Lyon
We landed in Lyon around 9am. We had planned to stay with Reynald's brother and his wife in Grenoble at this point in the trip, but hadn't yet reached them because of lack of email access. We also realized that we didn't have their phone number. After a tense and lengthy stay at the airport, where we paid a ridiculous amount of money to use the internet for 15 minutes to email them, we decided to stay the night in Lyon. The guidebook described Lyon as being the second largest financial district in France, and as being busier in the fall than the summer. So after calling a couple hotels, we considered ourselves lucky to find a room for the night. We jumped on the bus and headed into town.
It turned out that we had picked a wonderful little hotel near the river. The staff were incredibly friendly, and the room had really high ceilings and old wood floors (and it had a full bathroom). We were so exhausted when we arrived that we took a long nap, then went out to explore the area and find internet access. It took a while, but we finally managed to find an internet cafe and were relieved to see an email from Reynald's brother with the address and phone number. We later made contact with them and agreed to meet the next day in Lyon, before going to Grenoble. That night, to celebrate our return to France, we had our most extravagant meal yet. It was an amazing three course meal (with cheese) and was absolutely amazing. We were so stuffed we could barely move when we left.
The next day we met up with Reynald's brother and his wife and walked around Lyon. We went to see one of their famous churches, then walked to the site of some old Roman ruins. The weather was so cold, and windy, and it actually started hailing when we were at the ruins. This prompted the decision to go to Grenoble in the early afternoon. We took the train, which was incredibly busy. Within a couple of hours we were in Grenoble.
Grenoble
We went to Reynald's brother's apartment, which was in an old building, but was quite modern inside. The next day we decided to rent a car and see some of the French countryside. Grenoble, being near the Alps, is surrounded by mountains and is very pretty. We decided to drive up Alpe D'Huez, made famous by the Tour de France. It is a long winding climb with 21 switchbacks. In the winter, it's a ski resort, but it hadn't opened yet for the season. The drive up was very scenic, but there wasn't much to do in the village. We spent the rest of the day driving, and saw some beautiful old roman style bridges, some nearby lakes, and lots of incredible views. On the way back, we stopped in Vizille, and took a quick look at their castle.
The next day we took it easy and spent much of the day playing the board game "Settlers of Catan". That night we went out for a nice fondue dinner in a unique little restaurant called "A Confesse" that had a real confessional at the front door. The next day we went to a huge french grocery store to pick up a few goodies to take home. It was very fun, and we ended up buying too much chocolate, and had to borrow a bag to fit everything.
Then it was time to catch our train back to Paris, where we would catch our flight back home to Vancouver. We stayed in a hotel very near the Notre Dame Cathedral, and had a wonderful view of it from our window. We went out for one last nice dinner.
The next morning, we made our way to the airport to take our flight home. Our flight ended up being painfully long, as we had a stopover in Calgary, and were on the plane for more than 12 hours. Then we had a long wait for our luggage as they had problems opening the cargo doors. It was with very great relief that we finally met up with my mother, who kindly picked us up at the airport. We arrived home around 8pm (around 6am in France), and were greeted by a couple of happy cats.
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
Madrid, Spain
After a short two nights in Lisbon, we flew to Madrid, Spain. It was considerably colder than Portugal but seemed a huge bustling city compared to Lisbon. I don't speak much Spanish, but Reynald understood a little, so it was slightly easier than Portugal to figure things out. We relied again on the guidebook, and found a couple excellent restaurants. One restaurant we went to twice was run by cooking students and was incredibly reasonably priced. As in Portugal, there was a tendency to eat late and dishes were very meat heavy, with a focus on pork.
We were getting quite tired by the time we reached Madrid and took it a bit easier while we were there. The only major site that we saw was the Prado Museum, which is huge and has a focus on Spanish Art (naturally). One of the things I liked best about this museum is that they sold little guides for one Euro on major artists (quite a deal). We bought a little book on Bosch and on Goya.
We were only in Madrid for two nights (only one full day), so I don't feel like we experienced much of the city. It did feel very cosmopolitan and was full of all kinds of shops and restaurants. We had a very early flight when we left and had to check out of our hotel at 5:30am and walk to the metro, which didn't open until 6am. We managed to get two stops on the metro before the train stopped and everybody had to get off. We weren't sure exactly what the problem was, but it became clear that the train was not going to make it to the airport (it's pretty scary to listen to all the announcements with absolutely no idea of what they are saying). There were many other passengers trying to get to the airport, and once we left the station, there was serious competition for taxis. Reynald was determined though and we managed to walk far enough ahead of everyone else and eventually got one. Which was lucky, because we didn't check in with much time to spare. Our next stop was Lyon, France.
We were getting quite tired by the time we reached Madrid and took it a bit easier while we were there. The only major site that we saw was the Prado Museum, which is huge and has a focus on Spanish Art (naturally). One of the things I liked best about this museum is that they sold little guides for one Euro on major artists (quite a deal). We bought a little book on Bosch and on Goya.
We were only in Madrid for two nights (only one full day), so I don't feel like we experienced much of the city. It did feel very cosmopolitan and was full of all kinds of shops and restaurants. We had a very early flight when we left and had to check out of our hotel at 5:30am and walk to the metro, which didn't open until 6am. We managed to get two stops on the metro before the train stopped and everybody had to get off. We weren't sure exactly what the problem was, but it became clear that the train was not going to make it to the airport (it's pretty scary to listen to all the announcements with absolutely no idea of what they are saying). There were many other passengers trying to get to the airport, and once we left the station, there was serious competition for taxis. Reynald was determined though and we managed to walk far enough ahead of everyone else and eventually got one. Which was lucky, because we didn't check in with much time to spare. Our next stop was Lyon, France.
Portugal
We flew from Paris to Porto, Portugal. Several people have asked me why I wanted to go to Portugal, and all I can say, is that I felt drawn there and thought if I didn't go now, I would probably never go. And I can say that it was certainly one of the highlights of the trip.
Porto was warm and sunny and gorgeous. It is very hilly and filled with windy cobblestone streets crowded by old buildings with laundry suspended on the lines above. Despite the feeling of age in the city, they had an extremely modern metro line that ran from the airport right into the city. Reynald had booked a hotel for us, and because Portugal is so much cheaper than France or Britain, we splurged and stayed in a 5 star hotel. The rooms were lovely, but there was quite a bit of construction around, so it was not as tranquil as it might have been. But the breakfast was one of the most beautiful I've ever seen, with fresh fruit, croissants, meats, cheeses, eggs, bacon, yoghurt, and wonderful coffee, tea and juices. It was completely luxurious, especially after staying in hostels where you were lucky to get toast.
We realized quickly that not understanding any Portuguese at all, would be a bit of a problem. Luckily English is relatively common in the tourist areas and we managed to get a good map and some recommendations. I wanted to see the local market, which was full of stalls selling vegetables, flowers and meats. The Portuguese diet is also very meat heavy, but emphasizes fish and seafood far more than France. After that we walked down to the river Douro, which was sunny and beautiful. It was so warm (mid 20's Celcius), that we regretted not bringing more lighter clothes. On the other side of the river were all the Port cellars that we decided to tour in the afternoon.
But before we did that, we decided to have lunch. Eating, when you don't know the language, can be a very daunting task. We finally found a small cafe to have lunch that had English translations on the menu but Reynald decided to be brave and ordered a mysterious daily special that was only listed in Portuguese. We were a bit shocked when it arrived, and turned out to be two whole small fish, deep fried, and presented on a plate. Reynald, ever the brave eater, dove in, and found the fish very tender and tasty (we never did find out what they were), as long as you didn't look them in the eye, or stare at their mouth full of teeth. Alcohol in Portugal is also very inexpensive, and a regional specialty is Vinho Verdes, a light sparkling white wine, which is really refreshing.
After lunch, we crossed the river to go tour some of the Port cellars. There are about a dozen cellars that offer tours that describe the process of making Port, and offer samples at the end. It was getting late in the afternoon, but we managed to buy tickets for one tour that didn't start for 45 minutes, and decided to go to another one while we waited. The first tour we did was of one of the smaller independent cellars. They gave an interesting tour describing how Port was made of grapes specific to the Douro region, and was different than wine because Brandy was added only 3 days after the fermentation process starts, which stops the fermentation and makes it sweeter with a higher alcohol content. After the tour, we were given a generous amount of samples, before we headed off to our next tour. The second tour was of the Sandeman Port Cellars, which is a well known brand and one that is even sold in Canada. Their tour was very polished and even included a short film describing the port making process with some wonderful footage of the Douro region which is famous for its man-made terraces used for growing grapes.
We stayed only two nights in Porto, before taking the train to Lisbon. Again we were impressed with their modern and quick metro system.
Lisbon
There were several times on this trip, when I questioned the value of taking a backpack instead of a nice little rolling suitcase...but then I came to Lisbon and it all became clear. Lisbon is one of the hilliest cities I have ever seen, even more so than Porto. Our hotel was pretty much at the top of the hill, and required walking up several flights of stairs and hills. It was a tough trip, but very rewarding when you got to the top. Our hotel had an absolutely incredible view of the red roof-studded city. We got there late afternoon, and went in search of food only to find that the custom was to eat dinner late, around 8 or 9pm. We walked around and saw a bit of the city before we finally found a restaurant that was open.
One of the customs of restaurants in Portugal is to serve plates of appetizers to you when you sit down, but everything costs extra (though you are only supposed to be charged if you actually eat it). We had learned this in Porto, and were careful during our first meal in Lisbon not to eat from the plates of ham, cheese, and shrimp that they set down, and eventually took away. We had a good dinner of fish, but were frustrated when the bill came and they had charged us for all the appetizers that we had been so careful not to eat. Luckily one of the waiters spoke English and eventually corrected the bill.
The next day, we decided to buy all day transit tickets and spent much of the day riding up and down Lisbon's hilly streets in their wonderful little street cars. Much like San Francisco, these little trams ran on tracks all through the city. We had a wonderful tour around the city for a fraction of the price of the tourist buses.
One last thing about Portugal, they had amazing pastries. There were little cafes everywhere, and each of them had long bars filled with a huge assortment of pastries. Everyone that we tried was excellent, and they were so cheap. After a day or so, we realized that you were supposed to eat at the bar standing up, as they charged more to eat at the tables. We made sure we brought some to go when we left for Madrid.
Porto was warm and sunny and gorgeous. It is very hilly and filled with windy cobblestone streets crowded by old buildings with laundry suspended on the lines above. Despite the feeling of age in the city, they had an extremely modern metro line that ran from the airport right into the city. Reynald had booked a hotel for us, and because Portugal is so much cheaper than France or Britain, we splurged and stayed in a 5 star hotel. The rooms were lovely, but there was quite a bit of construction around, so it was not as tranquil as it might have been. But the breakfast was one of the most beautiful I've ever seen, with fresh fruit, croissants, meats, cheeses, eggs, bacon, yoghurt, and wonderful coffee, tea and juices. It was completely luxurious, especially after staying in hostels where you were lucky to get toast.
We realized quickly that not understanding any Portuguese at all, would be a bit of a problem. Luckily English is relatively common in the tourist areas and we managed to get a good map and some recommendations. I wanted to see the local market, which was full of stalls selling vegetables, flowers and meats. The Portuguese diet is also very meat heavy, but emphasizes fish and seafood far more than France. After that we walked down to the river Douro, which was sunny and beautiful. It was so warm (mid 20's Celcius), that we regretted not bringing more lighter clothes. On the other side of the river were all the Port cellars that we decided to tour in the afternoon.
But before we did that, we decided to have lunch. Eating, when you don't know the language, can be a very daunting task. We finally found a small cafe to have lunch that had English translations on the menu but Reynald decided to be brave and ordered a mysterious daily special that was only listed in Portuguese. We were a bit shocked when it arrived, and turned out to be two whole small fish, deep fried, and presented on a plate. Reynald, ever the brave eater, dove in, and found the fish very tender and tasty (we never did find out what they were), as long as you didn't look them in the eye, or stare at their mouth full of teeth. Alcohol in Portugal is also very inexpensive, and a regional specialty is Vinho Verdes, a light sparkling white wine, which is really refreshing.
After lunch, we crossed the river to go tour some of the Port cellars. There are about a dozen cellars that offer tours that describe the process of making Port, and offer samples at the end. It was getting late in the afternoon, but we managed to buy tickets for one tour that didn't start for 45 minutes, and decided to go to another one while we waited. The first tour we did was of one of the smaller independent cellars. They gave an interesting tour describing how Port was made of grapes specific to the Douro region, and was different than wine because Brandy was added only 3 days after the fermentation process starts, which stops the fermentation and makes it sweeter with a higher alcohol content. After the tour, we were given a generous amount of samples, before we headed off to our next tour. The second tour was of the Sandeman Port Cellars, which is a well known brand and one that is even sold in Canada. Their tour was very polished and even included a short film describing the port making process with some wonderful footage of the Douro region which is famous for its man-made terraces used for growing grapes.
We stayed only two nights in Porto, before taking the train to Lisbon. Again we were impressed with their modern and quick metro system.
Lisbon
There were several times on this trip, when I questioned the value of taking a backpack instead of a nice little rolling suitcase...but then I came to Lisbon and it all became clear. Lisbon is one of the hilliest cities I have ever seen, even more so than Porto. Our hotel was pretty much at the top of the hill, and required walking up several flights of stairs and hills. It was a tough trip, but very rewarding when you got to the top. Our hotel had an absolutely incredible view of the red roof-studded city. We got there late afternoon, and went in search of food only to find that the custom was to eat dinner late, around 8 or 9pm. We walked around and saw a bit of the city before we finally found a restaurant that was open.
One of the customs of restaurants in Portugal is to serve plates of appetizers to you when you sit down, but everything costs extra (though you are only supposed to be charged if you actually eat it). We had learned this in Porto, and were careful during our first meal in Lisbon not to eat from the plates of ham, cheese, and shrimp that they set down, and eventually took away. We had a good dinner of fish, but were frustrated when the bill came and they had charged us for all the appetizers that we had been so careful not to eat. Luckily one of the waiters spoke English and eventually corrected the bill.
The next day, we decided to buy all day transit tickets and spent much of the day riding up and down Lisbon's hilly streets in their wonderful little street cars. Much like San Francisco, these little trams ran on tracks all through the city. We had a wonderful tour around the city for a fraction of the price of the tourist buses.
One last thing about Portugal, they had amazing pastries. There were little cafes everywhere, and each of them had long bars filled with a huge assortment of pastries. Everyone that we tried was excellent, and they were so cheap. After a day or so, we realized that you were supposed to eat at the bar standing up, as they charged more to eat at the tables. We made sure we brought some to go when we left for Madrid.
Monday, November 19, 2007
Map of trip
I covered a lot of ground in 5 weeks. Here's an interactive map that shows where I traveled. You can change the map location by clicking and dragging the mouse (you will need to do this to see where I traveled in Europe). The blue arrows show places I stopped, and the lines show approximate routes. If you click on the arrows you will get a short description of the place. You can zoom in by clicking the '+' button, or zoom out with the "-" button, or use the arrows to move around instead of dragging.
You can also click "View larger map" to see the full map with descriptions.
View Larger Map
You can also click "View larger map" to see the full map with descriptions.
View Larger Map
Friday, November 16, 2007
Paris
Once again, I departed London by ferry and bus to arrive at Paris. Several people I met before I left were shocked, since almost everyone goes by fast train from London to Paris. But I saved about $200 by taking the bus and ferry, and it was incredibly scenic, so I have no regrets even though I didn't go through the famous chunnel. The ferry left from Dover, and once I saw the area, remembered that the Cliffs of Dover are famous, and for good reason. It was an amazingly beautiful area, the cliffs are white and high. I wished I could have spent some time there, but we were on a tight schedule. The ferry trip was very fast and relaxing and went to Calais, France. The bus ride to Paris took about 4 hours.
The first thing I noticed about Paris was how much traffic there was. It was so so busy. We arrived at the main bus terminal which connected with the metro and I took the metro over to my hotel. It took a bit of adjusting to get used to the language, even though I studied French for years. Even when visiting Quebec, I was never quite as immersed in French as I was in France. But luckily, my French held up rather well, and most people understood me without any problems.
The next morning, I had the day to myself before I met up with Reynald, who would arrive from Vancouver that afternoon. I spent the day walking around and walked by the Louvre (it was closed, but you could still walk on the grounds), the Jardins des Tuilleries (the ornate palace gardens full of amazing sculptures), the Place de la Concorde (with a beautiful Greek fountain and a huge Egyptian obelisk), and the Champs Elysees (the long boulevard). Everything in Paris is so ornate and beautiful, I felt like you could take a million pictures and you still couldn't capture it all. There is work by famous artists in every park, the bridges are all unique and ornamented, and there are so many unusual and wonderful buildings, it's hard to take it all in. I walked by the Grand Palais (now an art gallery) and went by Notre Dame and took pictures of its famous Rose Windows.
After that I headed towards the hotel where I was supposed to meet Reynald. I was surprised on checking in that he wasn't there, and went to find somewhere to check my email. I found out that his flight had been delayed and that he likely wouldn't arrive until the next morning. He asked me to phone the hotel he had booked for the next night, and when I did, I found out they had canceled our reservation. So I went back to the internet cafe to try to book another hotel, which proved extremely difficult because the next night was Halloween, and the following day November 1st was a holiday in France (All Saint's Day). But I finally found something, and sent the information to him, hoping that he would get the info if he arrived late.
The next morning, I was very happy to see an exhausted but happy Reynald at my hotel room door. We checked out and went to the next hotel to check in. After that we decided it was time for lunch and got recommendations from the hotel for a nearby brasserie. Now, French food is famous for being tasty, but until you get there, it's hard to believe that you can literally walk into any restaurant and have fantastic food. We learned that the French simply do not compromise on food. The place we had for lunch was typical, a small cafe that served fresh food and had only one waitress and served a two course 'formule' that included an appetizer and main or a main and dessert. The waitress was nice but harried and had to come back several times before we got our order in. The food is very meat heavy, with steaks or sausages being common mains. It would be hard to eat vegetarian there. The only thing I didn't like about French restaurants was that they all allow smoking, which has been banned in Vancouver restaurants for a while, and you were always engulfed in smoke.
The other thing I loved about France was the Patisseries. French bakeries that can be found everywhere with fresh bread, croissants, and pastries. The bread is cheap and always fresh. I wish we had bakeries like this at home. Anyone who knows me, knows what a soft spot I have for baking, so I ate my fair share of baked things before I left.
Paris has recently started a bike rental program, and has bikes set up at various spots in the city, that you can rent for a 1 Euro fee/day, then by the half hour. If you use only 30 minutes, you don't pay extra, but if you use them for longer, it costs around 2 Euros. It seemed like a romantic and relaxing way to get around the city, but it turned out that it wasn't. As I mentioned earlier, there is a tremendous amount of traffic in Paris. Despite this, it is probably one of the most bike friendly cities I've seen, because cycling is so common. However, biking around the city requires some knowledge of where you are going, because many Paris streets tend to be one way, and the city is fully of round abouts (and lanes are not usually marked).
Our first trip on the bikes was reasonably fun, but we got quite lost, because it's very hard to look at a map when you're riding a bike. However, our second try was a complete disaster. It was evening, and we were near the Pompidou Centre, which is full of traffic and pedestrians. We thought we had mapped out our route, only to find that many of the streets were one way in the wrong direction, and after spending 30 minutes weaving around pedestrians and going in circles, we gave up and took the metro.
Before we left Paris, we visited the Louvre. The building itself is a work of art, and just looking at all the paintings on the ceilings could occupy a whole visit, never mind all the art on the walls. It has always been a dream of mine to go to the Louvre, and I was not disappointed. I saw some incredible pieces, and was allowed to take pictures of them. The Mona Lisa is underwhelming, but draws a huge crowd and is flanked by security guards and velvet ropes. Some of the paintings are enormous, and completely awe-inspiring. After a couple hours, we were so exhausted, we speed-walked through several galleries to get to the exit. We also stopped by the Eiffel Tower, but it was so incredibly busy that we couldn't afford to wait an hour or more in line to go up top, so we took some pictures then walked around.
I felt like we barely scratched the surface of what there is to see in Paris, but we ate lots of wonderful food. Before we knew it, it was time to head to the airport to go to Portugal.
The first thing I noticed about Paris was how much traffic there was. It was so so busy. We arrived at the main bus terminal which connected with the metro and I took the metro over to my hotel. It took a bit of adjusting to get used to the language, even though I studied French for years. Even when visiting Quebec, I was never quite as immersed in French as I was in France. But luckily, my French held up rather well, and most people understood me without any problems.
The next morning, I had the day to myself before I met up with Reynald, who would arrive from Vancouver that afternoon. I spent the day walking around and walked by the Louvre (it was closed, but you could still walk on the grounds), the Jardins des Tuilleries (the ornate palace gardens full of amazing sculptures), the Place de la Concorde (with a beautiful Greek fountain and a huge Egyptian obelisk), and the Champs Elysees (the long boulevard). Everything in Paris is so ornate and beautiful, I felt like you could take a million pictures and you still couldn't capture it all. There is work by famous artists in every park, the bridges are all unique and ornamented, and there are so many unusual and wonderful buildings, it's hard to take it all in. I walked by the Grand Palais (now an art gallery) and went by Notre Dame and took pictures of its famous Rose Windows.
After that I headed towards the hotel where I was supposed to meet Reynald. I was surprised on checking in that he wasn't there, and went to find somewhere to check my email. I found out that his flight had been delayed and that he likely wouldn't arrive until the next morning. He asked me to phone the hotel he had booked for the next night, and when I did, I found out they had canceled our reservation. So I went back to the internet cafe to try to book another hotel, which proved extremely difficult because the next night was Halloween, and the following day November 1st was a holiday in France (All Saint's Day). But I finally found something, and sent the information to him, hoping that he would get the info if he arrived late.
The next morning, I was very happy to see an exhausted but happy Reynald at my hotel room door. We checked out and went to the next hotel to check in. After that we decided it was time for lunch and got recommendations from the hotel for a nearby brasserie. Now, French food is famous for being tasty, but until you get there, it's hard to believe that you can literally walk into any restaurant and have fantastic food. We learned that the French simply do not compromise on food. The place we had for lunch was typical, a small cafe that served fresh food and had only one waitress and served a two course 'formule' that included an appetizer and main or a main and dessert. The waitress was nice but harried and had to come back several times before we got our order in. The food is very meat heavy, with steaks or sausages being common mains. It would be hard to eat vegetarian there. The only thing I didn't like about French restaurants was that they all allow smoking, which has been banned in Vancouver restaurants for a while, and you were always engulfed in smoke.
The other thing I loved about France was the Patisseries. French bakeries that can be found everywhere with fresh bread, croissants, and pastries. The bread is cheap and always fresh. I wish we had bakeries like this at home. Anyone who knows me, knows what a soft spot I have for baking, so I ate my fair share of baked things before I left.
Paris has recently started a bike rental program, and has bikes set up at various spots in the city, that you can rent for a 1 Euro fee/day, then by the half hour. If you use only 30 minutes, you don't pay extra, but if you use them for longer, it costs around 2 Euros. It seemed like a romantic and relaxing way to get around the city, but it turned out that it wasn't. As I mentioned earlier, there is a tremendous amount of traffic in Paris. Despite this, it is probably one of the most bike friendly cities I've seen, because cycling is so common. However, biking around the city requires some knowledge of where you are going, because many Paris streets tend to be one way, and the city is fully of round abouts (and lanes are not usually marked).
Our first trip on the bikes was reasonably fun, but we got quite lost, because it's very hard to look at a map when you're riding a bike. However, our second try was a complete disaster. It was evening, and we were near the Pompidou Centre, which is full of traffic and pedestrians. We thought we had mapped out our route, only to find that many of the streets were one way in the wrong direction, and after spending 30 minutes weaving around pedestrians and going in circles, we gave up and took the metro.
Before we left Paris, we visited the Louvre. The building itself is a work of art, and just looking at all the paintings on the ceilings could occupy a whole visit, never mind all the art on the walls. It has always been a dream of mine to go to the Louvre, and I was not disappointed. I saw some incredible pieces, and was allowed to take pictures of them. The Mona Lisa is underwhelming, but draws a huge crowd and is flanked by security guards and velvet ropes. Some of the paintings are enormous, and completely awe-inspiring. After a couple hours, we were so exhausted, we speed-walked through several galleries to get to the exit. We also stopped by the Eiffel Tower, but it was so incredibly busy that we couldn't afford to wait an hour or more in line to go up top, so we took some pictures then walked around.
I felt like we barely scratched the surface of what there is to see in Paris, but we ate lots of wonderful food. Before we knew it, it was time to head to the airport to go to Portugal.
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
London
To continue my scenic (and hopefully somewhat environmentally friendly tour of Britain) I followed my usual route of taking the ferry and train to London. It's a great deal, only 41 euros and you don' have to pre-book. I had no trouble arriving at the ferry, and not a minute too soon as the ferry actually left earlier than scheduled. It was a great fast ferry called the Jonathan Swift. I had a really comfortable ride and got a nice view of the sunrise. I arrived at Hollyhead, Wales to wait for my train. The first part of the trip was good, traveling through Wales was incredibly beautiful, and I was sad that I wouldn't see more of it since my tour of Wales had been canceled. But after changing trains, it was so busy I had to stand most of the 2 hour trip to London. I arrived at London's incredibly busy Euston train station, and made my way towards the tube (the metro). It was chaos in there, people everywhere. They are in the middle of some major renovations on the tube and the station entrances were packed. Still, I managed to figure it out and made my way to my hostel. Luckily it was right beside the tube station and I had no trouble getting there.
While in Dublin, I had caught a nasty cold, and it was really getting the best of me in London. Because of this, I didn't get to see a lot of things that I would have liked. I did still see a lot though, including the British Museum and it's amazing collection of Greek and Egyptian artifacts. Their most famous artifact is the Rosetta stone, the stone that was used to decipher hieroglyphics. I also saw the National Art Gallery and Trafalgar Square, and took some pictures of the big Lord Admiral Nelson Statue in the centre of the square. I walked through the market at Covent Gardens which was full of people and buskers. I walked a lot.
I liked the energy of London, it was very fast paced, everyone seemed like they were in a rush to get somewhere. I had a lot of trouble getting used to the fact that the cars were on the wrong side of the road (at least for me), and was constantly having to look each direction before crossing (though many streets have arrows that show you which way to look, probably just for tourists like me). That night I decided to really treat myself and bought a ticket to the musical Wicked, which I'd wanted to see last year in New York but couldn't afford. It's the story of the Wicked Witch of the West, who is not really that wicked, just misunderstood. It was really wonderful, I enjoyed it immensely.
The next day I went to the Tate Modern Gallery, which had a fantastic collection of Surrealist and modern paintings. One of its current exhibits is a great huge crack running through the whole of the bottom floor, called Shibboleth by Doris Salcedo. It's intriguing to think about how the artist managed to do it, but the gallery won't say.
I was starting to get pretty exhausted, so I decided to book a hotel room (a private room all to myself) and ended up in Greenwich, London, in the Devonport House. It was a lovely place, with an amazing breakfast, and I spent the weekend convalescing. Greenwich had a couple really great markets with some of the best displays of food vendors I've ever seen, selling coffee, chocolates, italian nougats, cookies, breads, olives and many other tasty delights. I didn't explore the area that much, but I did walk near the water and found a strange little round building that turned out to be the entrance to a foot tunnel under the river. There was a huge elevator that you could take down, and then you walked for several minutes in a long tiled tunnel. It was a little eerie to walk it by myself in the early hours of the morning when I had no idea where it would come out, but I ended up on the other side and had an amazing view of the river in the early morning mist.
Before I left London, I walked by the Parliament Buildings, Big Ben, St. Paul's and stopped at Buckingham Palace. It's closed to visitors in the winter, but you can still take pictures at the gate, which I did, and there is a beautiful park beside it (Green Park) with a nice Canadian Monument, which acknowledges the contributions of Canadians in the wars.
That was my all too brief time in London. Next stop: Paris.
While in Dublin, I had caught a nasty cold, and it was really getting the best of me in London. Because of this, I didn't get to see a lot of things that I would have liked. I did still see a lot though, including the British Museum and it's amazing collection of Greek and Egyptian artifacts. Their most famous artifact is the Rosetta stone, the stone that was used to decipher hieroglyphics. I also saw the National Art Gallery and Trafalgar Square, and took some pictures of the big Lord Admiral Nelson Statue in the centre of the square. I walked through the market at Covent Gardens which was full of people and buskers. I walked a lot.
I liked the energy of London, it was very fast paced, everyone seemed like they were in a rush to get somewhere. I had a lot of trouble getting used to the fact that the cars were on the wrong side of the road (at least for me), and was constantly having to look each direction before crossing (though many streets have arrows that show you which way to look, probably just for tourists like me). That night I decided to really treat myself and bought a ticket to the musical Wicked, which I'd wanted to see last year in New York but couldn't afford. It's the story of the Wicked Witch of the West, who is not really that wicked, just misunderstood. It was really wonderful, I enjoyed it immensely.
The next day I went to the Tate Modern Gallery, which had a fantastic collection of Surrealist and modern paintings. One of its current exhibits is a great huge crack running through the whole of the bottom floor, called Shibboleth by Doris Salcedo. It's intriguing to think about how the artist managed to do it, but the gallery won't say.
I was starting to get pretty exhausted, so I decided to book a hotel room (a private room all to myself) and ended up in Greenwich, London, in the Devonport House. It was a lovely place, with an amazing breakfast, and I spent the weekend convalescing. Greenwich had a couple really great markets with some of the best displays of food vendors I've ever seen, selling coffee, chocolates, italian nougats, cookies, breads, olives and many other tasty delights. I didn't explore the area that much, but I did walk near the water and found a strange little round building that turned out to be the entrance to a foot tunnel under the river. There was a huge elevator that you could take down, and then you walked for several minutes in a long tiled tunnel. It was a little eerie to walk it by myself in the early hours of the morning when I had no idea where it would come out, but I ended up on the other side and had an amazing view of the river in the early morning mist.
Before I left London, I walked by the Parliament Buildings, Big Ben, St. Paul's and stopped at Buckingham Palace. It's closed to visitors in the winter, but you can still take pictures at the gate, which I did, and there is a beautiful park beside it (Green Park) with a nice Canadian Monument, which acknowledges the contributions of Canadians in the wars.
That was my all too brief time in London. Next stop: Paris.
Monday, October 22, 2007
Dublin & Tour of Southern Ireland
I arrived in Dublin in the early afternoon, with directions to the hostel. Unfortunately, I hadn't familiarized myself enough with Dublin's geography before I started walking. My directions said to cross a certain bridge and walk towards the hostel. I saw a bridge in front of me and walked down it, but as I was to find out, Dublin is separated by the River Liffey, which has about a dozen bridges across it. After wandering around, with a very heavy pack, and having to dig the guidebook out of it twice, I finally made it to the hostel. It was in the very well known Temple Bar district, which is a full of pubs and seems to be the centre of Dublin's nightlife. I was booked in a 10 room mixed dorm (because I made the booking before I got here and realized that you don't get much sleep in big dorm rooms like that and that sometimes going the cheapest wasn't always for the best). I wandered around the Grafton Street area (like Robson St. in Vancouver), and down the major street of O'Connell Street. I was amazed at how busy Dublin was. It was absolutely jam-packed with people speaking all sorts of languages. Despite the fact that it's cool here, there seem to be many many tourists. I decided to go to the hostel for an early night, because I was leaving on a 3 day tour of Southern Ireland in the morning. Instead I ended up checking out one of the famous temple bars Gogarty's, which was packed wall to wall. I've never seen such a busy bar, but everyone seemed pretty used to it.
The next morning, I was off to get picked up for my bus tour and just a little sleep deprieved. The buses were late due to traffic, and when they finally starting walking us to the buses, a group of us followed the wrong people and got lost. We figured they probably wouldn't leave without the 10 of us, until someone pointed out that we also had the list of people who were supposed to be on the tour. Then we got a bit worried, but we turned around and headed back to where we started, and met a very flustered tour guide on the way. We were all very relieved to get on the bus and get settled in.
Our first stop before we left Dublin was the Phoenix Park. It's the largest enclosed park in Europe, and has its own herd of deer, as well as the largest christian (non-celtic) cross around. We got some good pictures, then jumped on the bus and headed to our next stop. We arrived at Clonmacnoise Monastery in the afternoon. It's got several very old stone structures, and some beautiful stone celtic crosses, as well as a very old graveyard. I got some great pictures of it. Then we headed to the small town of Galway for the night. We saw their beautiful abbey and had lunch at Munroe's Irish Pub. It's a very happening little town, and had lots of tourists and some neat buskers in the streets. The next morning, we were off again and to the Burren area. The most famous part of this are the Cliffs of Moher. These are dramatic cliffs overlooking the atlantic that you can walk right to the edge of because there are no fences at the edge (although technically that part is private property and you're not supposed to go there, but everyone does). They were beautiful (though I think for dramatic beauty, I liked the cliffs at the Butt of Lewis better), and full of tourists and a large tourist centre. That afternoon we stopped in Killarney for the night. We went out to a local pub, and everyone watched the final of the World Rugby match (yawn), so I had an early night. The next day, we got up early to have a horse drawn carriage ride around Killarney National Park, which is supposed to be one of the 1001 things to do before you die. It was a lovely ride through the park, which has two herds of deer, a castle, a lake and some amazing views. After that we jumped back on the bus and drove to see the Blarney Castle. The castle is over 600 years old and holds the famous Blarney Stone. The story goes that many years ago an army was sent to take the castle from its owner Cormac McCarthy, who somehow managed to talk them out of it, so the castle was never taken. Now, its said that if you kiss the blarney stone you will be blessed with the gift of eloquent speech and never be at a loss for words. I waited patiently in line, and did actually kiss the stone, which you must do by lying on your back and kissing the stone with your head tilted back. It's a strange experience as you are hanging over a grate and are a long way up, but there is someone there to support you. The castle itself is quite beautiful, with long winding stairs and fantastic views from the top.
After all this, it was back to Dublin where we started. I met a couple from Alberta on the tour who were staying at the same hostel as me, and we went out to the Arlington Hotel that night. It's famous for its live Irish Music and Irish Dancing. It was by far the largest bar I have ever seen, and like all irish pubs, it was packed. But the music was great, and the dancing was really amazing, just like River Dance, but it was free.
The next day, I decided to take the hop-on hop-off bus tour of Dublin. It was a nice way to see the city and had a lively commentary. Most of the galleries were closed on Mondays, but I did manage to see the National Gallery which had some wonderful paintings. There are also many statues in Dublin, and I got some good pictures of the famous Molly Malone (from the song, which I heard many times in Ireland), and Oscar Wilde. After all that sightseeing, I decided to relax a bit, and went to the movies to watch Stardust (which was a nice fantasy movie).
That was my time in Ireland, next stop London....
The next morning, I was off to get picked up for my bus tour and just a little sleep deprieved. The buses were late due to traffic, and when they finally starting walking us to the buses, a group of us followed the wrong people and got lost. We figured they probably wouldn't leave without the 10 of us, until someone pointed out that we also had the list of people who were supposed to be on the tour. Then we got a bit worried, but we turned around and headed back to where we started, and met a very flustered tour guide on the way. We were all very relieved to get on the bus and get settled in.
Our first stop before we left Dublin was the Phoenix Park. It's the largest enclosed park in Europe, and has its own herd of deer, as well as the largest christian (non-celtic) cross around. We got some good pictures, then jumped on the bus and headed to our next stop. We arrived at Clonmacnoise Monastery in the afternoon. It's got several very old stone structures, and some beautiful stone celtic crosses, as well as a very old graveyard. I got some great pictures of it. Then we headed to the small town of Galway for the night. We saw their beautiful abbey and had lunch at Munroe's Irish Pub. It's a very happening little town, and had lots of tourists and some neat buskers in the streets. The next morning, we were off again and to the Burren area. The most famous part of this are the Cliffs of Moher. These are dramatic cliffs overlooking the atlantic that you can walk right to the edge of because there are no fences at the edge (although technically that part is private property and you're not supposed to go there, but everyone does). They were beautiful (though I think for dramatic beauty, I liked the cliffs at the Butt of Lewis better), and full of tourists and a large tourist centre. That afternoon we stopped in Killarney for the night. We went out to a local pub, and everyone watched the final of the World Rugby match (yawn), so I had an early night. The next day, we got up early to have a horse drawn carriage ride around Killarney National Park, which is supposed to be one of the 1001 things to do before you die. It was a lovely ride through the park, which has two herds of deer, a castle, a lake and some amazing views. After that we jumped back on the bus and drove to see the Blarney Castle. The castle is over 600 years old and holds the famous Blarney Stone. The story goes that many years ago an army was sent to take the castle from its owner Cormac McCarthy, who somehow managed to talk them out of it, so the castle was never taken. Now, its said that if you kiss the blarney stone you will be blessed with the gift of eloquent speech and never be at a loss for words. I waited patiently in line, and did actually kiss the stone, which you must do by lying on your back and kissing the stone with your head tilted back. It's a strange experience as you are hanging over a grate and are a long way up, but there is someone there to support you. The castle itself is quite beautiful, with long winding stairs and fantastic views from the top.
After all this, it was back to Dublin where we started. I met a couple from Alberta on the tour who were staying at the same hostel as me, and we went out to the Arlington Hotel that night. It's famous for its live Irish Music and Irish Dancing. It was by far the largest bar I have ever seen, and like all irish pubs, it was packed. But the music was great, and the dancing was really amazing, just like River Dance, but it was free.
The next day, I decided to take the hop-on hop-off bus tour of Dublin. It was a nice way to see the city and had a lively commentary. Most of the galleries were closed on Mondays, but I did manage to see the National Gallery which had some wonderful paintings. There are also many statues in Dublin, and I got some good pictures of the famous Molly Malone (from the song, which I heard many times in Ireland), and Oscar Wilde. After all that sightseeing, I decided to relax a bit, and went to the movies to watch Stardust (which was a nice fantasy movie).
That was my time in Ireland, next stop London....
Belfast
I've been in Ireland for a week now. I first arrived in Belfast last Tuesday night, and made my way to the youth hostel. I had a nice small 4 bed female dorm, which was nice after the 8 bed mixed dorm in Edinburgh. The hostel was near the university area, so I wandered around near Belfast's Queen's University. The university has some of the most beautiful architecture that I've seen, which looks really amazing at night (I got a great picture of it). The next day I decided to be a real tourist and bought a ticket for the hop on hop off tour. I decided the best view would be from the top of the bus, which it was, but even though it was a sunny day, it was a mighty cold trip. The tour went all through Belfast, showing the major sites like the Stormont Parliament Buildings, the city hall, and the many murals. The city has had a troubled history, with a considerable amount of violence over the last 40 years. It is only in the last 10 years that peace has come to the city and it is now booming, and is very tourist friendly. It is still part of Britain, and seperate from the Republic of Ireland in the South. However, signs of the "Troubles", as they call them, are still evident everywhere, from the murals, to the security cameras everywhere, to the "Peace Wall". I enjoyed my tour but it took me a while to thaw out afterwards.
I looked around for a bit then decided to go on a walking tour of Belfast, to see the city from a different perspective. We had a wonderful guide named Billy, who took us all around the city. He told us quite a bit of the early history of Ireland, and I got some great pictures of some of the sights I'd missed on the bus. After that, I came back to the hostel and revelled in having a private room for the night. The next morning, I packed up and headed for a bus to Dublin.
The weather in Belfast was good, cool fall weather but with lots of sunny patches. It was a lot like Scotland in that it was very changeable. It started to rain on the walking tour but by the time, I'd managed to get the umbrella out of the bag, it had stopped. So far, I haven't tried much Irish food, except for the soda bread (or wheaten), which is wonderful.
I looked around for a bit then decided to go on a walking tour of Belfast, to see the city from a different perspective. We had a wonderful guide named Billy, who took us all around the city. He told us quite a bit of the early history of Ireland, and I got some great pictures of some of the sights I'd missed on the bus. After that, I came back to the hostel and revelled in having a private room for the night. The next morning, I packed up and headed for a bus to Dublin.
The weather in Belfast was good, cool fall weather but with lots of sunny patches. It was a lot like Scotland in that it was very changeable. It started to rain on the walking tour but by the time, I'd managed to get the umbrella out of the bag, it had stopped. So far, I haven't tried much Irish food, except for the soda bread (or wheaten), which is wonderful.
Thursday, October 18, 2007
One last night in Scotland
I decided that before I left Scotland that I would spend one night in Edinburgh before leaving for Ireland. It was another long trip, nearly 12 hours, by the time the bus pulled into Edinburgh after what felt like the longest bus ride of my life (because the bus seemed to stop at every single little town along the way). Now that I was on my own, it was just me and my bag. Weighing in at about 14 kg (according to the scale at the airport), finding my way around town quickly and efficiently was essential. Traveling to a new city has become a race to find a place to drop my bag as quickly as possible. I got a few strange looks as I walked around with my massive pack. It's not the biggest bag you can buy, but it's not that wide, so it's tall, and it looks very big on me. However, it doesn't add any width to me, so I can maneuver around without too much trouble. I had plotted out my route on the map while on the bus, and felt pretty sure I would be able to find my hostel without too much difficulty. Unfortunately, I was wrong.
Each city I've seen has a slightly different street naming conventions and ways of showing what street you're on (if they decide to tell you at all). In Edinburgh it seems to be common for streets to change their name part way through, and the streets are not always marked. So after walking around aimlessly for a while since I couldn't find the street I needed to turn on, and sitting down with the map and pouring over it again, I finally walked on a street, where I could see my hostel, but it was on a street far below me. Ah, so close, and yet so far. After a bit more walking, I finally figured out how to get down to it, and was very relieved to check in and drop my pack. I was checked into an 8 bed mixed dorm. I decided to go for dinner and found a pub with decent food called Frankenstein's (yes, after the monster). I had a giant yorkshire pudding with sausages and veggies that was very tasty. By then it was getting dark, so I went back to the hostel and hung out until 9pm when they had a pub crawl. I thought it would be a good way to meet some people, so I went along. I did meet some really interesting people, several of whom, had just come from Ireland and gave me some good tips for my upcoming trip. I went to three pubs, had 2 drinks then came back to the hostel since I had an early morning. I went to bed, and couldn't sleep. Though the hostel was not that noisy, and the guys in the room didn't snore all night, I barely slept at all before getting up around 7am. I had breakfast and left, and took a slightly less circuitous route to the bus station. On the way I took a couple of pictures of the gorgeous Edinburgh Castle, which sits very imposingly over the city.
When I got to the bus station, I saw on one of the screens that bus 900 that I would be taking to Glasgow was (I thought) leaving at 9:15. So I went to the bathroom, and came out to find my bus pulling away. Apparently, I had misread the screen and looked at the arrivals not departures, and my bus left on time, without me. I was mortified, because that bus connected in Glasgow with another bus that would go to the Ferry to take me to Belfast, so I thought my whole day of traveling had been ruined. I asked one of the bus employees what I could do. He called the office and said I should still be able to make the connection by taking the next bus. It was a tense ride, but the bus did indeed make it in time, and I finally relaxed when I made it on the next bus and settled in for a long ride. We arrived at the ferry, which was delayed 30 minutes and had a very long wait (about 1.5 hours). I finally boarded the ferry to Belfast, which was a big fast ferry with lots of food outlets, casino machines, a gift shop and even showed two family movies (I caught the end of Eragon). After the ferry arrived, I jumped onto a bus that would take me to the main bus centre in Belfast, just 10 minutes from my hostel. Luckily, I had no trouble finding the hostel, and checked into a 4 bed female dorm, but was able to upgrade to a single room the next night.
More on Belfast next time....
Each city I've seen has a slightly different street naming conventions and ways of showing what street you're on (if they decide to tell you at all). In Edinburgh it seems to be common for streets to change their name part way through, and the streets are not always marked. So after walking around aimlessly for a while since I couldn't find the street I needed to turn on, and sitting down with the map and pouring over it again, I finally walked on a street, where I could see my hostel, but it was on a street far below me. Ah, so close, and yet so far. After a bit more walking, I finally figured out how to get down to it, and was very relieved to check in and drop my pack. I was checked into an 8 bed mixed dorm. I decided to go for dinner and found a pub with decent food called Frankenstein's (yes, after the monster). I had a giant yorkshire pudding with sausages and veggies that was very tasty. By then it was getting dark, so I went back to the hostel and hung out until 9pm when they had a pub crawl. I thought it would be a good way to meet some people, so I went along. I did meet some really interesting people, several of whom, had just come from Ireland and gave me some good tips for my upcoming trip. I went to three pubs, had 2 drinks then came back to the hostel since I had an early morning. I went to bed, and couldn't sleep. Though the hostel was not that noisy, and the guys in the room didn't snore all night, I barely slept at all before getting up around 7am. I had breakfast and left, and took a slightly less circuitous route to the bus station. On the way I took a couple of pictures of the gorgeous Edinburgh Castle, which sits very imposingly over the city.
When I got to the bus station, I saw on one of the screens that bus 900 that I would be taking to Glasgow was (I thought) leaving at 9:15. So I went to the bathroom, and came out to find my bus pulling away. Apparently, I had misread the screen and looked at the arrivals not departures, and my bus left on time, without me. I was mortified, because that bus connected in Glasgow with another bus that would go to the Ferry to take me to Belfast, so I thought my whole day of traveling had been ruined. I asked one of the bus employees what I could do. He called the office and said I should still be able to make the connection by taking the next bus. It was a tense ride, but the bus did indeed make it in time, and I finally relaxed when I made it on the next bus and settled in for a long ride. We arrived at the ferry, which was delayed 30 minutes and had a very long wait (about 1.5 hours). I finally boarded the ferry to Belfast, which was a big fast ferry with lots of food outlets, casino machines, a gift shop and even showed two family movies (I caught the end of Eragon). After the ferry arrived, I jumped onto a bus that would take me to the main bus centre in Belfast, just 10 minutes from my hostel. Luckily, I had no trouble finding the hostel, and checked into a 4 bed female dorm, but was able to upgrade to a single room the next night.
More on Belfast next time....
A few impressions of Scotland
I just wanted to add a couple of notes about Scotland before I move on to Ireland. Scotland is a beautiful country, which seemed very green as I flew in. On the ground it's more mixed with brown from the colour of the heather on the moors. The weather seemed similar to Vancouver, grey with sunny periods and ocassional rain but generally mild, however, it is extremely changeable. One minute it will be raining, the next will be sunny. In Stornoway, it is very windy, and because it's an island it's got a lot of coastline. There are several beaches and some of the coast has some dramatic cliffs. I was constantly in awe at how beautiful the Isle of Lewis was. Farming is a major industry, and sheep are everywhere you look. In order for the farmers to recognize their sheep they paint them with a unique marking with what looks like spray paint. So you see fields of sheep with bright pink (or any coloured) stripes or spots. Other people have described Scotland's big sky. It does look big, and this is mainly due to the lack of really tall buildings, and the lack of tall trees. The landscape is full of rolling hills, but very few of them have trees, and the ones they do are often planted and quite thin. Peat is still collected and used for fires but not as much as it used to be. However, some people still cut it by hand (which is very hard work and requires a special L-shaped tool), though it is often done by machine. Peat burns really nicely, and gives a lovely warm fire with low flames, and seemed to me very similar to wood in it's burning time. My family in Barvas told me that if you own a croft (a small piece of land) in Barvas, you also get an area where you can collect peat. Everywhere I went in Scotland, I felt very safe. The people are very friendly, and I highly recommend it.
Wednesday, October 17, 2007
Scotland Days 2 & 3
The next day I was going on a tour of the West side of Lewis with Margaret Joan. Our first stop was at the Callanish Stones. These are ancient standing stones that may predate Stonehenge, and access to them is completely unrestricted. They are on top of a hill, and the weather that day was extremely windy, so we didn't stay too long, but I got some lovely pictures. They are all Gneiss stone from Lewis and are very awe-inpiring. After that we drove to the Dun Carloway Broch. This is another ancient stone structure on a hill that was built as a fortified residence and dates to the last centure BC. After that we went to see the Blackhouse village at Gearrannan, but since it is off-season, we couldn't get a look at any of them. However, these are rentable and there is even a hostel there that you can stay in. The location is absolutely beautiful and it is known for it's seaside walks. Next we drove onto the Arnol Blackhouse. At one time these blackhouses would have been the common dwelling for people and their livestock, but they later abandoned these for white houses, more modern wood houses. Visiting this site is most well known for its peat fire that burns on the floor in the centre of the house. Peat smoke fills the entire house and your hair and clothes will smell of it for the rest of the day. We continued our tour by going through many other villages including Melbost, Shawbost, and Brue, among others. And finally went to the Butt of Lewis, which has a lighthouse and some absolutely spectacular views of the coast, before arriving in Barvas, where we visited another cousin Alistair and his wife Peggy. After that we went for dinner at Margaret Joan's and her brother Donald. We spent the evening listening to Scottish music as the well-ventilated peat fire burned and they gave me several CD's to take home. It was another incredible day. As we were driving, we met the same tour bus at several of the spots we visited, but I'm sure their tour was not nearly as comprehensive as mine.
The next day was Sunday, and the Isle of Lewis has very strong beliefs about the religious importance of Sunday. So there are no shops open and the ferry doesn't run. Recently they started having a few flights come to Stornoway on Sundays, but even this was met with serious protests. Because of this, I had time to rest and catch up on my travel journal, while Maimie made a wonderful lunch, which we shared with a close family friend, Dolly. Later we drove out to Lews Castle and walked around before coming home for an early night, as I had to be on the 7am ferry the next morning to go to Edinburgh.
That's was my week with relatives in Scotland. I saw a tremendous amount in a very short time, and everyone I met was so incredibly kind and generous, that I didn't want to leave. I can't wait to come back to Scotland again, and am so glad I had a chance to see my roots.
Next stop Ireland....
The next day was Sunday, and the Isle of Lewis has very strong beliefs about the religious importance of Sunday. So there are no shops open and the ferry doesn't run. Recently they started having a few flights come to Stornoway on Sundays, but even this was met with serious protests. Because of this, I had time to rest and catch up on my travel journal, while Maimie made a wonderful lunch, which we shared with a close family friend, Dolly. Later we drove out to Lews Castle and walked around before coming home for an early night, as I had to be on the 7am ferry the next morning to go to Edinburgh.
That's was my week with relatives in Scotland. I saw a tremendous amount in a very short time, and everyone I met was so incredibly kind and generous, that I didn't want to leave. I can't wait to come back to Scotland again, and am so glad I had a chance to see my roots.
Next stop Ireland....
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
Scotland
Hello from Belfast,
Sorry it's taken so long to update this blog. All last week I was in Scotland staying with relatives, during which time I was kept very busy and had almost no access to internet. So far, my idea of using wireless with my palm pilot hasn't worked out as it is harder to find wireless than I expected. But now that I am on my own, I should have more time to update.
So, how to describe everything I've in seen in a few words as I use internet that costs $4 for 40 minutes? I had a good plane ride out, it took about 8 hours to travel the 7039 km between here and Glasgow, and we arrived 45 minutes early! I was met at the airport by my grandmother's cousin Mary. She lives near the airport in a suburb called Renfrew. I got almost no sleep on the plane and was quite tired when I arrived at 8am (around midnight in Vancouver). I slept for a couple hours, then went into Glasgow with Mary. We stopped at the Botanical Gardens and at her son's optical shop, before calling it an early night. My first glimpse of Glasgow was that it is a bustling city with a lot of beautiful and very old stone architecture. The next day we went for lunch with Mary's sisters-in-laws to Loch Lomond (pronounced Lock Lowmund). The weather was wonderful and we had a great lunch. I tried a scottish soup called Cullen Skink (creamy smoked fish soup) that was wonderful. Then we went over to the village of Luss. It's a conservation village so it's been preserved in the style of the turn of the century. We had a lot of fun buying souvenirs in the gift shop and got a beautiful view of the loch and its famous mountain, Ben Lomond.
The next day, my last in Glasgow, we went into Glasgow again to the Science Centre. It's an unusual silver building that the locals refer to as the armadillo. We also watched a show at the planetarium that's part of it. Then we went to the bus station so I could book my tickets to Stornoway and Belfast, before going home.
The next morning I left early in the morning for the Glasgow bus station to catch a bus to Inverness, then to Ullapool where I would catch the ferry to Stornoway on the Isle of Lewis, then meet many other relatives. The trip took nearly 12 hours, and I was met at the Ferry Terminal in Stornoway by the my grandmother's cousins Maimie and Murdo Dan, and Maimie's daughter Kathleen at 8pm. They drove me to Maimie's where I would be staying for 3 days. I slept very well there, which was a relief because I had been having problems with jet lag ever since arriving at Scotland, despite the fact that I was staying the most comfortable beds imaginable. It is customary in Scotland to warm your bed at night with an electric blanket, which is a lovely lovely experience (of course, you have to turn it off before you fall asleep). The next day Maimie and I left early to go into downtown Stornoway so I could look around. I had seen some Harris Tweed bags on the ferry that I really liked and hoped I could find something similar on the island (that didn't cost $80 like the ones I saw). Harris Tweed is a cloth manufactured only in the Hebridies, in the Western Isles of Scotland. The industry maintains its integrity by requiring that all the cloth be handwoven from wool and it is a beautiful, durable cloth. Unfortunately, it was a holiday weekend on the island so the Loom Centre, where I hoped to find the purses, was closed. However, there was a craft fair on in town and Maimie bought me an adorable tweed change purse. Then we went back home, where Murdo Dan and his wife Muriel picked me up to drive me around Stornoway and some of the island (and gave me a tweed coaster and key chain). We had a wonderful lunch at their house, then drove to a local weaver that worked near them. He was working on a piece of cloth with his loom, which he worked by pedaling just like a bicycle. He had to hand tie over 1500 individual threads though. It was wonderful to see, and I will post the picture later. When starting a new piece of cloth you have to use an old piece as a guide, then cut that bit off later. He had some of these leftover pieces and gave them to me. I was ecstatic, now I just have to learn to sew so I can do something with it when I get home. Then we drove around the island and saw the Lady Matheson Memorial at Lews Castle, which overlooks the Stornoway Harbour and has recently been renovated. We also saw the War Memorial, which is a tall monument that you can see overlooking Stornoway. While there I got a good picture of some scottish sheep, which are plentiful on Lewis, and a little different than the ones in Canada, because the males have horns which make them look more like mountain goats. Then we drove around the island going to Lower Stanwick, where my great grandmother once lived, then driving through many other towns and ending in Tolstad before coming back. It was a fantastic day and I saw a lot of the beautiful coast.
Sorry it's taken so long to update this blog. All last week I was in Scotland staying with relatives, during which time I was kept very busy and had almost no access to internet. So far, my idea of using wireless with my palm pilot hasn't worked out as it is harder to find wireless than I expected. But now that I am on my own, I should have more time to update.
So, how to describe everything I've in seen in a few words as I use internet that costs $4 for 40 minutes? I had a good plane ride out, it took about 8 hours to travel the 7039 km between here and Glasgow, and we arrived 45 minutes early! I was met at the airport by my grandmother's cousin Mary. She lives near the airport in a suburb called Renfrew. I got almost no sleep on the plane and was quite tired when I arrived at 8am (around midnight in Vancouver). I slept for a couple hours, then went into Glasgow with Mary. We stopped at the Botanical Gardens and at her son's optical shop, before calling it an early night. My first glimpse of Glasgow was that it is a bustling city with a lot of beautiful and very old stone architecture. The next day we went for lunch with Mary's sisters-in-laws to Loch Lomond (pronounced Lock Lowmund). The weather was wonderful and we had a great lunch. I tried a scottish soup called Cullen Skink (creamy smoked fish soup) that was wonderful. Then we went over to the village of Luss. It's a conservation village so it's been preserved in the style of the turn of the century. We had a lot of fun buying souvenirs in the gift shop and got a beautiful view of the loch and its famous mountain, Ben Lomond.
The next day, my last in Glasgow, we went into Glasgow again to the Science Centre. It's an unusual silver building that the locals refer to as the armadillo. We also watched a show at the planetarium that's part of it. Then we went to the bus station so I could book my tickets to Stornoway and Belfast, before going home.
The next morning I left early in the morning for the Glasgow bus station to catch a bus to Inverness, then to Ullapool where I would catch the ferry to Stornoway on the Isle of Lewis, then meet many other relatives. The trip took nearly 12 hours, and I was met at the Ferry Terminal in Stornoway by the my grandmother's cousins Maimie and Murdo Dan, and Maimie's daughter Kathleen at 8pm. They drove me to Maimie's where I would be staying for 3 days. I slept very well there, which was a relief because I had been having problems with jet lag ever since arriving at Scotland, despite the fact that I was staying the most comfortable beds imaginable. It is customary in Scotland to warm your bed at night with an electric blanket, which is a lovely lovely experience (of course, you have to turn it off before you fall asleep). The next day Maimie and I left early to go into downtown Stornoway so I could look around. I had seen some Harris Tweed bags on the ferry that I really liked and hoped I could find something similar on the island (that didn't cost $80 like the ones I saw). Harris Tweed is a cloth manufactured only in the Hebridies, in the Western Isles of Scotland. The industry maintains its integrity by requiring that all the cloth be handwoven from wool and it is a beautiful, durable cloth. Unfortunately, it was a holiday weekend on the island so the Loom Centre, where I hoped to find the purses, was closed. However, there was a craft fair on in town and Maimie bought me an adorable tweed change purse. Then we went back home, where Murdo Dan and his wife Muriel picked me up to drive me around Stornoway and some of the island (and gave me a tweed coaster and key chain). We had a wonderful lunch at their house, then drove to a local weaver that worked near them. He was working on a piece of cloth with his loom, which he worked by pedaling just like a bicycle. He had to hand tie over 1500 individual threads though. It was wonderful to see, and I will post the picture later. When starting a new piece of cloth you have to use an old piece as a guide, then cut that bit off later. He had some of these leftover pieces and gave them to me. I was ecstatic, now I just have to learn to sew so I can do something with it when I get home. Then we drove around the island and saw the Lady Matheson Memorial at Lews Castle, which overlooks the Stornoway Harbour and has recently been renovated. We also saw the War Memorial, which is a tall monument that you can see overlooking Stornoway. While there I got a good picture of some scottish sheep, which are plentiful on Lewis, and a little different than the ones in Canada, because the males have horns which make them look more like mountain goats. Then we drove around the island going to Lower Stanwick, where my great grandmother once lived, then driving through many other towns and ending in Tolstad before coming back. It was a fantastic day and I saw a lot of the beautiful coast.
Monday, October 1, 2007
Welcome
After several requests, I've decided to document my upcoming travels. I'll be taking my trusty palm pilot so I can update you on my adventures as I go. Though I will be taking many pictures on my trip, I will not be able to upload them until I return, so this will be a text only blog until then.
My trip will start in Scotland, where I will connect with my Scottish heritage and visit relatives in Glasgow and on the Isle of Lewis in Stornoway and Barvas. Along the way, I hope to stop in Edinburgh. Then it's off to Ireland to visit Belfast in Northern Ireland, before moving on to Dublin. From Dublin, I'm taking a tour of Southern Ireland. After that, I'll take a ferry/train ride to London. While in London, I'm off for a weekend trip to Wales. After a few more days in London, it's over to Paris through the Chunnel, where I'll meet up with Reynald. We'll travel together to Porto, Portugal, then to Lisbon. From there, we hope to stop in Barcelona or Madrid in Spain, before heading to Grenoble, France to visit Reynald's brother. Our trip ends back in Paris. At least that's the initial itinerary, plans may change as we go. It will be a whirlwind, and I'll try to keep you up to date as I go.
My trip will start in Scotland, where I will connect with my Scottish heritage and visit relatives in Glasgow and on the Isle of Lewis in Stornoway and Barvas. Along the way, I hope to stop in Edinburgh. Then it's off to Ireland to visit Belfast in Northern Ireland, before moving on to Dublin. From Dublin, I'm taking a tour of Southern Ireland. After that, I'll take a ferry/train ride to London. While in London, I'm off for a weekend trip to Wales. After a few more days in London, it's over to Paris through the Chunnel, where I'll meet up with Reynald. We'll travel together to Porto, Portugal, then to Lisbon. From there, we hope to stop in Barcelona or Madrid in Spain, before heading to Grenoble, France to visit Reynald's brother. Our trip ends back in Paris. At least that's the initial itinerary, plans may change as we go. It will be a whirlwind, and I'll try to keep you up to date as I go.
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