The Last Day

26 Aug 24

16:30 hrs

     Today was our last day. We started off with the usual hotel breakfast and then off to the coach for a drive around town. Landmarwere pointed out and then we bailed off the coach and started walking. Parliament at Westminster, Big Ben, Canada House, St. Paul's Cathedral,  Buckingham Palace, Kensington Palace, and the Changing of the Horse and Palace Guards. That latter performance was a highlight for us. The pomp, the uniforms, the drill movements, the security. Loved it!

The You-Alls didn't understand and thought it was all done for the tourists. Nope. It's all done for a purpose. They also asked why they have an embassy, which is an armed guard fortress, and Canada  Australia and some others have a "House"? The tour guide simply stated that "those countries are our friends!" Love it!

     After the tour my Lobster and I went to see the British Museum. A huge complex with more visitors that we cared for. The museums collection was extensive and we did see a few thing that we really wanted to see including a pair of totem poles purloined from the Left Coast in the 1870's and The Rosetta Stone. We will be having a final dinner with the group at a posh restaurant and tomorrow at Oh-Dark-30 we depart for the airport for a quick jaunt to Munich.

The Adventures continue.

Time to get Educated

25 Aug 24

06:45 hrs

     We're up and starting our day. Showers, packing, catching the news, etc. We will be heading to Oxford for a brief tour and then on to London where we will hang our hats for a couple of days. Our guide will give us a walking tour tomorrow but then my Lobster and I will go to see the London Museum.

     There are thousands of neighborhood pubs in the UK many of which have an interesting name. There will always be a Red Lion bit we have seen a Dirty Badger, the Dirty Duck, the Dog and Pickle, Top and Tail and others. Coming into London we spotted numerous landmarks and tomorrow we're going for a walk about to get up close and personal with some of them.

Differences

23 Aug 24

08:45 hrs

     When you are on a journey that covers multiple locations and many stops you will soon notice differences especially in the places you lay your head at night. Sure, all are good hotels but the rooms will surely vary in size, the washroom will have various benefits such as towel warming racks, a shower and a tub, a tub so deep you need assistance to enter and exit, safety bars or not, bottled water or not, extra pillows or not, sound proof walls or not. All of which adds to your experience and often to your expenses. 

     Yesterday, we went from our hotel in Chester to visit Caenarfon in Wales. Lovely place with a gorgeous castle right on the waterfront. We had time to wander the town and listen to the Welsh. On the way back our guide, Andreea, and Steve-Oh, our coach driver, took us through the Welsh countryside. Wales is famous for its slate stone that was quarried and shipped globally for various purposes. What truly fascinated me was the miles of stone walls, made of both field stone and slate that defined and quartered the land up hill and down. And all by hand. Some of them nearly two centuries old as in the case of Hadrian's Wall, which is 73 miles long by 15 feet tall and 12 feet wide with encampment every 13 miles and multiple observation platform between them and was completed in seven years!

     We are on to Stratford upon Avon and then Oxford before hitting London in a day or so. My Lobster and I discussed what we would like to see in London and with both agreed on the British Museum. Just to be safe she went online and pre-booked free tickets. One of the You-Alls had said that she had seen it and the London Library where there were just so many books! Privately, I sent a text to my Better Half wondering if we would have to get tickets to see the book in the Lone Star State Liberry.

     Stratford was pretty interesting. It has a population of 30k but has 2.7m visitors annually. The Bard can really draw them in. We wandered about the town taking in where Willy was born and it was pointed out to us where he was buried. My Lobster and i snagged at lunch at a pub. Good burgers but in my opinion mine had double the amount of the Special House Secret Sauce. We visited a number of shops and purchased a few items. Books, mostly. One can never have too many books. Supper, which was impressive, was served at the Royal Shakespeare Theater. 

     I think, or rather thought, that our room was haunted. Earlier, we had been playing a game of cribbage - I've lost just about every game on this trip - and we heard this weird gurgling sound. It happened several times. But, according to our trip director the building is so old, the 1600's, that the renovations over the years that some of the pipes are likely to have some blockages which gurgle on occasion. But, that doesn't explain the rapping on the door with no one in the hall.

The Big Show

21 Aug 24

01:00 hrs

     The show is over and we are back at the hotel. First, the day started with another tour of the town. It was a driving and walking tour. Some of it was the same as what we had discovered on our own and some of it was quite different. Our guide was a native of Edinburgh and she had alot to explain. Good on her. 

     The highlight was the Tattoo in the castle's esplanade. We walked up to castle, which has bleacher seating installed for 9,000 persons. These seats take room or months to install and just as much to remove. They are put up and taken down each year. Where they are stored is anyone's guess. The show started at 21:30 and lasted about two hours. It was a salute to naval forces with massed pipe bands, drum and bugle bands, drill teams and a lone piper. To clear the stands and walk home took about 45 minutes. If you ever have a chance to see the Royal Tattoo is strongly suggest you see it. You will not be disappointed. In the mean time look it up on YouTube. 

New Friends?

19 Aug 24

06:45 hrs

     Hello Kidlettes!

     Today we are switching locales. One hotel for another. As we arrived two days before the tour we couldn't get into the hotel the group was booked into. Not to worry we moved over and met the group.

There are six couples. I'm pretty sure we're the youngest of this Senior's Motor Coach Tour. One couple is from Aus, we're from Canukistan and the rest are You-Alls. Well, three pairs are You-Alls and the last couple ensured that we knew they were from Texas.  Needless to say, to keep the peace, talking politics is off the table.

     We had a group supper and prepared for the next day of touring the city and the Royal Tattoo.

     Nite Y'all.

Around the Castle

18 Aug 24

20:00 hrs

     Today we started of with breakfast in the hotel. Eggs Benny with shaved salmon. Mind you, it was Atlantic salmon which is actually a steelhead since it doesn't die after it spawns. Yes it is a salmonid, but it is not a salmon. My Better Half had the same but with English bacon. She found it less salty than the bacon at home, a little smokey and slightly sweet. (Which reminds me, that I'm going to try to make my own bacon when I get home.) 

     With breakfast done we headed of on a Hop On/Hop Off bus. There are three looping routes through Edinburgh. We purchased a two day pass so we could check out a number of sites before the planned tour actually starts. The bus has a 1/4 covered upper deck with a tour guide identifying local landmarks with interesting tales to go with them. For instance, I  the 17th and 18th centuries grave robbing was a common crime in Britain. However, if the robbers only took the body and left the clothes and any belongings (jewelery, keepsakes, etc) behind no robbery would have actually been committed. Only the body would be removed and it would be taken to a middleman who would deliver it to a medical school where it would be used for classroom disection. To prevent this ghastly intrusion the deceased's loved ones could pitch a tent next to the grave to protect it or hire a guard to do the same. A newly buried body had to be protected for thirty days. After that the body would be too decomposed for use by the medical schools. The person hired to watch over a loved one had to be there all night and the shift was referred as the graveyard shift. 

     The Edinburgh Castle sits atop a mountain near the centre of town. We were informed it was an ancient volcano. We went on our own to see the military museum held within its walls. Very cool. We're going to be going back to see the Tatoo in a couple of days.

     A local directed us to Grey Friars Kirk where Bobby, the wee Scotty terrier lays. If you don't know the story you're not as old as I am. Also, the Kirk yard has some very old residents from the 1700 & 1800's including characters like Tom Riddle who were immortalized in the the Harry Potter series. JK Rowling denies using names from the graveyard. She's lying. After the Kirk we sought out the Pipers Rest where we had apont and a bite. I had the steak pie while my Lobster had the pasta. Those two items were pretty much the only things that did not contain haggis. After supper we were done for the day so we headed home to rack out.

And Away We Go!

16 Aug 24

07:45 hrs

     Hello Kidlettes, 

     It's your long lost scribe. Remember me? Things have been busy and I was under the impression that no one really gave a shit about the words that I occasionally penned on various topics. However, I was querried on when the cookbook was coming out and Why? I wasn't publishing anything on the blog page. 

     

     You're reading it? Alright then.

     Yes, the cookbook, How to Cook Your way out of a Wet Paper Bag, s now available on Amazon. My Better Half and I went over it numerous times editing, formatting and editing some more. I uploaded it and immediately saw that it didn't look right. Headings were on the wrong page making the page numbers out of whack. Back to the drawing board. Eventually we got everything lined up. The upload looked great and we ordered several proof copies. I was away at the Sage's Place when I got the call. The copies had arrived but there was an issue. All the page numners were in the bottom right hand corner on bothe the right hand and the left hand page meaning the left hand page number was buried near the spine of the book. Not good. This final problem was corrected as soon as I returned home.

     My Lobster and I are on another trip. This time we have jetted off to The Land of Nessie. After a flight to Cowtown via an overnight jaunt to The Western Pearl (due to the WestJet trip rescheduling) we arrived in the capital with eyes wide open. The first day we walked our feet off exploring the downtown area. Not only did we circumnavigate the castle we dodged through the Fringe Festival crowds. Tomorrow is another day.