Today marked the last day of our fantastic 10 year anniversary celebration vacation. On our agenda, return our rental car and make our flight. And so we traveled back to the Dublin Airport and gave our little black Opel Corsa 5-speed back to the rental car company. It was quite a bit dirtier than when we started, which is the mark of a great vacation :)
There were apparently a million people trying to fly out of the Dublin Airport and all of the people were crammed into an a small area. A bit of an exaggeration, I know, but that is the way we felt. It got to the point, where I went on a hunt to try to find the line that we were supposed to stand in. On my way to finding the line, I had to squeeze past many people, and as I passed one lady I thought, "she looks REALLY familiar"... we smiled at one another and kept moving. After I found the correct line, I turned to go back to find Joe and passed by her again. This time I had placed it, High School. As we passed back by each other, we both asked, "do I know you?"...
There in the Dublin Airport, waiting to get in the same line to check in to the same plane, was a girl I knew in High School. Wonders never cease! After we finally made it ALL the way through security, we were able to chat for a few moments and basically catch up. She had been in Ireland on business and then was joined by her husband for another week of vacation! The had also taken a car tour of Ireland, basically reversing some of the route we had taken, and they were now headed home to Atlanta.
So weird...
Our flight home was drastically improved from our flight to London and we arrived back in Atlanta, took MARTA back to our car, and set off on our next adventure - the Kids in the Hall show in Atlanta!!!!
Eeeeee
Saturday, May 24, 2008
Friday, May 23, 2008
Day 9 - Dublin Take Two - Final Day
Today is our final day of vacation before we head back to the States. We spent our final day in Dublin, Ireland surrounded a crazy amount of people.
Since our hotel was on the outskirts of the city, we took a bus into the city centre that went through some Dublin/Balymun neighborhoods.
We started out near the city centre headed across the river and back towards Christ Church Cathedral. Unfortunately for me, we weren't too far from the river, when someone lifted my wallet. Since I don't actually carry cash, my wallet is pretty disappointing... unless they like a Kroger, Petsmart, and library cards :) The most disappointing loss was my MARTA Breeze card. So it was off to the nearest Garda station (police) to file a report. The nearest Garda station was about 10 blocks away and once we found it and filed a report we were in a part of the city that we hadn't intended to visit. Near Stephen's Green.
We strolled through the park.
We took a stroll along the river walk and made our way back to Christ Church Cathedral (still didn't go in) and found Dublin Castle.
After all this, we walked back to the city centre, had a couple of really good hamburgers, and had to walk again to our bus stop. It was quite a bit of walking, but worth it when we arrived back at our hotel and canceled all the credit cards in my wallet.
Eeeeee
Since our hotel was on the outskirts of the city, we took a bus into the city centre that went through some Dublin/Balymun neighborhoods.
We started out near the city centre headed across the river and back towards Christ Church Cathedral. Unfortunately for me, we weren't too far from the river, when someone lifted my wallet. Since I don't actually carry cash, my wallet is pretty disappointing... unless they like a Kroger, Petsmart, and library cards :) The most disappointing loss was my MARTA Breeze card. So it was off to the nearest Garda station (police) to file a report. The nearest Garda station was about 10 blocks away and once we found it and filed a report we were in a part of the city that we hadn't intended to visit. Near Stephen's Green.
We strolled through the park.
We took a stroll along the river walk and made our way back to Christ Church Cathedral (still didn't go in) and found Dublin Castle.
After all this, we walked back to the city centre, had a couple of really good hamburgers, and had to walk again to our bus stop. It was quite a bit of walking, but worth it when we arrived back at our hotel and canceled all the credit cards in my wallet.
Eeeeee
Thursday, May 22, 2008
Day 8 - the Hotel Debacle
So what do you do when can't actually find your hotel, but you find a hotel that looks like the one you are looking for but has a different name? You stop and ask.
And that is exactly what we did. We stopped at the Travelodge only to find out that our hotel (Ballymun Plaza) had been abruptly closed by the owner 3 weeks prior, the staff had been laid-off without even their last two weeks of pay, and that the Travelodge that was now open in it's stead had only opened yesterday and no longer had our booking.
And then it becomes really interesting. You see there was this huge American concert in Dublin and also a convention for the Cluster Bombs so there was no hotel to be booked at 9pm on a Friday evening. We were advised to head outside the city and look for hotels that way. Remember how we just drove 3 hours from Galway to Dublin? and of course we are hungry :) We somehow must've looked lost and American enough to get some of the staff on our side, and the staff began to diligently look for another hotel for us.
The Travelodge (previously Ballymun Plaza) also had a restaurant that was just about to close so we decided that since most of Ireland rolls up the street at 6pm, that we would eat dinner while the staff member was calling every hotel she could.
And so we ate. The food was delicious! However, the restaurant was separated by a partition in the hotel and also a credit card machine/bank account. That's right... if your biggest fear is that you get to a restaurant, eat, have no cash on you, and they don't take credit cards because their machine isn't working yet ... well you would've been living a nightmare.
We explain our dilemma to our server and ask for directions to the nearest ATM machine. A blank look is returned, he talks to someone else, who talks to someone else, etc, until we are back at the front desk asking if they know of any place that has an ATM. Luckily for me, my problem-solving mode has fully kicked in and has left no room for me to be completely mortified.
By this time, they have found a Hotel in the city where we can stay and it's only a few exits away.
So off I go, traveling around an unfamiliar section of Dublin that is apparently unfamiliar to everyone, looking for an ATM.
First stop, the Tesco down the street - nope, closed, ATM inside. But there are two guys standing outside the bar that is a few doors down from the Tesco. I go over to the two guys and politely interrupt,
me: "Excuse me... do you know where I could find an ATM"
guy 1 (drunk): "hmmm... no well... hmmm"
guy 2 (sober): "I don't know if there is one in this area, did you try the Tesco?... you know, in Ireland we don't deal in money, we deal in grudges"
me: [laugh knowingly] "oh! I see ... nope, I tried the one at the Tesco and it's closed, do you know of anything that might still be open?"
guy 2 (sober): "well there's a petrol station down the way, you could walk there in 10 minutes, I think they might have one"
me: "ok... thanks, i'll drive down there"
guy 2 (sober): "well, if you are going to drive, you need to turn before the station, park across the street and then cross to get to the station"
guy 2 (sober): .... continues explaining why I should park across the street, pointing out landmarks, making sure I see them, etc.
guy 1 (drunk): "what part of Donegal are you from lass?"
me: astonished, "I am not from Donegal"
guy 1 (drunk): "well where are you from?"
me: literally blanking for a minute, realizing that my accent is full-on irish at this point, totally flattered, "umm... well... Georgia... America"
guy 1 (drunk): "Jesus! Mary! and Joseph! ... well your mom or grandmom must be from Donegal"
me: smiling "nope, well maybe WAAAAY back" laughing
guy 2 (sober): now realizing I am American starts explaining and motioning what Petrol is... and reiterating the directions, and reiterating that he can't promise that there is an ATM at the Petrol station, but he can't be sure, if I know what he means.
me: thinking [I understand what he means, I won't hold a grudge if he's wrong, and most likely they don't have one, that's ok... maybe they know where one is.... ] "ok... well I am going to go check, thanks for the info... bye!"
I arrive at the Petrol station - no ATM, only a guy at the window. I ask him a series of questions, most of the answers I didn't understand, however, what I did understand was his belief in sending me back to the Tesco station by the Bar from which I had just come.
I go back to the Hotel, after circling the area, searching for a Bank or Petrol station that has an ATM on the outside.
Once back at the hotel, one of the other waiters tells me there is one within walking distance and practically walks me there. Place one - a shop - closed, Place two - has an ATM that doesn't work. I walk back.
When I walk back in, the Kitchen or Restaurant Manager is trying to let us off the hook. We talk for quite a while and he promises that it's ok and we can bring the money tomorrow and he is sorry for all of the hassle. He then explains to us, exactly what happened with the Ballymun Plaza. We also talk about how the area is being redone, the vision for Ballymun (the city), and how much money has already gone into it's restoration. Quite a lovely conversation :)
So we are off! But I tell Joe, there is one more place we can try that the lady in Place 2 (broken ATM) told me about. I follow her directions to the bank with an ATM on the outside!!! We get the cash we need, head back to the Hotel, pay for our food ... and finally head to the Days Hotel a few exits down the motorway.
Eeeeee
And that is exactly what we did. We stopped at the Travelodge only to find out that our hotel (Ballymun Plaza) had been abruptly closed by the owner 3 weeks prior, the staff had been laid-off without even their last two weeks of pay, and that the Travelodge that was now open in it's stead had only opened yesterday and no longer had our booking.
And then it becomes really interesting. You see there was this huge American concert in Dublin and also a convention for the Cluster Bombs so there was no hotel to be booked at 9pm on a Friday evening. We were advised to head outside the city and look for hotels that way. Remember how we just drove 3 hours from Galway to Dublin? and of course we are hungry :) We somehow must've looked lost and American enough to get some of the staff on our side, and the staff began to diligently look for another hotel for us.
The Travelodge (previously Ballymun Plaza) also had a restaurant that was just about to close so we decided that since most of Ireland rolls up the street at 6pm, that we would eat dinner while the staff member was calling every hotel she could.
And so we ate. The food was delicious! However, the restaurant was separated by a partition in the hotel and also a credit card machine/bank account. That's right... if your biggest fear is that you get to a restaurant, eat, have no cash on you, and they don't take credit cards because their machine isn't working yet ... well you would've been living a nightmare.
We explain our dilemma to our server and ask for directions to the nearest ATM machine. A blank look is returned, he talks to someone else, who talks to someone else, etc, until we are back at the front desk asking if they know of any place that has an ATM. Luckily for me, my problem-solving mode has fully kicked in and has left no room for me to be completely mortified.
By this time, they have found a Hotel in the city where we can stay and it's only a few exits away.
So off I go, traveling around an unfamiliar section of Dublin that is apparently unfamiliar to everyone, looking for an ATM.
First stop, the Tesco down the street - nope, closed, ATM inside. But there are two guys standing outside the bar that is a few doors down from the Tesco. I go over to the two guys and politely interrupt,
me: "Excuse me... do you know where I could find an ATM"
guy 1 (drunk): "hmmm... no well... hmmm"
guy 2 (sober): "I don't know if there is one in this area, did you try the Tesco?... you know, in Ireland we don't deal in money, we deal in grudges"
me: [laugh knowingly] "oh! I see ... nope, I tried the one at the Tesco and it's closed, do you know of anything that might still be open?"
guy 2 (sober): "well there's a petrol station down the way, you could walk there in 10 minutes, I think they might have one"
me: "ok... thanks, i'll drive down there"
guy 2 (sober): "well, if you are going to drive, you need to turn before the station, park across the street and then cross to get to the station"
guy 2 (sober): .... continues explaining why I should park across the street, pointing out landmarks, making sure I see them, etc.
guy 1 (drunk): "what part of Donegal are you from lass?"
me: astonished, "I am not from Donegal"
guy 1 (drunk): "well where are you from?"
me: literally blanking for a minute, realizing that my accent is full-on irish at this point, totally flattered, "umm... well... Georgia... America"
guy 1 (drunk): "Jesus! Mary! and Joseph! ... well your mom or grandmom must be from Donegal"
me: smiling "nope, well maybe WAAAAY back" laughing
guy 2 (sober): now realizing I am American starts explaining and motioning what Petrol is... and reiterating the directions, and reiterating that he can't promise that there is an ATM at the Petrol station, but he can't be sure, if I know what he means.
me: thinking [I understand what he means, I won't hold a grudge if he's wrong, and most likely they don't have one, that's ok... maybe they know where one is.... ] "ok... well I am going to go check, thanks for the info... bye!"
I arrive at the Petrol station - no ATM, only a guy at the window. I ask him a series of questions, most of the answers I didn't understand, however, what I did understand was his belief in sending me back to the Tesco station by the Bar from which I had just come.
I go back to the Hotel, after circling the area, searching for a Bank or Petrol station that has an ATM on the outside.
Once back at the hotel, one of the other waiters tells me there is one within walking distance and practically walks me there. Place one - a shop - closed, Place two - has an ATM that doesn't work. I walk back.
When I walk back in, the Kitchen or Restaurant Manager is trying to let us off the hook. We talk for quite a while and he promises that it's ok and we can bring the money tomorrow and he is sorry for all of the hassle. He then explains to us, exactly what happened with the Ballymun Plaza. We also talk about how the area is being redone, the vision for Ballymun (the city), and how much money has already gone into it's restoration. Quite a lovely conversation :)
So we are off! But I tell Joe, there is one more place we can try that the lady in Place 2 (broken ATM) told me about. I follow her directions to the bank with an ATM on the outside!!! We get the cash we need, head back to the Hotel, pay for our food ... and finally head to the Days Hotel a few exits down the motorway.
Eeeeee
Day 8 - Galway, Ireland!
Today's trip was a special one for two reasons... well 3 reasons. One, we went way out of our way to drive to Galway. Two, Galway is where our wedding rings are from. And three, the west of ireland (specifically Galway county and Roscommon county) is where my mother's ancestors are from.
Our plan was to drive to Galway from Kilkenny (about 3 hours), tour around Galway and see Claddagh jewelers, then drive to Dublin from Galway (another 3 hours) and check-in to our hotel.
Let me take a bit of a diversion now and just talk about how much I LOVED driving in Ireland! I had teased Joe mercilessly about him learning to drive a stick-shift while we were in Ireland because I "wasn't going to do all of the driving". Well it was a different story once I was behind the wheel! I had so much fun driving that little car all over tarnation with the winding roads and endless down-shifting for the round-abouts and small townships. Maybe I was born to be a driver... or maybe it's because there is a love of driving in my blood (thanks Dad :D ) ... but put me in a car with some power, a manual transmission, and some curve in the road, and you have one HAPPY GIRL!!! Add to it that driving on the left is the most fun thing and you have a delightfully happy girl!
So back to Galway...
We arrived in Galway and found Claddagh Jewelers. There are a few streets in the old town of Galway that are permanently pedestrian streets and that is where Claddagh Jewelers is located.
After walking around the pedestrian center, we walked around Galway city centre for a little while.
I love this picture that Joe captured:
We left Galway and headed back to Dublin.
---------------
Arriving back in Dublin we were quickly asking, "Where in the world is the Balymum Plaza Hotel"?
This began the Hotel Debacle...
Our plan was to drive to Galway from Kilkenny (about 3 hours), tour around Galway and see Claddagh jewelers, then drive to Dublin from Galway (another 3 hours) and check-in to our hotel.
Let me take a bit of a diversion now and just talk about how much I LOVED driving in Ireland! I had teased Joe mercilessly about him learning to drive a stick-shift while we were in Ireland because I "wasn't going to do all of the driving". Well it was a different story once I was behind the wheel! I had so much fun driving that little car all over tarnation with the winding roads and endless down-shifting for the round-abouts and small townships. Maybe I was born to be a driver... or maybe it's because there is a love of driving in my blood (thanks Dad :D ) ... but put me in a car with some power, a manual transmission, and some curve in the road, and you have one HAPPY GIRL!!! Add to it that driving on the left is the most fun thing and you have a delightfully happy girl!
So back to Galway...
We arrived in Galway and found Claddagh Jewelers. There are a few streets in the old town of Galway that are permanently pedestrian streets and that is where Claddagh Jewelers is located.
After walking around the pedestrian center, we walked around Galway city centre for a little while.
I love this picture that Joe captured:
We left Galway and headed back to Dublin.
---------------
Arriving back in Dublin we were quickly asking, "Where in the world is the Balymum Plaza Hotel"?
This began the Hotel Debacle...
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
Day 7 - Waterford and Kilkenny, Ireland
We started the day by going to Waterford Crystal for a tour. This was a very neat and thorough tour. We watched the glass blowers blow the glass into molds, shape a handle on a crystal pitcher, and we watched the cutters cut the glass into the famous Waterford Crystal that we all know and love. We were even given an up-close demonstration of how each cut is made.
On the tour bus at Waterford:
At the factory, watching a handle being attached to the crystal pitcher:
Cutting the crystal...
The Waterford Crystal Shop:
-------------
We left Waterford and headed to Kilkenny, Ireland. In Kilkenny, we saw the Kilkenny castle which has obvious english influence and toured around the city.
Kilkenny Castle:
-----------------
Tomorrow: Galway and Claddagh Jewelers!
On the tour bus at Waterford:
At the factory, watching a handle being attached to the crystal pitcher:
Cutting the crystal...
The Waterford Crystal Shop:
-------------
We left Waterford and headed to Kilkenny, Ireland. In Kilkenny, we saw the Kilkenny castle which has obvious english influence and toured around the city.
Kilkenny Castle:
-----------------
Tomorrow: Galway and Claddagh Jewelers!
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
Day 6 - Glendalough, Ireland
We picked up our rental car from the Airport and for the first time I drove a stick-shift on the other side of the road. I hadn't driven a manual in over 5 years and I was quite nervous about driving one all around Ireland. However, since getting an automatic in Ireland was going to be $400 more, we quickly decided on the stick-shift.
Finding my way out of the parking lot at the airport WAS the hardest part :D
Off to Glendalough, which is part of the Wicklow Mountains, in Wicklow, Ireland! We were heading about 2 hours south of Dublin. Our plan was to hike a 9 km (5 mile) section that included to gorgeous views and a waterfall. According, to the research we had done all we had to remember was to take the path to the right to avoid climbing 600 steps. What our information NEGLECTED to tell us was that we needed to park in the 2nd parking lot for easy access to the trail.
So we arrive at Glendalough, park in the first parking lot, visit the information center, buy a map, and start on the trail that leads to the main trails.
Along the way, we stop at a section which was visited by a lot of tours. It was of an old church grounds and cemetery. The historical significance is escaping me at the moment, all I can remember is them pointing out that the door to the grain silo was 12 ft off the group for safety reasons, and that the cats had their own tiny entrances so they could kill the rats. Oh yes! I remember now, it was a monastery where they translated biblical texts.
Onward with the walk! We keep walking and walking, and about a 1.5 miles later we arrive at the beginning of our trail... except the beginning we are not supposed to take (remember 600 steps?). We look across the lake shore to find what must be the beginning of our trail. We press forward.
We finally arrive at the beginning of our trail. By this time we must've already walked 2 miles, we have a 5 mile moderate to difficult hike a head of us, and barely any food in our tummies. Plus, did I mention it is getting late in the afternoon?
Still we press on!
Our trail is still basically a road... not much hiking going on... but we are passing by other groups and talking and having a good time.
We finally reach a point, where we realize that at some point we are going to have to climb that mountain on the other side of the lake. And our trail is not ascending but descending... which is quite cruel. The change in elevation of the trail is supposed to be around 1000 ft. Which doesn't sound like a lot, until you realize that it's going to be a short, steep climb, in the cold waning afternoon of Ireland, on a relatively empty stomach. I think it was at that point we decided to turn around.
We walk back to the beginning of the trail and low and behold what is in front of us... the second parking lot ... the one with food. We eat.
We walk back to the fork in the road, and decide that we can still see the waterfall. Having walked on trails that were more like roads all day, I was really looking forward to the challenge of the uphill/stairs to get to the waterfall. I was not prepared for what we found.
Look Closely.... :)
We headed back to the car, but this time with a detour through the woods. I think we were both feeling that need to say we had hiked!
All in all, we still "hiked" about 5 miles. Saw some absolutely gorgeous views of Glendalough Valley. And I would really like to go back there again someday and hike it for real. Of course, I will park in the second parking lot next time :)
-----------
After we left Glendalough, we headed to Waterford, Ireland! Home of Waterford Crystal! We arrived at our hotel just in time to catch the last round of room service and we found this hysterical world song competition on the television. All in all, and awesome day :)
Eeeeee
Finding my way out of the parking lot at the airport WAS the hardest part :D
Off to Glendalough, which is part of the Wicklow Mountains, in Wicklow, Ireland! We were heading about 2 hours south of Dublin. Our plan was to hike a 9 km (5 mile) section that included to gorgeous views and a waterfall. According, to the research we had done all we had to remember was to take the path to the right to avoid climbing 600 steps. What our information NEGLECTED to tell us was that we needed to park in the 2nd parking lot for easy access to the trail.
So we arrive at Glendalough, park in the first parking lot, visit the information center, buy a map, and start on the trail that leads to the main trails.
Along the way, we stop at a section which was visited by a lot of tours. It was of an old church grounds and cemetery. The historical significance is escaping me at the moment, all I can remember is them pointing out that the door to the grain silo was 12 ft off the group for safety reasons, and that the cats had their own tiny entrances so they could kill the rats. Oh yes! I remember now, it was a monastery where they translated biblical texts.
Onward with the walk! We keep walking and walking, and about a 1.5 miles later we arrive at the beginning of our trail... except the beginning we are not supposed to take (remember 600 steps?). We look across the lake shore to find what must be the beginning of our trail. We press forward.
We finally arrive at the beginning of our trail. By this time we must've already walked 2 miles, we have a 5 mile moderate to difficult hike a head of us, and barely any food in our tummies. Plus, did I mention it is getting late in the afternoon?
Still we press on!
Our trail is still basically a road... not much hiking going on... but we are passing by other groups and talking and having a good time.
We finally reach a point, where we realize that at some point we are going to have to climb that mountain on the other side of the lake. And our trail is not ascending but descending... which is quite cruel. The change in elevation of the trail is supposed to be around 1000 ft. Which doesn't sound like a lot, until you realize that it's going to be a short, steep climb, in the cold waning afternoon of Ireland, on a relatively empty stomach. I think it was at that point we decided to turn around.
We walk back to the beginning of the trail and low and behold what is in front of us... the second parking lot ... the one with food. We eat.
We walk back to the fork in the road, and decide that we can still see the waterfall. Having walked on trails that were more like roads all day, I was really looking forward to the challenge of the uphill/stairs to get to the waterfall. I was not prepared for what we found.
Look Closely.... :)
We headed back to the car, but this time with a detour through the woods. I think we were both feeling that need to say we had hiked!
All in all, we still "hiked" about 5 miles. Saw some absolutely gorgeous views of Glendalough Valley. And I would really like to go back there again someday and hike it for real. Of course, I will park in the second parking lot next time :)
-----------
After we left Glendalough, we headed to Waterford, Ireland! Home of Waterford Crystal! We arrived at our hotel just in time to catch the last round of room service and we found this hysterical world song competition on the television. All in all, and awesome day :)
Eeeeee
Monday, May 19, 2008
Day 5 - Dublin, Ireland!
Today we go to Ireland!
Once again, we packed up all of our luggage and traveled the trains to the London-Gatwick airport. The trip over to Dublin was quite delightful. Of course, I made a new friend on the airplane. And we chatted nearly the whole flight.
Once we arrived in Dublin, we got on the bus and traveled to Dublin City Centre. Of course, we were soooo close to getting it right on the first try. We walked the city centre and walked across the River Liffey and walked the length of the Temple Bar district and finally arrived at our Hotel.
After setting our luggage down, we headed back out to find the Guinness Storehouse and Brewery. We got to Guinness just in time. We went on the self-guided tour, tried a little bit of Guinness, and had a Coca-cola in the 7th floor Guinness lounge :)
Once we left the Guinness Storehouse, we headed back near our hotel to find dinner. We actually at a place that was a connected to our hotel. The dinner was awesome! Especially, after a long journey around town.
Joe's soup:
Elizabeth's meal... mashed potatoes, fried potatoes, and a huge hamburger steak.
That night we headed back out to the Temple Bar district and enjoyed the night life of Dublin.
Tomorrow: Driving a stick-shift to Glendalough, Wicklow Mountains...
Eeeeee
Once again, we packed up all of our luggage and traveled the trains to the London-Gatwick airport. The trip over to Dublin was quite delightful. Of course, I made a new friend on the airplane. And we chatted nearly the whole flight.
Once we arrived in Dublin, we got on the bus and traveled to Dublin City Centre. Of course, we were soooo close to getting it right on the first try. We walked the city centre and walked across the River Liffey and walked the length of the Temple Bar district and finally arrived at our Hotel.
After setting our luggage down, we headed back out to find the Guinness Storehouse and Brewery. We got to Guinness just in time. We went on the self-guided tour, tried a little bit of Guinness, and had a Coca-cola in the 7th floor Guinness lounge :)
Once we left the Guinness Storehouse, we headed back near our hotel to find dinner. We actually at a place that was a connected to our hotel. The dinner was awesome! Especially, after a long journey around town.
Joe's soup:
Elizabeth's meal... mashed potatoes, fried potatoes, and a huge hamburger steak.
That night we headed back out to the Temple Bar district and enjoyed the night life of Dublin.
Tomorrow: Driving a stick-shift to Glendalough, Wicklow Mountains...
Eeeeee
Sunday, May 18, 2008
Day 4 - London!
Day 4 - London
BACK TO THE TRAINS!!!!! After dropping off our rental car at the London-Gatwick airport we were able to really to take in some of the sights of London.
We decided on a couple of tours, first a bus tour, then the tour of the Tower of London, then a tour of the Tower of London castle, then a boat tour of the River Thames.
First up the bus tour ... we decided to sit on the top of the double decker bus. A really cool option, even with the wind :) We plugged our ear buds in and learned about all of London from a guy that even sounded British. For me the starkest contrast was when we went from what is considered Westminster to London. The architecture was so divided between the two it was quite shocking! Imagine the effect/affect of going from an old world city with lots of marble to a new world city with lots of glass and steel.
Whole Foods is even in London
At the Tower Bridge, we hopped off of the bus and took the tour of the bridge.
I have two favorite parts to this tour. One was when we were going through a recreated engine room and Joe sneezed, scaring the other tourists! (If you have never heard Joe sneeze it is quite a deafening experience.) The second was when we were looking for the restrooms and we had to go all the way down a winding staircase to find them.
I think Joe might have been a little desperate :)
Next was the Tower Bridge Castle. This is where Henry VIII lived and beheaded his wives and other people. It was built to be a fortress to the city and since Henry VIII seemed to really like to behead people, I think he got his point across. This is also where they keep the Crown Jewels. It was really cool to see those, very mesmerizing... I kept going backwards on the conveyor belt so that I could view the jewels longer.
After the castle, we headed to the boats to tour on the River Thames.
Joe relaxing after a long day of touring London.
Next Up: Fly to Ireland!
BACK TO THE TRAINS!!!!! After dropping off our rental car at the London-Gatwick airport we were able to really to take in some of the sights of London.
We decided on a couple of tours, first a bus tour, then the tour of the Tower of London, then a tour of the Tower of London castle, then a boat tour of the River Thames.
First up the bus tour ... we decided to sit on the top of the double decker bus. A really cool option, even with the wind :) We plugged our ear buds in and learned about all of London from a guy that even sounded British. For me the starkest contrast was when we went from what is considered Westminster to London. The architecture was so divided between the two it was quite shocking! Imagine the effect/affect of going from an old world city with lots of marble to a new world city with lots of glass and steel.
Whole Foods is even in London
At the Tower Bridge, we hopped off of the bus and took the tour of the bridge.
I have two favorite parts to this tour. One was when we were going through a recreated engine room and Joe sneezed, scaring the other tourists! (If you have never heard Joe sneeze it is quite a deafening experience.) The second was when we were looking for the restrooms and we had to go all the way down a winding staircase to find them.
I think Joe might have been a little desperate :)
Next was the Tower Bridge Castle. This is where Henry VIII lived and beheaded his wives and other people. It was built to be a fortress to the city and since Henry VIII seemed to really like to behead people, I think he got his point across. This is also where they keep the Crown Jewels. It was really cool to see those, very mesmerizing... I kept going backwards on the conveyor belt so that I could view the jewels longer.
After the castle, we headed to the boats to tour on the River Thames.
Joe relaxing after a long day of touring London.
Next Up: Fly to Ireland!
Saturday, May 17, 2008
Day 3 - Scotland
So we woke up this morning in Blackpool, in a lovely B&B with they tiniest shower I think I have ever stood in. Matters are only complicated more by the super tiny sink, overlapping the toilet. One one hand it gives me hope that my dad's farmhouse can have multiple bathrooms, on the other hand, I felt like standing in the bedroom to brush my teeth :)
We go downstairs and are greeted by our hostess asking us what we would like for breakfast. By now, we are in LOVE with the traditional english breakfast of bacon (so big it's essentially ham), eggs, beans, and toast. It is an excellent way to start the day!
After breakfast, we pack up and head north to Scotland. First stop, Threave Castle! Threave Castle is a castle that is on a little bity island on a loch (lake). You have to walk down a path to get to the boat, ring a bell, and a boatman comes over and ferries you back. You see the appeal for me and Joe?
I really enjoyed this castle! It had a certain creepiness to it which one always enjoys in a 11th century castle and it had pictures of how it used to look as a working castle/household. Plus the grounds surrounding it were simply majestic.
So my favorite part of this castle was the history museum guy/boatman telling us the story of the Count/Earl that used to live there. Apparently, when you were no longer in his favor he didn't bother shooting you, he just hung you from the roof. Mean, mean dude. When the castle was conquered by the English in 13xx, they shot a cannon at the tower wall. There was a dinner party going on at the same time and the Lady of the Castle (mean dudes wife) had her entire arm blown off by the cannon ball. Later they found remains of her arm with the wedding ring still attached. They say that if you listen closely you can still hear the sounds of organ music playing in the great hall.
-------
Next Up: the Creamery!
I don't know how it is that Joe and I love to visit dairy farms, ice cream places, and creameries, but we do. So, of course, we found one in Scotland. This one in Scotland , proved to be the hardest to find! Two hours to find something that was less than 15 minutes from Threave castle. But we finally made it! And boy, did they have some AWESOME ice cream. They also had awesome hamburgers (we were starved by this point), walking paths, beautiful scenery, etc.
These were actually the views from the creamery ... can you imagine waking up to this everyday... glorious!
------
So in a moment of pressing on or stupidity, we decided to drive back to London from Scotland... approximately 5 hours. Now here is where this country is really interesting... the daylight hours seem to extend forever. It is mid-May and it doesn't even begin to get dark until 9pm. But back to my point, I wanted to drive to London a different way because I wanted to see more of the countryside and more importantly Derbyshire. However, when you leave Scotland at 6pm, it is not likely that you will see much of anything by the time you get back into England, cut across and then down to head towards London. Ach, but it was a good try, and we can say we went all over England now.
So it's the wee hours of the morning when we arrive in London and have to find our hotel. Joe has called ahead and gotten some directions, but even with those directions we still managed to tour parts of downtown a little. Bonus: Following in the path of the cabs, I also made a few u-turns in London :)
Next Up: Seeing the sights of London!
We go downstairs and are greeted by our hostess asking us what we would like for breakfast. By now, we are in LOVE with the traditional english breakfast of bacon (so big it's essentially ham), eggs, beans, and toast. It is an excellent way to start the day!
After breakfast, we pack up and head north to Scotland. First stop, Threave Castle! Threave Castle is a castle that is on a little bity island on a loch (lake). You have to walk down a path to get to the boat, ring a bell, and a boatman comes over and ferries you back. You see the appeal for me and Joe?
I really enjoyed this castle! It had a certain creepiness to it which one always enjoys in a 11th century castle and it had pictures of how it used to look as a working castle/household. Plus the grounds surrounding it were simply majestic.
So my favorite part of this castle was the history museum guy/boatman telling us the story of the Count/Earl that used to live there. Apparently, when you were no longer in his favor he didn't bother shooting you, he just hung you from the roof. Mean, mean dude. When the castle was conquered by the English in 13xx, they shot a cannon at the tower wall. There was a dinner party going on at the same time and the Lady of the Castle (mean dudes wife) had her entire arm blown off by the cannon ball. Later they found remains of her arm with the wedding ring still attached. They say that if you listen closely you can still hear the sounds of organ music playing in the great hall.
-------
Next Up: the Creamery!
I don't know how it is that Joe and I love to visit dairy farms, ice cream places, and creameries, but we do. So, of course, we found one in Scotland. This one in Scotland , proved to be the hardest to find! Two hours to find something that was less than 15 minutes from Threave castle. But we finally made it! And boy, did they have some AWESOME ice cream. They also had awesome hamburgers (we were starved by this point), walking paths, beautiful scenery, etc.
These were actually the views from the creamery ... can you imagine waking up to this everyday... glorious!
------
So in a moment of pressing on or stupidity, we decided to drive back to London from Scotland... approximately 5 hours. Now here is where this country is really interesting... the daylight hours seem to extend forever. It is mid-May and it doesn't even begin to get dark until 9pm. But back to my point, I wanted to drive to London a different way because I wanted to see more of the countryside and more importantly Derbyshire. However, when you leave Scotland at 6pm, it is not likely that you will see much of anything by the time you get back into England, cut across and then down to head towards London. Ach, but it was a good try, and we can say we went all over England now.
So it's the wee hours of the morning when we arrive in London and have to find our hotel. Joe has called ahead and gotten some directions, but even with those directions we still managed to tour parts of downtown a little. Bonus: Following in the path of the cabs, I also made a few u-turns in London :)
Next Up: Seeing the sights of London!
Friday, May 16, 2008
England, Scotland, Ireland - Day 2
We woke up refreshed this morning! I guess 15 hours of sleep will do that :)
On our agenda for the day was to pick up the Rental Car and learn to drive on the left side of the road. So it was back to the trains - Underground to London-Victoria, Southern Rail from London-Victoria to London-Gatwick.
Now that we were a little more settled and not carrying as much luggage, we were able to enjoy the sites on the way to the airport a little more...
Once we picked up our rental car, we headed to Stonehenge. Sorry, we don't have video of us driving on the left for the first time... I think we were both a little too nervous! Anyway, we only almost killed ourselves once when we exited the roundabout from the inside lane... Oooops... we were barely out of the airport at this point so I am sure the other traffic was used to looking out for people like us :)
A few hours later, we arrived at Stonehenge... a really cool place.. we didn't pay to go "on the premises", we kinda figured the stones pretty much looked the same from both inside and out :)
NEXT STOP: Aintree Racecourse in Liverpool for horse racing and the McFly concert!
So... we sorta miscalculated our travel time a little - by like 3 hours :) - and got a little lost - but thankfully my superpower is DRIVING FAST! Getting us there on time by pushing our little car a wee bit faster than normal is my specialty.
Along the way to Liverpool, we kept seeing these TANK CROSSING signs. We decided to take a picture ... Joe's taking the picture...I am driving... still on the left :)
We arrived in Liverpool, at the Aintree Racecourse, just as the last horse race was going on. Just in time to get some awesome shots...
And THEN... what we came for... the McFly concert!!!!!!!
Afterward, we headed to Blackpool (which is about an hour north of Liverpool) to our bed and breakfast.
DAY 3: SCOTLAND....
On our agenda for the day was to pick up the Rental Car and learn to drive on the left side of the road. So it was back to the trains - Underground to London-Victoria, Southern Rail from London-Victoria to London-Gatwick.
Now that we were a little more settled and not carrying as much luggage, we were able to enjoy the sites on the way to the airport a little more...
Once we picked up our rental car, we headed to Stonehenge. Sorry, we don't have video of us driving on the left for the first time... I think we were both a little too nervous! Anyway, we only almost killed ourselves once when we exited the roundabout from the inside lane... Oooops... we were barely out of the airport at this point so I am sure the other traffic was used to looking out for people like us :)
A few hours later, we arrived at Stonehenge... a really cool place.. we didn't pay to go "on the premises", we kinda figured the stones pretty much looked the same from both inside and out :)
NEXT STOP: Aintree Racecourse in Liverpool for horse racing and the McFly concert!
So... we sorta miscalculated our travel time a little - by like 3 hours :) - and got a little lost - but thankfully my superpower is DRIVING FAST! Getting us there on time by pushing our little car a wee bit faster than normal is my specialty.
Along the way to Liverpool, we kept seeing these TANK CROSSING signs. We decided to take a picture ... Joe's taking the picture...I am driving... still on the left :)
We arrived in Liverpool, at the Aintree Racecourse, just as the last horse race was going on. Just in time to get some awesome shots...
And THEN... what we came for... the McFly concert!!!!!!!
Afterward, we headed to Blackpool (which is about an hour north of Liverpool) to our bed and breakfast.
DAY 3: SCOTLAND....
Thursday, May 15, 2008
England, Scotland, Ireland - Day 1
This years vacation ROCKED!!! I know I say that every year, but that just because we ROCK at vacations :) We have dubbed this vacation "SO CLOSE"...
We started out by flying into London, England. We had a flight that left Atlanta around 6pm and landed in London - Gatwick at 8am London time. Once we landed and thank goodness we did (the flight was incredibly bumpy), we stood in line at customs so long that they put our luggage in the "special" area. We found our luggage and made our way to our train. Little did we know that different trains (and different train companies) would use the same train track. So two stops down the line, we got off the train we were on and got on the next one. So did everyone else :) Aha! Now we are on the right train, going to London-Victoria station. We arrive at London-Victoria station where we had to buy new tickets for the Underground (subway system). We lug our luggage to the District Line where we get on the right train... sorta... the train we were on split and went south when we needed to go north. So two more train switches and we finally arrive at our stop. Our stop, West Kensington, was said to be a 5 min walk to our hotel. We soon learn that a 5 min walk in London is like "just down the road" in Atlanta... 15 - 20 mins carrying luggage. We arrived at our hotel at 2:45pm. We landed at 8am. We get checked-in to our hotel, refresh ourselves a little, and head back out... after all we are on Vacation... and we have stuff to see!!! We stopped at a Tesco (thanks Barbara for the tip!) to pick up some sandwiches, etc and headed to Buckingham Palace.
We really have no idea of the importance of any of the places we saw around Buckingham Palace, but it seemed to be a place for people to congregate :)
Compared to the 80 degree weather in Atlanta, low-50's was freezing!
We also headed over to see Big Ben and St. ?'s ... lot's of walking for the first day.
It wasn't very late by the time we arrived back at our hotel. However, the Jet Lag (or lack of ability to sleep on the plane for fear of crash landing) finally caught up with us. We went to bed around 7pm london time thinking we would just take a nap. We woke up the next morning :)
Eeeeee
We started out by flying into London, England. We had a flight that left Atlanta around 6pm and landed in London - Gatwick at 8am London time. Once we landed and thank goodness we did (the flight was incredibly bumpy), we stood in line at customs so long that they put our luggage in the "special" area. We found our luggage and made our way to our train. Little did we know that different trains (and different train companies) would use the same train track. So two stops down the line, we got off the train we were on and got on the next one. So did everyone else :) Aha! Now we are on the right train, going to London-Victoria station. We arrive at London-Victoria station where we had to buy new tickets for the Underground (subway system). We lug our luggage to the District Line where we get on the right train... sorta... the train we were on split and went south when we needed to go north. So two more train switches and we finally arrive at our stop. Our stop, West Kensington, was said to be a 5 min walk to our hotel. We soon learn that a 5 min walk in London is like "just down the road" in Atlanta... 15 - 20 mins carrying luggage. We arrived at our hotel at 2:45pm. We landed at 8am. We get checked-in to our hotel, refresh ourselves a little, and head back out... after all we are on Vacation... and we have stuff to see!!! We stopped at a Tesco (thanks Barbara for the tip!) to pick up some sandwiches, etc and headed to Buckingham Palace.
We really have no idea of the importance of any of the places we saw around Buckingham Palace, but it seemed to be a place for people to congregate :)
Compared to the 80 degree weather in Atlanta, low-50's was freezing!
We also headed over to see Big Ben and St. ?'s ... lot's of walking for the first day.
It wasn't very late by the time we arrived back at our hotel. However, the Jet Lag (or lack of ability to sleep on the plane for fear of crash landing) finally caught up with us. We went to bed around 7pm london time thinking we would just take a nap. We woke up the next morning :)
Eeeeee
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
Off to England and Ireland baby!!!
Tomorrow we head out on our vacation ... England and Ireland (plus one day in Scotland)!!!
We are super excited... so much adventure abounds... driving on the other side of the road, driving in Ireland, driving a stick-shift in Ireland!
We are not taking our computer and our cell phones won't work... so we'll see ya when we return!
Much love,
Eeeeee
We are super excited... so much adventure abounds... driving on the other side of the road, driving in Ireland, driving a stick-shift in Ireland!
We are not taking our computer and our cell phones won't work... so we'll see ya when we return!
Much love,
Eeeeee
Monday, May 05, 2008
Congratulations to Margie and Robert
Congratulations to our friends and fellow small group mates, Margie and Robert, who just had a beautiful baby boy. Baby Elijah was born on 5/4/08 and weighed 8lbs 15 oz.
We saw Robert, Margie, and Elijah at the hospital today and all are doing fantastic :)
An interesting way to get out of studying for small group for a few weeks :)
Love,
Eeeeee
We saw Robert, Margie, and Elijah at the hospital today and all are doing fantastic :)
An interesting way to get out of studying for small group for a few weeks :)
Love,
Eeeeee
Sunday, May 04, 2008
Prom Season
Chelsea went to her Junior prom yesterday. She was stunning in her dress! I nearly cried when I first saw her :)
Enjoy the pics...
Eeeeee
Enjoy the pics...
Eeeeee
Saturday, May 03, 2008
Friday, May 02, 2008
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