2019 UK Trip

A stressful start to the day – getting the car and driving out of Edinburgh. We ended up on tram tracks, driving down two ‘no-go’ streets and ending up back where we started. Finally got out of there and headed north to Inverness.

A beautiful drive, stopping twice. Morning tea at Kinross where Wayne had the best milkshake ever. Went past the exit to St Andrews golf course and Wayne insisted on me getting a photo (in fact he kept insisting on me getting a photo of everything, although we were behind windows and speeding along at 60 mph).

Lunch at Dalwhinnie. We then ended up on a quaint little one lane road (boys thought we were lost but Donna and I were quietly confident it was heading back to the highway). Whizzed past the Centre of Scotland and although the two passengers in the back screamed to stop, our driver refused to acknowledge its significance. Skepticism plus – ‘A tiny rock like that?’ Was happy to stop on a one-lane bridge five minute later however, and let his buddy take a photo. Favouritism is rife!

Donna and I made our own rock. It was a bit awkward climbing up – I have never been known for my agility.

Our abode for the next two nights was beautiful. Hosts were Karyn and Mike. Located about 10 minutes from Inverness, the surroundings were picturesque.

Our room is Stewart, our adopted team tartan colours and I encountered this wild Scotsman in my room.

We drove into Inverness and after another stressful period of time looking for a car park, ended up having dinner at Hootananny’s. No drinking for Wayne as it is a nearly 0 alcohol limit in Scotland.

Bought a few roadies and the boys put them in Nature’s fridge – a rock outside. We then watched ‘The Rock’ in the comfort of the shared lounge.

Went to bed before the sunset at about 10:15pm and hopefully will sleep in past sunrise which will be about 4:30 am.

Started the morning with an ‘easy’ (I was puffing the whole way) stroll to Arthur’s Seat, an extinct volcano 250m above sea level. Wayne made a determined march to base camp (you’d be proud, Danny) but declined the ascent to the summit. Reckons as the Sherpa, he needed to stay with the bags.

After breakfast, we did a hop on hop off bus tour with Alan and Brian. We had been advised to take the blue bus over the red bus because it had an English-speaking guide and was more personalised. No one told us you need to speak Scottish. We basically picked up every 3rd word and marvelled at Brian’s ability to talk while seemingly asleep. He told us that Parliament House and the Palace were shut for two weeks because the Queen had arrived on Friday.

Lo and behold who did we see going into the church as the bus went by- the back of a little lady wearing a limish-green suit and grey hair. Unfortunately, we have no proof as both Donna and Wayne couldn’t get their cameras ready in time…but it was the Queen going to go church. Let it be said that Mark did not accept that it was indeed the Queen.

Since then I have gone to google and yes the Queen did go to church in Edinburgh on Sunday, June 30 but she was wearing a blue coat, a matching hat with flowers and the time appears to be later than when we drove past. I did wonder why there was a limited police presence and why Brian, our guide wasn’t very excited. Wayne and Donna still refuse to believe that the lady we saw wasn’t the Queen.

‘She must have gone twice!’

We then went for a tour of Edinburgh castle.

Came home for a wee sleep and then headed out again. We tried to get into the The smallest Pub in Scotland but surprise, surprise, there was literally no room for the four of us.

A pint or two and a meal at The Last Drop (where people were hung) and then a few more at The Three Sisters (a big bar with huge screens showing the cricket). Both places had been pointed out by Brian on the bus tour.

Not only was Wayne cursing India for giving up and playing it safe against England but Mark continued his campaign for Wayne to try new food and different beers. Here is Wayne drinking his first Innis and Gunn.

Found lots of great training stairs and met a couple of suspicious-looking Scotsman.

Started the morning with an incident in the laundry. A person who shall not be named (remember what happens on tour stays on tour) confused the dryer with the washing machine and washed the clothes in the dryer for 20 minutes before realising. Another rookie error.

We attempted to walk the wall of York but once again the height was a challenge for Wayne (particularly when the rail on one side ceased).

The nuns provided a beautiful English breakfast and we went for a return trip to Shambles (Diagon Alley). Wayne tried to get himself recruited but his services weren’t required. They did help him find a new pub however.

Then to the train again and off to Edinburgh. Finding our digs was an adventure. We had to walk uphill through hundreds of people (couldn’t believe the number of tourists), down tight alleys and cobbled roads/footpaths and finally to our apartment at the bottom of Edinburgh Castle, all with our bags. Even getting in wasn’t without challenge – up narrow the stairs, in one locked door and then into our 2-bedroom apartment. From the outside, Wayne reckoned it was the dungeons of the castle. It was worth the effort of lugging our bags as the apartment is lovely inside.

Dumped our bags and headed out for a little explore. Ended up in a quaint little bar and enjoyed a few ales. Our new local. We returned there for dinner and had a beautiful dinner of seafood linguine (Wayne had the lamb). It started bucketing done (our first rain) so we retired to the bar area again until it eased.

We’re in SCOTLAND (a first for all of us) and loving it. Thanks for all the great advice, Eddie and Jodie (our wonderful neighbours).

Keep an eye out for our team tartan!

Began the day with a tube trip to Lords. Boys were in heaven and bemoaning the fact we were leaving London the day before the one day match between Australia and New Zealand. Donna and I were very sad for them but quietly breathing a sigh of relief.

We caught a transfer to Kings Cross and boarded the Flying Scotsman to York. It was a very pleasant trip (apart from the know-it-all, I-have-an-opinion-about-everything, sitting across from us).

Our digs were a convent (with real nuns still living there). The best part – a washing machine and dryer.

We visited a Viking museum (Vikings took over this Anglo Saxon town in 866 and named it Jorvik). A ride through the display was quite impressive. Wayne was commenting on how real the exhibits were and then one of the Vikings spoke to us. Unfortunately, the element of surprise prevented the taking of a photo.

We accidentally came across the street that was the inspiration for Diagon Alley in Harry Potter.

We then walked to West Minister, one of the most beautiful and structurally impressive churches I have ever seen.

We had afternoon tea at Betty’s and Wayne and Mark fitted in beautifully. Great to have such cultured and refined gentlemen. Didn’t want to share their cake though.

We then went to Clifford’s tower, the only thing still standing from York Castle. Wayne suffered a vertigo attack whilst up the top and at one stage we thought Mark was going to have to carry him down. This brought back memories of him having an attack up the Eiffel Tower and Donna’s brother Danny having to coax him down.

The views were spectacular.

We went across the road for dinner at the Windmill. I experienced my first ‘rage attack’. Lined up for ages to order dinner and I didn’t have the table number (as Mark said – rookie error). Could have handled that if the bar attendant hadn’t been so rude. Back to the end of the line I went.

We started compiling the pluses and minuses of the venue ready for Donna’s Trip Advisor review. Grumpy bar attendant vs nice girl who served the food. False Prosecco (Spumante) vs cheap beers. No ice bucket vs good music. One line for food and drinks and under-staffed vs good bench table. Food was fair although Wayne didn’t like his chicken pie that tasted like apple. Rating 1 star, maybe 2 at best.

Definitely a quieter day today. Went for another walk in Hyde Park. First squirrel sighting – this one was obviously very familiar with human contact. It practically begged me to take the photo.

We decided to split up today. Wayne and I caught the iconic red, double-decker bus to Buckingham Palace. Of course, finding the palace wasn’t as easy as it should have been. We found it just in time for the changing of the guard. I thought this was a ‘once in a blue moon’ event that we happened to jag but apparently it happens every day at 11. I was even videoing it to show Donna. No need as she had seen it all before. Note to self: do more research about these things.

We then caught a bus to the Churchill museum. There was so much congestion on the road that we were hardly moving. We followed a local’s example and jumped off the bus between stops. The bus driver called me back and thinking we were in trouble, I started preparing our excuses. He informed me that you don’t have to tap off and that you’re actually paying for another trip. So our two bus rides thus far had cost us double.

Of course, always so much to see as you are navigating the streets using a map that wasn’t to scale (as Wayne who was master of the map kept telling me).

We finally found the museum (turned out that we could have walked through the park) to be met by a huge line-up. Estimated time: 1 hour to get in. Wayne wanted to abort but I convinced him to stay. There was quite a bit of line-rage (from Wayne who was quietly cursing the priority line and the loud Americans in front of us) but it was worth the wait. An amazing display and very interesting.

We then tried to find #10 Downing Street. We think we found the back entrance but by this time we wanted get back to re-join Donna and Mark. Caught the tube back (Wayne refused to negotiate the buses again) and lo and behold as we were exiting the station, Donna and Mark were coming in. How’s that for timing?

This of course, called for a celebration, so we decided to hit Wayne’s local ‘The Swan’ and have a few pints. The good news is the bartenders at this establishment did know what a Pimm’s was and Donna enjoyed two of them.

Another great day on tour.

Day 3 A day of air travel. 7 hours and 30 minutes equated to 3 movies, 1 meal, a snack and a tiny nap. Caught the express to Paddington Station and walked the streets (lugging our suitcases) to find our accommodation.

Day 4 A day of exercise. Accommodation is next to Hyde Park so we headed there for our early morning walk.

Breakfast at Wayne’s adopted local – ‘The Swan’. We bought our Oyster cards and headed to the underground.

We joined our London cycling tour (tour guide, Dominic and two Americans, Robyn and Kathy) for an incredible ride past the sites of London City and Westminster. Bikes were a bit iffy. Wayne, our seasoned cyclist, nearly fell off on the test ride. No helmets and a tour guide who was brilliant but would quite often leave us in the distance as he powered off to the next site. We dodged people, cars, lorries and buses but saw all the important landmarks.

Hairiest part was riding over Tower Bridge. It was stop and start and although the bus and lorry drivers were extremely courteous, they were only an arm’s distance away from us – we were sandwiched between them and the raised kerb. Every time I had to re-start, my momentum would take me towards the lorries and buses. I would then over-compensate and end up heading towards the kerb. This didn’t inspire Donna who was directly behind me. She ended up jumping off her bike and running beside it on the kerb. Needless to say, we all survived.

We had a couple more stops, including a rest at a local craft beer pub. That pint went down very nicely. I would like to point out that the beer had no part in our final incident. Donna (who didn’t have a drink on account of the cider being the worst drink any of us have ever tasted) and I were the last riders in our Congo line. The rest of the group snuck through as some lights were changing to red. We tried to go with them but aborted at the last minute. Our guide jumped off his bike (leaving it in the middle of the road) and came and coaxed us back to the group. All’s well that ends well. It could have been nasty.

We had all been to London before so this was an unique way of seeing the London landmarks.

Out trip home on the tube was not without incident. He (or she) who must not be named (what happens on tour stays on tour) led the whole group onto a train that was heading back to where we came from. Luckily the rail system in London is not like our system. Within 10 minutes we were heading the right way again and crisis was averted.

We had time to rest for an hour before heading to West End to see ‘School of Rock’. Caught the tube and walked (the long way) to the theatre. Fantastic show and a great experience.

I would rate that as a highly active day. This is the walking. The bike ride ride didn’t register in the workouts.

Looking forward to a quieter day today.

Weather was still hideously hot so we took an expat’s advice (met him at the Origin telecast) and visited the Souk Medinat (new markets that are air-conditioned and under cover).

Ladies may have purchased a couple of items while gentlemen braved the heat and visited the Burj al Arab Jumeriah, a short walk from the markets. They were stopped at the gates as guests only are permitted. About $2 000Aud a night to stay there so Mark reckons he’ll book in….when he wins the lotto.

Of course, a visit to a foreign market will never end without incident. An unnamed person (what happens on tour stays on tour) in our party of four decided to purchase some exotic dates. The amount of 80 Dirhams was misheard as 18 Dirhams. We ended up with $40Aud worth of dates that had to be eaten before we left. Needless to say we didn’t finish them and the room attendant had a nice gift awaiting him or her.

In the afternoon we went on a desert safari in open land rovers. We all donned headwear and went for a drive around the desert dunes. Saw a few animals and then got to see a falconer with her peregrine falcon named Mystique (Wayne’s highlight).

We were then taken to a desert camp where we experienced a camel ride, tasted lots of home-grown produce and had a three course and very sumptuous dinner. Food was beautiful but a little rich. A few grumbling stomachs settled by some Moroccan tea. Mark has told Wayne that he can’t eat the same thing twice and that he has to try new things. He sure had a lot of new thing to try in this experience. Wayne hated the truffles, wasn’t fussed on the haloumi cheese, and refused to have the oysters (don’t worry I had his share … and more). He did however love the lentil soup.

There was also dancing and drumming. You can see who the stars were in the photo.

All of us including the boys got some henna tattoos. So funny when the door man Emmanuel told Wayne and Mark that usually only girls get the henna.

It was such a brilliant tour and we learnt so much. All very tired and very full when we returned to the hotel closed to midnight.

The four intrepid travellers went for a walk around the area we were staying. If you think Qld gets hot, think again. We lasted 30 minutes before retreating inside. Plan2 – pool and beer. We then went across the road to a sports bar and watched NSW whip Qld (much to our dismay). All outdoor events were deemed too hazardous so we visited the Dubai shopping mall complete with aquarium and ice rink. We the went up the 124 floors of the Burj Khalifa in 60 seconds. Amazing structure. Amazing views.

Four weary travellers then went home and went to bed.

Wayne and I travelled a lot before we met. We put travelling on hold when our children were young but as they became older, we made a point of travelling with them every couple of years. Now that they are young adults, it is time for us to travel without them. We have been lucky enough to find another wonderful couple to enjoy the sights of Scotland, Ireland and Portugal. Good times… here we come!

Thanks for joining me!

Good company in a journey makes the way seem shorter. — Izaak Walton

We left Brisbane at 9pm. We took hours to finally leave Australian airspace (the tracking map tells such a great story). 14 hours of flying equated to 3 movies, 2 and a half meal breaks (still can’t work out what the 3am meal was) and a couple of naps. A long trip but we arrived in Dubai at 5am (Dubai time). Our transfer was ready so we braved the oppressive heat for a few minutes and headed to our accommodation for a much-needed sleep.