Tag: technology

Posted in Day Trip, Travel

Rosslyn Chapel

Posted on by Evallone

I’m sure everyone has at least heard of Rosslyn Chapel, mostly thanks to the spotlight given by Dan Brown in the Da Vinci code it helped bring even more tourists and conspiracy theorists to the church located on the outskirts of Edinburgh.

Day-Trippin’

Back in March, I’d planned to visit Rosslyn Chapel with the family in April but obviously the tour company cancelled it when it was announced that churches across the country had to close for the foreseeable future. I was miffed to say the least, April is prime day-trip season in Scotland and I’d blew through most of my holiday allowance at work so doing something on my days off was a perfect idea. It started as a random conversation of somewhere different we could go to, love Arran so much but Scotland has a lot to offer and I still feel I’ve barely seen anything. Given that none of us have a car, it looked a bit awkward to travel from Glasgow to Rosslyn. The website does suggest trains and busses from Edinburgh… but then, a chance advert in a newspaper Pater found Strathmore Travel running day trips to Rosslyn chapel of all places! It included pick up from Glasgow, travel there and back and a wee lunch/tea in the cafeteria for £49 a head. Freaking bargain.

The New Normal: Virtual Tour

Alas, it’s as tragic as everything else we’re missing out on. Scotland has had some of its best ever weather in the couple of months since lockdown started and it’s grating on us all – especially considering how rotten the winter was and it lasted until the second week in March. But the kind folks who look after Rosslyn Chapel also know how to look after their fans and disheartened would-be visitors and have released an online virtual tour of the chapel. Please see here. (I would recommend viewing it on a laptop or computer, my Chromebook froze trying to view it!)

It’s lovely that we can view it while safe at home, and I think it really plays into how lucky most of us are to have access to technology and be online during this crisis. The fact that we can virtually visit the places we can’t physically go to right now is comforting. Remember google street view exists! You can walk down the main street of your favourite city and pretend you are there.

Not the review I wanted

I wanted to have a series of great pictures and to detail the whole day on here, which I can’t do. Obviously there’s a great deal that we can learn online about it, like now I know you’re not allowed to take pictures inside the church, so thankfully there is the virtual tour. It looks quite small, but given how old it is and the detail in the carvings it more than makes up for it. While researching this, I found a great post on the Rabbie’s website about Rosslyn Chapel. Rabbie’s are a travel company that do tours around Scotland including to the chapel. This post isn’t sponsored, I’m just trying to throw some good karma in the way of local companies that they’ll survive Corona.

Featured Image Credit: RCT/Vic Sharp Via Rabbie’s Website.

Let me know if anyone has already visited Rosslyn and what you thought of it? Anyone planning to go (want to road trip)? Do you do day trips in your home country?

e x

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Posted in Musings

The Selfish Ones

Posted on by Evallone

Before I even start I want to make clear that I’m not directing this to any one particular generation – it applies to all generations, actually. I’ve seen too many posts and articles lately that are attacking the Millennial gen for things that don’t mean squat. Of course there are loads of older ones always telling younger people that they aren’t living right and proper and there are plenty of younger ones who won’t take on advice (especially when it sounds like nagging.)

I’m talking about the selfishness that seems to be pervading society in the here and now, regardless of age, everyone is guilty of doing it at some point, but I feel it’s becoming more selfish and maybe even hostile.

Everyone should work hard, everyone should think about number 1 and focus on career building, etc, etc, but ever been in the middle of a conversation with someone and they just lose focus? Like suddenly their eyes flip to their phone screen, laptop, diary and they forget to even make a courteous grunt never mind actually answer what you’ve just said. Better still, when you bump into a colleague while their on shift and you try to be nice and give them a chance to get a tea or go to the bathroom but while you’re in the middle of trying to tell them how you are, they cut you off mid-sentence to wave and call over to some random friend who then approaches and goes into a full conversation with them – not even a pause for introductions or “I’m sorry, you were saying…?” and it would be considered too rude for the ignored party to butt-in to their conversation to say, “I wasn’t finished.”

It continues… sending someone a long text, maybe because you can’t or don’t have time for a phone call (especially when you can’t get them off the phone) and you’ve explained what you’ve been doing lately, currently whatever only to get a short, quick reply with a few seemingly random words making up a seemingly random sentence/phrase that by the way, has nothing to do with what I had just sent!

Another problem is on social media, people comment without really reading a post or body of text and sometimes become very hostile and angry towards the poster. Is there really a need for it? Has the world been altered by your hasty and spiteful comment? Often times I’ve seen a comment-argument go on for hours before another will charge in with their opinion or to deflate the situation by clarifying the misunderstanding.

A really scary situation is for those who are losing weight/becoming more healthy and who start an IG or Facebook page and just to see the overwhelming shit-storm of abuse these people get! They’re trying to improve themselves and just want the accountability factor, not to mention that they might be passing on a thread of inspiration! Maybe they saw someone else was brave enough to be posting pictures and progress online and they’ve decided to try it too, they probably will go on to inspiring others but seriously, what’s the point in the hate? I worry about these online trolls, it used to be a tongue-in-cheek type thing, you’d get the twat commenting on people’s work or pages with junk that could easily be removed, but now it’s evolved into twats hiding behind keyboards and encouraging people to kill themselves, telling them their ugly, that they’ll never be skinny/beautiful etc. What the hell?! I really hope people wouldn’t say stuff like that in real life (school bullies might have a differing opinion) but saying it over a computer doesn’t make it any less real. I only hope the changes in Internet Law actually allow for more to happen after any abuse has been reported, whether words are spoken or on a computer, they can still do damage and we all need to be more careful about how we act online.

Even something as menial as not responding to a FB message right away, now the sender can see if you’re online, can tell when and if you’ve read the message and as stalkery as it might sound it’s the nature of the beast, it is instant messaging it’s not email, you probably should respond or at least let the person know you maybe can’t answer fully yet. I’ve been guilty of it myself, only to then speak to the people later and find out they were worried I had fallen out with them. It sounds weird, but you’ll know what I mean if you’ve been on the receiving end of it.

Technology is changing and has changed how we communicate, I think it’s definitely for the better, we’ve never been so connected and I like feeling safe knowing that in theory I can always call my friends and family (if they ever bother to look at or answer their phones) but I wonder if things like courtesy and attention to the art conversation are falling aside out of distraction or a lack of empathy on how your half-hearted response might have a profound effect on another person. Maybe we’re too careless about how connected we are, maybe there’s a general sentiment that the old rules don’t apply anymore, we’re always available to message or get in touch with, so what does it matter that I didn’t end the conversation? That I left you hanging for hours expecting a further reply? That I started to write back but got distracted then went out and posted pictures of a night out (without you) onto FB and wrote multiple comments back and forth to others, while knowing your little green light was still on… waiting.