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On The Plane

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As I mentioned earlier, Dan and I aren’t sitting together: rather than being in the center of the row, where you can lower a “wall” and yak and all, we did the left side of the plane.

Wellllll … it is noisier on the sides (although my near-deaf left ear means it’s not too bad), and I am missing chatting with my man. I’m hoping the view we see out the window when it gets light will make this worth the experiment, but I have a not-so-sneaking suspicion that we will go back to our usual center seats on our next big flight. (We only do Polaris when we know we want to sleep, it’s night time, and it’s not SO horribly expensive we can gulp and pay the price.)

Anyway, I miss Dan! But does he miss me? Hmmmm.

Take off was quick and easy and, as always, I accepted the glass of sparkling wine. I managed to get the free WiFi set up (free means I can only text, but I can live without the internet for the time I’m on the plane, I think). Then I spent time reading my book, This is Happiness, by Niall Williams.

Eventually they came back around, offering a drink (Pinot noir for me) and the little cup of warmed nuts. Had I known dinner wasn’t to arrive for a while I probably would have skipped wine and ordered it later, but I didn’t realize that.

Dan and I had pre-ordered our dinner, because then we could choose the special chef-prepared meal. Sadly it was lamb and I wasn’t sure I’d enjoy it, but being as it was a special thing I went ahead and did that. Prior to the main they brought a tray with a couple of salads — one with shrimp and one with beets, along with some crackers and an offer of bread (i chose the dark rye). The salads were quite delicious. I realize the image doesn’t look all that exciting, but trust me, it was all tasty! Truly a full meal on its own.

Then the lamb came with some carrots. I can now state that I do not care at all for lamb. I tried a few bites. That was enough. I also had some of the carrots which I found too salty, but maybe better salty than bland?

I skipped dessert.

Really.

No sundae or cheesecake or cheese plate for me. I was too full. The two salad plates would have been plenty.

Then it was sleeping time. I lowered my bed, got the blanket and pillows in place, and fell asleep.

When I woke we had already passed Greenland. Darn. I didn’t get to see a bit of that, and we flew too far below Reykjavik. So much for a window seat!

I spent more time reading: I’m really enjoying my book, but it’s a slow read for me. It’s quite beautifully written and a nice break from my normal mystery books. While reading I could smell food — breakfast — being prepared. I will forever wish that we’d be served meals on the schedule of the place we are headed, but I guess I’ll forever be disappointed. It’s a bit after noon where we are headed. Seems like lunch would be rather nice to get us to transition to that time.

Finally, looking out the window, I saw land! Hello Scotland!

Eventually the breakfast I was smelling arrived. I had placed an order for the salmon which came with potato salad and more, because I thought it might seem more like lunch and, sure enough, it did. Of course I couldn’t come close to eating it all (didn’t even bother to open the yogurt), but I enjoyed what I did eat.

Looking out the window I was surprised to see those big windmills (are they called turbines? Am I making that up?) in the water. It’s hard to see in the photo, but they are there, and there were many more as well neared Netherlands.

And then more land. We flew right over Amsterdam, I think. My map told me it was forty minutes until we land. Time has flown by. (See how witty I can be? And to think I’m just winging it. I’m goofy and simple that way. Just call me plane Jane.)

Then it was time to land. What a quick and easy flight and …

Hello Frankfurt!

We exited the plane and headed toward passport control with only one brief stop on the way. When we got to passport control we did the initial bit where the passport is scanned, a photo taken of one’s face, and fingerprints (of four fingers, right hand) were taken. Mine took a while, as I have very sketchy fingerprints. Dan’s went quickly.

Then we went to the somewhat longer line to get to the actual passport control window where a police man asked questions: why are you here (vacation), how many days in the Schengen zone (40, I think), and a request to see our flight back out of the Schengen zone. Then my fingerprints again took a while. Someday they are going to have to move to something else, I think (iris scan, maybe/). My photo was again taken. Then the whole thing for Dan which, again, went more quickly.

And then we were out and met up with Greg & Jan.

It was, as always, fabulous to see them!

Then the drive to our final destination for the night.

Hello Heidelberg!

Time for wine!

After a bit of time we donned warmer clothes and went on a walk to the Altstadt and just enjoyed the sites (and one sample of “moonshine” which was more like a sweet desert drink to me), the old bridge, and the cool air.

Finally it was dinner time and Greg made a wonderful lentil dish and salad, plus some bread from a local bakery. It was all delicious! Oh … and wine Jan and Greg had just picked up in Alsace.

It’s fabulous being here, and so far I’m feeling rather energized. We’ll see what tomorrow brings. Dan was tired and hit the hay while I typed this up.

So for now … auf weidersehen! (And please excuse typos: I think I need to sleep!)

And We’re Off!

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We woke at about 4:00 AM.

Okay, to be honest, Dan’s alarm went off at 4:00, so he woke up then. Mine was set to 4:15. But he must have hit snooze so after he got up his alarm went off again and I figured I might as well rise as well.

We were fully packed yesterday, aside from things like iPads and watches, so we just had to deal with our showers and doing a few small tasks. Still, it took about an hour to do those things.

Our flight was leaving from SFO. Oh how I wish we could do SJC for a change … and a closer airport. But so it goes.

Dan did the driving, and we were both a bit surprised by the number of cars already on the road. Gee, I guess people have to work! Go figure.

We parked, took the tram (or whatever it’s called) to the terminal, and went into the lounge where we could have mediocre coffee and breakfast. But hey, it didn’t cost anything, so there’s that. Then it was a lot of waiting time. Time in which I could start today’s blog entry and then read.

We easily boarded the plane and managed to get the luggage stored right above us — that’s not always possible as people tend to put their luggage closer to the front of the plane rather than at their own seats, but since Dan gets to be in boarding group one (thus I do too!) we were in pretty quickly.

Then we sat for about 45 minutes as they said our take off was delayed. I did more reading and I do believe I slept a bit.

Our flight, when we finally did take off, was unremarkable and easy, and we saw some nice snow-covered peaks. (Bad photos, but oh well!)

Once we landed we made our way to the train (they call it something else) to get us to the location where Dan’s brother picked us up. Then we drove to Richard and Diane’s place.

Hello, Woodinville, Washington!

We did a ton of talking, snacking, and eventually ate dinner. Ruth Ann had joined us as well, and it was great to see her. She drove on her own from her home in California and I am rather impressed, as I’m not sure I could be so adventurous.

I could write more, but having been up since 4:00 AM or thereabouts I’m absolutely exhausted. I would imagine this post is both boring and full of errors but so be it: my brain is fried!

Maybe tomorrow I’ll actually take a few good photos. But who knows?

BEDS … Such A Mystery!

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As I continue to plan our next trip I look at hotel after hotel, city by city. It sure is difficult to figure out bed sizes at some of the sites. (Yes, I know I’ve moaned about this before.) I really wish hotels would just give dimensions rather than names. A double can mean smaller than a double in the US or it just might mean two twins pushed together — as in “double the mattress” I guess. And then there’s the “French bed” in Italy. Say what? And queen? Well … don’t assume it’s the same as a queen here. Same with the king.

Finally … finally! … I put together a cheat sheet. Not that it answers everything. Do you want to get totally confused? If so, read on:

BED SIZES

NORTH AMERICA
Double: 136cmx189cm
Queen: 152cmx202cm
King: 193cmx202cm
California King: 183cmx212cm

FRANCE
In France, single size beds are usually:

  • 90 cm × 190 cm (35 in × 75 in)
  • or 90 cm × 200 cm (35 in × 79 in).

The most common sizes for double beds are:

  • Valet size 140 cm × 190 cm (55 in × 75 in)
  • Queen size 160 cm × 200 cm (63 in × 79 in)
  • King size 180 cm × 200 cm (71 in × 79 in)

ITALY
In Italy, beds are classified by name and use the term piazza as in “place”. Standard sizes are:[19]

  • una piazza (literally “one place”) or singolo (“single”): 80 cm × 190 cm (31 in × 75 in) and 90 cm × 190 cm (35 in × 75 in)
  • una piazza e mezza (literally “1+
    1⁄2 places”) or Letto da prete (literally “priest’s bed”): 120 cm × 190 cm (47 in × 75 in)
  • piazza e mezza francese (literally “French 1+
    1⁄2 places”): 140 cm × 190 cm (55 in × 75 in)
  • due piazze (double, literally “two places”) or letto matrimoniale (literally “matrimonial bed”): 160 cm × 190 cm (63 in × 75 in) and 180 cm × 190 cm (71 in × 75 in)

NORTHERN EUROPE
These sizes are for Austria, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Germany, Poland, Belgium, Luxembourg, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Iceland, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. There are some variations between different countries, but these are the most common sizes. Until the 1980s the most common mattress length was 190 cm (75 in).

  • Single:
    • 70 cm × 200 cm (28 in × 79 in), uncommon, mainly for double beds with two separate mattresses.
    • 80 cm × 200 cm (31 in × 79 in), mainly for young people’s beds/ bunk beds and double beds with two separate mattresses.
    • 90 cm × 200 cm (35 in × 79 in), common single bed. Extended variants are typically 210 cm (83 in).
    • 100 cm × 200 cm (39 in × 79 in), larger single bed size.
    • 120 cm × 200 cm (47 in × 79 in), uncommon, mainly for teen beds.
  • Small Double:
    • 140 cm × 200 cm (55 in × 79 in),[20] common, especially among young people and/or single households.
  • Double:
    • 160 cm × 200 cm (63 in × 79 in), common, often with two separate mattresses.
    • 180 cm × 200 cm (71 in × 79 in), most common double bed,[21] often with two separate mattresses.
    • 200 cm × 200 cm (79 in × 79 in), a common extra-wide bed, often with two separate mattresses.
    • 210 cm × 210 cm (83 in × 83 in), a common extra-wide bed, often with two separate mattresses

UK and Ireland

Customary UK and Ireland sizes

In the United Kingdom and Ireland, beds are measured according to the size of mattress they hold,[22] not the dimensions of the bed frame itself; bed frame sizes are not standardized and may differ between manufacturers.[1][23] Listed below are the typical bed sizes from the National Bed Federation, which is the trade association for the majority of British and Irish bed manufacturers and their suppliers.[24] Most NBF manufacturers use designs dimensioned in feet and inches with the metric indicators not being exact equivalents.[25] There can legally be a tolerance of up to ±2 cm (0.8 in) between the quoted measurements and the size of the mattress itself.[26]

SizeDimensions


Feet and inches[23][1]CentimetersInches
Small single2ft 6in × 6ft 3in76 × 19130 × 75
Single3ft 0in × 6ft 3in91 × 19136 × 75
Small double*4ft 0in × 6ft 3in122 × 19148 × 75
Double4ft 6in × 6ft 3in137 × 19154 × 75
King5ft 0in × 6ft 6in152 × 19860 × 78
Super King6ft 0in × 6ft 6in183 × 19872 × 78

Soooo … see the problem? For instance “double” in France seems to mean it’s for two people but there are three sizes for a double. A double in teh UK might be a small double or it might be a larger double which is more like a queen but maybe not really. When I look at the hotel sites I try and guess but mostly I have to write and ask if they can supply the dimensions. Some hotels respond. Some don’t. I nix those that won’t bother to get back to me — it helps me whittle things down!

Now … should I talk elevators? If a hotel doesn’t have an elevator could they at least let us know how many flights we might end up climbing? I’d sure appreciate that.

But I’ll stop now. After all, I’m working on the next town we will be visiting (as always I keep it a secret from readers until we get there) and I need to choose our hotel!

Jet Lag? Nawwww …

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We’ve now been home for four days. Or is it five? We arrived home Thursday evening, so I’m counting from Friday. That means four.

I told Dan I didn’t really have jet lag this time. I adjusted quickly. I mentioned, too, that I had a bit of a headache.

He said it was probably jet lag.

NO WAY!

I also said I was having trouble getting moving — my body just sort of ached.

He suggested that was jet lag. But no. Can’t be.

I said my watch said I wasn’t sleeping well. It’s rather ashamed of me.

If I remember correctly, he suggested jet lag.

But maybe he didn’t. Maybe my memory is off.

I’m sure he’d suggest jet lag causes memory issues.

But honestly, I don’t suffer from jet lag. You’ll just have to trust me on that.

Meanwhile … I’m back to the computer, trying to put together the next trip. If we do what we’ve planned we would take three flights. When I put all three together it was rather costly. If I separate the last one from the first two things seem more doable. If I separate the first one from the next two the price skyrockets. I really have to play around with how to connect them, which days and times we fly, and run it through three ways of paying: all cash, miles plus cash, or all miles. It does get a bit complicated.

But now? Now I’m enjoying some tea I grabbed from one of the hotel rooms (Taylors lemon & ginger), and two cookies from our little tin of cookies — we had £10 remaining when at the airport so we had to purchase something and this tin was exactly £10. What’s a person to do?! It’s fun to enjoy the cookies and tea and reminisce.

Hm. Am I really reminiscing even when it’s just been four days? Or is it five?

I share this hairy coo on my photography site, but here … have a coo here, too!

Sunday, May 31 — Walk, Day Five

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We moved our breakfast time up to 8:00 because today is our longest walk. We will be walking 14.4k so around 9 miles.

First, of course, packing, which at this point is fairly easy: everything has its spot and I mostly remember where those spots are.

Breakfast was quite nice. I took no photos of that, but I did take a photo of the stairs we had to deal with with our luggage, and a photo of said luggage waiting for pick up.

Then it was time to walk and off we went, first through Winchcombe and then on to Puck Pit Lane.

Jan graciously and gracefully demonstrated a new kind of gate we had to use at times.

We had, of course, gorgeous landscapes.

I shot this plant to try and identify it. According to my phone it’s broad bean. I know, not exactly a thrilling close up photo of the plant, but the fields were impressive.

Then it was back to a grain that the iPhone said was “bread wheat”.

We arrived in Hailes and Greg and Jan kindly posed for me. There was also the ruins of the Hailes Abbey. And there are to be no detectorists in the field by the abbey. You’ve been warned

We checked out the Hailes church, which included frescoes which I found interesting as I hadn’t realized any churches here had those.

Then it was back to fields and meadows, and of course gates. Ah, the gates … or stiles … or kissing gates. So many have different ways of opening and closing. It’s like an intelligence test, and I think I mostly score a B or C, but the one with a chain was easy to figure out. I give myself an A (because I do not believe in A+ as I frequently mention to Dan).

We passed by Wood Stanway Farmhouse and then entered Stanway. I had thought that might be a place to stop for a rest or whatever but there wasn’t anywhere near our path that looked like a possibility.

So on we marched. We passed sheep, and continued on through a bit of a lush “tunnel” (it felt like it, anyway), until we reached a road we had to cross.

Then it was more on the path, which wasn’t always smooth. I had to remember to lift her feet so I wouldn’t take another spill!

Oh … and I made a video during the above portion of the walk.

We passed by the Stanway House. I don’t know if people ever get to visit, but it and the church by it were locked tight.

From there we entered the Cotswold Way trail. (There are a number of trails in the Cotswolds.)

There was a huge beautiful tree that I had to shoot to see if it could be identified. The iPhone said “European Beech” and when Greg reached us he said it was a beech, but had a different name (in German) for it.

We went through more meadows.

Finally we were in Stanton. We were weary and ready for a rest and maybe some lunch. I had noted in my research that there was The Mount Inn where we could get a bite. Well gee, it was a big climb to get there. Ah … I get it: “Mount Inn” as in mountain. Cute. Or not. None of us were all that keen on the hike up. We ordered our food and drinks and were surprised by the amount of food we had. I forgot to take any photos of the food (I blame the climb), and only have one shot of part of the room we were in.

Then we had the last leg of our walk. I thought it was two miles. I was wrong: it was a bit longer. First we walked back down the hill in Stanton.

While Jan and Greg went ahead I told Jan I would go back to find Dan as he wasn’t with us. Since I found him near the Church of St. Michael & All Angels we went inside.

Then it was (surprise!) more meadows. And sheep. Some were the spotted sheep we had been told we might find. (Confession: I thought they’d be spotted on their wool. Heh. No … spotted faces.)

There was one very large climb. I had feared it might be there, but Dan had suggested it wouldn’t be a big one. Gee, I was right! So up up up we climbed. But climbs don’t look like climbs in photos so never mind that. Just know we made it up to the top.

And then there were the cows with one beige stripe. We saw those in Scotland too. I’d never seen them prior to this trip.

More walking. More meadows. More lovely views. And a new kind of gate … but not really a gate.

Finally we arrived! Our longest day was done. And hello Broadway! Now they say the neon lights are bright but I didn’t see even one neon light here. Be forewarned. We checked into our hotel and our room is lovely.

We met Jan and Greg again for dinner, which we had right at the hotel. You get no photos of dinner. But it was good and I’m tired and there you go. But here, have some photos of only a few of the stairs we had to take to get to our rooms.

Now it may be only 8:50 here, but I’m pretty darn tired and hoping I will sleep after that long walk. Goodnight!

26,207 steps, 10.26 miles, 7 flights climbed

Wednesday, May 20

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We woke to begin our second and final full day in Dublin. We also woke to the prediction of no rain today!

First up, after getting out of pjs and into street clothes because we are just smart enough to know walking around in pjs might look odd, was breakfast. We opted today to go for something much lighter than yesterday’s delicious but large breakfast and instead bought our coffees and we each had a pastry (Something with apple for me and what I assume was a chocolate croissant for Dan.) The place was small but we found a seat and enjoyed our treats.

While there I realized it would be good to have our AirPods for our next destination so our “next destination” actually turned out to be our hotel to collect those. I thought, too, I should share the magnificent carpet in our hallway. I really should take photos of these at every hotel they are so … um … interesting. Heh.

Then it was back out to walk to Christ Church Cathedral. It’s “Don’t Mow Month”. Seems like we’d be smart to have that where we live too. Good for wildlife and the flowers popping up were pretty.

With our tickets we could get the audio tour (thus the AirPods). So inside we went, and I did listen to a lot of the audio and wandered. (The “Musicians’ Corner” was sadly blocked by a grand piano (fitting, I suppose): I would have liked to have seen things better.) I did shoot a good number of photos. (Or if you are bored and don’t like them I guess it’s a bad number of photos. You choose.)

Then we took the stairs to the crypt (and gift shop but I don’t take photos in gift shops).

After the cathedral we walked through a bit of Temple Bar again, but only took two shots.

Then it was on to Trinity College where we walked around briefly. We didn’t enter any buildings, though. I guess dogs aren’t allowed to attend the college.

Our next destination was what claims to be the oldest pub or some such thing. But we’ve seen “the oldest” claims a few times. We’ve also seen “the best” and, for Guinness a pub that claimed to have “the creamiest” Guinness. So who knows? But we walked toward the pub.

After a bit of walking we landed at The Brazen Head. I wasn’t sure we’d eat there, but they had room and we figured we might as well. We decided that would be our large meal of the day. Dan went for the bangers and mash and I ordered fish and chips. I must say my meal doesn’t photograph very well! (And I’m now thinking that should be my final fish and chips of the trip … so darn filling and I know they aren’t exactly healthful. But we’ll see if I stick to that.)

Following lunch it was time to cross the Liffey River and go to another place we’d seen recommended. For the first time I saw the “green walking man” lit on the sidewalk. Cute! (I can’t remember what a “sidewalk” is here, but I know they don’t use the same word. Maybe I’ll come up with it later.)

Eventually we arrived at EPIC — The Irish Emigration Museum. I was hesitant after looking at photos, as it seemed like yet another “experience” place and they just seem odd to me, but I’m extremely glad we went! I learned a lot, and it was quite well done. I didn’t take a ton of photos, but I did take some.

I also took some videos. In one of the music sections they showed how Irish music was then brought over to America.

One song was sung and I recognized the tune, and then another person in the video sang “Streets of Laredo”. Sure enough the tune was nearly identical. I managed to get the original version on video:

I found this so interesting because when we were eating lunch they had Irish music playing and suddenly I heard what we would call “Simple Gifts” — the Shaker tune that Copland then used as well. So perhaps that, too, was actually from a folk tune here.

EPIC handed us our “passports” as we entered the museum, and at each of the sections we had them stamped. Now normally Dan and I are just not into things like this but somehow this one worked and we HAD to get our stamps!

We had purchased our tickets as we entered the building at 2:50 or so (noting that we did NOT buy them at the ticket desk because it was €4 cheaper to purchase online!). We didn’t leave the building until 5:50! I think that shows just how interesting it was — and we didn’t even do all the things we could have done there.

At that point it was time to go back over the river, and I wanted to be sure and go over the ha’penny bridge for that. (The toll at one point for this pedestrian bridge was a ha’penny.) I wish I’d taken a better photo of it, but if you want to see it I’m sure you could google it. There were so many people crossing and I just didn’t have a good shot.

We ambled and went in search of a light meal. Typical of us it took a while to find a place. One pub seemed nice but there were no seats. Another would have worked but there appeared to be a long wait.

Finally we spotted the Bruxelles pub and not only did they have room, but they had a very small room with not one other person in it! Perfect for my ears and no loud music! (Eventually one other couple entered but they were quite quiet.) I ordered a toastie again. I could have done without the fries after lunch, but the toastie did hit the spot. Dan’s “light” meal turned out to be a bit larger. We both had our “zero zero” Guinnesses. These alcohol free beers are actually not bad (we had them at lunch, too), and I was happy to have an alcohol free day.

Speaking of alcohol, on our walk home we saw this place … look at all those barrels!

Once back in our room I packed as much as I could pack tonight, set out tomorrow’s clothes, and got started on this entry. Tomorrow is, once again, moving day. This time we go by train and I tend to enjoy that kind of travel the most. For the first time we are on Irish Rail and of course we’ve never been in the Dublin Heuston station so I’m sure we’ll be there plenty early so yours truly doesn’t stress.

For now, though, goodnight!

20,016 steps, 7.99 miles, 0 flights climbed

Sunday, May 17

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It was a slow rising day, and coffee in the room start. Exciting times.

After we finally were ready to go out, we just rambled outside and headed toward what I think of as downtown. The big question was “would Patty recognize anything from 1974?”

This is known as “Granite City” and one can see why. On our rather posh street all the buildings are of the rock. It also appears that most are now either hotels or businesses. I’m not sure I saw even one that was someone’s home.

We walked a good amount before getting an actually breakfast and better coffee. But then it was coffee and muffin time. I can’t say much for either, but hey, it was a chain so it was what it was. And it wasn’t Starbucks so there’s that. (We refuse to go there when we are abroad. We avoid it at home as much as possible as well.)

Then we did a lot more walking, more photography, and just enjoyed the pleasant day. It really was mostly a day of rest (appropriate, eh?) for us in any case.

We had decided earlier to enjoy the Sunday Roast so I found a place that served that called “Noose & Monkey”. I think I should look up that name: surely there’s a reason for it, yes? Normally I don’t eat meat other than fish and poultry, but I made an exception for this and it really was quite yummy.

It will obviously serve for our big meal of the day. As we sat in the pub (for a very long time!) we saw that it had started to rain. Earlier we’d have a few drops of “not rain”, but this looked more substantial.

Leaving Noose & Monkey the rain had stopped. We walked a bit more, but it was fairly clear we were running out of steam, so we opted to head back to our hotel.

By the time we arrived it was close to 5:00 anyway, so we put our feet up and relaxed.

Sooo … did I recognize even one thing on our adventure today? Nope.

Not. One. Thing.

Ah well … August 1974 was quite a long time ago.

We did some resting, I did some showering, and eventually we went downstairs to the bar to get a light bite. Turns out the same (somewhat costly) menu in the dining room was the same in the bar. Not to worry — I had already known I’d opt for the soup starter and leave it at that. Dan did the same. Cullen skink is a tasty soup and did the trick.

When we returned to our room I packed as much as I could for tomorrow’s very early wake up and taxi to the airport. Being the keeper of the toothbrush and toothpaste I only had that, my pjs, and the electronics (like this iPad) to shove into my day pack in the morning. I have a habit, on these trips, of setting next day’s clothing out so I don’t even have to think when I rise. Thinking is just so over rated!

We fly a new airline (to us) tomorrow, from an airport unfamiliar to us. We will get there early and I’m sure we’ll realize we are too early, but I don’t like to stress so it’s fine by me.

But now it’s time to attempt to sleep. Goodnight!

Thursday, May 14 — Moving Day

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We woke and headed down to breakfast fairly quickly. And yes, it was down: we are on the first floor (second floor in the US). I am reminded more and more about bringing our packs rather than the roller bags!

Breakfast was much more simple today: granola, yogurt, and berries in a bowl, one half slice of toast (for me, that is), orange juice, and coffee. Still, it’s more than I would have had at home, due to the toast, and of course it’s about four hours earlier than I would ever eat my first meal. I’m convinced that’s why we end up eating again midday. At home I only need two meals since I delay the first. My weight gain will be, I fear, a bit significant unless I get more exercise.

From my chair at breakfast … exciting, I know. Shortly after taking this it started to rain. Go figure. Mostly it was that misty sort of rain, but it can really drench a person!

After that it was shower and packing time. We’ve got the packing down — doesn’t take me any time at all to get that suitcase packed and zipped.

Before heading back on the NC500 we had to fill the tank. Dan commented that it’s nearly as costly as filling our BigMobile. So it goes!

From there we drove off. The first time we pulled over I saw a sign that told me there were some “Geopods” for the Northwest Highlands Rock Route” on our drive today, which could be found when there was a sign with the blue and white design you see in a photo. We stopped, though, for the view.

Another stop was at the Knocken Crag Nature Reserve. I haven’t yet mentioned that the scenery here is simply staggering, so let me say it now. The scenery is simply staggering! There. Done.

The next stop was at the Loch Awe View Point. We do a whole lot of stopping on these kinds of trips, but we don’t stay long — between the wind and the cold and sometimes rain I’m quick to get back in the car.

Yep, another stop. This time at the Ardvreck Castle. I should have taken photos of the info there. One fascinating tidbit was that a supporter of Bonnie Prince Charles thought he’d be safe escaping to this Highland spot but whoever was at the castle at the time traded him, supposedly for oatmeal. He was then hanged. (I have been missing oatmeal, but I don’t think I’ll trade Dan for some: I need him as my driver.) Sorry I don’t have the names at the moment and internet is rather slow so this is currently all you get. Perhaps I’ll update later. And of course that could all be a myth for all I know. We only took quick photos of the castle and the Calda House in the other direction.

Just a few shots from the area of Elphin.

… and then some from the Lochinver area.

We decided to take a detour to a lighthouse. Once again Your Royal Wimpiness did a bit of whimpering as Dan the Driver made his way there. It was a longer drive than either of us expected, and I did fear, at times, that we would fall into the sea. (The other day I instructed Dan that if we were to go over a cliff he wasn’t to swear as one might do in such a case, but he was to yell out, “I love you!” I figured I’d do the same. I’m not sure how keen he was about my instruction.)

On the way … some more hairy coos!

We continued the drive and then made it to the lighthouse. Anyone want to rent it? It was SO SO SO windy. (That’s a lot of wind.) At one point it nearly blew me over. We didn’t make it all the way into the lighthouse (I’m not sure that’s allowed in any case) because I’d had it with the wind.

Then back we went to reconnect with the main drive. As we went I used the passenger assist brake (on my left) and the passenger assist steering wheel (in the cup holder) a number of times. I’m helpful that way.

We’ve seen a few beaches on our drives. Too bad I didn’t bring my bikini.

Oh. Wait. I don’t own any sort of bathing suit at all! Never mind.

We reached the Drumbeg Viewpoint.

We saw a sign for some sort of secret tea garden and figured it was time to stop, relax, and have some “not lunch”. I did puzzle over all the signs I saw for the secret tea room, though. Not much of a secret, if you ask me! Anyway, it was a nice spot where we bought a bit to eat and enjoyed not only the secret tea room but no wind!

The secret tea room had no secret bathroom, so we had to amble back up the road a bit to find the WC. I took a few shots during the walk. And … now goats!

We drove on, eventually crossing a bridge and then pulling over to see a monument, read about the river below where the military did submarine training, and take a photo of the bridge.

With about an hour and a half more to get to our lodging we did a very small amount of photography, and took a five minute snooze. At this point I think we were both weary of driving. I can’t tell you how taxing it is to handle my emergency braking and steering! Plus I have to whimper every now and then. Thankfully the last bit of the drive was much easier for both of us.

For the most part, I think Dan has got this driving on the left side of the road down. We are even at a point where we grumble when someone coming toward us doesn’t know how to use the passing places correctly. We’ve been known to say, “Americans” with disdain when they get it wrong. And yes, we are being goofy. Because that’s what we do. (I’ve often said we should record our conversations because we clearly are a comedy team. Then again, I fear a lot of eye rolling should we do so.)

At a very decent time we arrived at our lodging for the next two nights. We are at the Altnaharra Hotel. This use to be a popular place for fisherman and climbers, if I read the blurb correctly. It’s old and rather charming. We enjoyed a nice dinner here as well, as there is absolutely no place nearby to eat. Dessert was the “Altnaharra Mess” and it was quite something!

We still have to figure out what where our drive will take us tomorrow. It’s impossible, I’m guessing, for us to do the entire NC500 on this trip, but we’ll try to hit a lot of it.

And now … Oidhche mhath! (Good night!)

Sunday, May 10

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We are finally home and it’s been a very long day. A good day, mind you, but so long! It’s now 10:54 and I can’t really write much because we do have to get up at a decent hour tomorrow.

I will just quickly say we did a lot of the northern part of Isle of Skye. We dealt with one whopping pothole that scared me a ton. We dealt with temperatures in the 40°s. We dealt with crazy wild winds. We dealt with rain. That’s a lot of dealing!

If I could post my photos I would. For some reason it takes time for the iPhone photos to appear on my iPad so maybe it will be tomorrow when I get them up here. I’ll wait a few minutes to see.

BUT … well … um … the best/worst story of all. Dan and I went to a fabulous (and very costly) dinner. It was about 45 minutes away from our lodging. (It’s Mother’s Day, after all … so I guess I was celebrating me or some such thing since I made the reservation. Hah!) What with the light sky it wasn’t bad getting home rather late (especially for me since I’m not behind the wheel!). When we arrived at the Redwood House (our lodging) we were busy gathering our things and I grabbed coats and the like. Suddenly Dan asks, “Where’s my bag?” That’s the bag that holds his wallet, passport, phone … you know, all that important stuff.

Uh-oh.

We looked and looked I mean we searched everywhere. Dan swore up and down (not literally swearing but you know what I mean!) Finally Dan used my phone and the FindMy app. But it was so curious. It showed that his phone was in the car. Nope. NOWHERE! I suggested it just hadn’t updated and he must have left it at the restaurant. FORTYFIVE minutes away. Sigh. I told him to try and buzz it. No sound. I finally was annoyed and said I should call the restaurant.

Gee … well … um … I was putting what I was holding into the trunk as I was preparing to give up and call when I realized there was something heavy around my neck.

Yep. Me. I was the culprit. I had picked up his bag and put it around my neck. NO clue why.

He was relieved. I was just annoyed with myself.

But I guess all’s well that ends well.

Except my pride. It ended poorly. Heh!

And darn … photos still haven’t appeared on the iPad so I guess you only get my embarrassing story and nothing else. Rats! I hope I can find a few minutes tomorrow morning to post things. So sorry!

Friday, May 8 — Our Full Day in Inverness

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Finally, sleep is pretty much normal! My “sleep score” on my phone wasn’t terrific, but for some reason the doggone watch and phone are tremendously confused about things. It seemed to now think my bedtime should be 9:00PM. It’s never been that early. Sometimes it the watch is off, sometimes not. I guess both devices have also been suffering with jet lag. Or something.

We didn’t leave our room until after 10:00. Lazy bums!

Speaking of rooms — this place, Aye Stay, is similar to a B&B, but there is not only no second B, but it appears will we never even see the owners. As I mentioned yesterday we entered the house to check in yesterday, we just looked at the list with our name and grab the correct key. Earlier, when we dropped off our luggage, I didn’t know where to put the bags so I buzzed the owners and I was just told over the speaker what to do. I think they live in part of the house, but who knows? It sounds like our supplies will be replenished (I’m hoping they replenish the little package of cookies — I tend to collect those for emergency snacks!) They don’t do much, though. It’s all very impersonal. I’m okay with that, being the introvert I am, but it just feels odd.

Looking out our window, as well as checking the weather app, I could see that we were in for another windy day with temps in the low 50°s. I’m glad that I packed my turtleneck at the last minute! It’s definitely a lot of layers day.

With few plans or ideas of what to do, we did know that first stop was coffee. Dan had found a place nearby that looked good. So after his shower and both of us getting ready, we headed out.

We both had a sweet roll (which is much tastier than a sweat roll which was what I first typed) and coffee. The Bakery was a nice little spot!

Then we walked toward the River Ness, to go visit the Ness Islands I’d read about (and where we had headed yesterday, but ended up returning before we arrived there).

The Ness Islands were lovely. While there we met a couple who chatted with us for a while, which was also lovely. They live in Scotland, although the man was originally from South Africa. They had visited the United States so we enjoyed hearing about their travels.

But back to the Islands … just gorgeous!

Saw this poster for Parsifal, too.

Then we went to the Botanic Gardens for a brief while. (Thank you, Dan, for tolerating my flower love!)

Normally we don’t eat lunch if we have a good breakfast, but while the sweet rolls were tasty we decided we should actually have a decent meal. If you can call what we chose decent! But hey, we had been to the Victorian Market yesterday and had said we’d return for lunch, so what could one do but stick to what we said.

After lunch we attempted to find a map of some areas we will be visiting. Climbing some steps, we landed at what looked to be mostly a children’s bookstore, but there was a map of all of Scotland so we did pick that up.

The bookstore is at the top of these stairs.

Then some more walking took place, passing this interesting building (I remember it from our first visit).

We had to go into Leakey’s Book Shop, having seen it mentioned numerous times.



From there we walked by The Hootananny, which had been recommended to us back in 2023 when we took our Great Glen Way Walk, so I checked and (hooray!) we could make a reservation. But that meant there wasn’t enough time to go back to our lodging for any meaningful amount of time so … okay … don’t tell anyone … we stopped at a place to have a beer. Mind you, it was merely to take up time. Honest!

Finally it was time for our dinner at Hootananny’s. The person taking us to our table was a bit harsh when I said something about the sound and my bad ear — scared me, in fact. But I guess he’s just that way. He did give us a great table, further away from the musicians. He also told us we had 1 1/2 hours to eat and then we’d have to leave the table. Fine. We could deal.

Or could we? We had placed our orders and while our drinks and appetizer arrived quickly, our dinner did not. The two women next to us got in after us and were served quickly. Hmmm.

Speaking of those women, they had just finished the Great Glen Way walk! We ended up chatting for most of the time we were there. Both live in Arizona and, now both widowed, do tons of traveling.

I finally talked to our server and asked her about our meal and my concern that we now had 20 minutes left. She assured me that we would be able to finish. Meanwhile we listened to the music. I don’t have a clue how the videos will be, but I at least recorded some bits.

And our dinners did finally arrive!

When our server returned and we ordered a dram for after our meal she did tell us we’d have to vacate the table. But by then it had been two hours so we could hardly be upset! So we got our drams and headed downstairs.

While there, some altercation must have happened, as a man was escorted out. I suspect a bit too much to drink, but who knows? I think they have pretty tight security (we saw one guy outside as we left).

We drank and listened a bit more.

I’m glad we made it to the place this time around.

Walking back to our lodging it was really quite nice out.

We spotted some people bowing on our way, and one of the players came and chatted with us a bit. Such a friendly man!

Tomorrow we move to a new destination. I’m close to packed and ready, as I like to set the next day’s clothing out the night before. We just have to go get (GULP!) our rental car. I am betting Dan does the driving as I’m not too excited about driving on the left side of the road.

Goodnight!

18,137 steps, 7.29 miles, 5 flights climbed