Chapter Two - Dating disasters and other delights

Well, this week has been back down to earth with a bump! Jet lag has been horrible. A couple of nights I was lucky to get three hours sleep, and then others I slept all the way through… fortunately I didn’t have to go back to work until Thursday! There has been a whole lot of time spent reflecting on all of the things that we did, and the amazing time that we had … as well as thinking ahead to what our next adventure will be! … and then there’s me being me!- I have just had this truly fabulous holiday, and experienced things that I couldn’t have imagined… and underneath it all, for almost 2/3 of it, had been this stupid niggling anxiety!

Just before we left for our trip, on my wedding anniversary (the fourth one without Claytie) actually, I went for a job interview. It was for a positions still with Queensland health, but completely different to what I have done before. It was a role within the prison system.

I went to Wacol, which is home to a whole bunch of Queenslands prisons – Men, women, kids and the forensic mental health facilities. It was quite an intimidating process – I had to complete 32 pages of security screening information just for the interview. I came very close to cancelling the interview at least 3 times on the day, but kept telling myself I had nothing to lose by going.

The interview itself was fairly standard. Questions around time management, dealing with difficult people/situations, my strengths and weaknesses… pretty straightforward and I did well with it, although by the end, I was not entirely sure that I would want to work there.

The role and the environment are understandably very restrictive. No phones allowed in, they would supply all meals and beverages to avoid contraband being brought into the site, and security screening going in and out each day. A huge adjustment on top of getting to know a whole bunch of new people. I left it in the category of – if I get what I want it’s meant to be, if not, then that’s ok too!

A week or so later I got a phone call to say that they had a full time position to offer me, or one that was a couple of days less each week than I could afford (my ideal is 4 days per week), so in this case I declined the position based on the hours, but would be merit listed for future roles. … it felt like a perfect solution – I got the feel good factor of knowing I was good enough, but I didn’t have to make a hard decision about changing my job! I thought it was a very neat and tidy outcome.

In a plot twist tho, the day before we flew out on our holiday, I got a call from them offering me a contract for 9 months with my preferred hours. It is incredibly flattering to feel that wanted by an employer – they created this role just for me!… so I said yes. I got quite caught up in the moment and contacted my boss, was given permission to go on another secondment (something that was a bit unexpected and that I was quite surprised by)… and it seemed like everything was neatly falling into place. I would come back from my trip and go straight into this new job…. Simple!

Wrong!…. Every time I thought about or told anyone that this is what was happening, I just felt sick! Initially I thought it’s just me, this is what I always do when there is a big change, especially since Claytie died and that I would be fine once I got going. In the end tho, I decided that this much anxiety is just not worth it, and to trust my gut. So, from somewhere in the wilds of Scotland, emails got sent and I declined the position! … and I have to say, I have no regrets! As soon as the decision was made, I felt so much better about it all!

I am not entirely sure what I was supposed to learn from all of this!? – I try to look at most situations in a way that teaches me something about myself, other people or the universe in general…. Maybe it’s just a reminder to trust my intuition!? Either way, decision made and I am continuing on in my original role for now! …. And dreaming of and planning for my next holiday adventure!

34 days….. more than 12 cities….8 planes, international, regional and local trains, automobiles and boats, and almost 250km on foot, 3844 photos and 71 videos…… if you had told me a couple of months ago that this is what we would be doing, I would have said you’re insane! But it is exactly what we did, and it has been phenomenal!!

I am writing this as we are navigating our way through the (what feels like) a million hours of travel time to get home… trying to process all of the things that we have seen and done, and how I feel about all of it. Overwhelmed is probably the best word for it. When I look back over all of the photos, Facebook updates and blog posts that I have written, I feel amazed….. and motivated! We have had the most amazing time and there is still so much to see and do in the world… I want to keep doing it all!!

We were so lucky to have so many fabulous experiences, and so incredibly lucky with the weather too! All that time away, and only three rainy days… The rest of the time we did not let the weather interfere with our plans at all. We have seen old buildings and new, castles and churches and places full of history. We have wined and dined, and seen shows….. and the scenery has been beyond words in parts. I am proud of how much we have done, and of how well we did it together!

I’m also really proud of myself for doing this. There was some very real nerves and anxiety going into it. Traveling like this was something that Claytie and I had only ever dreamed about, and I was nervous about doing it with my new person. Revisiting places that Claytie and I had been to was quite daunting, and I was nervous that my grief and missing Claytie would somehow make the trip ‘less’ for D… I don’t think that it did, I certainly hope that it didn’t. This trip was its own thing and it has been the best experience for the two of us to share.

I kind of can’t believe that it’s over now. We talked about it and looked forward to it for such a long time. It seems surreal to think that we have had this massive adventure, and now it will be back to work next week! We packed so much into it and had the most amazing time! We are already planning where to go next year and the year after… and I can’t wait!!… but first, we will enjoy a couple of quieter days, and I am also looking forward to that!

This part of our trip – the last leg, has brought us to Germany. Hamburg is the city I was born in and lived near for the first 11 years of my life. The last time I was here was in 2019 with Claytie (we had an amazing time!), so coming back has filled me with a whole lot of mixed emotions. I’m so excited to share this part of my life with D, but I am also really conscious of missing Claytie and remembering our trip.

We are staying with my Aunt and Uncle, and it’s great! We are the first of family travellers for them this year – my sister and her family will be coming for Christmas! Lucky for us they have plenty of space and they are always happy for us to visit.

Getting to Germany ended up being a bit of a mission. D’s brother got us to the airport by 5am (thank you so much!!), we had Brekky, and eventually made our way to the departure gate… all good so far I hear you say! From here it all turned into a bit of a shemozzle! When our group was called to board it was a big group… off we went down to the tarmac and onto a bus… along with 150 other people!! We were crammed in with no room to scratch ourselves, and left standing for 45 minutes. Finally we got to the plane, only to be told the engineers had a problem with the front wheel and we would be grounded for another 45 minutes. Just as well we had factored some time into the connection to Hamburg!

We got to Heathrow and people watched before our next flight, which is always fun- the people watching, not so much Heathrow! Boarding was reasonably straightforward, and again we were told we would be delayed (only 15min or so). When we finally got to Hamburg, border control was beyond chaotic – two planes landed at the same time, and only 3 officers checking passports! It was a long day!

Finally we made it through and found my aunt and uncle! Introductions were made and off we went… thankfully no jet lag (that is a first for me coming here!), so a quick cuppa and a piece of cake – afternoon tea is a whole seperate meal in Germany, and then off for a walk around the neighbourhood to stretch our legs.

Day two had us starting the day with a leisurely breakfast and a walk around the garden, before heading in to see the city. We went past a whole lot of familiar places – including the neighbourhood that my grandparents lived for as long as I can remember… it was super nostalgic for me! We parked the car and after a short walk got onto a ferry to see the city from the river. Hamburg is a huge harbour city. It has upwards of 9500 million cargo ships arriving in any given year and is the third largest harbour in Europe… there is a lot to see!

When we got off the boat, we walked around the old warehouse district which is all newly revamped, the ‘new’ harbour city and then into the other side of town to City Hall. We went to the philharmonic Opera house and took the longest escalator up to the viewing platform for even more views of the harbour.

We had my favourite meal for lunch – pizza el tonno and D got to try a traditional Curry Wurst (his new favourite!) then had an adventurous train ride home. My uncle rushed ahead for a train and got on, not realising the rest of us did not make it until the train left! … it was very funny!!! We reconnected two stops later and made our way back to the car and then home. 9km on a 33°C sunny day in Hamburg!! We were sweaty and tired, but very happy with the day!

Day three in Hamburg involved a bit of a sleep in and a slower start with another yummy Brekky, before heading back into the city (via bus and train) to do an Alster Rundfahrt. The Alster is Hamburgs second most important river. Where the Elbe is tidal and hugely significant for the harbour and port, the Alster is a slow flowing non tidal river. It forms two lakes in the city centre that are a big part of the inner city landscape. We took a boat trip around the two lakes and into several of the off-shoot canals. It’s a very relaxing way to see another part of the city, and some very very expensive real estate!

Following the Rundfahrt (round trip) we snacked on a Curry wurst (definitely a favourite) and made our way to another significant part of the Hamburg landscape – the Michel. A church that sits prominently on the city skyline, and is the symbol for Hamburg. We didn’t have the energy to climb the 400+ steps to get to the top of this one, but enjoyed our walk around the inside.

Home again, and then Kaffee trinken (afternoon tea, which as previously mentioned is its own meal in Germany) and then D and I went to the shops for a look around. It is fun in a new place to check out the supermarkets to see all the differences. Dinner was my very very favourite meal – Sauerbraten. Not everyone likes it, it is a marinated (3days over here) pot roast, that has a sweet/sour flavour and a rich gravy that has sultanas in it. It is served with noodles and a green salad…. I love it, and I feel spoilt to have been given it!!

Days four, five and six in Germany involve a side quest – see blog post #158. for Berlin!

Day seven, back in Hamburg, started nice and slow with Brekky and a walk around the garden, as well as getting the washing done! I managed to pick up some sort of head cold/ cough in the last few days, which has slowed me down a bit, so the quieter day was appreciated! We were visited by a rabbit – who has a favourite spot by the terrace, and a squirrel who was busy raiding the garden for nuts to store ready for winter. There were also flowers to look at, tomatoes to pick and blackberries to taste!

The afternoon saw us heading to Blankenese, a wealthy residential district known for its half-timbered fishermen’s houses and pre-war villas, many of which line the winding stairs of the Treppenviertel (the Stair Quarter) neighborhood. Steps lead to the top of Süllberg’s hill, where restaurants overlook the Elbe River. It is a lovely suburb to walk around, even with the steep stairs and the houses are fabulous to look at.

We also went to Wedel, a town near the mouth of the river Elbe, and a welcome point for ships coming into the harbour. We sat for a bit having coffee and cake watching for boats to come in. When they do come in, a welcome message gets played and the national anthem for the country the ship is registered in also comes over the loud speaker. It was a lovely way to spend the afternoon

Day eight started with a thunder storm, which was actually really nice as it has been very very hot!! Once the weather settled down, it was an adventure day for D and I. We took ourselves into the city for another look around (and to get some souvenirs).

We took the bus and then the train into central station and had a lovely time wandering around. We went to the Nikolai Kirche (church) – a memorial to the bombing victims of the Second World War. Hamburg, as a major port and industrial city was the target of a major bombing attack, especially during the last week of July 1943. 34000 people died in a 10 day period, and most of the city was reduced to rubble. The spire of the church was surprisingly left standing, and is now a memorial. We took the lift up to the viewing platform 76m high and took in the amazing scenery from there.

Next we took ourselves back to the Harbour for some lunch and a cold drink – have I mentioned that it has been hot here??? We finished the day by meeting up with one of my oldest friends and her husband. I have caught up with her every time that I have been back to Germany and it is honestly fabulous. She and I went to Kindergarten together!

We met up at a ‘beach club’ on the banks of the river and had drinks while catching up and watching the boats go by. The Disney Dream – built in Hamburg- came past on her way to England and other fun places! It is a huge ship 1250 cabins on board, with passengers standing on the deck waving as they went by. It was such a lovely way to spend the afternoon, and I am so glad we managed to make the catch up happen!

Day nine (and our last full day of holidays) had us heading to the shops this morning to stock up on all kinds of sweet treats to take home…and another look at balancing the weight in our suitcases (fun times!). Once we had all of that under control, we went to the other side of the Elbe River to have a look there.

Das Altes Land – the old land, is a big fruit growing area, full of all kinds of orchards. The place we went to was mostly apples, but we also saw plums and pears (we were too late for the cherries). It is really beautiful countryside, and the cutest little towns full of half timbered, thatch roofed houses.

We also went to a smaller city called Stade, that has an old city centre which houses dating from the 1600’s. It is amazing to walk over cobbled streets, past houses that have been there for more than 400 years. They are quaint, and crooked and amazing! We stopped there for coffee and cake, sitting by a canal enjoying the breeze on another warm day… it was truly lovely! Our day finished with dinner at my aunt and uncles favourite Italian restaurant, a thank you from us to them for a fabulous visit.

Tomorrow we head off to the airport to face the (what feels like) million hour flight home…. We have had the most amazing holiday, and I can’t believe it is over. What an experience we have had!! Just wow!

Day three in Germany was the start of a side quest… a weekend in Berlin! We got up early, skipping Brekky at home and made our way via bus and S Bahn (overground train) to central station to get on a regional fast train to head to Berlin. D and I made use of the various bakery options at the train station (they are many and full of fabulous things) to get some food to take on the train for our Brekky.

The train was punctual – as all things in Germany are, and at 7.38am we were off. The train made a couple of stops in various towns on the way to Berlin, but it was a very pleasant, comfortable and hassle free way to travel. We did have some kerfuffeling at central station when we got there, but that was more to do with trying to organise city wide travel cards and questions around the hop on hop off bus from my uncle than anything else.

Once that was all sorted, we made our way to our hotel, which is situated just off the main, posh shopping street – the place you want to be seen to be seen! It’s a quaint little place, and certainly very comfortable for our two night stay. As soon as we had freshened up and dumped our luggage, off we went!

I bought hop on hop off bus tickets for us all – D and I have found this to be the very best way to see as much of a new city, in a really logical way. It is comfortable and you get a running commentary and history as you’re going. We usually do one full loop and then decide the places that we are most interested to go back to and really explore. Our stops for the loop on day one here, were the Brandenburg Gate – a Curry wurst snack was also necessary here, and the Gedächtnis Kirche.

The Brandenburg Gate is one of the most recognisable symbols of not just Berlin, but also Germany. It was built in 1788 by order of Kaiser Frederick William II and marked the entrance gate to Berlin. It is topped with a bronze sculpture of the Quadriga. It is a beautiful and imposing monument … and a place that seems to be the home for all kinds of protests – we saw three different ones while we were there!

The Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church (also known as the Gedächtnis Kirche) stands right in the middle of Breitscheidplatz in the western center of Berlin. It is a much-visited landmark and is located quite centrally and very near to other attractions. Even from a distance, the ruined spire of the church is eye-catching. Although it was restored several times after its destruction during World War II, it was intentionally not completely rebuilt. Rather, its ruin serve as a memorial against war and destruction. There is a new church right next door where services are held, and it is also a very beautiful building.

Day two in Berlin was a full day of sightseeing for us. We had a bit of a plan of what we wanted to see, having done a full loop of the bus tour on day one (we did not quite manage everything!). Following a very nice continental hotel breakfast, off we went – and I need to say here, the weather has been spectacularly cooperative, with glorious blue skies and sunshine!

Our first stop, was on the second loop of the bus (there is a red line, which we did on day one and took about two hours on the west side, and a blue line which was 45 minutes and into eastern Berlin). The East side Gallery …. At 1316 metres long, the open-air art gallery on the banks of the Spree in Friedrichshain is the longest continuous section of the Berlin Wall still in existence. Immediately after the wall came down on 9 November 1989, 118 artists from 21 countries began painting the East Side Gallery, and it officially opened as an open air gallery on 28 September 1990. Just over a year later, it was given protected memorial status…. It is a huge wow from us!!!

Our next stop was at the Cathedral and Museum Insel (Museum Island) home for all of the museums and galleries. It also has several University buildings nearby. We would need at least another couple of weeks here to be able to visit them all, but they are amazing buildings to look at and walk past!

We passed the Brandenburg Gate again on our way to the Reichstag, home of the German Parliament. It is a huge and imposing building, that has a whole lot of bullet holes (remnants of the war) all over its facade. A lot of the buildings that survived the war time bombing seem to have shrapnel and bullet damage when you look more closely. (There is also quite a lot of construction/renovation work happening all over the place, so scaffolding seems to be part of most photos!)

Our final stop for the day was at the Monument to the murdered Jews – a holocaust memorial. It consists of a 1.9-hectare (4.7-acre) site covered with 2,711 concrete slabs arranged in a grid pattern on a sloping field. The slabs are 2.38 m long, 0.95 m wide and vary in height from 0.2 to 4.7 metres. They are organized in rows, 54 of them going north–south, and 87 heading east–west at right angles but set slightly askew. An attached underground “Place of Information” holds the names of approximately 3 million Jewish Holocaust victims, obtained from the Israeli museum. It is an impressive, thought provoking and reflective, peaceful place to walk.

One last photo opportunity on the way back to our hotel was of the Siegessäule (The Victory Column).. a 67m tall monument to celebrate 4 Prussian victories in the war to unify Germany. It is a major tourist attraction in Berlin, and has a viewing platform at the top that we have been told offers spectacular views of the city. We did not have the time or the energy to climb the 285 step spiral staircase this time!

Our last day in Berlin saw us going to a place I have been wanting to see for ages… Checkpoint Charlie – the most well known border crossing between East and West Germany. There are several museums and galleries here, as well as a replica of the Guard station. The information in the museum is abundant and in some cases confronting…

 When Berlin was divided into East and West, the former military checkpoint was controlled by the Americans. Only foreigners, employees of the Permanent Mission of the Federal Republic of Germany in the GDR, and GDR officials were allowed to cross the border here. The border crossing gained notoriety in October 1961 after the construction of the Berlin Wall: in the last days of October, American and Soviet tanks took up positions here after members of the US mission were asked to identify themselves at the GDR border post when passing through the Allied checkpoint. Soviet and Allied tanks faced each other with live ammunition and a third world war almost ensued. In the years that followed, the checkpoint was the scene of spectacular escapes which often ended in death.

It is really hard to imagine what that time was like in Germany. The wall stood for 40 years before coming down in 1989, and families were separated for all that time. I’m so glad that we managed to get here before heading back to Hamburg for the last few days of our trip.

So this week, D and I were on our own, in a car, doing the NC 500. The ‘route 66’ of Scotland. 500 miles around the northern most part of the mainland. We have watched all kinds of programs (there’s a good one on SBS in Australia called ‘Britains most beautiful road’), and we’ve been super excited for it. … now it’s our turn – and heads up…. This is a long one!

We stated by heading to the airport to pick up a hire car, and after a minor panic involving the wrong credit card, we had the keys in our hot little hands and off we went! Our first stop was The Devils Pulpit… a stunning waterfall/rock formation in a forest in a field. It was a bit of a walk through the field to get to the trees, and the ground was a bit wet and swampy. We followed other people – until they turned around! It was not the easiest place to get to! There was a whole lot of climbing and scrambling to get to spots that we could see the view. The rock outcroppings are covered in moss and the trees are abundant. The whole place is green… and steep!! We had seen pictures online of people swimming there, but couldn’t figure out how to get down (and back up) in one piece!

Our next stop was Aberfoyle… D’s home town. It is a really cute little village, and as is often the case with small town life, we ran into a few people that remember D and his family from when they all lived there. We bought some flowers and visited the graveyard, which is lovely!

Then onto Callendar, for a cuppa and some highland coos!! I absolutely love cows, so this was a highlight for me! Some were more friendly than others, but I feel like I had my fix! Driving through the country side was beautiful! Every where you turn your head there is something new and beautiful to look at. The scenery is just stunning and I feel very lucky to have this opportunity!

Our last stop was in the Trossachs and our hotel for the night. It is a place that D, his brother and Mum all worked at back in the day! It was fun hearing all the stories and memories from those days. It was quite a nostalgic stay for D and I’m really happy to have been a part of it.

Day two started with a blue sky, and just as we started to get excited about it, Mother Nature unleashed, and we had torrential rain instead! It made for some really lovely moody pictures, and very very wet feet!

We took off and headed toward Loch Lomond, and Duck Bay Marina. It was stunning… and cold! D and I were bundled up in hoodies and jackets watching a couple of women swim in the loch!!! We only stayed long enough to walk on the pier and beach and take some photos, and then we were back in the car!

From Duck Bay, we made our way to Inverarnan and the Drovers Inn. It is supposed to be Scotlands most haunted pub. The story goes that a young Drovers named Angus was brutally killed while looking after his heard of cows, and walked the halls of the pub looking for revenge!… I think it is much more likely to be the ghosts of all the badly taxidermied animals on display all over the place! Either way, it was a fun experience – although the service was pretty questionable!

The next part of our adventure, took us through the Cairngorms to the banks of Loch Ness – Fort William (Nessie gets a revisit later on in this blog!). The rain for most of the day was pretty much torrential – to the point where we went into every OP shop in the vicinity to find proper rain coats…. We didn’t find what we wanted, but thankfully the radiator in our room managed to get our stuff dry. The scenery through the mountains was just amazing. They are huge and imposing and everywhere. Every corner that you take shows you something new… even in the rain and mist!

Day three saw us heading off early-ish to get to Eilean Donan castle. We managed to beat at least three bus loads of tourists to get there, and took our time walking around (and having a cuppa!). The castle is beautiful – straight out of a fairytale… and lucky for us, we had blue skies to go with it!

Next came one of the things we have been most looking forward to! A road called Bealach na Ba. We had seen it on the show on SBS that I mentioned previously, and although we had an idea of what it would be from watching that show, the reality was so very much more! The road was built in 1822 as a drivers road. It has , very tight hairpin bends that switch back and forth up the hillside and gradients that approach 20%. It has the greatest ascent of any road climb in the United Kingdom, rising from sea level at Applecross to 626 m (2,054 ft) in about 6 km (3.7 mi), and is the third highest road in Scotland. (Wikipedia) The facts are one thing, but actually driving the road was something else. It is breathtaking! I honestly don’t have words for how amazing it was, it brought me to tears! (Yes I know I cry a lot, and at almost anything, but this was truly next level!)

Right at the top, we got out of the car to have a look around. I have never been so cold in my life! The wind was like icy knives stabbing into you, so the obvious thing for me to do was to get my kit off to take that photo!!! (It’s probably the quickest I’ve ever moved!) … it absolutely made me feel alive! It was just glorious!

From there we drove down to Applecross along single track roads, and then around to Ullipool. It’s really hard to put into words just how amazing the scenery is. One minute you are driving through thick trees with streams and waterfalls on either side, and then it opens up into a lunar landscape of grassy areas full of granite boulders, and then around the next corner you see the ocean. There are sheep grazing at the side of the road, completely unbothered by the passing cars, it is honestly just phenomenal and I can’t believe that I got to be here and that it is real!

Day four was another phenomenal day! We left our accomodation – a B&B run by Trace and Murdo… Trace was quite short in stature and fairly rotund. There was an impression of several chins… ginger … very broad accent and kindly, if inquisitive in nature… of Murdo, there was no sign! She has mastered the art of a tightly packed breakfast tray, and was disappointed at our early departure!

From Ullipool, we headed north. On the map, our drive was supposed to take three or so hours…. In reality it took 9, and we loved it! Our first detour/stop was at Ardvreck Castle… a ruin perched on a bit of a hill in a Loch. We caught sight of it as we crested a hill on the road. It kind of felt like the epitome of wild Scotland..

From there we drove through Lochinver, a little hamlet in a bay, and that led us onto a detour that was one of my favourite things ever. The road was single track (lucky for me D is happy to be the driver), so even though it has a 60mile an hour speed limit, in reality you can only drive about 20-30. Every corner opened up to a different scenery. We had trees and mountains, and then glimpses of sea. We came across a little blip of a town, with a cafe by the side of the road. We stopped for tea, and while waiting admired the highland cows across the road!!

Fortified with a hot drink, we continued with our detour and made it to the lighthouse of Storer. It was magnificent! Kind of squat and set into the landscape overlooking a wild and windy ocean! From the car park up to the lighthouse was a bit of a walk, but it was glorious! The sun was shining and even tho the wind was full on we worked up a bit of a sweat walking around! It was truly stunning… and a very happy detour for us!

Next on our list – and our original destination for the day was Smoo Cave. It is both a sea water and a freshwater cave, and was originally used by the Vikings. It is quite a steep climb down – there are stairs either side, but once you are down it’s quite flat and rocky. There is an inlet from the ocean that forms a kind of beach, and there is a freshwater stream running out of the cave and into the ocean. It feels vast, and damp and eery…. We loved it!

Our final destination (via the most stunning coastline) is near Tongue. Our accomodation for the night was in a Lodge that is very ‘country’. There are antlers and taxidermy all over the place… and all sorts of people having very serious conversations about fly fishing! It was fabulous!! It feels funny to talk about being exhausted from all the beautiful scenery that we have encountered, but that’s exactly how D and I both felt at the end of the day. It was nice to just switch off for a little bit and reset, ready for the last couple of days.

Day five saw us leave Borgie Lodge and head to Bettyhill. There isn’t a whole lot to Bettyhill, but it does have a Pictish stone that I was keen to see. It is in a grave yard amidst a whole lot of headstones. The Picts were known as ‘Picti’ by the Romans, meaning ‘Painted Ones’ in Latin, these northern tribes constituted the largest kingdom in Dark Age Scotland. They repelled the conquests of both Romans and Angles, creating a true north-south divide on the British Isles, only to disappear from history by the end of the first millennium – swallowed whole by the history of another group, the Gaels. Together they created the Kingdom of Alba. It blows my mind that these remnants are just randomly scattered around the countryside.

Melchevic beach came next for us, and it was beautiful! We parked the car and walked over grass covered dunes down to the sand. It was big and windy and empty. The water was freezing, but I needed to put my feet in! It is a spot where a river feeds into the ocean, and it was interesting to see where the two met. The ocean waves would only go so far before they were pushed back.

Our next stop was Thurso, and really it was not a stop worth making! Even though it is a bigger town (certainly compared to other places we have gone through) there was nothing really happening. We did find an old church to look at, but other than that it felt like a waste of time!

John O’Groats was the final stop for this day – 7 hours into our two hour drive! It is the northern most spot on mainland Scotland and is a hit with the tourists… us included! Our stay was in a Toft – a little unit with ocean views (we were on the ground floor in the yellow one) Another quieter evening, in anticipation of the homeward stretch!

Day six started with a little bit of backtracking…we had passed Castle of Mey the day before, but were too late to get in. It was absolutely worth going back for! It is a ‘tiny’ castle that was owned by the Queen Mother. It was her personal property that she would use for holidays. The gardens are spectacular, the animal enclosure was fun and hands on, and the castle tour was intimate and personal and truly lovely!! It was probably my favourite castle – and we have seen a whole lot of them on this trip!

We also went to Duncansby Head lighthouse – again, phenomenal views! .. and we also saw the Stacks – a part of the peninsula that has been separated from the mainland by the force of the waves over time.

Our next stop was Dunrobin castle – home to the Duke of Sutherland. It is seriously imposing, and the gardens are beautiful! We got to see a Falcon display before taking a stroll through the gardens and then a self guided tour of the castle. It felt like a very generous walk through a whole lot of the castle, and the items on display are fabulous. It’s amazing to see so much history that belongs to one family!

A quick stop at the Glenmorangie Distillery (the smell was amazing!) and then onto Inverness on the banks of Loch Ness for our stay for the night.

Day 7 started with a bit of a drive around Inverness, on our way back to Fort Augustus. There were several souvenirs that needed to come home with me, and that’s where I found them! We did look for Nessie, but she clearly had other plans that day!

We also went back to Glencoe to take the chairlift up to the top of the slope. This time around, the weather played nice and we got to see for miles in all directions. It’s really hard to put into word just how overwhelming the mountains are! They are huge and vast and awe inspiring (and the photos just don’t come close to doing it all justice!)

From Glencoe we made our way back to Callendar for a chat with the cows, a look at Doune castle (you might know this from the show ‘Outlander’ – which I have not watched!), then D’s favourite Chinese and finally our stay for the night in Port of Menteith!

Our last day driving saw us heading to Stirling and the Wallace monument. The weather was not the nicest, but we managed to get to the top regardless. It is a 67m tall monument at the top of the Abbey Craig overlooking Stirling. It was built in 1861 to commemorate William Wallace – a Scottish hero from the 13/14th century who was one of the main leaders during the first Scottish war for independence (the movie Brave Heart is very very loosely based on William Wallace). We managed to get to the monument quite early, so early in fact that we beat the shuttle bus that was supposed to take us to the monument, so we had a very long steep walk in the rain instead.

The view from the top was not quite as nice as it might have been later that day when the sun came out, but it was easy to imagine what we would have seen. To get to the top there were 146 steps to climb, with 3 landings that housed displays, including a replica of William Wallace’s sword… it was really interesting and I’m glad we managed to get there. I was also very impressed having heard D tell me the story of him and two of his mates, setting a Guinness book world record back in 1988 for running up and down the steps as many times as possible in one hour. They managed 15 times up, and down, each!!

We finished the drive with a tour of Stirling, D’s stomping ground from back in the day! I got to see the sights and we managed a bit of shopping as well – turns out we will need shorts for the next part of the trip! We returned our hire car and then made our way back to D’s family for our final night in Scotland.

The last week, driving 1074 miles or 1728.5 km across the northern part of Scotland, especially the west coast has truly been one of the most amazing things I have ever done! I feel incredibly privileged to have had this opportunity and have loved every single minute seeing D’s homeland with him.

I’m finishing this blog, sitting in a very delayed flight from Edinburgh to London, where we connect to our flight to Hamburg – my home town, and my family.

So the next part of our trip is Scotland, and it’s one of the bits we’ve been most excited for. It is home for D and we had been talking about it for ages. Getting to Edinburgh was a bit of an adventure tho!

We had given ourselves a good amount of time to pack up the suitcases, tidy up the flat and then get the train (x2) to Heathrow airport….. and then we checked the time table, only to find major delays on the train line! So with a minor amount of ‘ahhhhhggg’ we bundled ourselves up and walked the kilometre or so to the station, dragging our suitcases behind us, an hour ahead of our originally planned departure. In the end, the train went only a little bit slower than it should have, and we made it to the airport in plenty of time!

Next came the getting ourselves into the plane part of the trip! Heathrow airport is something else! It is massive, with 5 different terminals, and navigating it is not for the faint hearted! We found our baggage check in, and it turns out my suitcase was too heavy for the internal flight! It meant that I was THAT person – repacking my luggage on the ground in the middle of the crowd… fun times!

Once the bag was checked, we made our way to security, and once again, I was that person! Apparently I had overlooked putting my tiny can of deodorant into the clear plastic bag that I should have, which meant the whole bag needed to be emptied, drug tested and then repacked. Meanwhile D just sailed through and waited patiently! When we finally managed to find a spot to sit, I promptly had a little panic attack!

In the end, and with no further hiccups we made it to Edinburgh and were greeted by Ds brother and sister in law. It was so lovely to finally meet them properly! A bit of suitcases Tetris, and off we went! We had a yummy family dinner and then a drive to Queens Ferry and the Forth river Bridges for a walk and an ice cream.

Day two in Edinburgh saw us up and about early-ish to head in to town for a tour of the castle. We had a bit of a walk through the streets and the tackled the hill up the Royal Mile. It’s a doozy, and our legs were burning by the time we got there! The castle was amazing, and the view was spectacular. It kind of blows your mind to walk through a place that has been in use for such a long time and is so significant to the landscape.

We wandered in and out of all kinds of buildings, including a chapel that has been there since 1130 and was built by King David for his mother Margaret. She was made a saint in 1250. It is a tiny space that has been a sanctuary for kings and queens for centuries and is the oldest building in Edinburgh. It is beautiful. We saw the Crown Jewels of Scotland and all kinds of war memorabilia; and just before we left, we joined a huge crowd to hear the 1pm gun get shot. The gun has been shot at 1pm everyday since 1861 to help the ships in the port of Leith keep time and set their chronometers accurately to determine their longitude at sea. … even knowing that it was coming, we still jumped at the noise!

When we walked back down into town, the crowds were huge. It is the Edinburgh Fringe Festival at the moment, and there are things happening everywhere you look. We did a whole lot of walking, shopping and sight seeing, and when we got home, a quick nap before going to a Scottish wedding!

Wee George is D’s cousin (Big George is his dad, and there are also a Wee and a Big Donald in the family!) I thought the wedding was spectacular in a holy moly kind of way!
We were invited for the party after dinner, and told to get there for 7. The wedding was held in a big equestrian centre and it was cold! They had one half of the place set up in a ‘western’ theme… hay bales, a bucking bull and cowboy boots! When we arrived (right on time) they were still serving dinner and then ‘pudding’… so we found a bar upstairs and sat with a drink and just people watched! We kind of just didn’t know quite where to look… we had everything from jeans and shirts to sparkly evening dresses. (I wish I could have taken a whole lot more photos than I did!) Wee George found us at one stage and was well and truly lubricated… I think I understood maybe 3 words! We also met the bride – who bless her, had no clue who any of us were!

When we did head down to the party, it was just in time for the first dance… goodness!!! And then the dance floor opened up to everyone else…. I have never seen quite so much twerking and gyrating in one place!!! – there were a lot of young people in the group!
It was lovely to meet Aunts and Uncles – but because of the very very loud music, and strong accents, it was difficult to have conversations. It was a very entertaining evening, and I’m so glad we got to be there.

Day three in Edinburgh, saw us head back into town to do the Hop-on Hop-off bus tour of the city. We have found them to be the best way to see as much as possible in a simple way. The loop took about 45 minutes and took us past all of the significant spots with interesting commentary and historical facts. We were super lucky with the weather too, and had mostly blue sky!

The other thing we did, was an underground vault tour of the city. Edinburgh is a city that is built in layers. There are so many bridges and overpasses, and spaces that have been enclosed as the layers got built. The tour guide we had was a bit dramatic for our taste (and I think it would have been more impactful without the drama and more of a factual presentation instead) but the spaces and the stories were kind of fascinating. We also went through a super old cemetery in the city, which I found really interesting. Some of the dates on the stones just blew my mind, and I loved reading the epitaphs on them.

Day four was D’s birthday, and a typical Scottish day as far as the weather went…. Showers on and off with blue sky inbetween. After Brekky, we went for a drive to see the Kelpies. Gigantic horse heads made from steel that rise up out of the ground. They are fabulous! The walk up to them goes along a canal that has all kinds of bushes along its edge. I loved being able to pick blackberries and rosehips as we were walking past. D was excited to find an ice cream vendor who had Double Nougats – an ice cream sandwich I have heard so much about for a long time! It was pretty yummy!

Following the Kelpies, we went for a drive through the countryside to find a ‘plot’ of land (1 square foot) that D had bought me for Christmas. We had the coordinates for the spot on the certificate, and Google maps took us there. It ended up being in a field on a farm, relatively in the middle of nowhere. We decided not to gallivant all over the fields, and instead planted our Aussie flag in a derelict barn that was just next to the track.

Back home and a bit of a lie down before we went off for one of the absolute highlights of the trip – the Edinburgh Military Tattoo! What a fabulous thing to be part of! The weather was not the most cooperative, but I think it just added to the atmosphere… we bundled into multiple layers topped with rain ponchos and made our way up the Royal mile and into the arena. The grand stands are built over the edge of the cliff and are terrifying if you’re not great with heights.

8800 people fit into the seats and there was a real buzz as we waited for the performance. The castle was lit up, and the show was high energy and awesome to watch. The coordination required to match in formation, while playing an instrument, in the rain and dark is pretty impressive… and the overall performance was spectacular! I got goosebumps when the show started and all the pipers came marching out! It was a seriously sensational way to finish not only D’s birthday, but also our time in Edinburgh.

This whole trip has just been one fabulous thing after another, and lucky for us, we’re not done yet! We have a bit more of Scotland to go – and we have been looking forward to and talking about it for ages!….. but that will be next week!

We have managed to see and do so many things during our week in London! We have walked more than 97km – and have the sore feet to prove it!! It has been a surreal experience with a nursery rhyme or monopoly board reference around every corner!

On day four of our week in London, we did the Hop-on Hop-off bus tours. They have been the best way to see as much as possible of each city we have been to in the most efficient way. I would absolutely recommend them!

We went past Westminster and Big Ben, the Kings Horse Guard and Downing Street, Westminster Abbey and Hyde Park, over the Tower Bridge and through the West End. Our main goal for this day was to see St Paul’s Cathedral… and I am so very glad that we did. It is a sensational building. The ceilings and the dome are just phenomenal. The space is vast and there are just so many things to look at.

Once we had looked at all of the things on the main floor, we climbed 257 steps up to the whispering gallery (another note to self about working on fitness!) Apparently you could whisper into a hole in the wall at one side, and be heard in the other – ideal for gossip and political intrigue back in the day – we didn’t test it, but saw plenty of people who did. It did offer a fabulous view of the dome (another 180+ steps would have taken us up there, which we declined) and also a great view of the main chapel.

We also went down into the crypt. It is a specie full of burials and memorials for all kinds of people – mostly military. It feels weird walking over engraved stones knowing someone’s remains are in there, but it is fascinating to read all of the inscriptions. There was a real sense of history reading some of the names down there!

The whole place is phenomenal and just makes you think about the amazing architecture and how they would have managed the construction all those years ago! – construction started in 1635 and took 75 years to complete! It is a truly spectacular place to visit.

We finished the day by going to Trivia! … we met up with Widowed friends (see side quest blogs 153 and 154) and took our team ‘the black widows’ international! It was very different to our usual Tuesday trivia, but we had a really fun time – and we came 3rd!

For our last day in London, D and I went to Buckingham Palace and did a tour. It was absolutely fabulous! It was a self guided walking tour – with audio headsets, through the staterooms. It was amazing to see some of the spaces that we have seen on tv, in so much detail. There is amazing artwork on the walls and the decor items are stunning. The information provided is super interesting and the times are set for the tour, you really don’t feel rushed. Unfortunately we were not allowed to take any pictures inside, but the guide book is full of all kinds of information and pictures. – I have quite the collection of books from all the places we have been and am really looking forward to reading them all properly!

We finished our tour with some afternoon tea and then a stroll through the gardens and a walk through Hyde park. We made friends with a little grey squirrel who also enjoyed some scones with us, and in our walk to the bus stop we were able to watch the changing of the Horse Guards.

I can’t believe that we have had a whole week in London. The weather has been sensational and I am overwhelmed with all that we have seen and with the amazing things we have done. We talked about and planned it for such a long time (and dealt with all kinds of anxiety in the lead up) and now we are packing our suitcases back up, ready for the next part of the adventure.

So our second side quest during the London part of our trip, was a day trip to Paris! It involved getting up very, very early and heading to St Pancras Station in London to get on the Eurostar Train.

We booked an Uber to get us to the train station, and the poor driver didn’t really know what to do with us. We chose to embrace a French stereotype and all wore navy and white striped shirts and red berets. I think we looked fabulous (and we definitely got a whole lot of thumbs up, and smiles from people we encountered). D even had an Aussie flag and acted as our tour guide for the day – unfortunately, he has never been to Paris before, and had no clue, but we managed to navigate around quite successfully!

The Train trip across the border was pretty straight forward, although the electronic passport control was fiddly and quite slow. The seats were as comfy as could be expected, and I managed a bit of a nap as we went. 2 1/2 hours and we arrived at Gare Du Nord in Paris! We made our way out of the station and headed off on our adventure.

We had booked Hop-on Hop-off bus tickets, so navigated our way to the first bus stop. It was a bit of a walk, but interesting to see how different Paris is to London. All of the buildings have beautiful facades, it was a feast for the eyes! We were all quite amazed at how quiet it all was compared to the chaos of London. It was much easier to walk around without the massive crowds, and the traffic was a whole lot less too!

The loop that we did on the bus took about two hours, and took us past all of the major attractions that I wanted to see. The commentary was a bit Naff, but it did the job we needed it to do! We didn’t have time to go into any of the landmarks really – which we knew when we planned the trip- but it has given us the start of a list for next time we come this way!

The weather was amazing – down right hot, so when lunch time came around, we were all happy to stop! We found a very nice Italian restaurant, right near the Eiffel Tower, and indulged our appetites. I had one of my very favourite things – Pizza el Tonno (tuna pizza) and it was delicious. We finished with a shared Tiramisu and a shot of Limoncello for D’s birthday which is next week.

Included in our bus ticket, was an hour long cruise on the Seine. We took off from a pier right under the Eiffel Tower, and the walk from our lunch spot to the boat was beautiful – but very hot! The Eiffel Tower is impressive. We talked about climbing it, but between the heat and our limited time, it was a unanimous no!

We cruised up and down, and under a whole lot of bridges. We saw all of the seating that had been set up for the Olympics (which had finished 3 days before we got there), and we saw the Notre Dame from a different vantage point. It burned down in 2019, and is in the process of being rebuilt. Initially the estimate was for 1-2 years, but now they are saying it is more likely to take 5-10 to have it completely done. It is definitely on my list of places to visit next time I come!

Following the cruise, it was time to make our way back toward the train station. Initially we had through to take a metro train, but in the end the desire for some French patisserie meant that we walked. – the pastries were absolutely worth the incredibly sore feet and exhaustion tho!

By the time we made it back to Gare Du Nord, having walked from one side of Paris to the other, we were all tired, hot and sweaty messes, grateful for cold water and seats. Passport control was just as fiddly on the return trip, but we made it through and collected some stamps as well (not everywhere will stamp your passport anymore, which I was a bit sad about!). D and I managed a bit of a snooze on the train, and pretty much fell into bed when we got home.

Paris was a 16 hour, 17000 step phenomenal day! I can’t believe that it is something that we did. I know that it was not nearly long enough, I know that we barely scratched the surface… but how amazing is it that I got to go there!? I feel just so incredibly lucky to have had this opportunity! This whole trip is just unreal!

So in the middle of our London week, there were a couple of excursions – Side Quests if you will! I have friends who are also traveling in Europe and the Uk at the same time as D and I, and both of our extra excursions were with them. We met through the Widows support group and we decided in the planning stages for our trips, that we absolutely had to meet up. It’s been great!

The first of our Side Quests, was a day trip to Windsor castle, Stonehenge and Bath… and it was phenomenal! I am so glad that we decided to do this tour, it was amazing to get out of London and to see some of the landscape on the way to these places – not to mention just how awesome the places themselves are!

We had to get to the coach station quite early, which given the 24 hour nature of public transport here was no problem. I feel like we have managed to get our heads around timetables, busses and most of the trains (overground, underground, district lines, circle lines etc) quite well, and Google maps (offline) has been very helpful with directions to bus stops and train platforms. We have reduced the number of wrong turns quite significantly (and if you’ve ever had to go anywhere ‘new’ with me, you’ll know that’s quite an achievement!)

Our first stop on the tour was Windsor Castle. It is stunning, and looks just like you would expect a castle to look. It has all kinds of turrets, battlements, arrow slots and gatehouses. We lined up with a gazillion other people to pass through security and to be given instructions. It is still very much a royal residence, and although the king was not home when we came calling, the extra precautions do make sense.

Once inside, we walked though the grounds and to the part of the castle that houses the staterooms, and let me tell you they were seriously impressive. Unfortunately we were not allowed to take any photos – which was a bit of a shame as there is so much to look at and take in that photos would be helpful to remember it all. We saw all kinds of chambers filled with unbelievable artwork and artefacts. We saw the parts of the castle that were burned in a huge fire in 1992, and then rebuilt about 5 years later. We also walked through St George’s Chapel and saw the spot that the Queen sat for the funeral of Prince Philip (which one of the saddest things I have ever seen).

A quick walk back through the town of Windsor – and a stop for snacks at a bakery, and we were back on the bus. Our tour guide Leon was full of information about royal history, and made the 1 1/2 hour drive to our next destination feel much quicker – although I’m pretty sure some of us also managed a nap on the bus!

Stonehenge was our next stop, and one I had been super excited for. I have always found it so fascinating… what is it? Why is it there? How did they build it? …. I’m not sure I have any more answers than I did before, but it was definitely an awe inspiring thing to see. You aren’t allowed to get particularly close to the stones, and there are sooooo many people there, but it is fascinating to walk around the site, and there was almost a quietness as we all took it in. The stones are huge, at the top of a hill, in a field surrounded by more fields. It was windy when we got there, but the sky was blue and the sunshine warm. I am so glad that I was able to have this experience, I think it will stay with me for a long time.

Our third stop for the day was a very small town (4 streets) called Lacock. It is owned by the National Trust and has been used as a set for all kinds of films including Harry Potter. We had our lunch here in a very cute pub after a stroll through the streets. The town is super quaint and picturesque and I’m so glad it was one of our stops.

Our final stop was in the town of Bath. It sits right on the river Avon and is very pretty. It takes its name from the hot springs that were used for bathing by the Roman’s when they were building their empire in about 60-70BC. Unfortunately we didn’t have a whole lot of time to do too much exploring, so I’m putting this on my list of places to come back to! It absolutely needs more than a couple of hours, but I’m not complaining about the bits that we did get to see!

The drive back to London was about 2 hours, and very quiet! I think most of us on the bus took the opportunity to reflect on the day, check out our photos – or maybe just have a nap! It was such a fabulous day, and I am so glad that we had the opportunity to do it! We finished our day with dinner at a great Lebanese restaurant before heading home for a well deserved sleep!

I’m still pinching myself most days that I am here and having this fabulous adventure. I’m feeling incredibly lucky – with sore feet and a new found drive to get more fit!

Let me start this week by saying, 14 hours on a plane is brutal (even in the exit row, with all the extra leg room)! Throw in a family of 5 with three very young kids who are sick – think coughs, fevers and vomit, and it adds a whole other element to the trip! …. But, we made it! Heathrow airport is like a whole other universe to navigate -and we managed not only that, but two trains and a walk to find our accomodation while dragging heavy suitcases as well… we were pretty pleased with ourselves!

We stayed in a flat in Hoxton, right above a pub called ‘Howl at the Moon’… an interesting neighbourhood during the day, and possibly one to avoid at night! It is colourful and was home for a week! Jet lag was quite a thing for the first couple of nights, and the resident ghost woke us up most nights playing with the kitchen lights, but it’s all part of the adventure of travelling… right!?

Day one saw us up very early. We pottered around for a bit and then hit the road to see the sights! A train ride into town (squashed in like sardines!) and then the amazing sight of Big Ben just outside the station! It almost feels unbelievable to be standing infront of places that I have only ever seen on tv! A very surreal moment – and one that warranted a million photos! We were really lucky to have a warm, blue sky day thrown in for good measure!

We took a quick walk over Westminster bridge to get the full impact looking back, and it actually kind of takes your breath away! Back over the bridge and past the buildings and statues…. Parliament Square Garden, the Horse Guard Parade, St James Park, Duck Island, the Mall and then the first glimpses of Buckingham Palace. There is so much to see!

Our plan for day one was to see the changing of the guard, and we made sure to get to the palace quite early. The flag was flying so we knew Charlie was home – King Charles III for those who like to be proper about such things, and some of the windows at the front were open… I didn’t notice anyone peeking out, but maybe they like to hear the crowd!? We got a space right up against the fence, and it was amazing to see just how many people had the same idea as us! There must have been at least 5000 people, maybe even more!!! It was fabulous…. All the pomp and ceremony! I loved it!! It actually went for a whole lot longer than I had thought and my feet were quite sore at the end of it.

Once the crowd moved, we went for a stroll through St James park, past Clarence House and Spencer house. The gardens and parkland are beautiful and the most amazing green!!

Harrods was our next stop on the list! – again, another one of those places that I have heard about! There are floors and floors of all the fancy (and expensive) things! It is an easy place to get lost in, and something to see everywhere you look! The fresh food halls were a feast for the eyes, and I think dangerous for me if I lived here! We indulged ourselves by having some lunch, followed by more walking, and then afternoon tea, just for fun!!

Ready to start heading home turned into another adventure! The public transport system is phenomenal if you know what you’re doing!…. We did not so much! We thought we had it mostly figured out, but ‘trespassers on the track’ meant a detour on foot through suburbs I have only heard about on a Monopoly board…. Islington and Highbury, and a walk past Pentonville Prison! It was actually fun, but also exhausting! We met up for dinner with a couple of my friends, and then home to bed!

Day two saw us strolling one of the oldest street markets – Hoxton – right outside our flat, and Brekky while watching the crowd. Then back into town to do a Thames river cruise. We loved it! It was a great way to get a different view of some of the big landmarks, as well as seeing a while bunch of other ones for the first time! Our tour took us all the way out to Greenwich, and luckily for me, the tide was out. It meant that I could do something that I have wanted to do since we started planning this trip – Mudlarking!

Mudlarking, is literally digging through the mud on the edge of the tideline to find forgotten treasures…. And there are all kinds of things to find! We saw a whole bunch of bones – and we are going with animal rather that people bones, and I collected some Roman pottery, bits of old glass and some Victorian pipe stems (it used to be fashionable to be seen smoking a pipe, and there was a whole array of disposable clay pipes that, once done with would be thrown away) … I didnt find an actual pipe, but am very happy with my treasures none the less!

A bit of lunch, then a leisurely cruise back to Westminster followed by a bit of chaos! We were walking up to 10 Downing Street (home to the Prime Minister) and both of us commented on the amount of Police present…. It turns out they were readying themselves for a Protest March! D and I quickly moved further up the road, found a spot for a cup of tea and watched thousands of people march past, protesting the Far right and their racist views. It was pretty interesting!

We finished day two by heading into the West End of London to watch ‘Book of Mormon’ at the Prince of Wales Theatre. The show was fabulous, and the atmosphere loud and colourful! I’m amazed at the number of people out and about at all hours of the day and night. There is just so much to see and do!

Day Three started with another market – Borough market is one of the oldest food markets in London. Every type of cuisine was catered for, and the smells were mouthwatering! We indulged in some Brekky and some people watching before making our way to the Tower of London.

The Tower of London was one of the best things I have done… it was fascinating! There has been a building on that site since 1066…. Almost 1000 years of continuous use as either a palace, fortress, prison, or now – tourist attraction. There was so much to see and do, and the most glorious day for us as well! We did a tour of the tower led by a Yeoman, we saw the Crown Jewels, we walked the wall and saw a whole lot of armour and weaponry in the White tower. We could easily have spent a whole lot more time there seeing a whole lot more…. But with very sore feet, it was time to head off.

Our way home took us over the Tower Bridge and through parts of Southbank. I have been absolutely amazed by the number of people out and about at all hours of the day and night, and for everything that we have seen so far. It feels like a proper adventure and I can’t wait to see and experience so many more things!