The unusual and the quirky

During our holiday we came across a number of unusual objects in our travels. Sometimes the objects were located in an unexpected context. Being grandparents can also alter the focus when viewing items - it can be easy to consider how the grandchildren would view items. Some of the items, however, were just unusual or quirky.

This sculpture of a cat by Giuliano Mancini is located near the ramparts of the medieval village on Saint Paul de Vence in southern France. Definitely a mixture of the old and the new.

In a park in Nice the play equipment is based on the skeleton of a large whale.

This theme is replicated in the playground on the roof of the Oceanographic Museum at Monte Carlo.

Outside the Oceanographic Museum is the submarine used by Jacques Cousteau for his underwater explorations. My grand-daughter would have been most impressed with this yellow submarine and possibly would have provided us with a rendition of the chorus of the song.

On a bus tour in southern France taking us through the countryside known as Pays D'Or towards Oingt we passed this straw pig, one of a number of straw creatures lining the road.

In Trafalgar Square in London we found this bright blue rooster on a plinth outside the art gallery. The artwork was unveiled on 25 July 2013 as part of a changing exhibition of artworks to occupy the plinth. The rooster will remain in the square for 18 months and will then be replaced by another attraction.

Coming out of the National Gallery into Trafalgar Square the following day we did not expect to find this charming Batman, one of the many living statues and entertainers in the square.

Giraffes in the streets of Edinburgh? In Leith Street, Edinburgh, around the corner from our hotel, we came across two models of giraffes made from scrap metal. They are the creation of sculptor, Helen Denerley and were unveiled in July 2005.

The small town of Pitlochy is known for its colourful garden displays each summer - Pitlochy in Bloom. Here we have a model of a lady golfer teeing off from a flower bed.

Unfortunately we were not in town for this event held at Ullapool.

It has become tradition for people to leave stones - the stones to being them home - collected from other parts of Scotland at this location on the road to Fort William. For those of us with young grandchildren it is difficult to look at the site and not think of the character, Makka Pakka from the television program - In the Night Garden.

This Police Box in the main street of Glasgow was one of a number of police boxes we passed in the city. Unfortunately we did not see Dr Who.

This stature of the Duke of Wellington has been a Glasgow monument for many years. Some years ago a traffic cones was added to the Duke, and sometimes to his horse, by people unknown. As soon as the cones were removed they returned and, after some debate, have been accepted by the council as a fixture (and tourist attraction).