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Tui Snider
Tui Snider

Tui Snider

Inquisitive world traveler who writes books, gives talks & leads tours through historic cemeteries. My homebase is Texas, where I share a goth/tiki castle with my mad scientist husband & tabby cat. For my newsletter & more visit: TuiSnider.com En savoir plus🇺🇸United States
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  • Tui SniderAugust 2022Voyageur

    Scottish Mortsafes

    12 août 2022, Écosse ⋅ ☀️ 70 °F

    People often tag me with photos of mortsafes on social media wondering if I’ve ever heard of them or seen one in person.

    Long story short, mortsafes are not common in the USA. Henry Ford’s grave features a fancy one, but in his case, it was to thwart people who might ransom his corpse, not sell it to a medical college.

    So I was excited to see these famous mortsafes in Edinburgh’s Greyfriars Kirkyard.

    The plaque for one of them explains a mortsafe’s purpose quite nicely:

    “This iron mortsafe was placed over the grave to prevent grave-robbers from digging up the body for sale to the anatomy classes in the medical school.

    Many other measures were taken in the 18th and 19th centuries to prevent this repulsive trade, which continued until the anatomy act was passed in 1832.

    Restored in 2010 by the Greyfriars Kirkyard Trust with support from the Edinburgh World Heritage Trust.”

    Have you ever seen a mortsafe? By the way, I’ve seen it spelled “mort safe” as well as “mortsafe.” Since the plaque uses the portmanteau version, I’m sticking with that spelling!    En savoir plus

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  • Tui SniderAugust 2022Voyageur
    1

    Highland Hilltop Cemetery

    11 août 2022, Écosse ⋅ ☁️ 68 °F

    As we drove through farmlands near Inverness, Dawn made a brief stop at a little hilltop cemetery.

    The stone fence caught my fancy. I also came across a headstone for a “Donald Cameron.” Cameron is my maiden name, so perhaps he’s a distant relative.

    I was also struck by an epitaph on the headstone for a young soldier who died in WWI. It reads, “Who stands if Britain fall.”

    Earlier, Larry asked Dawn how Scots feel about declaring independence from Britain. She told us it’s mostly the younger generation who want Scotland to separate.

    The older generation, especially those who lived through WWII, have a different view. After all, the Scots fought with the Brits against a common enemy back then.

    In light our discussion, that young man’s epitaph really spoke to me. It brought the phrase “e pluribus unum,” to mind. With all the divisive talk we have in the USA these days: Who stands if America falls?    En savoir plus

    Voir la traduction
  • Tui SniderAugust 2022Voyageur

    A Very Special Day!

    11 août 2022, Écosse ⋅ ⛅ 73 °F

    I met Dawn through my newsletter. Last fall, we exchanged emails about historic cemeteries. Today we met in person, and she took us for a unique whirlwind tour of the Scottish Highlands.

    What a special day!

    For those who don’t know, every Sunday, I send an email with news and tidbits about historic cemeteries, and Dawn is a subscriber. (If you’re interested in receiving it, drop by my website TuiSnider.com and click on “free book.)

    When Dawn saw on FindPenguins that Larry and I were visiting her neck of the woods, she offered to show us around! She met us at the cruise port in Invergordon and gave us a wonderfully unique whirlwind tour.

    First, she whisked us to the picturesque Urquhart Castle ruins on Loch Ness. As you can see, it was quite a sunny day which prompted her to warn, “Don’t get the wrong idea about Scottish weather. We never have days like this.”

    Our next stop was Culloden Battlefield, where a bloody battle on April 16, 1746 put an end to the Jacobite uprising which sought to restore the Stuart monarchy to the royal throne.

    In less than an hour, 1600 men were slain at Culloden, and 1500 of them were Jacobites. Afterwards, the Highland clans were persecuted. Even their tartans and pipes were banned.

    After that solemn slice of history, we dropped by Cawdor Castle, which looks like something out of a fairytale and is mentioned in Shakespeare’s Hamlet.

    I don’t know the story behind the cute red “gypsy wagon,” but it reminds me of the one I used to live in many years ago.

    I’ll also have to ask Dawn the name of that distant castle in these photos. Sinclair? Andrews? She will know.

    Before she dropped us off at the end of our busy day, Dawn remarked that we really had taken both the high and the low road that day adding, “That is, if you’re familiar with the song,” to which I began singing, “You take the high road and I’ll take the low.” (My dad used to sing that song when we’d go hiking.)

    I’ll share more about our fun day with Dawn in upcoming posts! (As you can imagine, we also visited a couple of historic cemeteries along the way, of course.)    En savoir plus

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  • Tui SniderAugust 2022Voyageur

    Arctic Terns

    11 août 2022, Écosse ⋅ ⛅ 75 °F

    Whoo hoo! I finally got a decent photo of an Arctic Tern.

    Ironically, it wasn’t taken while out birdwatching. There just happens to be a colony of them nesting right by the walkway at the Port of Invergordon. (Most people simply rushed by this marvelous sight while muttering under their breath about the noisy birds.)

    When we were in Iceland, I learned that these petite birds migrate all the way to Antarctica each year!

    It was easy to peek at them because they were on a raised section of land behind a fence as we walked ashore.

    Most of the birds stayed behind the fence, except for one who seemingly stood guard on the outside, squawked loudly at all who passed. (You’d be squawky, too, if you nested on the ground.)

    The babies were so well camouflaged that I often didn’t see them until they moved or peeped.

    I enjoyed watching the parents fly over the fence, then take a sharp dive into the marina. Each bird carried a single small fish in its beak as it returned to the colony.

    What a delight to see!    En savoir plus

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  • Tui SniderAugust 2022Voyageur

    Nairn Fishwife

    11 août 2022, Écosse ⋅ ☀️ 72 °F

    Dawn gave us a tour through her hometown along the way, the pretty little seaside village of Nairn.

    The statue you see in my photos is the Nairn Fishwife. Here’s what the plaque says about her:

    “In Nairn, when the fishing industry was at its height in the late 19th century, the Fishwife played a very important role within the community.

    As well as being responsible for caring for house and family she also gathered bait, baited lines, gathered durkins (pinecones for smoking fish), prepared and smoked fish, including the famous Nairn Spelding, then sold them throughout the local area from the creel on her back.

    Please visit Nairn Museum for further information. Statue erected as part of Highland Year of Culture 2007.”    En savoir plus

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  • Tui SniderAugust 2022Voyageur

    11 Countries & Counting

    8 août 2022, Islande ⋅ 🌧 52 °F

    I was curious how many places we’ve been on this trip, so I did a tally today. So far, we’ve visited 11 different countries and roughly 40 cities and villages.

    Writing wise: In addition to this travel blog, I’m on my third physical scrapbook journal. (I seem to fill one per month.)

    All in all, this trip has given Larry and I a taste of life in the northern latitudes.    En savoir plus

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  • Tui SniderAugust 2022Voyageur

    Icelandic Names

    5 août 2022, Islande ⋅ ☀️ 57 °F

    Icelandic names follow ancient traditions that are quite unique. Most native Icelanders still take their last name from their father's first name. (Some people will use their mother's name instead, but it’s not as common.)

    Therefore, the children of someone called Kristjan, are likely to have the surnames Kristjanson and Kristjansdóttir, which literally means Kristjan’s son and Kristjan’s daughter.

    For this reason, brothers and sisters will likely have different last names. And since Icelandic women do not take their husband's name, Icelandic families usually have a
    mixture of last names.

    Another interesting thing locals told us is that Icelanders never call each other by their last name. To do so would seem really weird to them.    En savoir plus

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  • Tui SniderAugust 2022Voyageur

    Museum of Everyday Life

    4 août 2022, Islande ⋅ ⛅ 54 °F

    In the little Icelandic village of Isafjordur, we visited Hversdagssafn: Museum of Everyday Life.

    I found it poetic and unique. One wall features a collection of shoes donated by locals. Beside each pair are headphones for you to listen as people describe what those shoes meant to them and the memories attached to them.

    Another wall has books glued to it. In each book you find a donated photo along with a brief story about memories connected to it.

    There’s a little theater, too, which plays three short films. One explains how it feels when a winter storm approaches town. Another shares cassette tape recordings a local Icelandic woman made of everyday conversations and moments with her family.

    The last film was about the Northern Lights and how locals felt about them before and after they became a popular tourist draw. Some spoke of the Aurora with reverence, while others barely noticed them.

    In a separate room, various items are sealed in jars. Visitors are encouraged to unscrew the lids and take a sniff. Laminated cards reveal poems and memories about each odor that locals shared. Items to smell include crayons, seaweed, dried fish, a wind dried pillowcase, and more.

    It’s a small museum, but it made a big impression on me. Having personal items donated by residents, and hearing their memories in their own words creates a very unique and immersive connection to the town.

    I wish more places had museums like this!

    Here’s how Hversdagssafn: Museum of Everyday Life describes itself:
    “Our main purpose is investigating the mundane and the common, finding the poetry that comes forward when no one is looking.
    We are a collection of local voices,
    memories and story fragments - nostalgic, humorous and thought provoking -
    curated in various interactive ways.
    It's local, as it gives a glimpse to people's life in the Westfjords, and it's universal since it touches on the things we all share.”    En savoir plus

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  • Tui SniderAugust 2022Voyageur

    New Ship, New Room

    31 juillet 2022, Pays-Bas ⋅ 🌧 72 °F

    When I opened the door to our new room for the first time, I was a little alarmed. It’s a tight squeeze to reach my side of the bed, and it’s an inside cabin, so there is no window.

    It was a relief to see the closet and bathroom to the left. It’s snug, but cozy, as if someone took a fancy hotel room and shrank it down.

    As someone who gets claustrophobic easily, I’m doing fine in our little room. Phew!    En savoir plus

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  • Tui SniderAugust 2022Voyageur

    Understaffed Airport

    31 juillet 2022, North Sea ⋅ 🌧 66 °F

    We got to LHR 2 1/2 hours before our flight and needed every moment! Took us 1 1/2 hours just to check our bags. Security screening took 45 minutes. We then jogged for 15 minutes to make our gate just as it was closing.

    No problem picking up our bags in Amsterdam at the end of our flight either, so that was a relief, too.

    Phew!    En savoir plus

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  • Tui SniderJuly 2022Voyageur

    Nuclear Vinegar

    30 juillet 2022, Angleterre ⋅ ☁️ 79 °F

    We had a brief but lovely stay with my stepdaughter near London. The weather was perfect for a walk to the River Thames, so that’s exactly what we did.

    We stopped at a pub along the way and enjoyed fish and chips. In addition to tartar sauce and ketchup, we splashed the dish with malt vinegar. (Not sure why the vinegar makers felt that coming from a secret nuclear bunker is a selling point, but there you go!)

    For drinks, Naomi and I enjoyed Pim’s garnished with cucumber, orange, strawberry, and mint. So refreshing!

    Larry had an Italian lager since the bartender said it went well with fish and chips.

    We will stop by again for a longer visit with Naomi, but it was good to see her even in passing!    En savoir plus

    Voir la traduction
  • Tui SniderJuly 2022Voyageur

    Invergordon Cemetery

    26 juillet 2022, Écosse ⋅ ⛅ 61 °F

    A local man gave us directions to the local cemetery in Invergordon, which involved following a “brambly footpath” and crossing a “wee bridge.”

    Voir la traduction
  • Tui SniderJuly 2022Voyageur

    World’s First Parliament

    22 juillet 2022, Islande ⋅ ☁️ 57 °F

    See how far away Larry’s standing? The acoustics are such that he could speak softly and I could hear him as if he were standing beside me!

    Starting in the year 930, Vikings met here once a year to hash out disagreements and settle on laws. Historians consider this to be the world’s first parliament.

    This spot is called Logberg, which means “law rock.” (The spot was chosen for the acoustics I mentioned earlier.)

    Until they developed a written language, every year certain men would stand here and recite the laws to the assembly from memory.    En savoir plus

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  • Tui SniderAugust 2022Voyageur

    Icelandic Sheep

    22 juillet 2022, Islande ⋅ ☁️ 59 °F

    With a bloodline dating back to the Viking era, Icelanders are understandably proud of their sheep. These animals graze freely in wild pastures from spring until fall, when farmers round them up and tend them through winter.

    Not only do the sheep provide wool, but lamb is a protein source Icelanders have relied upon for over a thousand years.

    Icelandic sheep are free from growth-promoting antibiotics, and hormones. In winter, the feed they eat is non-GMO.

    According to locals, Icelandic sheep acquire a distinctive taste since they eat all sorts of fresh grass, herbs, and berries while roaming free. I rarely eat sheep, but the Icelandic lamb we had was tender and tasty.    En savoir plus

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  • Tui SniderJuly 2022Voyageur

    Icelandic Horses

    22 juillet 2022, Islande ⋅ 🌧 57 °F

    Icelandic horses have many unique qualities. They are small, sturdy and gentle with people. They’ve adapted to Iceland’s rugged terrain, so they are very sure-footed.

    Other horses have 4 gaits, but the Icelandic horse has 5. Mares can even delay giving birth for up to 6 weeks if the weather is bad. They are also quite cute, as you can see.

    After our guide reeled off all these facts, he casually added, “And sometimes we eat them.”

    Seemingly unaware of the ripple of surprise this comment created, he went on to add that, “Icelandic horse meat is one of the healthiest meats you can have.”

    (As for the Icelandic horse’s 5 gaits, they are: the fet, which is a walk; the brokk, or trot; the tölt, which is a faster walk, the skeid, or the pace; and finally, there's the stökk, or gallop, which is very fast. Can any horse experts tell me which gait is the uniquely Icelandic one?)    En savoir plus

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  • Tui SniderJuly 2022Voyageur

    Fly pollination

    22 juillet 2022, Islande ⋅ ☁️ 55 °F

    Today I learned that Garden Angelica is pollinated by flies.

    And see that bee? He’s eating the flies!!!

    Where’s Sir David Attenborough when you need him? (This is right by Gullfoss in Iceland.)

    Voir la traduction
  • Tui SniderJuly 2022Voyageur

    Angry gods

    22 juillet 2022, Islande ⋅ 🌧 50 °F

    Shortly after Icelanders converted to Christianity and tossed all their pagan statues into Godafoss, a volcano erupted, creating this lava field. They figured the gods were angry. That’s why it’s known as “Valley of Christianity.”En savoir plus

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  • Tui SniderJuly 2022Voyageur

    Whales!

    21 juillet 2022, Islande ⋅ ⛅ 55 °F

    We keep seeing whales, but I haven’t gotten a decent shot, so here’s a cool rock formation, instead. (The whales were even leaping out of the water in some places!)

    Voir la traduction

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