auchterarder no more

it has been a rather curious sight, for the past few days, seeing shots of auchterarder (the tiny village beside gleneagles) on Japanese TV.

as the worlds media focus on the G8 meeting amid the madness of mass rallies in edinburgh, riots, the live8 concerts and now the sad terrorist attacks in london, the pictures of rural perthshire remind me of the irony of having all this happen in such a beautiful but nondescript place.

working on a job at gleneagles last february I frequently made the drive from glasgow to perthshire in the middle of winter. the blue skies and the countryside enveloped in layers of frost and lying fog, made it a most serene and tranquil journey. even mr bush was saying today that, after a bike ride, it's a spectacular part of the world. he liked looking at the views so much infact that he crashed into a police officer at speed.

what an endorsement said visitscotland.com. indeed. what an endorsement.