From Scotland with Love: brutalist bus shelters, donkeys and SaxaVord space camp
a travel newsletter for the curious and creative
Isle of Lewis brutalist bus shelters
Isle of Lewis, Outer Hebrides
Even if you’re not a fan of Brutalist architecture, you might just soften your heart to the scaled-down version in the concrete bus shelters of Lewis. Installed as part of a youth employment scheme in 1979/80, they were designed to withstand some particularly brutalist weather conditions in the Outer Hebrides. You might welcome sheltering here whilst you wonder when the next bus will turn up. They’re also popular with sheep looking for refuge from the elements.
Previous bus shelter designs had been short-lived so council planners decided to go for a more robust shelter to counteract continuous replacement of flimsy metal/glass/plastic templates. There’s also now an ongoing youth project to renovate the wooden bus shelters of Lewis.
The photographer Alex Boyd has captured the simple beauty of the concrete shelters.
Keose is captured by John Maher, Buzzcocks drummer now living in Outer Hebrides
Photographer Ralph Hodgson has documented some of the shelters.
Lewis-based photographer Ralph Tongue is also a fan and offers landscape photography tours in Outer Hebrides.
If you want to stay near one of the shelters this renovated blackhouse and this accommodation with a reading corner is just a short walk away from the shelter at Cirbhig (Kirivick). For accommoation in Lewis, book early, especially for the peak summer months.
Some other bus shelter locations in Lewis:
For those who have been there, done that, they can get the t-shirt and shop local from LOOM Graphics shop
John Bellany: A Life in Self-Portraiture exhibition
City Art Centre, Edinburgh
31st May - 28th September 2025
Now open, a major exhibition of the late Scottish artist’s life and works. There will also be exclusive tours, talks and workshops. Whilst in Edinburgh, you can visit his grave at Dean Cemetery which is right next to the National Gallery of Modern Art.
John Bellany spent some of his later life living in Barga,Italy (also known as Little Scotland).
Donkeys rule, okay?
St Boswells, near Melrose
every Saturday afternoon
Whilst everyone who comes to Scotland seems to obsess over finding a hairy Highland coo, spare a thought for the humble donkey. If your heart doesn’t melt for a donkey, I don’t think we can be friends anymore. Find some time to visit the donkeys at the Scottish Donkey Sanctuary in the Scottish Borders. There’s over 100 donkeys, each with their own quirky character. Guided tours are also available. They’re just as lovable as our horned hairy heifers but at least five times less likely to take your eye out when you go in for the cuddle (yes tourists will actually try to do that). Open every Saturday 1-4pm get tickets here
Holy Cow, it’s a cafe with a secret garden
Edinburgh
I’m a wine loving, non-vegan and yet this is one of my favourite cafes to drop into day or night (no booking required). It even has a secret herb-garden patio that I love to show visitors to Edinburgh. This is a great pit stop to say an alcohol-free goodbye or hello to any guests arriving/leaving Edinburgh on the train or bus. The seasonal food choices are simple and delicious and there is a glass cabinet packed with homemade gluten-free cakes and tarts - all of which have tasted amazing.
This is also handy on Friday/Saturday evenings when everywhere around you is booked out. Tucked away on Elder Street behind the bus station, Holy Cow is my secret tip. And finding the secret patio on a sunny day is like a slice of gluten-free paradise. All day breakfasts, legendary burgers, dirty chips and lashings of ginger beer.
Last month to catch Scottish Colourists exhibition
Dovecot Studios, Edinburgh
until 29th June 2025
An extra day has been added to this fascinating exhibition, looking at the Scottish Colourists: Radical Perspectives in the context of their European contemporaries. Many of the paintings are from private collections. It’s well worth a visit which you can combine with a lunchtime tour or talk included.
SaxaVord Spaceport
Unst, Shetland
In 2023 SaxaVord became Europe’s first licensed orbital vertical launch site with a potential for six launch pads. Located at the Lamba Ness peninsula on the isle of Unst (pop.600), it is the most northerly point of the UK.
There are over 4500 satellites orbiting our planet right now. We use them every time we check the weather, switch on TV and radio, flight tracking etc. They also offer essential services to aviation and maritime agencies. Having a satellite launch spaceport in the less-populated far north allows for unrestricted, direct trajectories for scientific and environmental observation.
The project began in 2017. Plans are in place to aim for a carbon neutral spaceport with a peatland management plan to protect and boost the ecosystem. The carbon storage and coastal grassland habitats will be protected and ongoing wildlife surveys will support protection of local birds and otters. The SaxaZero initiative will ensure sustainability and environmental responsibility for preserving Unst’s unique eco-heritage.
It will also boost the Shetland economy and population whilst prioritising jobs for local residents of Unst and Shetland. Also in place is a ‘space camp’ education programme to encourage young people to consider STEM careers.
It’s situated right next to a Bronze Age burial site with early artworks discovered by archaeologists in 2023. There’s also evidence of six Viking longhouses from later eras. In more recent times, SaxaVord housed radar defence stations. When the RAF left in 2006, the base was turned into basic holiday accommodation (SaxaVord Resort). In 2014 Shetland Distillery Company started producing Shetland Reel gin at the resort.
The first test flight will take place this year with up to thirty satellite launches per year.
Little Sparta
Stonypath, Dunsyre
June - September (Thursday to Sunday only)
Little Sparta will re-open for the summer season. 2025 will be a special year marking the centenary of Ian Hamilton Finlay’s birth with a year of special events and exhibitions. The artist moved to Stonypath farm in 1966, in Midlothian’s Pentland Hills. There he created a huge poetical sculpture garden - now known as Little Sparta. Every year, the doors open to the public. This truly is a special day out for art lovers. For those without a car, Little Sparta advises:
There are no direct public transport links to Little Sparta. The nearest bus stop is in Dolphinton (for the 101/101A/102 Edinburgh – Dumfries service), some 4 miles from the garden. Our recommendation is to take the bus to Dolphinton Station and meet a pre-booked taxi there.
The Edinburgh Art Festival is, however, running a bus to Little Sparta every Sunday in August. Book your tickets here, they can sell out fast.
That’s all for this week.
From Scotland, with love.