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"We seem to be going
towards the mountains, Bruce. There are more rivers and more rocks, and
the hills are covered with purple heather. It’s very pretty, but I do
notice a wee chill in the air, don’t you?" Bonnie asked.
"It’s colder. We’re heading
north. We’re headed for a small town called Braemar. I remember hearing
that the Highland Games were being held right now. I thought we might
enjoy them," Bruce said.
"Oh, the Braemar Games.
Yes, of course. I’ve heard of them," Bonnie said as she flapped her wings.
"Look down there," Bruce
said. "There are hundreds of cars and see all the people. I think we’ve
arrived." They flew toward the crowd.
"My goodness, there’s an
awful noise coming from there. What’s all that booming and squeaking
noises? It’s not bagpipes again, is it?" Bonnie asked.
"You had fun listening to
them before. There are quite a few bands," Bruce noted, looking down.
"What shall we do first? Watch the pipe bands, the Highland dancers, or
eat?"
"Let’s go and watch the
dancers," Bonnie replied. They landed on a tree branch above the platform,
sat down and watched the lassies and laddies dance. "Isn’t that marvelous?
Look at their kilts swaying around."
"I like the sword dancing,"
Bruce said.
The two butterflies sat for
a while, swinging their legs back and forth with the beat of the music.
"We can’t stay here all day or we’ll miss the next event. What should we
go and see now?" Bonnie asked.
"The pipe and drum bands,"
Bruce added.
"All right. Off we go, but
don’t be surprised if my hands end up on my ears," Bonnie giggled. They
flew to a large rock, not far from where the bands were performing. "Look
at all the kilts! Green, blue, red, yellow, black, white; so many colors
of tartan."
"It’s rather nice," Bruce
added, but he had to scream so that Bonnie could hear over the beating
drums. Finally they realized that there was no sense in trying to speak.
They couldn’t hear each other. It was just too noisy.
After a while, Bonnie
tapped Bruce on the shoulder. She waved her hand, showing him that she
wanted to go. She flew off. Bruce, who was enjoying the pipers and
drummers, followed. They stopped in a field. "I can’t take that any more.
It’s too noisy!" Bonnie sighed. Just then a large tree trunk came flying
through the air and thudded on the ground next to the butterflies. "Watch
out!" Bonnie said, grabbing Bruce’s hand and flying off. The caber barely
missing them.
"What was that? Who’s
throwing tree trunks?" Bruce asked.
"It’s the caber toss. Look
at those men down there; the ones with the large, muscular arms," Bonnie
pointed. They watched as a man picked another one up and threw it through
the air. "WOW!"
"It’s not really a tree
trunk. It’s more like a telephone pole," Bruce laughed as it went flying
past his antenna.
"I think we’re in a bad
place. We’re in the middle of the caber toss and look over there; it’s the
shot put and the hammer throw. Our choices are noisy pipe bands or flying
poles. I say we head into town where it’s a wee bit quieter," Bonnie
suggested.
Off they went, heading
towards Braemar. They spotted a small flower garden and fluttered down to
it. "This is much better and much quieter," Bruce said, happy to have
peace. "Oh, look over there, Bonnie. It’s the cottage where Robert Louis
Stevenson stayed when he wrote the first part of ‘Treasure Island’, one of
his famous novels. That was way back in the late 1800’s though."
"That’s interesting,"
Bonnie said, not paying much attention. She was busy digging her proboscis
into a little purple pansy that was touched with gold in the center.
After a while Bruce asked,
"Have you had enough to eat? I see a storm forming in the clouds. It
doesn’t look good. I think we’d better head out before it hits."
Bonnie looked up. The sky
was rumbling and filled with black clouds that had dark green lining. "Oh,
it does look stormy. Let’s get out of here." They flew away, leaving the
town behind them. "What’s that down there?" Bonnie asked, noticing a
beautiful building below them. "It looks like a castle. Isn’t it
magnificent!"
"It’s Braemar Castle. It
was built around 1628 by the Stewart family. The original castle burned
down and this one, the one that you see below, was rebuilt. The royal
family still enjoy coming for a visit," Bruce explained. He looked up at
the sky. CRASH! BOOM! "Time to pick up speed. We’re in for a wild one."
They flew off, hoping they’d miss the storm.
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