The Auld Kirk Alloway

"Kirk-Alloway was drawing nigh,
Where ghaists and houlets nightly cry" - Rabbie Burns

I have to be honest here, this little excursion was a little while ago but I've really got to share it because it's such an interesting place. The kirk itself dates back to the 16th century and it's got an eerie little poem about it written by Rabbie Burns. Tam O'Shanter rides his horse Meg home from the pub in Ayr and he gets caught up with the ghosts and witches dancing around in the auld kirk. He gets caught watching them and chased until he crosses the Brig O'Doon. However, he wasn't fast enough because the witches got a hold of his horses tail(poor thing).

This is one of the most intricate and well preserved tombstones I've seen here. I'm guessing that whoever is buried here was a blacksmith.
The kids liked these hand carved tombstones as well, but everytime they looked at them they laughed and pointed.... I couldn't quite find the humor they saw in it. I guess some things just look different to children.
Speaking of children, I couldn't believe how many children were buried in this graveyard. There were family tombstones with four or five children on them before the parents were buried with them. It was very sad reading the ages of some of the people buried there, but amazing as well that some of them lived to the age that they did.

Guess what this is......
Okay I'll tell you, it's a mortsafe. If that doesn't explain it enough for you, they would lock this onto a coffin temprarily until the body decayed enough so nobody would want to steal the body. Yes, they did steal body's way back when there wasn't as many people as we have today to donate their bodies to science.


The Brig O'Doon!
"Now do thy speedy utmost, Meg
and win the keystane o' the brig" - Rabbie Burns
I like quoting Rabbie! hehehe
Did you know that witches can't cross running water? I didn't know that so if you're ever getting chased by witches make sure you head straight for a bridge over a river.... I believe that's the moral of the story...
but anyway, if you were ever wondering what is on the other side of the bridge, it's just a small footpath through bushes and trees and I'm not sure where it ends up eventually because I didn't walk down it too far but I'm sure it ends up on a road closeby...

hey and check out those cobblestones!