Tag Archives: Trains

Moving Day, December 13

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We began our day by showering and packing. Our cab met us at 9:15 and we were going to Gare de Lyon. We were driven past the Opera Bastille which reminded me that we were supposed to be there in 2020 until Covid Times hit. I do hope we can get back to Paris sometime to see an opera there.

Goodbye, Paris … this is from our taxi, as we passed by the Louvre:

Of course we arrived at the train station plenty early: we never take chances and we always have had time to spare. We had our last Paris breakfast at the station, and were on our train and in our seats well before it departed, at precisely 10:56 as scheduled. Our car was nice and quiet, and not completely full. Then I stared at this guy for 3 or so hours:

The start of our trip:

I’ve been surprised to see people leave bags unattended, both on trains and in coffee shops.

After leaving the station and getting out of the city we, for the very first time on this trip, I think, saw a truly blue sky. Despite being on a very fast moving train I had to make a few photos!

I did a few things on my iPad (yes, I’m still managing to play all of my word games most days) and then shut my eyes for a brief time. I find it very difficult to stay awake on a train. Heck, I find it difficult to stay awake any time I’m in a moving vehicle that I’m not driving! I also find it difficult to let myself sleep, though, only because I don’t want to miss anything! But the train lulled me to nap and I was out for a short time. When I woke, I woke to no more blue sky, but lots of fog.

Later it was fog and frost on the ground. It was so beautiful from my nice warm train seat!

The first stop was Valence, for a whopping three minute stop … except not really: it looked like some people wanted to get on the train and I don’t know if they didn’t have tickets or if it was the wrong train, but the person from the train who was talking to them clearly wasn’t going to let them on for some reason. So the stop turned out to be ten minutes.

Second stop: Nîmes, where a lot of people exited and we stopped for all of four minutes.

Finally our destination. Hello Montpellier!

Before getting off the train my blood sugar issue hit: it’s the first time for this trip, so I was rather surprised. If I eat breakfast (which I’ve been doing on this trip) I sometimes, a few hours later, get the shakes, my heart races, and I get very warm. Well, I guess I was due for this. So before getting a taxi to the hotel we went into a place at the station and bought water and I got crackers while Dan bought chips. We sat for a while as I recovered. Dan had nearly finished his water and I still had much of mine so I suggested he pour his into my bottle. He was not seeing clearly so I took his bottle and then proceeded to pour half of it on the table! Too funny that I thought I’d do better!

We caught our cab and got to our hotel in fairly decent time. The place is an older one, and pretty spacious.

Now I confess I didn’t know much about Montpellier. I had chosen it because it fit between Paris and the next destination. We could have opted for one other city that would have fit, but this one seemed to be more about food and the other about the beach life, I think. When I read that it had great food I figured we’d enjoy it. Of course I then neglected to research any eating spots.

We got settled in our room, spent a short time relaxing, and when rain had subsided decided to go out and see what we’d find. We first headed to Place de la Comédia, and then continue wherever our feet took us.

Neither of us realized just how many small streets and alleys we’d find, and this, um (sorry) right up our alley. Dan was enjoying the rainy streets for photography, as was I. (But I’m still using only the iPhone. I think I’ve decided vacations are for the iPhone only.)

So we walked. And walked. And walked some more. We were surprised to see a large number of tapas places. I guess that’s a thing here. Montpellier is closer to Spain than France (Dan informed me — no, I don’t know those sorts of facts!), so maybe that’s why?

It was getting to the point where dinner sounded like a good idea, so we went to look at a place that was recommended at the hotel. Alas, they didn’t open until 8:00 and we weren’t wanting to wait that long, so we headed back to another spot where we had looked earlier. I had mussels and Dan had fish and chips.

When we left the restaurant it was raining, but not terrifically hard, so with umbrellas we were just fine. Had I followed my instincts I would have gotten us far away from the hotel. It sure is handy to have phones that can tell us where to go!

Getting back to the hotel I did something I also did for the past two nights that I probably haven’t done in eons: I took a bath! What can I say? They have these lovely tubs, and it just seems like the right thing to do. But am I becoming my mother? She took baths all the time. (I don’t know if she ever took a shower in her life!) Hm. We’ll see if this trend continues.

So now it’s after 9:00 and I should post this before I fall asleep!

Until tomorrow —

Leaving Nürnberg

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I did finally manage some sleep, and woke sometime after 7:30, I think. Then it was shower, pack, and take one more look at Nürnberg.


And, of course, get coffee. Places to get a cappuccino aren’t quite as easy to find here. It could be, though, that we just aren’t looking in the right places. Yesterday we couldn’t find pretzels and today we saw a few stands we probably walked right by! They were the one thing I’d read about that we were supposed to try so we finally bought some. So, okay, well … they were fine, but nothing extraordinarily special. But at least we got them. Mission accomplished. Yesterday we were also looking for an ATM on the way back to the hotel and didn’t see any. Today I saw a lot of banks as we walked the same route as yesterday! In any case we found a nice coffee place that also happened to have pastel de nata. Yum!

From there we walked back to see the Christmas Market one last time.

We came across a stand that made some sort of special treat called Frisch Frånkishe Küchle (fresh Franconia’s pulled out donuts) and it would have been so very wrong not to try them. And if I’m having one shouldn’t I have cocoa as well? Of course I should! I was sorely tempted to keep another souvenir cup because this one was slightly different, but I was strong and brave and turned it back in. Feel free to send me a medal. Or at least a certificate of congratulations. (KIDDING!)

We saw a group of people taking turns taking photos of each other so Dan offered to take a photo of all of them. Dan is very good about offering to do that. One of them then took a photo of us in return.

Then it was time to start back to the hotel.

We finished our packing and went to the train station. Not realizing (stupid me!) that we could have ordered food on the train this time we stopped in a train station place and had mediocre sandwiches. Ah well. Live and learn. Maybe.

Then to the train we went. I didn’t realize I’d gotten upper level seats, and while carrying our luggage up stairs isn’t a breeze we managed and sitting up higher is rather nice! As we got seated a man behind Dan’s chair was talking ever so loudly on the phone. Clearly a business call. Clearly an American. But wait … signs on the wall show both “Psst” and an image of a phone crossed out. Go figure. I wouldn’t have said anything. Instead I’d probably have seethed a while. But a man across from us immediately went over and pointed to the signs. So the man talked a bit more softly but stayed on his phone for a time. Meanwhile a couple behind the man who signaled no talking/phones was yakking. The woman across from the man (I’m assuming his wife) shushed them. So we have the Quiet Police here on board and I can live with that!

Our train (and our car) as it arrived at the station.

View from the train:

We had two legs for our journey. The first ended in Stuttgart. We had 13 minutes to switch trains, something I wondered about when getting the schedule, but of course this is not a flight so things are much easier to deal with. Sort of. Turned out it was 11 minutes! We had to go from track #11 to track #9 which is no biggie, but our car was all the way toward the end of the track. When we arrived there and got in two younger guys (maybe 40s?) had already decided they wanted our seats. But I looked at my phone app, pointed to the seats, and they did move … taking at least one other person’s seat! That woman just moved elsewhere, but I have to say I find it supremely rude for people to take reserved seats!

Dan and one of the seat thieves:


The second leg was less that 40 minutes and then we were in Heidelberg again! From there we needed to get back to Greg and Jan’s. I had found an app that allowed us to get tickets in advance. Only problem was the app didn’t allow for the time we had requested. Heh. By the time we arrived in Heidelberg those tickets had expired. So much for that app. It was only about an $8 loss, but it just seemed so darn stupid.

We got safety to Jan & Greg’s, and while Jan was still working Greg prepared a lovely dinner. We all had a super time, and stayed up far too late for the working couple. We can sleep in (not that I’ll sleep!), but they have to get up at 5:00. Eek!

Tomorrow we go to Mannheim for another concert and I am really looking forward to it: my favorite oboist will be playing! Stay tuned for more on that. Meanwhile, off to bed we go. G’night!

December 1 — Travel Day

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Happy December! And where is the time going? This trip is speeding by … kind of like the train we took today.

We woke up far too early today, but we had to catch a streetcar and if we missed the 8:16 we’d have to call a car to get us to the train station. Of course waking too early meant I had way too much time, because I always pack the night before. But so it goes. We did get to say our goodbyes (for now) to Jan and Greg — if I were them I think I’d stay under the warm covers, but it was nice to see them!

It was very cold at the streetcar stop: If I’m remembering correctly it was 28° at that point. But we were well dressed and it was okay for the amount of time we waited.

We got to the Heidelberg train station with no problems, and after getting a coffee and something to eat we went to our track and not too long after got into our car.

This was a regional train which meant there were lots of stops and we couldn’t reserve seats, but neither were a problem In fact everything was going quite smoothly.

Note … I said was!

When we got to Frankfurt we had 1 1/2 hours to wait for our next train.

We wandered a bit (in the freezing train station and just outside so we could say we’d been to Frankfurt), eventually going in to get another bite just to escape the cold. Then we decided to get out of the eating area to verify the track and all. Hmm. Our train wasn’t showing up where I thought it would be. So we went to the information booth.

Um. Oops.

A rather serious young woman said, I thought rather pointedly, “Your tickets were for the airport train station, not this one,” or something similar was told to us by the woman there.

Brief pause so I could wonder if we were going to have to pay a lot to get new tickets (day of tickets can be costly).

“But you can catch that train here at 12:22, track 9.”

Whew!

WHY I bought the tickets beginning from the airport is a bit of a mystery to me, but since things worked out just fine I’ll just let it go. You can bet, though, that I then checked the next trains we will be taking (not today, mind you: this train is our final of the day).

Our train now was an ICE rather than regional, so we were in lovely first class seats that were reserved (next to two couples who never stopped talking, but somehow hearing people talk in another language kind of lulls me to sleep). I had worried that someone might have grabbed them when they were empty at the airport station so I was glad to see them empty.

Both on the first leg and this one there were many places where we saw a lot of frost (or was it light snow?). The entire trip was cloudy and frequently foggy. There were some lovely towns and beautiful mountain scenes. Taking photos from the train is never all that great but …


And then we got to our next destination.

Hello Nürnberg!

Nürnberg is known for its Christmas markets. Finding a hotel that would allow for cancellations, in fact, wasn’t easy as it normally is: they hardly need to offer that due to its popularity. I think they have the oldest Christmas markets in Germany, and I know they get tons of visitors.

We headed to our hotel, starting on the cobbled streets and then realizing that the directions took us on the outskirts so we’d be on surfaces better suited to our roller cases. (But I sure do miss our packs!) Our room is quite nice, I think, because Dan gets an upgrade due to his gold status with United. Good thing he allows me to share the room!

After resting up for a short time and charging our phones so they would last, we headed to the Christmas Market. I had looked on a map and it said a fifteen minute walk was ahead of us, yet we were there in less than five minutes. Strange! But okay then. We walked around, figuring we’d scout out the food spots before deciding what to get. When we got to what I assumed was the end I think we both thought it was nice, but not as big a deal as we expected. Still, it was fun.

Now if you play “Whamageddon” I will be kind here and say do NOT have your sound on when this video plays. Am I nice or what?! But c’mon … just give in. It is December first and I’ve already lost the game! Or maybe not … you can barely hear it. Darn!

We thought we saw a few more things ahead, so we walked on. Some stalls were closed and I said, “Maybe those are the crafts and trinkets and those close at night. Or maybe it’s because it’s Sunday.”

But we walked on some more and … um … well … what we saw five minutes from our hotel was NOT the real, huge, crazy Christmas market! Maybe it’s an expansion? Dunno. But the real thing … well it’s pretty darn huge and the crowds were crazy.

We had the necessary gluhwein. We had the “Drei im Weckla” that I had read was a must have in Nürnberg. We had lebkuchen Dan remembers from his childhood. We bought a few chocolates for when we got back to our room.

We listened for a bit to a choir. I couldn’t imagine singing out in the cold … but then no one wants to hear me anyway! This is Peters Chor.

And we had one more warm drink because we we starting to freeze! Nearing the end of our walk it was about 30° (or -1° if you want to go with Celsius). I started to get pretty darn cold toes and I’m thinking I might buy a pair of socks to double up with my other socks (my shoes are plenty roomy) because cold toes are … you aren’t going to believe this I know … cold toes! And who needs those? (Hm. I’m feeling like a poem is in there somewhere. But maybe not.) My chin was also getting to the point where words were going to be harder to pronounce. But soon we were back at our hotel and that warm air we hit when we went through the door was wonderful!

Our “for the hotel” chocolates were enjoyed, and we both did the iPad stuff we do. We will see what tomorrow brings.

Up Early & Off We Went

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So yeah … I write “early” and that just means we had to get our breakfast by 8:00. Not really early, I know, but for Dan and me, well, we’ve been taking it awfully easy.

After breakfast we took the Jubilee to Baker and the Bakerloo to Paddington.

I write that because I think it makes it sound like I know what I’m doing now.

Then we had a bit of time before we caught the GWR at Paddington Station.

What a crowded train it was. Fortunately I had reserved seats, but some people had to stand in the aisle the entire hour.



And we were going to … wait for it … wait … wait ….

Okay, don’t wait. We were going to Oxford.

Aside from some slow delays, we had a short ride. We exited the train station and really just followed other people to get where we were going. First up was a bit of lunch since by this time it was near noon.

Then it was more walking and we saw some cool buildings, went into a church, went to the river where we observed a few people punting, and then rambled more, including entering Trinity College. I’m just going to paste photos below and leave it at that.

There had clearly been a wedding somewhere nearby.
More of a wedding party.
There was a tour guide talking at one point, explaining that to get married here one has to get a reservation seven years in advance! Someone had done that and she still hadn’t found her guy, but she still has two years left in which to find him. Heh.
All the doors had these signs and they explain who they beat and in which year.

After Oxford time it was train time again. NOT a crowded train at all, plenty of empty seats, and an easy ride.

Back to the Bakerloo to Baker, and the Jubilee to Southwark. Into our hotel, dropped stuff off, and went downstairs for dinner. I had fish pie, Dan had chicken pie of some sort, and we shared sticky toffee pudding. Surely that must be good for our health.

The Cheshire Cat agrees, no doubt.


One more day in London and then home we go. Do I want to go home? No, not really. But I know it’s time.

Nearing sleepy time ….

A Brief Post … I’m Tired

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There isn’t a ton to report for today, but I’ll quickly write so I don’t forget.

We began slowly, since checkout wasn’t until 11 and our train was scheduled for 12:02. But eventually the cab arrived, and we headed to the lounge at the station. We were there rather early (typical of us), and just hung out, watching and listening to a D-Day memorial program.

From there it was to the train and into our comfortable seats. I confess I mostly slept this time. Just one shot from a moving train. Thrilling, I’m sure.



And then we arrived at Kings X station in London! I always enjoy coming back to London, and this time it’s special because Brandon is here. We easily figured out how to get from Kings X to our hotel across the Thames, and settled in for a bit.

We are at The Mad Hatter Hotel. Maybe you can see evidence of that?

When we finally went out we just randomly walked in what someone here thought was the direction of The Tate Modern. Um … wrong! We reached The Eye, and then turned around and headed the other way.


At that point Brandon texted to say we could meet up, so we went to our hotel and met with him there, eating dinner in the pub connected to this place. It’s so great to see him! Last year we met up with Meghan and Jameson. This year it’s Brandon (missing Lia, though). It’s fabulous when your kids travel and then even want to spend time with you!


Now we are back in our room and it’s definitely time for some rest.

Tomorrow we spend the day with Brandon — he will direct things so we don’t have to think. I like that. I think. (<— see what I did there? How funny can I be? Um. Maybe don’t answer that.)

G’night!

Hello England!

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We hung out at our Edinburgh hotel for a time since our train didn’t leave until 1:00, but eventually it was time to call a taxi, since we had to check out by 11:00.

Goodbye Edinburgh!

Then we had the joy of navigating the train station. It’s a large one, and the first thing we needed to find was the lounge. It took us a while, but we did manage to get there. From there we went to track 9. That meant taking a lift up, and another down. We got into our first class seats, and could then relax. And eat. Food came with the tickets.


The train ride itself was just fine, but both of us are pretty tired at the moment so we mostly closed our eyes. Not sleeping … but trying to in any case.


And then we arrived in our next spot … York! We caught a taxi to our lodging …

No, not where we are staying … just a place on the way there.

… and while the room is tiny I’m happy to say it is a vast improvement over the Edinburgh place. Expedia gets some bad marks for what they touted as a decent place to stay. The smell of mildew really came through once the stuff they spray to try and hide it dissipated. The toilet didn’t always flush well. Twice there was no hot water for showers. And it was just generally in very poor condition. (I know, I know, first world problems and I should just deal!)

But now we are at Middletons Hotel, and while our room is “cozy” (that means tiny), it is just fine and we are here for two nights of cozy comfort.

The gardens at our hotel are lovely.

After settling in we did a bit of laundry, and then we went out to investigate the area.

This is down “our” street. The buildings look more contemporary. When I saw a sign on one, though, it said, “Built to the Glory of God, 1899”. Hmm.)

The bathroom … well … sometimes I have to take photos in the bathroom. This restaurant called for them!

Now we are back in our room, and both of us are unusually weary this evening. I’m hoping it means a good night’s sleep!

Ta ta!

Moving On

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We woke, packed, and went downstairs for coffee and a croissant. We could have paid £15 each (or was it more?!) for a bigger breakfast. But no thanks! We thought we were getting one chocolate croissant each and it turned out we each were given two. No clue if that’s normal or if the person just opted to be generous. Second croissants were saved for the train ride.

The final view from our hotel room.

Walking to the train station was easy — just a gentle downhill. And then we waited, because of course we were early. For this (and the last) train we (I) had booked first class, only because the price really wasn’t much different. Both times we didn’t end up in first class because we didn’t see that carriage quickly and just wanted to get on board. When Dan talked to someone who worked on the train he suggested we NOT buy first class, because if we then opted to move there we would just pay for the upgrade on board, but he didn’t seem to think it was worth it. Ah well. Too late now, as this was our final Scotrail ride.

Waverly Station in Edinburgh

And now here we are, in our very old hotel, in Edinburgh! When we arrived the room wasn’t yet ready, so we dropped off luggage and headed down the street for sandwiches at a nearby spot. When it was 2:00 we were back at the hotel to check in. Breakfast comes with the price, so we scheduled tomorrow’s at the leisurely time of 8:30.

The fourth grader in me wants to get a black pen and put an “I” between “TO” and “LET”. Yep. That’s my brain!

I think this is the most basic of places we’ve had, but it appears to be clean and the room is a decent size. It’s just a walk away to the city center. I can’t remember now why I booked this: odds are it was a Rick Steves recommendation or some such thing.

We then caught up on our sites, emails, and set up our charging area (we both have a tri-fold device that charges phone, watch, and if necessary AirPods. I’ve realized that I could easily leave a number of cords at home since the tri-fold charger takes care of all but my iPad. It had been recommended that I get an extension cord, but so far I’ve not used that at all. I really need to start a list of what to leave behind next time. Basically less of everything!

When we started up we both thought “Meh” … not impressed. Turns out it’s just our area. I know I’d read to stay slightly outside the center, and I guess when one does that it’s not the most splendid spot. I’m sure, though, it’s much more affordable.

Near where we are staying … but with a glimpse at the castle above.
I had to stop to take a photo of the clematis. They were stunning!

A short walk later we saw a whole lot more people, and things were quite lively.

Our goal was to get up to the castle, so we headed that way. And stairs — lots and lots of stairs.

Looking down at the first section of stairs.
Okay, sometimes it wasn’t stairs we were going up on.


We saw what used to be The Tollboth Kirk, and is now “The Hub” … used by the Edinburgh International Festival.

From there we went toward the castle.

Looking back at The Hub

Turned out today was sold out. Not a big deal since we have more days here, but it made us realize we’d better buy tickets in advance. In front of it it looks like they are setting up for the Tattoo, but that doesn’t happen until August.

Since we couldn’t even walk close to the castle we headed back down the “Royal Mile” and landed at St. Giles, a Presbyterian church. It’s a very impressive church, although seeing a craft fair taking place IN the church brought to mind Jesus overturning tables. Hm. I opted to ignore that section (no photos of it at all), and enjoy the rest of the once Catholic cathedral.

We continued down the Royal Mile, only visiting one store: a Harris tweed shop that was out of this world gorgeous. For £299 I could have bought a fabulous coat, as could Dan. Ah well. We headed onward instead, and eventually turned around and looked for spot for dinner.


Running somewhat parallel to the Royal Mile we found a place to eat. It was what appeared to be quite a tourist street so I wasn’t expecting much, but actually my duck was pretty darn delicious!

The photo below was on the wall right above us at the restaurant. I liked it. That is all.

And then it was back to the hotel. Time to figure out what we do for tomorrow since our tickets for the castle aren’t until the following day.

Cheers!

Adjustment Day

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After coffee we wandered.

No, we didn’t eat there … it was closed. (Isabelle, at the Lewiston B&B, and mentioned it so we checked it out.)
Looks like our area isn’t the only one to deal with this problem!

We checked out a graveyard (the doggie sign was actually at the churchyard as well) … I find these places rather fascinating. So many parents lost young children, so many died at younger ages. Seeing people our age is rare, it seems.

More walking, as we figured out where we’d have a bite …

Then it was pizza and beer at Black Isle … the same business we visited in Fort William. While sitting at the table another couple joined us. They are currently on a Rick Steves tour and talked about how nice it was. Sounds like something we might end up doing when I get fed up with planning … but I do like to plan, and we do prefer traveling independently for now.

We then went back to the train station, collected our luggage, and waited for the train. I really dislike not knowing what track we have until quite close to the train departure. At 2:20 our 2:50 train still wasn’t showing the track number. Control freak me doesn’t like that!

As much as our B&B owner warned us about a crowded station and train, it was close to empty! (Today is a bank holiday and he said those can cause problems.) We got in our seats quickly and easily.

This wasn’t a speed train, and it took almost three hours to reach our next destination. But such beautiful countryside! I took photos through the train window, so I’m sure they won’t be great, but I’ll post them in any case.

Rain in the distance … and eventually on the train as well.

We arrived in our next city and it is … Stirling!

Since neither of us is in great shape at the moment we took a taxi to our hotel, the Stirling Highland Hotel. It’s an older place, and our room is huge. (Not a lot of plugs to charge things, though.) Dinner was included with our first night, and we had a bottle of wine waiting in our room. I’m not even sure we can manage to drink it while we are here!

Dinner was quite nice. It is in an upstairs room, and there were not a lot of tables so it wasn’t too noisy. It appears that the building may have been a school originally. The dining room was called the Scholars’ Restaurant and I think there was the Headmaster’s room of some sort. I really need to read up on the building! I should have thought to take a quick photo. Too late for now, but breakfast is in the same spot so maybe I’ll remember tomorrow morning.



I am finding it very strange that we have no long walks to go on, and I think I’ll miss the Great Glen Way.

Thursday, May 16

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Sleeping went well from midnight until about 4:00. Then, for me, sleep was fitful. Dan seemed to fare better. I don’t fret over crazy sleep patterns when I begin a trip: it’s rather expected.

We ate breakfast at the hotel. We don’t normally do that (hotel food isn’t usually the best), but there isn’t much around here, and convenience does count!

Then it was a bus ride in to Glasgow …

and a search for an ATM which was more difficult that we thought it would be. When we found one it wouldn’t accept our Schwab card. Argh! It’s the card we use because they don’t charge a fee. But oh well. What’s a fee when one is spending what we are on this trip?

Following that bit of annoyance it was on to the train station, buying sandwiches for the train ride, and waiting a bit in the station. There was a piano there and a man was playing pretty much the same thing over and over. I was wondering, as a musician, if he was playing for himself or for the crowds. I know if I were playing I would be very aware of the people around me, but I wonder if some just play because they just love playing. Did he care that everyone could hear him? Hm. Just pondering .

When our track was announced we headed to our car. Sure enough, it was the furthest away. And our seats were also toward the end of the car. But hey, unlike all my seat errors in Europe I did this one correctly and we were sitting together. Yes, miracles to happen!

This one here is from Dan …

IPhone Photo by G Dan Mitchell

The ride was somewhat long for the distance, with tons of stops. We were sitting backwards, and I think that gives me a bit of a headache, but mostly I dozed off anyway … not because of the time change issue, but because traveling tends to make me sleepy!

Arriving in Oban, I was wowed by the beauty. We lugged our luggage to the inn, which wasn’t that far away, but doing roller bags is NOT fun and I told Dan I much prefer our backpacks. The room is just fine and we have a lovely view! (We are on the first floor, center of the house.)

Photo by G Dan Mitchell

The weather is also amazing (our innkeeper suggested this is not the norm). After checking in, enjoying the view from our room, and having a “wee dram” (well, okay, I had port instead), we headed out.

We were feeling rather lazy, so after walking a bit we saw a sign for a beer garden. Dan had beer, I had cyder (yes, it was spelled that way), and we shared some chips (aka fries).

I don’t know that we ever didn’t hear bagpipes! I’m thinking this group was a group of kids learning the instrument.

We just enjoyed the sit for a good long time and the it was time to head to the recommended restaurant (by the inn keeper). It was fine, but I’ve decided I really should be careful to read more about places before going by one person’s recommendation!

Walking back to our lodging we marveled at how light it still was. And oh so beautiful!

More Accomplished!

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Trains are done, although we still need to get our “Two Together Railcard” which is good for a year. When I purchased the train tickets I included that card on the order which lowers the price significantly. I don’t have to purchase the card quite yet, so I am holding off, in case we visit the UK again within the year. It just might be used for more than this trip if that’s the case, and who knows?

Travel insurance is purchased. It’s a requirement for the walking portion of our trip, but it’s also just a wise thing to get and something we never bought before because we were simply unaware. Our credit card covers things like lost luggage and trip cancellation, but getting coverage for things like medical and evacuation is pretty important should we have an unfortunate incident.

AND our Mickeldore packet is available online so I can see where we are staying! That was fun to receive. It makes the trip all the more real.

Next up is figuring out places to eat while on our walk. I’ve read that getting reservations is recommended and I sure do want to be certain we have places to eat after a walking day.

Then it’s “do we want to schedule any visits?” There are distilleries we can check out, and of course there are some castles. I know we’ll want to see Stirling Castle, and I’m assuming we will also want to visit Edinburgh Castle. Might there be a concert somewhere? Have to check! Is there a pub that will have live music that would be fun to hear? Possibly. So more research is necessary.

Oh … and one other thing. I’m a bit obsessive (can you tell?) so I check our United seats pretty much daily. One leg seated us pretty far back so I was hoping for a change. Well, there WAS a change on one leg … a change of plane, which then put us in seats we didn’t want! Apparently United does this without notifying the ticket holders. I find that so odd. Thankfully I could move us to seats we preferred and take care of that issue. But honestly … shouldn’t they notify ticket holders who are paying SO DOGGONE MUCH for seats?! I’ve since been informed (from a United group) that others have had the same problem, and that sometimes they even separate a couple. One man said his seats were changed the day of his trip. So I guess checking is helpful, but until we are IN our seats there are no guarantees!