Zooming around the U.K.

York

On this journey, we found ourselves traveling in a way that is contrary to our preference - we were on a schedule and a pretty tight one at that. Our first stop was York, a city that has been around since 71 AD. Unfortunately, we could only spend an afternoon in this mecca of history. York has it all: Roman, Saxon, Norman, Viking, Medieval etc. It was Lynda's third visit to York, but there is a lot to see and she was keen to share it with Craig. After checking in to our farm stay bed and breakfast in Shipton by Beningbrough, we drove five minutes to the nearby Park and Ride where we hopped on a local bus for the six mile journey into the city. Parking in York's hodge podge streets is known for being difficult to find and expensive.The bus allowed us to maximize our sightseeing.
We started by walking around the portion of the city wall that is located beside the York Minster cathedral. Then we headed inside the Minster for a closer look. The Minster is an impressive building that was built between 1200 and 1472. It is possible to attend services for free, but if you are just a tourist, there are a couple of different options and fee schedules. We elected to walk the 275 steps to the top of the central tower where we passed by pinnacles and gargoyles and had a bird's eye view of the city. We also enjoyed wandering through the pedestrian-only streets and window shopping. Then we ventured down Mad Alice Lane to view a 12th century church. Holy Trinity is unique in that the church is filled with family pews or boxes.Then there was The Sambles, an area that gets its name from the word,"Samel" meaning bench or stall where butchers would display and sell their wares. Craig seemed to think the meaning referred to the construction technique used. Obviously in the 1400's the level hadn't been invented yet.
The day passed by very quickly and as the sun began to set, we started to feel the cold. We retrieved our vehicle and headed back to Shipton by Beningbrough where we had a delightful roast dinner at the cozy Dawnay Arms. We were back at Wood Farm in time for the Olympic hockey final between Canada and the USA. Luckily, there were no other guests to be disturbed by our hooting and hollering (and groaning.) It was a proud moment for all Canadians when Sidney Crosby finally scored in overtime and Canada secured the gold medal.
Many thanks to Helen at Wood Farm for her hospitality. Not only does she run the bed and breakfast with her daughter, Claire, but they are the operators of this 100+ head working cattle ranch. We were lulled to sleep and awoken in the morning by the mooing of the cows. It was the perfect place for us to stay near York.
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Scotland

We had an enjoyable drive from York to Edinburgh along the coast road. We were able to make it in about five hours (including stops) and were very thankful for the GPS once we arrived in the city. Between the construction, the narrow roads and the traffic, it would be so easy to get lost. As it was, the GPS took us directly to our destination.
Our hosts for three nights were Craig's cousin, Bob Hislop, and his wife Marlene. We are especially grateful to them because we had never met them before and had only emailed them four days prior to our arrival. They very generously opened up their house to us and showed us around the city.
After a "cuppa" and a quick bite to eat, we went for a walk with Marlene to the Royal Botanic Gardens. Although it is a bit early for spring flowers, the snowdrops were out in full force, as were the squirrels. It is not hard to imagine what a lovely oasis the Gardens would be in the Spring and Summer. We were impressed with the memorial garden built in honour of the Queen Mother which was opened in 2006. It is divided into four hemispheres and each one is filled with plants from a different continent (North America, Asia, Europe and the Southern hemisphere.) There is also a stone pavilion that is uniquely decorated. The walls are covered with seashells and the ceiling is covered with different types of pinecones. By the time we returned home Bob was back from his outing. That evening we had dinner with their neighbours, Elsie and Archie, and helped to celebrate Archie's birthday.
Bob and Marlene's house is in a fantastic location in Edinburgh. A quick ten minute walk and you are on Princes Street. The next morning, it was beautiful and sunny. We all wandered down Princes Street and headed up to the castle. We enjoyed viewing the royal apartments, seeing the Scottish Crown jewels and touring the prison. Craig was just thrilled to be in a place where he could finally learn about his heritage. After a few hours and lunch, Bob and Marlene headed home and we went on the Scotch Whisky Experience tour just outside the castle walls. Always looking for an educational experience, we were keen to learn about the process of making Scotch Whisky. Part of the tour includes viewing the world's largest collection of Scotch Whisky which belongs to a Brazilian named Claive Vidiz. He owns over 3500 bottles of unopened bottles. Wow! We spent the rest of the afternoon wandering down The Royal Mile. Before long it was dark and we were tired, so we headed home.
On Wednesday mornings, Bob walks with his friend Donald. Marlene and Craig and I decided to tag along and see some more of the city. We left their house and headed west along the old coal line railway bed. We even passed by J.K. Rowling's house, but don't ask us to tell you where it is because we have no idea. After about five miles of walking and a stop for coffee and squares, we reached Cramond at the Firth of Forth. We happily boarded a bus and returned to Bob and Marlene's house. Our time in Edinburgh went far too quickly. Since we had never planned to go there in the first place, we were just happy to have made it. There is no doubt that we will definitely be going back.
We were heading south, but before we could leave Scotland, we had one more stop to make. Peebles is a town about an hour outside of Edinburgh. It is the former home of one set of Craig's great, great grandparents on his mother's side. We were shocked by the amount of snow and fog on the way to Peebles, but by the time we got there, it was sunny and the ground was clear. The countryside in this area is just spectacular. We drove to the town cemetary and as you can imagine, it was much larger than we anticipated. It took us about twenty minutes to find the gravestone of Adam Watson. We were then directed to the Town Council offices and the County Registrar's office and with the help of some very kind people, we were able to gather some new information for the family tree. This included a former residence on Old Town which is still there although it is in the process of being re-developed. Our short stop turned into a four hour venture. It wasn't until 2:30 that we were back on the road and heading to Liverpool to see Lynda's cousin. We finally arrived at Syl's in Crosby at 6:45 pm. We enjoyed visiting with her and her two dogs, Holly and Misty. Unfortunately, we were unable to see the rest of the Liverpool relatives. The illness of a Great Aunt and the impending birth of a cousin's baby meant that people were unavailable. We are happy to report that Auntie Mary (aged 96) is on the mend, and Colette and Andrew are the proud parents of a baby girl named Poppy. We will catch up with all of them next time.
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Wales

On Friday morning we left Liverpool and headed to Wales. We were meeting Kevin, Lara, Jaiden, Kai and the dogs for a weekend in the country. For all you travelers out there, Wales is hugely underrated. It is a beautiful country and if you like the outdoors, there is plenty to do.
Lara had booked the Blacksmith's House on Ynysclydach farm (Don't ask - it's a wake up call for our impending trip to Turkey) just outside the village of Sennybridge. The house dates back to the 1600s and has been lovingly restored by the owners Vera and Ian who also live on the property with their dog, three sheep and a chicken.
Many thanks to Kevin and Lara for clearing their schedules. It was great to get them away from the demands of everyday life. We all enjoyed the good food, the sunny weather and the walks through the countryside. We headed back to Loughborough late on Sunday afternoon. Kudos to Craig for getting us back safely. Driving on the motorways in this country is like being in the Indy 500. I now know why my aunt always kept a bag of candied ginger in the glove box. Lynda would have been very grateful for some on this journey.
Our time in the U.K. has quickly come to an end. We are off to Turkey today and are going to spend three months touring around in places that are a lot warmer than the UK.
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