean Castle, romantically situated right on the coast not far from Ayr.

It's been altered drastically from its original building, mainly by additions designed by Robert Adams, both inside and out. So it's really just a VERY grand private house now (managed by the National Trust for Scotland).

The highlight for me was to have been the Oval Staircase, as I've seen lots of pictures of it. Disappointingly, you weren't allowed to go up to the top level from where you get the best view of the oval shape and (even worse) someone had decided to change the carpet from the original plain red (very dramatic) to a multi-coloured, highly patterned travesty (not just my opinion - even some of the staff agreed!)

The grounds looked stunning, but the weather defeated us and we rushed back to the warmth and comfort of the cottage. Maybe tomorrow will be better!

Please excuse the water splodges on the picture, but it wouldn't stop raining even for me to take a quick snap! You can see the puddles on the lawn!