Another day, another country

We're off on another adventure.

This time, the destination is Ireland.

Neither one of us have been to Ireland, so we're excited to see what the country has to offer. And, who can pass up New Year's Eve in Dublin?

Stay tuned.

Whirlwind tour of London

We had a visitor for the past 10 days. Chuck's mom flew over from the US. Because it was her first time outside the USA, I made sure to schedule a ton of things for her to do.

We went to 3 Christmas Markets in Germany (Flensburg, Lubeck and Bremen), flew to London and visited all the major sites and went to Windsor Castle, drove to Amsterdam and visited all the major sites including a stop at the Zaanse-schans.

Back to London.

We took a quick Ryanair flight from Billund over to Stansted and then the train into town. I think Sue was on stimulation overload with all the things to see and do in London.

The first day we spent touring Windsor Castle. I had never been there before, so it was great to pick up the audio guide and roam around the grounds for a few hours. Windsor Castle is amazing, impressive, over the top, oppulent, magnificent....need I say more?

Some of the highlights...

• Taking the underground during rush hour and packing into the tube on the picadilly line.
• ...and having my MIL get scolded by the London bobby for taking pictures in the underground (with the flash) after I told her not to.
• Wandering through St. Paul's cathedral and the crypt
• Listening to one of the beefeaters at the Tower of London
• Seeing the crown jewels
• River cruise from Tower Bridge to Westminster
• Shopping at Harrods
• Shopping with the hoards of people on Regent Street - Hamley's and Liberty were complete chaos.
• Dinner at Hard Rock Cafe - sometimes it's the little things and when you've lived in Europe for 2 years the comforts of a (semi) American meal are welcomed!
• Simply Food's death by chocolate dessert - simply divine.
• Staying at the Rembrant hotel - lovely.

A few pictures.

St. George's Chapel at Windsor Castle

Interior courtyard at Windsor Castle

Mother in law, Sue at Windsor Castle

Beefeater at Tower of London

Tower of London

me with long curly hair, oh my!

Edinburgh, Scotland in a little over a day

About a month ago, Ryanair was running a fare special. As luck would have it, this whole no working thing (professional tourist) worked to my advantage as I was able to fly out on a Monday and return on a Wednesday for a mere 1 penny. No check in fees, no taxes, no checked luggage....no problem!

I stayed at the Hilton Caledonian. What a lovely hotel! I was in room 218, which is quite large and has an amazing view of the Edinburgh Castle. There was one small issue, but at no fault of the hotel....the construction crew, which has Princes Street all torn up cut the power to our block, which caused a blackout at about 19:30. The generator kicked in and power was restored, but the fire alarm was affected, so we were back downstairs 10 minutes later. Then, the fire department didn't clear the panel correctly, so 10 minutes later another fire alarm. All in all, about an hour of climbing steps. Luckily all the guests were good natured about it and the staff was very nice and apologetic.

Edinburgh was wonderful. I cannot wait to return in the spring/summer time when all the flowers are in bloom and the tram work is completed (late 2010). In one full day (and two partial days), I managed to take in some sights and do a little shopping, but next time I'll bring Chuck along and we'll spend a few days in Edinburgh and then head to the highlands for a few days.

I started my day at the Edinburgh Castle. It is quite the hike to get there, so if you plan to walk all day, I'd recommend hiring a taxi to take you to the castle, then walking down the hill and exploring the rest of the day.

The Royal Mile runs from the Edinburgh Castle to Holyrood Palace and is lined with cashmere and wool shops, souvenier shops, kilt makers, and pubs. As I walked from the Castle to the Palace, I shopped and I shopped some more. I even went into a few shops to buy an extra suitcase...but, in the end, I just crammed everything into my existing bags. Note to self....next time, bring an extra bag!

At the end of the Royal Mall is Holyrood Palace, which is where Queen E stays when she is in Scotland. It's a lovely palace, but of course, is not as opulent as Windsor or Buckingham.

Princes Street is undergoing a major renovation, with new infrastructure (water/gas pipes) and will soon be getting a new track for the tram, which is supposed to extend from the airport to the city center. But, for now, getting around the Princes Street area is a bit of a challenge as you have to basically commit to one side of the street or the other because there are very few pedestrian passageways. I shopped at Jenners and felt a little giddy when I stumbled upon Mark and Spencers. Yes, I love the wensleydale cheese with cranberries. One little snack size piece and I was set for another few months.

I'll be back. There are so many things I didn't get a chance to do...and Chuck would love it there, so we'll plan a return trip that is sure to include a trip to the Highlands...and maybe a visit to some folks we met in Venice!

A few pix and the slide show.

The view from my room at the Hilton Caledonian.

The Edinburgh Castle

The Crown Jewels are located in here.