.png)
Right now, things are looking beautifully white on Bute. The images of Rothesay, Bute and the Kyles of Bute blanketed in snow is such a breathtaking sight. I am fascinated by the photos and I cannot wait to experience it one day myself.
For many of us in Australia, we envisage that snow would be a regular occurence for all of Scotland. However, it would appear that snow is not necessarily a given on Bute. Typically the summers are cool, but with magnificently long days and incredible sunsets. The winters are long, wet and often very windy. But the temperatures pretty much stay between 2°C and 18°C and they rarely dip below -3°C or go much above 22°C. As a result, it doesn't always snow on the island and I suspect that the snow might be a bit of a novelty for the locals too!
Here is a beautiful view of my flat from the other side of the street with the snow starting to form, and then the same view back to that point from inside my flat from the bay window.
I have marked up this photo with red arrows, so that you can see the bay window and the window from the 2nd bedroom. It is also a really nice way to see the entire tenement building from a different angle.
From inside the flat, the view toward the village, castle, bay and mountains looks a bit different too!
Around Rothesay, the smattering of snow in the village and on the mountains is a beautiful contrast to the blue skies.
All of these snaps are courtesy of Trish and Shaun. Their eye for the aesthetic certainly extends to their photography skills too. I love receiving these snaps from them!
I also eagerly follow the work of Paul Paterson, an impressive Scottish photographer who takes incredible shots of nature as well as professional press sports photography. I particularly love his work that is close to Bute and the Kyles of Bute, such as these stunning shots:
Check out Paul's work here: https://paulpatersonphotography.smugmug.com/ and on Facebook here: https://www.facebook.com/paulpatersonphotography
But the snow has not hampered the renovation activities taking inside my flat. On my last trip to Rothesay, Trish and Shaun took me off for a day trip to the mainland. And although I was not feeling 100%, we pretty much agreed on the entire kitchen during that trip. We also picked up some amazing lights for each room.
Today, I awoke to a message from Trish to confirm that our beautiful navy kitchen cabinets and oak countertops have arrived! To my disbelief, Trish and Shaun helped the rather elderly delivery driver with all of these boxes up the 4 flights of stairs..... Thank you so much from over here!!!
And with a wee bit of additional plastering from our old mates Dave and Ritchie, the kitchen is ready to be installed.
I can't wait to see what this week brings, as I suspect that the kitchen will soon have a very different appearance.