Scotland, Aye!

Hadrian’s Wall

An early start to the day, we made our first stop in Heddon on the Wall in the north of England to view the World Heritage site of Hadrian’s Wall, which I might add, was a bit anti-climactic for me. I had envisioned this great wall, an impenetrable Roman fortress, but after almost 2000 years, it’s surprising that any section of the wall remains at all. I was honestly more amused and entertained by the horses in the neighbouring farm that were nuzzling and biting at each other’s necks than the wall itself, but I could at least appreciate this ancient legacy that has survived the ages.

Welcome to Scotland!

After our stop at the wall, we continued on to Scotland (Aye!) where my obsession for all things tweed and tartan immediately rekindled. Along the way we passed lush fields painted in an endless array of emerald shades, dotted with countless fluffy sheep, and the occasional golden sheet of wild mustard blooms. Crossing the border was like something out of a picture book. A large stone marked with England on one side and Scotland on the other, welcomed us into the country. Standing before it was your typical Scotsman, all decked out in his kilt and clan colours, and of course, playing the bagpipes. It was quite magical. Dark clouds loomed overhead while the strong wind tossed me about (definitely not a good hair day for me), and excitement filled the air. It was everything I thought Scotland would be – rugged, raw, strong, and spirited. It’s no wonder its people have been described similarly, having been moulded and influenced by this spectacular terrain.

Scottish Countryside

Our next stop was the little town of Jedburgh, where we got out to stretch our legs. I strolled down to the river to admire the wildflowers and watch the ducks idling in the water and then walked over the bridge and up to the abbey to peer through the iron gates.

Jedburgh

Finally, having reached Edinburgh, we checked into our hotel, Melville Castle, an old Gothic castellated mansion on the outskirts of the city. I was looking forward to staying at the Airth Castle Hotel as previously outlined in the brochure, but there was a last minute switch, of which we were only notified that morning, and so we were moved to this sister property. Although not as grand as Airth Castle, Melville was still quite delightful. My room was large, the beds were super comfortable, and the view of the grounds and fountain from my bedroom window was much more inspiring than the hideous brewery the night before. So, after enjoying a tranquil evening stroll about the property and a picnic dinner in my room, I was eager to fall asleep in my comfy bed and look forward to my day in Edinburgh the next day.

Melville Castle

Sunny London?

The first stop on my extended vacation was London, England and it wasn’t at all what I had expected.  Flying into the city was beautiful.  Soaring over puffy white clouds, the skies began to clear as we descended.  England welcomed me with a blanket of green fields and spectacular views of sandy and rugged coasts, and the seemingly calm Atlantic waters.  I had been preparing myself for the cloudy and dreary days, the rain and overcast skies, and the insurmountable crowds, but my stay in this “great city of the world” proved to be a pleasant surprise to say the least.

Natural History Museum

I arrived on a warm and sunny morning and after a long wait in the queue at customs, I finally set out for my hotel in the west end of the city.  For those of you who would rather avoid the hefty taxi and/or transfer costs, I highly recommend the Easy Bus.  Not only was it cheap and comfortable, the stop was conveniently located across the street from my hotel.  Excited about the unexpectedly great weather, I ignored the jetlag, quickly freshened up, and headed out – in my pretty brand new Mary Jane flats.  That was mistake number one.  What had begun as a lovely stroll to the Natural History Museum, quickly became a lesson in torture as my shoes began to cut through my heels.  With each painful, bloody step I painstakingly tried to enjoy the museum and its wonderful dinosaur exhibit as much as I could.  My bandages refused to stay on and the effects of my jet lag began to overcome me, so rather than continue on to other museums as I had hoped, I cut my losses and trudged back to the hotel to sleep off my aches and pains and extreme fatigue. (Note to self:  New shoes and jet lag DO NOT make for an enjoyable day.)

Kensington Gardens

Fortunately, Day 2 was a much better day (with much more comfortable shoes).  An early start to the day, I made the most of the pathetic “continental breakfast” at the Ibis Earls Court Hotel, which offered no more than cornflakes, rice crispies, croissants, toast, jam, yoghurt, juice, and coffee and tea.  Where were the muffins or the bagels or the danishes or the fresh fruit?  To say I was disappointed would be an understatement.  But alas, I was determined to make the most of it, so after gobbling down a tiny bowl of cereal along with a croissant with jam and some tea and juice, I headed off to enjoy the once again warm and sunny morning and the tranquillity of Kensington Gardens.

Princess Diana Memorial Fountain

I strolled through the beautiful park for almost 2 hours, enjoying the peace and calm, the vibrant flowers, and the large shady trees.  I stopped to admire the elegant swans in the Round Pond and watched baby ducklings as they followed their mum along The Long Water, I petted a couple of playful dogs that approached me, and encountered a very friendly squirrel and pigeon along the way.  I visited the impressive Albert Monument, said hello to Peter Pan, and had a hell of a time finding the Princess Diana Memorial Fountain, not only because the water was turned off, but because it really doesn’t look like a fountain at all.  Surely, they could have built something much more appropriate and suitable to honour Lady Di’s grace and beauty. I then checked out the lovely Italian Gardens and the charming fountains, and then made my way to Kensington Palace.  Sadly, the palace was surrounded by large construction fencing so I just peered through the gates to catch a glimpse of the building and then made my way out of the park.

Trafalgar Square

Heading out onto the main street, I boarded the hop on/hop off Big Bus for a city tour, a perfect way to visit many of the highlights of the city and become more familiar with the area.  My first stop was Trafalgar Square where I stepped away from the hustle and bustle to explore the spectacular National Gallery.  As I made my way through its maze of rooms, I was awed by the vast collection of Renaissance art.  Hopping back onto the bus, I crossed Westminster Bridge and quickly hopped off to snap a few photos of the bridge, the London Eye, Big Ben and the Parliament Buildings.  Once the next bus arrived, I hopped back on and rode up to Russell Square.  From here I walked to the amazing British Museum, which is one of the most impressive museums I have visited.  A gorgeous and massive building with a wonderful collection, a full day or more could have been spent at this one site alone.  As I had only just a couple of hours to spend here, I visited my most favourite sections.  This is one museum I would definitely want to return to once again.  As two busses whizzed by me without stopping after exiting the museum, I walked all the way to Aldwych where I boarded the bus once again for a ride to Westminster Abbey.  I arrived just in time to enjoy Evensong, the inspiring evening choral mass.  Sitting there in the serenity of the Abbey, listening to the uplifting soprano voices of the boys and the deep and meditative tenors of the Lay Vicars, was a dream come true as I had always dreamed of experiencing the Westminster Choir, renowned as one of the finest choirs.  It was a perfect way to end my day in the city.  After a 12 hour day of sightseeing (with full sun I might add), I rode the bus back to Gloucester Road and began my walk back to the hotel.

British Museum

(Observations for the day…  London traffic is atrocious.  I still can’t believe it took the entire day to manoeuvre around the city core.  In some areas, it was just faster for me to get off the bus and walk from point to point.  If you think you can stop and enjoy even ½ of the sites on the Big Bus route, think again.  It’s just impossible with the amount of time it takes to get from point A to point B, plus the time you’d need to thoroughly enjoy your visit at each site.)

Thames River Cruise

Day 3 in London was a bit bitter sweet.  After humming and hawing about how to get around the city on this day, I finally decided to take advantage of the convenience of the Big Bus tour once again since I hadn’t had time to take the included cruise along the Thames the day before.  Little did I know that if I had paid an extra £5 on the first day, I could have had a two-day pass. Since no one had mentioned this to me, I had to cough up the full amount the next day as they were unwilling to let me pay the discounted rate as it had to be purchased upfront on day one.  Live and learn!  Trying to shake off my irritation and the sting of the full price, I began another day of discovery. This morning, my priority was a cruise along the River Thames.  I rode the bus to the Tower Bridge stop, and there boarded the boat.  What had begun as another glorious sunny day began to quickly turn into a bit of chilly drizzle, but luckily I was prepared as I had brought my trench coat along.  After an enjoyable cruise with patches of rain and sun, I hopped back on the bus again and rode along to the Westminster stop and walked the rest of the way to the Tate Britain, glad that the sun had come out once again.  I had been looking forward to visiting the gallery as it houses a few of my favourite paintings from my favourite painter, John William Waterhouse.  Sadly, 1/3 of the gallery was closed for renovations so I was only able to admire one of Waterhouse’s painting, The Lady of Shalott, as well as another favourite, Millais’ Ophelia.  I was, however, introduced to some other wonderful romantics artists, such as J. M. W. Turner, whom I had not heard of before, so my visit to the gallery was overall quite delightful.  I then walked to another bus pick up stop for a ride to Buckingham Palace.  While I wasn’t fortunate enough to see Her Royal Highness, The Queen (who was in residence at the time), I did enjoy watching the stern faced guards.  To end off my day, I stopped in at Harrods, a must when visiting London as far as I’m concerned.  The food hall there is excellent so I picked up some delicious terrines, some organic biltong, and some yummy bread for an evening picnic in the hotel.

Buckingham Palace

All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed my stay in London, and even though I’m not a fan of big cities, I actually wish I’d had more time there.  There was so much more I wanted to see and do.  The fact that most of its museums and galleries are free is a huge plus for an art and history buff like me, and the crowds weren’t bad at all. As I missed out on checking out the great shopping districts, I shall definitely have to return once more, and hopefully, I’ll be blessed with sunny and warm days once again.

Home Sweet Home

I’ve finally returned home after my extensive vacation and am now trying to catch up on everything and reintegrate myself back into “real life”.  It’s amazing how we get into this strange bubble on holiday and how the outside world seems to just disappear into oblivion, especially since I never looked at a newspaper, watched tv, or rarely logged on to a computer while away.  Now that I’ve returned, I’m trying to get back into my natural rhythms and routine, which I so longed for while away as the constant moving around definitely took its toll on my body.  It’s good to be back though.  I always gain a greater appreciation for my home while away.  I certainly do have many gifts here to be grateful for.

My time away was fantastic and I’m so pleased I took this chunk of time off to explore.  While I did feel a bit rushed in some of the places I visited, I did cover a lot of ground and got to see some very beautiful and quite spectacular locations. I travelled through a variety of landscapes from rolling hills and emerald country-sides, rugged highlands and rocky plains, towering cliffs that dropped far below to sandy shores, and barren lands of bogs and marsh.  I visited vibrant and bustling cities, charming historical towns, and quaint little villages, and enjoyed a medley of sights and sounds.  The weather, on the other hand, was a bit dreary with lots and lots of rain and wind and chill, and we even got snow in the highlands of Scotland.  And while this was an exciting and welcome sight for the bunch of Aussies that were on my tour with me who had never seen snow, it really wasn’t the kind of spring I was hoping for.  What was really strange to me, was that in many areas, the weather would change literally every 15 to 30 minutes, sun for a few minutes, then rain, then back to sun, then hail and more rain, so you needed to be prepared for all sorts of weather each day.  So bizarre.  You didn’t even have time to be disappointed or elated at the climate because, before you knew it, it had already changed to some other kind of weather pattern.  It was a wonderful experience overall and I’m so glad I finally got to visit the British Isles as I had longed to do so for quite some time.

I’m extra glad I ended my holiday in sunny and hot Madrid though, as my aching bones and sinuses were desperate for some heat and sunshine.  It was also wonderful to just plop down in one location for a week and take my time enjoying the city rather than bouncing from location to location every night or two as I had done all over the UK and Ireland.  The slower pace really helped me to relax and it felt more like a vacation than the go-go-go experience I had prior to arriving in Madrid.

As for my writing challenge, I am happy to say that I was successful in writing daily, as I had intended.  I kept a travel journal and wrote every night, and when I wasn’t exhausted from an extremely long day, I even found inspiration to write some poetry.  I’m sure that once I go through my collection of the over 3000 photographs I took, my memories will help me to find the inspiration to write even more poetry as I had wished to do while away.

All in all, it was a wonderful experience and I am so grateful that I had the time to get away and enjoy this little adventure.  Now, my challenge will be to share more of my journey with you all, the highlights of my trip, a few interesting stories, and some of the photographs I took as well.  I hope this will allow you all to enjoy the journey as much as I did and it will also be a pleasure for me to relive my holiday with you all once more.  Until then, I wish you all a wonderful personal journey and leave you with my favourite Irish blessing:

May the road rise up to meet you.
May the wind always be at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face,
and rains fall soft upon your fields.
And until we meet again,
May God hold you in the hollow of His hand.

My Writing Challenge

In just a few days, I will be heading off on my extended vacation.  I’ll be spending 5 full weeks travelling around all the British Isles and then will continue on to Madrid for a week.  I can’t tell you how much I’ve been looking forward to this trip.  It’s been a long time coming and it is definitely well deserved as I have been working like a maniac for almost a year.  This is the first full weekend I’ve had off since, I think, last June.  I know, it sounds crazy doesn’t it?  But this sacrifice of my time (and some of my sanity) will soon be rewarded and this insanely busy time will feel like a distant memory.  At least, I hope so.

While away, I will challenge myself once again with a new task.  Since I have been writing mostly for everyone else over this past year and not so much for myself, I am vowing to dedicate this time away all to me.  My challenge will be to write something each day – a poem, a story, a future blog post, or whatever else I’m inspired to write.  The catch?  Everything I write will only be handwritten in a journal.  Since I will have limited computer and Internet access while away, I am going to take advantage of this technological withdrawal and reconnect with some good ol’ fashioned pen and paper.  Somehow, sharing this challenge with all of you makes it more real and gives me greater incentive to actually keep my promise.  I’m super excited about the idea and am very much looking forward to just getting away from it all, getting back to basics, and reconnecting with myself and nature.

As I’ll be travelling through some breathtaking destinations, I’m sure I will not be lacking in inspiration.  I am hoping that my writing will come naturally from my experiences and that I won’t feel forced to write something because I’ve made this vow.  Just thinking about some of the places I will be visiting is stirring my imagination.  I can’t wait for this new adventure to begin!

Thus, since I will be trying to “unplug” from technology while away, my blog will suffer from lack of new content, but rest assured that once I have returned, I will have plenty to contribute and will certainly make up for lost time.

And so, I wish you all a wonderful spring.  Stay tuned…

The Royal Wedding – A Modern Fairy Tale

Ok, I’ll admit it.  I’m a fan of the British monarchy.  Perhaps it’s because I grew up spending time in our home library flipping through my mother’s book collection of the royals.  Let’s see, we had my all time favourite, The Royal Family Pop-Up-Book, An Invitation to the Royal Wedding, Diana Princess of Wales – The Book of Fashion, The Queen, Born to Be King – Prince William of Wales, The Royal Review (need I go on?), so I really can’t be blamed.  Or maybe it’s because, like most little girls, I grew up simply wanting to believe in the fairy tale.  I still do.

When I mentioned to my friends and family earlier this year that I would be finally visiting the UK this spring, the recurring question, was, “will you be there for the wedding?”  Sadly, no, I’ll have to miss it because my invitation never arrived.  (I’m sure it just got lost in the mail.) While I could have planned my trip to coincide perfectly with the wedding of the decade on April 29, I decided to pass and arrive a week later to avoid the crowds, which I’m really not a fan of.  Instead, I’ll be doing what every other loyal foreign fan of the royals will be doing on that joyous day, and just watch the whole thing on the telly.  However, I think I’ll tune out (or just mute) all the boring news commentary and try to let myself be captivated and enchanted by the whole scene and romance of it all.  Since I can’t seem to find my own Prince Charming, even though I do hear there is a slew of eligible royal bachelors available at the moment, I shall have to live vicariously through “Kate and Wills” for now.  Don’t get me wrong, I do realize the life of a princess, such as the one Kate will have, is not all glitz and glamour.  Life in the public eye is invasive, stressful, and not romantic at all, so I’m more than happy to avoid this type of lifestyle, but I think an occasion such as this helps us keep the fantasy alive.  Life is all too real so we could all use a little magic and make believe every now and then.  I know I’ll take it in whichever way it comes.

So, if a royal celebration can make the world stop for a moment and believe in love, romance, and fairy tales, even for just a moment, so be it.  I’m pleased as punch and chuffed to bits about the whole thing and ready to hop on board that double decker bus and ride the ride as far as it can take me.  I’ll get the kettle on and have myself a cuppa while I watch the whole thing in vivid colour.  And I for one, would be happy to welcome Kate’s pretty face on one of our coins.  We’re way over due for some “change”.

Thus, I send my blessings to the soon to be newlyweds.  May they have a life full of love, joy, peace, and prosperity.

Pip Pip and Cheerio!

If you want to follow the wedding buzz, get in on all the action, and be up to date on the current news, be sure to check out  The Royal Wedding Web Page.

Starting From Scratch… Again

I think every writer comes to a point in life when he or she begins to wonder, “what am I writing about, and whom am I really writing for?” You begin to doubt yourself and the value of your words. You wonder if they hold any merit, if anyone is really reading them, enjoying them, learning from them. I know I’ve come to that place several times and it’s almost made me stop writing altogether. Almost.

I’d lay awake at night, mentally and emotionally exhausted from having sapped every ounce of inspiration out of myself for a writing assignment that I’d have nothing left for me. No rousing words to utter from my lips. No stimulating sentences to prance across my page. Nothing. Then, in the wee hours of the morning, I’d awake with random words and phrases racing through my mind. They would poke and prod at my brain shouting, “Wake up! Write me down! This stuff is good!” but sadly, I would be too tired to act. Shushing my own thoughts, I would just roll over and try to get back to sleep in order to be well rested for the next day of soul sucking work.

It wasn’t that I was beginning to hate writing for others; I was only beginning to resent it. I was angry. It was taking time away from me; the me who had dreams; the me who had so much to share with the world from deep inside my inner core; the me whose spirit wanted to soar, to dance, to share, untethered; the me who wanted to fly.

And so one day, I decided to just let myself do that. I made a promise to myself that I would sacrifice my time for a while and spend it writing for others, so that I could afford to take a break and reconnect with myself, to rekindle that inspiration, to find my words again. I promised myself a vacation, where I would focus entirely on myself. No worrying about finding work assignments. No stressing over deadlines. Just me, a pen, some paper, and the world.

In a month’s time, I will own up to that promise. I will revisit the passion I’ve had since I was a child and will allow myself to fully embrace it. Rather than throwing away the random scraps of paper that are cluttering my nightstand, I will throw caution to the wind. I will enjoy every single second of time, every moment of wonder, every moving experience. I will start from scratch, again and be grateful for this gift I have given myself.