European Trip - Scotland

Scotland was my next stop. My main objective was to visit the distillery of my favorite Scotch whiskey.

To move around I took trains throughout my trip from one country and within each country so I could get a good view of the small towns and the countryside. Unlike America, you can take trains to almost any location and they run on a regular basis.

My first stop was at Edinburgh. I had booked a dorm room at one of the many hostels and continued to stay in Youth Hostels throughout my remaining trip. To say I was a little older than most of the occupants is an understatement but I fit in an enjoyed myself at each stay. Women and men shared the same room with as many as 12 people in the room in 6 bunk beds. Everyone was always very respectful of your space and quiet when returning late. We men were OK with running around in our underwear and the women had boxer shorts and tee-shirts. Little did the women know that I was a dirty old man but I behaved myself.

As with England, Scotland is rich with history and I spent almost a full day touring the Edinburgh Castle, probably the most visited site in Scotland. The second would be Loch Ness. After visiting the Castle, I stopped at a Scotch whiskey tour and tasting location. I did my share of tasting.

My second stop was Inverness in the highlands of northern Scotland. I used this as my springboard for visiting my favorite scotch and looking for the Loc Ness monster. I rented a care to drive 60 miles to the distillery and managed not running over anything or anybody. You should know that in the UK everyone drives on the wrong side of the road and the steering wheel is on the right side.

My final stop was on the island of Arron off of the southwest coast. My english friends had planned a camping trip there before my scheduled trip and invited me to join them and their friends. Camping while on my vacation was not exactly on my list of planned activities and wasn't exactly prepared but I survived even while freezing. After a five mile hike along the coast with everyone, Paul decided he wanted to hike on the ridge back to the camping site. Everyone was not willing to join him and decided to take the bus back. I didn't want Paul to hike by himself so I decided to join him. We got lost and found the camp after hiking another 15 miles. It was a beautiful hike but much longer than expected.

Then I was off to Northern Ireland. Photos and notes that follow are from Scotland.

Here is a monument built to honor Sir Walter Scott. Now everyone should know who this was. Google him and you will receive a wealth of information on this famous man.

Just some local buildings in old town Edinburgh.

Entrance into the castle is ahead.

The Color Guard.

New recruit.

The first gate into the castle.

Queen Mary of Scots and the new baby and future King of England and Scotland.

Time for whiskey.

This is only half of the whiskeys you can taste or buy. They have as many whiskeys in Scotland as California has wines.

A new scotch that I discovered in my tasting is as good as my Macallan and much cheaper.

The street and homes many centuries old and still in use.

I decided to pass on the offer.

But decided to go into this pub for a pint.

Now you know why I was cold. Snow in them there hills. This was from the train as we headed north to Inverness.

My mission accomplished.

I took this photo of the Loch Ness Monster while everyone was distracted listening to the tour guide.

Camp grounds on the island of Arran. My home is the small tent on the right bottom of the photo.

Some shots of the shoreline.

The start of what was to be an hour hike. Four hours later we returned to the camp site.

That is a few shots from Scotland. Again, send me your email address if you want to see more.

Until the next blog, be safe out there.

European Trip - England

I have returned safely from my trip to England, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Republic of Ireland. I had a wonderful time visiting old friends and making new friends. The weather was less than ideal but my definition of ideal weather is much different than the people living in countries I visited. A dry, partly cloudy day with temperature around  60 is called ideal there. That day may occur once a week. The remainder of the week is cold, windy and wet. Not what I call ideal. The outcome from this is having to remain in San Diego for a few extra days after being diagnosed with pneumonia. Despite all of this I could have not had a better time.

I first stopped in northern England to visit a family that I met sailing in Costa Rica. Paul, Marisol, Seb and Jason and I found ourselves enjoying each other company as we continued  to meet along our sailing routes and a wonderful close relationship developed. They returned to the land so their boys could attend a normal school as I continuing sailing around the seven seas. It was great seeing them again. Their lives are very busy with keeping up with the kids needs and both parents working. Paul and Marisol worked hard trying to keep me entertained while still having to meet their normal demands.

The English landscape is beautiful. Green rolling hills and very large meadows with hundreds of grazing sheep and cattle. The cities I visited are rich with history that goes back hundreds of years that one can experience first hand as much of what was built then is still standing and in use today. The same is the case in the other countries I visited.

The English love their pints of beer. The Scots love their pints of beer and their whiskey. The Irish love their pints of Guinness and their whiskey. As the old saying goes, " when in Rome do as the Romans do" and I did with full enthusiasm.

I took around 1,000 photos all of which I can not all share on the blog. I will capture those that I hope you enjoy and I can provide a short summary of the scene. Send me your email if you want to see all of the photos and I can open up a link for you to Google+ where I stored all of the photos.

ENGLAND

This photo is of what is referred to as a full English breakfast and that is how it is listed on the menu. The round black object is call pudding and is made with blood. This I tried and quickly put aside. The pudding that is.

Paul and and boys look me along to their planned trip to the lake district where boys and Paul went sailing as I remained inside to club house all day trying to stay warm. The second trip up there had some more pleasant weather but I again stayed inside after taking the dog for a walk around the countryside.

The Brits love to garden. This is men and women alike. That is what many look forward to when they retire is having more time to garden.

This is where the four of us stayed while in the lake district over night.

Fish and Chips. A must while in England.

Paul, Marisol and boys along with good friends of theirs. Marisol's sister was also visiting from Peru.

They can't help themselves. Two admiring ladies.

Paul and Marisol's beautiful home.

The English countryside.

All churchs and many old notable buildings and built with these tall towers.

An old English pub.

I took many photos of churches in my travels. These cathedrals date back to the 12th century, some earlier of which many are still in use todays.

Now this is what I call a pipe organ.

Look carefully at the writing below the headless figure. This doesn't look good for my future.

 I can't spend too much time in churches. One needs to have pint or two.

One of many canals that flow throughout England when barges delivered goods inland.

Typical of the shopping areas.

This is a Cathedral in the city of York. It is very large and still in use. Can you imagine trying to find the money and talent needed to build something like this today?

I climbed to the top. 275 steps.

 This is where I landed to rest after making that climb.

I went to a couple of museums. Yes this is true. The second photo is an original copy of  Shakespeare's
first writing.

Canal and Canal boats. The boats today are used as houseboats.

Now we think the United States is one of the most civilized countries in the world. This is not true when you can find another nation that allows one to by 2 pints of beer 'TO GO'.

I visited a train museum which reportedly has the largest collection of restored trains in the world. This is the first train ever to run the rails.

More English countryside photos.

Many homes were and are still built from stones and are still standing and lived in after more than 200 years.

That is enough photos. They say keep it somewhat brief or they will get bored and not go beyond. So I am going to break up the blogs by country so it is easier for you to absorb.

Until the next blog, stay safe out there.