Glasgow in a day...

The tour book told us how we could do it - but I think it's a scam. There is just no way to cover a whole city in a day - well, maybe Wilmore... But we certainly got in a lot today! We started out day trying to find breakfast. We had planned to eat here in our hotel, because they have a decent continental breakfast bar. But, by the time we got there the line was out the door, seriously. So, we thought we'd just start walking and see what we came across. As it turns out, Sunday morning food in the UK is harder to come across that you'd think. Granted, we passed a few McDonalds' and Burger King's... but we just couldn't do it (...well, I could have...) So, we found a place about an hour later - and had lunch. :)

Next we went to the Museum of Modern Art - always interesting. You just never know what you'll find in a modern art museum! Then we walked the shops in Merchant City - which is the city center of Glasgow. Very cool; they even had a PUMA store... yes, the WHOLE store was Puma attire... I was in love. And I bought nothing. That was sad.


(Yeah - these are a bunch of chairs glued together with a few mirrored purses mixed in... just for fun.)

Anywhoo... then we were off to the Glasgow Cathedral. SUPER impressive. The scary man who reeked of alcohol who offered to give me a private tour of the cathedral catacombs (no joke!) told me that it dated back to the 5th century... I'm thinking that it was actually the 15th century. I never saw a solid date, but suffice it to say - It's old.

After some more walking we headed off to an area called The Barras. Basically, this is an outdoor gypsy market. Very cool in a lot of ways, pretty dirty in more than one way, and totally shady in all ways. Unfortunately, by the time we got there the rain was beginning, so the "shops" (read: carts with tent covers) were beginning to close. Alas, no merchandise was bought... And I was so hoping for a cheap Coach purse... (j/k)

After this we headed back across town for our hotel, took showers, had dinner (Chinese food), and headed off to a local bowling alley. That's right - what else would you do in Glasgow on a Sunday evening??? Fun was had by all... and now I'm here once again in the hotel lobby chatting with you fine folks! :)


Tomorrow we're off to Dunfermline (good luck pronouncing that one...) for one night before we start our trek home. We'll have an overnight layover in Dublin, Ireland... but more on that later. Cheers.

Highland Adventure

So we spent the day travelling to Inverness, which is in the part of Scotland known as the Highlands. Yes, we'll be looking for Ol' Nessie... probably Wednesday. Today was mostly just travel, though. We're at another B & B (The Cambreth Lodge)... very cute... very old. It's actually an old manse, which I find interesting. It makes for a sweet front entry way, at least. The age of the house, though, among other factors, means that we dont have reliable internet at the house. We've spent the last hour trying to find internet that works, again. But that's ok with us... first, because it finally worked, and second because we didnt have a lot to do at the house this evening. In fact, we felt a little bit like the kids in The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe... wandering around this old house, playing ridiculous games, and trying to avoid "The Professor" (aka, the B & B owner). Here are a few pictures of our B & B this time... and of us wasting time (but dont get me wrong... I appreciate the rest!).


Tomorrow's agenda: Some battlefield somewhere, Cawdor Castle (MacBeth's Castle), Inverness Castle, Shopping, Fort George... a big day... we'll come home with a few hundred more pictures! :)

Front entryway into our B & B... doesnt it look like a cute little church??

The common lounge in our B & B... quite comfy!

Yeah, I'm a Pringles duck... don't act like you've never done it!

Rubish

So we've had a bit of trouble finding reliable internet access... It seems that Scotland doesnt have the same wireless-everywhere & anywhere priority that we Americans do (or at least I do). More on that later, but let's just say that we've spent about £15 (about 30 US dollars) on food we realy didnt need to access internet that didnt even work. So now I'm at a branch of the National Library (on a quite unusual keyboard) in a room that smells like leeks. (You might need to look that one up.)

So, tonight we're gonna suck it up and pay for the internet at our hotel so we can post pictures... Yesterday we spent the day at Edinburgh Castle and walking around the Old Town. SUCH COOL buildings. The churches are amazing... really all the architecture is amazing. Can't wait to upload pictures of that to show you all.

So now we're off to the Scottish National Museum. Catch you later!

PS. Does anyone else think it's even a little bit cool that this keyboard I'm on even HAS the "£" symbol???

PSS. Mark & Josh got fitted for kilts today - they wont have them for a few weeks, so I wont have a picture of that... but it's worth trying to imagine... I think. I hear that Josh has to wear his to the prom... :)

Explanation Needed...

So I feel like I should explain what's going on here... First, I know that Justin & I already have a blog. A great one, I might add. So I'm sure you're wondering why I'm taking up more cyberspace by creating a new one. Truth be told, I don't really do much with our blog. It's our blog the way it's our Echo, our golf clubs, and our kayak... I'm part owner in all these things by proxy. This blog will serve a special function - hopefully. I've recently been inspired to try writing a bit more, and so perhaps this trip will be the perfect place to start! The plan is to blog daily, or so, once we actually arrive in Scotland - and maybe I'll share some of the "side" writings that I'll do along the way. So this blog will chronicle the trip, and when it's over, the blog ends... but if it goes well I might make another one. (Yes, take up even more cyberspace.)

I'm not sure yet how reliable internet access will be. I'm sure we'll be able to find cafe space somewhere in Edinburg & Glasgow.... but I'm not so sure what will be going on once we arrive in the Highlands (and can I just say that's a locale I never thought I'd be headed to??). If I have to fight the sheep for table space, though, I will. After all, I have elbows and they dont; clearly, I have an advantage.


On a related note, if you have time, or the inclination, don't neglect our regular blog in favor of this one over the next few weeks. Justin will be continuing to blog there over the course of the trip, as well, and he'll have cool things to share. Hopefully we dont double up too much on info - but I'm guessing we'll be ok. (www.thejsimmons.blogspot.com)


Next projected blog topic: Being sure you have fun... (This one will give me something to do during our layover in Shannon, Ireland)

PS. All posts are set for European Time... so if you see a time posted (and I'm not sure if you will or not, don't think EST)