kate, one of our guides
a wee forest walk
28 July 2007
random scotland pics... more to come!
battle of culloden, last of the jacobite uprisings
kate, one of our guides
a wee forest walk
kate, one of our guides
a wee forest walk
LONDON PICS!!!
tea at the hostel
tea in the park
the british museum
THE rosetta stone
stolen from egypt...
stolen from greece...
tea in the park
the british museum
THE rosetta stone
stolen from egypt...
stolen from greece...
Yeah Me Again
I know, I know, another post from me, but I forgot something VERY important.
So remember the mean sweater man at the Highland Games? Well, there is a sequel to this story.
I must first point out that if the sweater man hadn't returned the money at the last, we would have had a hard time getting dinner that night. (It was one of those times that the American Visa didn't work in the Scottish machine) So that was a blessing in disguise.
I was in Oban night before last. We (D, C and I) were walking to all the different shops on the way home from the store, when C saw a souvenier she had been looking for for a friend of hers. So, of course, we had to stop. We went in and looked around at all the really cool and somewhat tacky souveniers. They had some fun T-shirts and stuff. I noticed a hallway in the store that led to another annex. So I went exploring. Sweaters, T-shirts, socks and hats! They were everywhere, and against the far wall, surrounded in sparkly, glimmering light was my sweater. Exactly the same sweater. I was sure they wouldn't have the same size, but the last one on the shelf was it! The same sweater the same size, and get this the same price! Well, actually, it was £2 more than the 'discounted' price that the sweater man quoted me. £22 for the same exact sweater, I was astonished! I showed C and D and they agreed that this was fate. I had to get it.
And Then
As if this wasn't enough
there was a tiny little tear in the 'T' of the word SCOTLAND. so I got my sweater for £17!!!
TA DA
My Heavenly Father loves me :)
So remember the mean sweater man at the Highland Games? Well, there is a sequel to this story.
I must first point out that if the sweater man hadn't returned the money at the last, we would have had a hard time getting dinner that night. (It was one of those times that the American Visa didn't work in the Scottish machine) So that was a blessing in disguise.
I was in Oban night before last. We (D, C and I) were walking to all the different shops on the way home from the store, when C saw a souvenier she had been looking for for a friend of hers. So, of course, we had to stop. We went in and looked around at all the really cool and somewhat tacky souveniers. They had some fun T-shirts and stuff. I noticed a hallway in the store that led to another annex. So I went exploring. Sweaters, T-shirts, socks and hats! They were everywhere, and against the far wall, surrounded in sparkly, glimmering light was my sweater. Exactly the same sweater. I was sure they wouldn't have the same size, but the last one on the shelf was it! The same sweater the same size, and get this the same price! Well, actually, it was £2 more than the 'discounted' price that the sweater man quoted me. £22 for the same exact sweater, I was astonished! I showed C and D and they agreed that this was fate. I had to get it.
And Then
As if this wasn't enough
there was a tiny little tear in the 'T' of the word SCOTLAND. so I got my sweater for £17!!!
TA DA
My Heavenly Father loves me :)
J: Castle Rock Hostel-Edinburgh
Outside the window where I am sitting there is a jazz band playing their hearts out. It is so cool! We are in Edinbugh for the first couple of days of their Jazz and Blues Festival. I am glad to be here for this. The street musicians are amazing!
So, I am to write a bit about our culinary adventures in Scotland! We have had a couple. Of course, we got to try haggis over here. I actually liked it, C and D were fairly indifferent about it. I think they kind of liked it, but any thought of what it is actually made of cancels out any thought of actually enjoying it. Anyway, it wasn't bad. It made me think of what Gardenburgers would taste like if they were made of chicken liver :) yum yum.
We also got to try Battered Mars Bars. I actually didn't care for it at all, but C and D are fans now, they may go get another today. The guy at the Fish place gave us the mars bar for free, seeing as it was our first ever. He was really nice.
Other than that, we have done more cooking in than eating out. We have made some very interesting dishes, from korma tortelini to nacho pizza. Last night we made Pot.
Gotcha
Pot is my new name for throwing everything left over in a pot. I may not stick with that nickname, but the reaction is quite satisfying. ;) We cooked off the leftover pasta we had, and the rice. We then threw it into a pot with onion, parmesan, ranch dressing and salt. It was quite good. We ate the rest for lunch today. Of course, we had cheesy bread last night to go with it.
So that's about it for the culinary adventures of the Pappasistas! Talk to you all later!
So, I am to write a bit about our culinary adventures in Scotland! We have had a couple. Of course, we got to try haggis over here. I actually liked it, C and D were fairly indifferent about it. I think they kind of liked it, but any thought of what it is actually made of cancels out any thought of actually enjoying it. Anyway, it wasn't bad. It made me think of what Gardenburgers would taste like if they were made of chicken liver :) yum yum.
We also got to try Battered Mars Bars. I actually didn't care for it at all, but C and D are fans now, they may go get another today. The guy at the Fish place gave us the mars bar for free, seeing as it was our first ever. He was really nice.
Other than that, we have done more cooking in than eating out. We have made some very interesting dishes, from korma tortelini to nacho pizza. Last night we made Pot.
Gotcha
Pot is my new name for throwing everything left over in a pot. I may not stick with that nickname, but the reaction is quite satisfying. ;) We cooked off the leftover pasta we had, and the rice. We then threw it into a pot with onion, parmesan, ranch dressing and salt. It was quite good. We ate the rest for lunch today. Of course, we had cheesy bread last night to go with it.
So that's about it for the culinary adventures of the Pappasistas! Talk to you all later!
27 July 2007
Buckingham Palace
J's view
C's view
D's view
Okay, c is finally here to tell you waiting fans about the "changing of the guard" :)
anyway so we all get up at about 10am to go to the "changing of the guard" we get to buckingham palace about half an hour before it started and we had no idea where to stand because we had no idea where the procession was going to come from, so we finally decided to go somewhere in the middle, so we parked right by the middle, huge, gates and waited and waited and WAITED. FINALLY!!! we heard the band coming up with the guard right behind, it would have been really cool, but we didn't actually get to see them because they went through the gates on our right hand side, not even close to us :(
we tried to get pictures in between the gate and through the people standing in front of us but we had NO luck, we were in the wrong place...then--in the distance we heard the faint sound of another parade. could it be??? was there more to the "changing of the guard"??? why yes there was!!! we waited for them to approach, sure that they were going to enter right in front of us, and we watched as they marched...right by us into the gates on our left...well...we got a good picture of their behinds :O
we could see this part through the gates and got a few, barely visible, pictures of the guard...our dreams were crushed, we could not see the guard, we could not hear anything in the din around us and we were thinking it was a complete waste of our last morning in London :*(
HOWEVER, as we waited for everyone to disappear into the street we heard a noise, a very familiar music, it was the STAR WARS THEME SONG!!! yes yes it was...the queen's own guard band was playing the star wars theme!!! it was unbelievable we sat there humming along, the smiles beaming on our faces, it was BEAUTIFUL!!!
then...to our pleasant suprise...they played on and we listened to the INDIANA JONES THEME SONG!!! WE HAD OUR OWN POPS CONCERT, PUT ON BY THE COOLEST DRESSED BAND IN THE WORLD!!! it was amazing and one of the top experiences of this trip, i went to buckingham palace to listen to a band concert, i will never be the same :)
26 July 2007
things we saw today
D-- oban backpackers hostel
it is after midnight and i am so tired. grandma said that she checks our blog like 5 times a day, and i would hate to disappoint. especially since the staff has gone to bed and we are using the internet for free. it seems a shame to go to bed when such an opportunity presents itself. casey is yawning over my shoulder, and the camera is upstairs, yet my fingers itch to tell you about our day.
we left skye today. rather than sightsee in the rain for our last couple hours, we browbeat will (the hostel guy) into letting us clean for a couple hours in order to get two of our beds for free tonight. the couple hours of cleaning saved us about $50, and we get a free breakfast. pretty much, i think i have to come back next summer and live in scotland. for 4hrs/day 6days/week you can get free accommadation, breakfast, internet and laundry -- plus £35/week food allowance. as long as the two words SCHOOL GRANTS enter my vocabulary next year, i may just live here.
ewan kenneth mccloud is our tour guide. crazy amounts of energy and he never stops talking... well, he took us to eileen donan castle. they call it the most romantic castle in scotland. it is beautiful and sits where three lochs meet. they do 80 weddings a year and 10 of them are scottish couples. last week was the marriage of a russian woman and an american guy. we toured the castle and learned the history of it. the family still visits the castle once a year.
there was a lot of driving today on a very full bus. unfortunately, we didn't stop as much as usual, but the stops we did make were AWESOME!!! we stopped briefly at ft. william (the locals call it the garrison) had a glass of water and a pee (not in that order TMI??) pretty near ft. w is glencoe. those of you from hillsboro, i need to point out that it was not the high school. well, ewan told us the terrible tragedy that took place at glencoe. i will write it in another blog when i am not so tired. it is a valley at the bottom of a HUGE mountain range. it was absolutley stunning. so sad to think of the massacre happening in such an idyllic place.
we stopped for the night in oban, a port town of 6,000 in the winter and 25,000 in the summer. we wish we could stay here longer, it is beautiful, and so close to more little islands. well, c and i made the most amazing dinner. maybe the food wasn't amazing, but then again maybe it was. we hadn't eaten since the dry frosted flakes in skye (the milk delivery came really late and there was no milk for our cereal. yes mom, we actually ate frosted flakes) c and i went for a walk along the coast and rested in the grass until the midges drove us away.
it was a good day, overall and i am looking forward to sleeping very soon. this hostel is amazing. a huge common area, gas stoves and roomy rooms. tonight i am homer, c is marge, and j would rather i didn't tell you the name of her bed. i think the best bit today was finding out where to get battered mars bars. TOMORROW!!!
LOVE Y'ALL
it is after midnight and i am so tired. grandma said that she checks our blog like 5 times a day, and i would hate to disappoint. especially since the staff has gone to bed and we are using the internet for free. it seems a shame to go to bed when such an opportunity presents itself. casey is yawning over my shoulder, and the camera is upstairs, yet my fingers itch to tell you about our day.
we left skye today. rather than sightsee in the rain for our last couple hours, we browbeat will (the hostel guy) into letting us clean for a couple hours in order to get two of our beds for free tonight. the couple hours of cleaning saved us about $50, and we get a free breakfast. pretty much, i think i have to come back next summer and live in scotland. for 4hrs/day 6days/week you can get free accommadation, breakfast, internet and laundry -- plus £35/week food allowance. as long as the two words SCHOOL GRANTS enter my vocabulary next year, i may just live here.
ewan kenneth mccloud is our tour guide. crazy amounts of energy and he never stops talking... well, he took us to eileen donan castle. they call it the most romantic castle in scotland. it is beautiful and sits where three lochs meet. they do 80 weddings a year and 10 of them are scottish couples. last week was the marriage of a russian woman and an american guy. we toured the castle and learned the history of it. the family still visits the castle once a year.
there was a lot of driving today on a very full bus. unfortunately, we didn't stop as much as usual, but the stops we did make were AWESOME!!! we stopped briefly at ft. william (the locals call it the garrison) had a glass of water and a pee (not in that order TMI??) pretty near ft. w is glencoe. those of you from hillsboro, i need to point out that it was not the high school. well, ewan told us the terrible tragedy that took place at glencoe. i will write it in another blog when i am not so tired. it is a valley at the bottom of a HUGE mountain range. it was absolutley stunning. so sad to think of the massacre happening in such an idyllic place.
we stopped for the night in oban, a port town of 6,000 in the winter and 25,000 in the summer. we wish we could stay here longer, it is beautiful, and so close to more little islands. well, c and i made the most amazing dinner. maybe the food wasn't amazing, but then again maybe it was. we hadn't eaten since the dry frosted flakes in skye (the milk delivery came really late and there was no milk for our cereal. yes mom, we actually ate frosted flakes) c and i went for a walk along the coast and rested in the grass until the midges drove us away.
it was a good day, overall and i am looking forward to sleeping very soon. this hostel is amazing. a huge common area, gas stoves and roomy rooms. tonight i am homer, c is marge, and j would rather i didn't tell you the name of her bed. i think the best bit today was finding out where to get battered mars bars. TOMORROW!!!
LOVE Y'ALL
25 July 2007
HARRY POTTER!!!!!
midnight! 8 hrs earlier than home
D -- isle of skye
so, we made a list of blog topics that we would like to cover. i have a bit of time and would like to share about harry potter, a running theme on our trip. we've mentioned it all before, but i just wanna bring it all together, for the record, ya know? i am only sorry that we can't add pictures yet. maybe at the next hostel...
CAUTION:::: MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS:::::::::
so, we were IN LONDON on the opening night of harry potter: order of the phoenix. too bad we were so tired... well, we did see the movie about a week later and gave it 6 thumbs up. although, it was very strange seeing our brother on the big screen. the very first scene, we turned to each other FREAKING OUT at how much he looked like anthony. seriously spooky. well, the casting was perfect. PROFESSOR UMBRIDGE... did you LOVE HER??????? hem, hem... with her wardrobe colors and kitten plates, she was stepford wives scary. "evil, like the fru-its of the de-vil, eee-vil." the actress played her perfectly. and we LOVED how the headquarters appeared, differently than we imagined, but great. one of the things that bugged me about reading book 5 was the fact that harry was a whiney diaper baby. wah wah this and that. thankfully, he wasn't annoying in the movie. moving on...
i think we mentioned that we were in line at 11:15 pm (i will point out again that it is 8 hours ahead of home) we bought the first 2 copies from WH Smith at inverness. although j hadn't brought her cape, there was a wizard in line. and some people who told us about all sorts of websites relating to harry potter. j finished the book SO FAST. c and i spent DAYS reading. we enjoyed the highland games, but didn't do much else... WE HAD TO FINISH IT. finally at 2:30 am on monday, all 3 of us were done and could get on with our lives. unfortunately, time didn't stand still for us, but we have been much more active on skye.
lastly, we saw the hogwarts express. the steam train used in the movie, it is beautiful. originally, we wanted to take a trip on the train, but it didn't work out. it was ALMOST as good seeing the train and getting our pic taken in front of it.
well, i have just a minute until the computer boots me off and i want to post this. LOVE TO ALL, and HERE'S TO HARRY!!!!!
D -- isle of skye
so, we made a list of blog topics that we would like to cover. i have a bit of time and would like to share about harry potter, a running theme on our trip. we've mentioned it all before, but i just wanna bring it all together, for the record, ya know? i am only sorry that we can't add pictures yet. maybe at the next hostel...
CAUTION:::: MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS:::::::::
so, we were IN LONDON on the opening night of harry potter: order of the phoenix. too bad we were so tired... well, we did see the movie about a week later and gave it 6 thumbs up. although, it was very strange seeing our brother on the big screen. the very first scene, we turned to each other FREAKING OUT at how much he looked like anthony. seriously spooky. well, the casting was perfect. PROFESSOR UMBRIDGE... did you LOVE HER??????? hem, hem... with her wardrobe colors and kitten plates, she was stepford wives scary. "evil, like the fru-its of the de-vil, eee-vil." the actress played her perfectly. and we LOVED how the headquarters appeared, differently than we imagined, but great. one of the things that bugged me about reading book 5 was the fact that harry was a whiney diaper baby. wah wah this and that. thankfully, he wasn't annoying in the movie. moving on...
i think we mentioned that we were in line at 11:15 pm (i will point out again that it is 8 hours ahead of home) we bought the first 2 copies from WH Smith at inverness. although j hadn't brought her cape, there was a wizard in line. and some people who told us about all sorts of websites relating to harry potter. j finished the book SO FAST. c and i spent DAYS reading. we enjoyed the highland games, but didn't do much else... WE HAD TO FINISH IT. finally at 2:30 am on monday, all 3 of us were done and could get on with our lives. unfortunately, time didn't stand still for us, but we have been much more active on skye.
lastly, we saw the hogwarts express. the steam train used in the movie, it is beautiful. originally, we wanted to take a trip on the train, but it didn't work out. it was ALMOST as good seeing the train and getting our pic taken in front of it.
well, i have just a minute until the computer boots me off and i want to post this. LOVE TO ALL, and HERE'S TO HARRY!!!!!
J: International Hostel, Isle of Skye
OH MY GOSH! IT IS SO BEAUTIFUL HERE! I wish I could post a picture, but the computer I am at right now won't hook up the camera. We went on a tour yesterday. It was all day around Skye. We saw so many wonderful sights. The mountains whose names I can't pronounce and the Lochs EVERYWHERE! We even got to go to a place called the Fairy Glen. There were fairy hills everywhere and even a castle. We made crowns for the fairies from reeds and flowers and left them on the hills and at the castle. We bathed our faces in the Fairy Lake so they would bless us. Cheesy, I know, but when you get there, it is so easy to take it all so seriously. The peace that surrounds this island is a palpable thing. It is like being on the edge of a cliff. So gorgeous and breathtaking. And so peaceful. I wish this was something that I could take home with me. Wrap up like the souveniers I have in my bag and unwrap back in Seaside. Something I can hold and keep forever. Maybe I'll come back here, maybe I won't, but I will certainly never forget this place.
We went today to see the Harry Potter train at the station in Mallaig. It was cool. The little fishing village is so cute, not nearly as small as Kyleakin, the one we are in now, but still very cute. More shops and such there than here. Here is mostly Hostels. Well, will write again soon (when it doesn't cost £.50 for every ten minutes. Later!
J
We went today to see the Harry Potter train at the station in Mallaig. It was cool. The little fishing village is so cute, not nearly as small as Kyleakin, the one we are in now, but still very cute. More shops and such there than here. Here is mostly Hostels. Well, will write again soon (when it doesn't cost £.50 for every ten minutes. Later!
J
23 July 2007
J: Student Hotel in Inverness
Hello Hello Hello
Here I am in Inverness! We are having a great time. We leave Inverness this morning for Skye. I am actually sad to leave. I could probably spend a week in each place that we go just to see as much as possible. I wish that I had unlimited funds as well, because I could probably buy something from each store in this city. There is so much to see and do. Ask the people that live here, though, and they'll tell you differently. I can't wait to get back to Edinburgh. It was so interesting there.
So, stories about Scotland. We went to the Highland games day before yesterday. It was kind of anticlimactic, but it was still good. We got to hear a lot of Scottish music. The Ceilidh (bands?) are amazing. It was great to hear.
Funny story, though. We went to a vendor who was selling sweaters. So cool. One souvenir that I wanted from this trip was a sweater from one of the countries we were going to. I found one here in my size, which was exciting. But it was expensive! We tried to tell the guy that we couldn't afford it, but he just kept lowering the price, until he got down to £20. We finally gave in and bought the sweater. It was neat, but I felt so guilty for spending that much money on a sweater. I pretty much spent all day feeling guilty. I was finally convinced to actually wear the sweater when it got cold. But when I went to zip it up, I realized the zipper was broken. I was really frustrated. I felt like I couldn't bring it back because I had gotten such a good deal on it, but it did me no good if I couldn't wear it. I finally went to take it back.
The vendor told me he didn't have another sweater, could I come back the next day? I told him that I wasn't going to the games the next day, but was finally convinced to just stop in and exchange the sweater. I went back just after church yesterday. Surprise Surprise, he still didn't have another sweater. He told me he had ordered one, though, and it would be here next week. I explained the obvious, I am just a tourist, I won't be here next week. Well, said he, I could have something else. I didn't want anything else, the only reason I bought this was because it was my size and it was exactly what I wanted. Could I just get my money back? No, he had already deposited all his money in the bank, and had none for an exchange. I left with the broken sweater. I was not very happy. As I headed for the gate, the kid that worked for him chased me down and handed me £20. I gave him the bag with the sweater in it and that was that. Grr... I really liked that sweater. I have been afraid to buy a souvenir ever since.
Other than that, though, it was a happy day. After church, a lady in the ward whose name I still don't know invited us over for dinner. We had yorkshire pudding... YUM! We sat around afterwards listening to stories from the missionaries. It was great! Well, it's about time to get going to Skye... C is going to write later about our last day in London.
PS I got Harry Potter at midnight here! about 8 hours before everyone I know. I finished it about 9 am the day it came out! YAY! I am still not allowed to talk about it, though. D is still reading.
20 July 2007
in scotland
D -- inverness, scotland
i hardly know where to begin. scotland is enchanting! after a VERY uncomfortable all night bus ride, a mile walk in the rain to find that the hostel was on the OTHER side of the castle, and a broken flip-flop -- we took yesterday easy. thankfully, the hostel let us relax there and take showers. we only left to find yummy sandwiches and a bit of fresh air. we will be in edinburgh for a couple days next week, so it was so nice to relax. there is a HUGE-UNGOUS FANTABULOUS castle in the middle of town. our hostel last night was right there. gorgeous! we also got to call home for the first time in a while, it was good to talk to mom and dad. anyway, we are in inverness. WOW! to hear the history and see the beauty of the area. we are off to the highland games tomorrow!!!!! i am so stoked!!! well. jaeda needs some time online, so i will go. sorry, nothing too interesting. soon, we will add pics and tell you about harry potter! SWEET!
i hardly know where to begin. scotland is enchanting! after a VERY uncomfortable all night bus ride, a mile walk in the rain to find that the hostel was on the OTHER side of the castle, and a broken flip-flop -- we took yesterday easy. thankfully, the hostel let us relax there and take showers. we only left to find yummy sandwiches and a bit of fresh air. we will be in edinburgh for a couple days next week, so it was so nice to relax. there is a HUGE-UNGOUS FANTABULOUS castle in the middle of town. our hostel last night was right there. gorgeous! we also got to call home for the first time in a while, it was good to talk to mom and dad. anyway, we are in inverness. WOW! to hear the history and see the beauty of the area. we are off to the highland games tomorrow!!!!! i am so stoked!!! well. jaeda needs some time online, so i will go. sorry, nothing too interesting. soon, we will add pics and tell you about harry potter! SWEET!
17 July 2007
J-Hostel 63-London
okay, so here we are back in London, staying at a hostel that is slightly better than the hotel room we were in last time. Up until a second ago, this room that I am in was full of little kids all speaking French. It was so cool! I wish C had been down here, (and I do mean DOWN, we are on the top floor of a tall building. The room I am in right now is the basement) however the slug-a-bed is still... abed. Yeah, so is D. They decided that they didn't want to wake up early today but to just wake whenever they woke. Which means as usual, I was up at 730 and they are still asleep. But I do get the computer, which is nice. So I still dont have the camera, which stinks. I do, however, have something new to write about.
D'S DRIVING! SCARY!
Okay, not really. I wasn't overly concerned, as she did really well at first. But she did seem to have a problem staying in the lines. She didn't, however, drift to the other side of the road as you would expect from an American. No, she drifted to the sidewalk. Which was a little scary for me, the front seat passenger. But we only had one incident. Well, two, but the other wasn't D.
We got lost a lot, which was fun. We were lost on the way to church on Sunday, and we went down a side road to turn around. D was a lot too close to the curb, and there was a truck parked on it. 'YOU'RE A LITTLE CL---' oops... but it just hit the side mirror and knocked it in. Luckily, those things are hinged. :) No worries, no damage.
The other was kind of funny. D was having trouble parking, and asked Pat's husband Mick to park the car. He backed into the car behind us. A tiny little scratch. Nothing to worry about, we got insurance on the rental. Yay. Anyway, we got to the rental company the next morning with no other mishaps and gladly left the car behind for the next uncomfortable bus ride. Better to be on a bus with the person ahead of you practically in your lap and crushing your kneecaps than having an American driving in London, though, right?
Well, we are going on a tour today, and we may get to go see Harry Potter (IN LONDON:>) this afternoon. Spendy, though. $14-$16 for a matinee. No, ta. Well, I may head off to wake the kids up now. Enjoy the post, and if you haven't check out the other posts and pics and COMMENT! I know you have, but I would rather hear the same thing over and over than not hear anything. I miss home people! I want a freaking comment!
>:( >:( >:( >:(
calming, calming
<:) <:) <:) <:)
Later! J
D'S DRIVING! SCARY!
Okay, not really. I wasn't overly concerned, as she did really well at first. But she did seem to have a problem staying in the lines. She didn't, however, drift to the other side of the road as you would expect from an American. No, she drifted to the sidewalk. Which was a little scary for me, the front seat passenger. But we only had one incident. Well, two, but the other wasn't D.
We got lost a lot, which was fun. We were lost on the way to church on Sunday, and we went down a side road to turn around. D was a lot too close to the curb, and there was a truck parked on it. 'YOU'RE A LITTLE CL---' oops... but it just hit the side mirror and knocked it in. Luckily, those things are hinged. :) No worries, no damage.
The other was kind of funny. D was having trouble parking, and asked Pat's husband Mick to park the car. He backed into the car behind us. A tiny little scratch. Nothing to worry about, we got insurance on the rental. Yay. Anyway, we got to the rental company the next morning with no other mishaps and gladly left the car behind for the next uncomfortable bus ride. Better to be on a bus with the person ahead of you practically in your lap and crushing your kneecaps than having an American driving in London, though, right?
Well, we are going on a tour today, and we may get to go see Harry Potter (IN LONDON:>) this afternoon. Spendy, though. $14-$16 for a matinee. No, ta. Well, I may head off to wake the kids up now. Enjoy the post, and if you haven't check out the other posts and pics and COMMENT! I know you have, but I would rather hear the same thing over and over than not hear anything. I miss home people! I want a freaking comment!
>:( >:( >:( >:(
calming, calming
<:) <:) <:) <:)
Later! J
16 July 2007
Bath
D: london, whiteley's mall internet sight
we had such a lovely day in bath on saturday (14 july). will (one of the wonderful people on our journey...jaeda's favorite, he's hilarious!) (have you ever seen sense and sensibility? mr. palmer as played by hugh laurie? totally him!) was kind enough to drive us into bath. we hired a car (someone else will fill you in on THAT fun stuff). the car wasn't there yet, so we walked to a bakery for brunch. bacon is one of those things that i never think to eat. i don't ever buy it, but WOW it is so good. we had some bacon at johnathan & eileen's on mann, it is so thick and delicious. this bakery had a bacon and cheese baguette, i figured i must have one, it was as delicious as i thought it would be. they serve ketchup and brown sauce with everything. the brown sauce is kinda like a steak sauce. i think i might be getting hungry, since i have written so much about the food. don't worry, i'll tell you all about lunch as well. anyway, we picked up the car and drove straight to the park & ride. i think i did very well, if i do say so myself -- the drive was only 2 minutes. i think it helped that we spent a week in ireland so i could get used to seeing the way the roadways worked.
anyway, once downtown, we headed to bath abbey. GORGEOUS! the original building is from the 8th century, but the building as it is now was finished in 1499. they had a sign out front announcing their evensong service at 5, so we decided to go back for that. there are so many little streets with charming shops. we found a shop called sharps and flats (a music store) we wanted to buy everything in there, but didn't. we went into all the bookshops, jaeda was DYING for a new book to read. i found a great book for my friend's collection, and a different store had paperbacks for £2 each. we bought jane austen's 'persuasion' (seeing as we were in jane austen territory)-- it was a must.
the afternoon train carried with it my friend pat (we were roommates on my thailand adventure last year) and we found our way to the jane austen center tea rooms, where we enjoyed a spot of tea. i had lady catherine's proper cream tea. i really hoped that it would make me proper, but it didn't work... i got jam all over the tablecloth and my fingers were sticky for an hour afterward. in my defense -- the scones were warm and crumbly while the clotted cream was cold and firm. HAVE YOU EVER TRIED CLOTTED CREAM??????? i think it sounds disgusting, but it is SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO YUUUUUUUUUUMMMMMMMMMMMYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! a currant scone with clotted cream and strawberry jam. delish! pat had the same as i while casey had mrs. bennet's lemon drizzle cake and jaeda had cousin collin's crumpets. HA! i really wanted tea with mr. darcy, but that was only the name of the tea, mr. darcy didn't actually come out and join you. i have to say that is a bit disappointing to this fragile heart. a moment please... ok enough about that.
we planned on staying for the entire evensong service, but about 20 minutes into it, casey asked if we could leave. she was falling asleep. i was sad to go. the music was beautiful and resounded through the abbey so sweetly. worship music such as we heard is fortifying to the soul.
the evening took j to a bench in front of the roman baths to enjoy her book, as she no longer enjoyed walking. c, pat and i went to see the royal crescent (see pics below). the largest open area in bath is a park in front of the crescent, the grass was the perfect length and color. so green, not too short, nor too long, it was perfect. we lie on our backs looking for shapes in the clouds, but the clouds were one giant mass and not puffy cotton candy animal shaped clouds. it was nice to rest a while. there were some beautiful gardens close by, really, there were beautiful gardens all over town. WOW!
we had such a lovely day in bath on saturday (14 july). will (one of the wonderful people on our journey...jaeda's favorite, he's hilarious!) (have you ever seen sense and sensibility? mr. palmer as played by hugh laurie? totally him!) was kind enough to drive us into bath. we hired a car (someone else will fill you in on THAT fun stuff). the car wasn't there yet, so we walked to a bakery for brunch. bacon is one of those things that i never think to eat. i don't ever buy it, but WOW it is so good. we had some bacon at johnathan & eileen's on mann, it is so thick and delicious. this bakery had a bacon and cheese baguette, i figured i must have one, it was as delicious as i thought it would be. they serve ketchup and brown sauce with everything. the brown sauce is kinda like a steak sauce. i think i might be getting hungry, since i have written so much about the food. don't worry, i'll tell you all about lunch as well. anyway, we picked up the car and drove straight to the park & ride. i think i did very well, if i do say so myself -- the drive was only 2 minutes. i think it helped that we spent a week in ireland so i could get used to seeing the way the roadways worked.
anyway, once downtown, we headed to bath abbey. GORGEOUS! the original building is from the 8th century, but the building as it is now was finished in 1499. they had a sign out front announcing their evensong service at 5, so we decided to go back for that. there are so many little streets with charming shops. we found a shop called sharps and flats (a music store) we wanted to buy everything in there, but didn't. we went into all the bookshops, jaeda was DYING for a new book to read. i found a great book for my friend's collection, and a different store had paperbacks for £2 each. we bought jane austen's 'persuasion' (seeing as we were in jane austen territory)-- it was a must.
the afternoon train carried with it my friend pat (we were roommates on my thailand adventure last year) and we found our way to the jane austen center tea rooms, where we enjoyed a spot of tea. i had lady catherine's proper cream tea. i really hoped that it would make me proper, but it didn't work... i got jam all over the tablecloth and my fingers were sticky for an hour afterward. in my defense -- the scones were warm and crumbly while the clotted cream was cold and firm. HAVE YOU EVER TRIED CLOTTED CREAM??????? i think it sounds disgusting, but it is SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO YUUUUUUUUUUMMMMMMMMMMMYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! a currant scone with clotted cream and strawberry jam. delish! pat had the same as i while casey had mrs. bennet's lemon drizzle cake and jaeda had cousin collin's crumpets. HA! i really wanted tea with mr. darcy, but that was only the name of the tea, mr. darcy didn't actually come out and join you. i have to say that is a bit disappointing to this fragile heart. a moment please... ok enough about that.
we planned on staying for the entire evensong service, but about 20 minutes into it, casey asked if we could leave. she was falling asleep. i was sad to go. the music was beautiful and resounded through the abbey so sweetly. worship music such as we heard is fortifying to the soul.
the evening took j to a bench in front of the roman baths to enjoy her book, as she no longer enjoyed walking. c, pat and i went to see the royal crescent (see pics below). the largest open area in bath is a park in front of the crescent, the grass was the perfect length and color. so green, not too short, nor too long, it was perfect. we lie on our backs looking for shapes in the clouds, but the clouds were one giant mass and not puffy cotton candy animal shaped clouds. it was nice to rest a while. there were some beautiful gardens close by, really, there were beautiful gardens all over town. WOW!
sightseeing on the isle of man
C here talkin about the IOM...so, the Isle of Mann..sightseeing...so we went to castletown and saw a cute old school building where they taught writing. we also went to craigneesh (sp?), which is an olden day kind of town. they have no electricity and all the houses have thatched rooves and it is really cool, so we go there and the first house is just a regular house only everything is from way back when. the best part was that Jacob and Benji started asking where the food is...and they didn't stop! after a while she finally gave in a started making bread. Jacob then proceeded to ask why she didn't go to TESCO (the only grocery store here) and she asked what it was he told her...blah blah blah for like five minutes and finally it ended with him bragging that he had a TESCO...it was funny and cute. the next house (and last house that we went to) was the spinning house. this lady took wool and she showed us how to make it all fine and then how to spin it...it was really neat, and she made the boys wool chains that we turned into necklaces, it was cool.
the next day we ventured ALL the way across the island (all ten minutes) and we first went to the isle of man museum which was cool but not as cool as our next stop, which was the house of Manannan! it was really cool, it brought you through the whole history of the Isle of Man, starting with the vikings and through the celts and the christians and the fishers and everyone, it looked really cool and was really amazing. After the house of manannan we went to this castle, i forget what it was called but it was just the ruins of an old castle and you could go into the grounds and hike all over the place inside through all of the buildings that were falling apart and on the wall surrounding it. it was AMAZING!!! we even saw a basking shark right off the coast and also some seals :)
After the castle we took off and went to get some REALLY REALLY GOOD icecream...really good. oh yeah...we went to see the house off the movie Waking Ned Divine...it was so cool, we saw the house and it was on the beach where there were a lot of rocks and shells, each of us got enough shells to fill all our pockets...i went further that the rest and climbed onto this HUGE rock island thingy, but while i was on there the tide came in and filled the river area that i had to cross to get back with water...i could have just taken off my shoes and walked through it (cause it wasn't THAT deep) but it was also full of jellyfish!!! no joke! ...but thanks to Michael i got across by jumping from rock to rock holding his arm (cause seriously the rocks weren't stable and barely above the water, for a minute i thought i wasn't going to be able to get across) but i survived with only the bottom of my pant legs wet :) whew! after that not much happened...we went home and had a late late dinner of chicken cordon bleu, mashed potato's, green beans, and cheesecake...yum yum
the next day we ventured ALL the way across the island (all ten minutes) and we first went to the isle of man museum which was cool but not as cool as our next stop, which was the house of Manannan! it was really cool, it brought you through the whole history of the Isle of Man, starting with the vikings and through the celts and the christians and the fishers and everyone, it looked really cool and was really amazing. After the house of manannan we went to this castle, i forget what it was called but it was just the ruins of an old castle and you could go into the grounds and hike all over the place inside through all of the buildings that were falling apart and on the wall surrounding it. it was AMAZING!!! we even saw a basking shark right off the coast and also some seals :)
After the castle we took off and went to get some REALLY REALLY GOOD icecream...really good. oh yeah...we went to see the house off the movie Waking Ned Divine...it was so cool, we saw the house and it was on the beach where there were a lot of rocks and shells, each of us got enough shells to fill all our pockets...i went further that the rest and climbed onto this HUGE rock island thingy, but while i was on there the tide came in and filled the river area that i had to cross to get back with water...i could have just taken off my shoes and walked through it (cause it wasn't THAT deep) but it was also full of jellyfish!!! no joke! ...but thanks to Michael i got across by jumping from rock to rock holding his arm (cause seriously the rocks weren't stable and barely above the water, for a minute i thought i wasn't going to be able to get across) but i survived with only the bottom of my pant legs wet :) whew! after that not much happened...we went home and had a late late dinner of chicken cordon bleu, mashed potato's, green beans, and cheesecake...yum yum
Myths, Legends and.. Rat-birds?
I always seem to fill out a blog on the days that we can't hook up the camera. Too bad, too, cause we have some awesome pics right now. So, my task is to tell you a bit about the history of the Isle of Man (or I Love Mann, as I call it), and to talk about the new bane of my existence... PIGEONS :( So, I'll start with the fun stuff.
I LOVE MANN!!!
The isle of Man is so beautiful! It is one of my new favorite places on earth. When we got there, I was so seasick and tired that I couldn't really appreciate it. We took the ferry over on Monday morning. It was a beautiful ferry ride, which we slept most of the way through. After seeing Cathy and Eileen (her sister) we went to church for a bit, met some people, used to toilets, then went to our three day home. It was lovely! There was a family there, ad that made it one of the best places we could be. The kids were excited to meet us, and came in and talked to us, which made me feel right at home. We talked about movies and books, two of my favorite subjects. And there were bookshelves in the room. I had been literarily (not really a word is it?) starving, and it was like a feast! I looked through and found an old copy of a book of fairy tales from Mann, YAY! I read the first one, and it was the mythological history of the Isle of Man, or Mann for short. It spoke of a magician who looked after the land and it's inhabitants. His name was Manannan mac Lir. He liked looking after the Manx because they weren't too bright and worshipped him. Whenever explorers or invaders would get to close to the Isle, Manannan would draw mist around the island, called Manannan's Veil, so thick they couldn't see. If that didn't work, he would set a villager up on the mountainside, and use his sorcery to make him look like a hundred soldiers prepared for battle. If that, too, failed, Manannan would then form himself into a fiery boomerang, fashioned of three armoured legs, and hurl himself at the intruders. Needless to say, they lived in peace for many years. Until St. Patrick came, bringing with him knowledge such as the villagers had never before had, and a new and strange religion called Christianity. The villagers were slow to release their hold on the ancient ways, but eventually forgot Manannan as they used St. Patrick's gift of knowledge to till fields and fashion clothing. Manannan would have none of it. He couldn't very well draw his cloak, as it was too late to hide the isle from St. Patrick. And the monk knew the villagers each by name, so setting false ones to scare him off would not work. Manannan used his final weapon. Fashioning the boomerang, he threw himself down the mountainside at St. Patrick. But St Patrick, too, had a weapon. Though to call it such is to name it wrong. It was half prayer, half song. It was called St. Patrick's breastplate, and as he and his monks chanted the prayer, it drew the protection across the group, and deflected Manannan and his powers. Angry and defeated, Manannan exiled himself to a place far from the village, and if he is not dead he lives there still. The boomerang that Manannan formed became the symbol for Mann, and also inspired the islands motto: Quocunque Jeceris Stabit (Latin)
Whithersoever you throw it, it will stand.
I found the tale fascinating, and slowly learned more and more about Mann and it's history. The island was founded by Celts, and it is even said that Finn MacCool, the greatest of the mystical Fianna warriors, created it by tearing the soil from Ireland and throwing it at the giant he was fighting. The Celts lived there then and now, but have fought to keep their land as it was overtaken by Vikings, Scottish and finally Britain. It is counted as part of Britain, however keeps apart from England and stands as it's own country.
* * *
Now onto the completely unrelated topic of pigeons.
I never thought I would find a bird I didn't like. That was before Liverpool and it's pigeons. We landed in Liverpool on Thursday, and walked towards the coach station to catch our ride to London (not a good ride as it turned out. Six hours on a stuffy coach, no ta). We stopped in a lovely little park to rest, and Casey and I went to one of my new favorite places, the Liverpool Library (so many books!) When we came back, there was a group of school kids feeding pigeons to draw them near and then chasing them off. The kids chased them directly into mine and C's faces. I inhaled a mouthful of feather dust and dirt. I have been sick ever since. Not my favorite birds, pigeons. They now make me think of dirt and sickness and all manner of disease. Eeeeeeeewwwwwwww! I will be glad to get back to a time when they don't for I know the little rats populate the Earth just as much as seagulls do. They just scare me more.
Anyway, we are in London for the next few days, and then off to Edinburgh for our last real leg of the trip. I can't believe we have been out for 19 days and change. This is so great!
I LOVE MANN!!!
The isle of Man is so beautiful! It is one of my new favorite places on earth. When we got there, I was so seasick and tired that I couldn't really appreciate it. We took the ferry over on Monday morning. It was a beautiful ferry ride, which we slept most of the way through. After seeing Cathy and Eileen (her sister) we went to church for a bit, met some people, used to toilets, then went to our three day home. It was lovely! There was a family there, ad that made it one of the best places we could be. The kids were excited to meet us, and came in and talked to us, which made me feel right at home. We talked about movies and books, two of my favorite subjects. And there were bookshelves in the room. I had been literarily (not really a word is it?) starving, and it was like a feast! I looked through and found an old copy of a book of fairy tales from Mann, YAY! I read the first one, and it was the mythological history of the Isle of Man, or Mann for short. It spoke of a magician who looked after the land and it's inhabitants. His name was Manannan mac Lir. He liked looking after the Manx because they weren't too bright and worshipped him. Whenever explorers or invaders would get to close to the Isle, Manannan would draw mist around the island, called Manannan's Veil, so thick they couldn't see. If that didn't work, he would set a villager up on the mountainside, and use his sorcery to make him look like a hundred soldiers prepared for battle. If that, too, failed, Manannan would then form himself into a fiery boomerang, fashioned of three armoured legs, and hurl himself at the intruders. Needless to say, they lived in peace for many years. Until St. Patrick came, bringing with him knowledge such as the villagers had never before had, and a new and strange religion called Christianity. The villagers were slow to release their hold on the ancient ways, but eventually forgot Manannan as they used St. Patrick's gift of knowledge to till fields and fashion clothing. Manannan would have none of it. He couldn't very well draw his cloak, as it was too late to hide the isle from St. Patrick. And the monk knew the villagers each by name, so setting false ones to scare him off would not work. Manannan used his final weapon. Fashioning the boomerang, he threw himself down the mountainside at St. Patrick. But St Patrick, too, had a weapon. Though to call it such is to name it wrong. It was half prayer, half song. It was called St. Patrick's breastplate, and as he and his monks chanted the prayer, it drew the protection across the group, and deflected Manannan and his powers. Angry and defeated, Manannan exiled himself to a place far from the village, and if he is not dead he lives there still. The boomerang that Manannan formed became the symbol for Mann, and also inspired the islands motto: Quocunque Jeceris Stabit (Latin)
Whithersoever you throw it, it will stand.
I found the tale fascinating, and slowly learned more and more about Mann and it's history. The island was founded by Celts, and it is even said that Finn MacCool, the greatest of the mystical Fianna warriors, created it by tearing the soil from Ireland and throwing it at the giant he was fighting. The Celts lived there then and now, but have fought to keep their land as it was overtaken by Vikings, Scottish and finally Britain. It is counted as part of Britain, however keeps apart from England and stands as it's own country.
* * *
Now onto the completely unrelated topic of pigeons.
I never thought I would find a bird I didn't like. That was before Liverpool and it's pigeons. We landed in Liverpool on Thursday, and walked towards the coach station to catch our ride to London (not a good ride as it turned out. Six hours on a stuffy coach, no ta). We stopped in a lovely little park to rest, and Casey and I went to one of my new favorite places, the Liverpool Library (so many books!) When we came back, there was a group of school kids feeding pigeons to draw them near and then chasing them off. The kids chased them directly into mine and C's faces. I inhaled a mouthful of feather dust and dirt. I have been sick ever since. Not my favorite birds, pigeons. They now make me think of dirt and sickness and all manner of disease. Eeeeeeeewwwwwwww! I will be glad to get back to a time when they don't for I know the little rats populate the Earth just as much as seagulls do. They just scare me more.
Anyway, we are in London for the next few days, and then off to Edinburgh for our last real leg of the trip. I can't believe we have been out for 19 days and change. This is so great!
15 July 2007
bath
pulteney bridge
couldn't resist this shot
royal crescent (arc of 30 houses finished 1774)
pat and d
headstones in abbey
street musician in front of abbey and baths
bath abbey. built in 1499
busy saturday in bath
breakfast in bath
couldn't resist this shot
royal crescent (arc of 30 houses finished 1774)
pat and d
headstones in abbey
street musician in front of abbey and baths
bath abbey. built in 1499
busy saturday in bath
breakfast in bath
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