Balmoral Castle, Scotland

I can't believe it's been almost eight months since my dad and brother were here and we took our jam packed road trip.  I thinks it's time to finish up the posts from our trip. My blog schedule is getting backed up.  Luckily I use post it notes in my blogging calendar and they're easy to move forward as needed.  So, lets' talk about one of my favorite stops during the week, Balmoral Castle in Aberdeen, Scotland. 

I sure do miss this guy. 

"All seemed to breathe freedom and peace, and to make one forget the world and its sad turmoils".  Those were the words Queen Victoria scribbled in her diary when she first visited sprawling estate. 

So her sweet Valentine Albert purchased it for her in 1848.  It was a private purchase which means this property doesn't belong to the Crown but rather to the Royal family.  It's been a favored residence of the family since then.    

I don't think I would ever want to leave this Highland retreat.  Queen Elizabeth spends several months each year here amongst the deer and grouse.  We strolled the gardens and walked through the ballroom which is the only interior space open to the public. 

Like all castles, it's straight out of a fairytale with incredible views in every direction.  Rolling lawns and majestic trees. 

Even with people milling about it was the most relaxing and quiet place.  Incredibly peaceful.  I can see that it must be such an oasis for a family that is usually in the middle of a whirlwind of activity. 

As majestic as it is, it felt like a home and there was an elegant casualness to the gardens.  I would highly recommend a stop at Balmoral if you are in the area.  Oh, those views.  The colors of Scotland, purple and green.

Happy Valentines Day!  Okay, I didn't get a castle from my love but I did get a new Nikon camera which I'm thrilled about.  I can't wait to see what kind of photos I'll get out of her.  She will soon be featuring prominently on the blog.  Although the D90 will always be my first love. 

 

Where's your favorite castle?

TWITTER | FACEBOOK | PINTEREST | SUBSCRIBE | BLOGLOVIN

Cruising Solo

 Matt is on the blog today talking about cruising solo.

Many people won't even consider a cruise, but cruising alone?  Out of the question.

But, Matt has cruised solo several times and I know many other people who enjoy cruising alone.

I've even tried it and loved it!  (Remind me to tell you about the time I joined a Singles Cruise.

I had the absolute time of my life and would highly recommend it if you are newly single.)

But, that's another story.   Here's Matt...

Before I met Selena, I’d cruised on my own.  Alone.  I know!  Crazy, eh?

After I revealed my plans to my friends, and I’d weathered their gentle questioning as to whether I was completely mad, I signed up with Carnival for a week around the Caribbean.  And I had a blast – so much so that I did another solo cruise the next year!

You’ll always remember your first cruise.

I consider myself to be a traveller, and for the people that knew me well, that compounded their confusion as to why I wanted to cruise.  Unlike most people who think the boat is the point of the cruise, I’d long considered cruising to be a great way of travelling to interesting places.  Unpack once, and every day a new port is presented to you.  So I selected an itinerary which featured a port on every day, in case I found I didn’t enjoy the cruising part.

As another precaution in case I hated the ship experience, I invested in a large room with a balcony, so I’d have a comfortable refuge if I wasn’t interested in deck shuffleboard or ballroom dancing.  And that presented the first major challenge to cruising alone – the cost.

 My refuge

Almost all cabins are designed (and priced) for double occupancy, so by taking a cabin for just yourself, you’ll end up paying twice the headline quoted rate.  You’d expect some discount, as you’d only be eating for one, using half the towels, and so on.  But, no - my experience was that the quoted price was simply doubled when I clicked the “single occupancy” button.

But I was very happy with the price I paid.  Remember, I was thinking like a traveller, so comparing what I paid to the cost of creating an independent itinerary that took in 7 Caribbean countries in 7 days (with airfares, accommodation, food, transfers, etc, not to mention the hassle involved in the planning), it felt like a very good deal.  If I’d taken an internal cabin it would have represented outstanding value for the travel opportunities presented.

Going to Antigua for a day?  Probably costs the same as a week’s cruise.

The second challenge was, well, being alone.  I’ve travelled a lot as a single traveller, so I was not at all daunted by the prospect of being thrown into the midst of 2,000 merry holidaymakers without knowing a single person.  I can understand how that might be a major challenge for some, but don’t worry, there are plenty of opportunities to meet people and make friends.

 There were 2,000 people on this ship.  Honest!

Dinner is the first.  You might be tempted to avoid the awkwardness of being alone by eating at the buffet, but if you ask to be seated at a large table in the dining room, you’ll quickly make friends among your dining companions.  I would recommend a fixed dining time so you get to know your companions over several nights – if you hate them all just ask the maître d’ to move you to a different table!

There will also be mixer events organised for singles.  There will be plenty of other singles on the cruise.  Even if there are relatively few that are travelling alone, plenty of single people will be sharing cabins with friends or relatives.  A formal singles mixer isn’t really my thing, so I didn’t attend, but there’s no downside to dropping by and seeing who’s there.

 Don’t worry - the cabin attendants will also introduce you to new friends

Another way of breaking the ice is to check out the forums on CruiseCritic.com before your cruise.  Every major cruise has a forum, and by joining in the conversation prior to departure you’ll often meet like-minded souls before you even embark.  It’s very common for shore excursions to be organised this way, which can be a great way of maximising the time in port.  Most major cruise lines will host a Meet & Greet event on board for Cruise Critic members, which is a great way of meeting new shipmates.  (Selena and I still do this before each cruise.)

Didn’t catch a thing, but a bad day’s fishing beats a good day in the office, right?

Talking of shore excursions, I’d clung to my independent traveller roots by only pre-booking one shore excursion – a fishing trip in St Lucia – which I knew would be a difficult thing to organise on my own.  In the other ports on the first few days of the cruise, I just got off the ship and wandered around, avoiding the crowds as much as possible.  Bliss!  By the end of the week, I was organising trips with friends I’d made on board.

 Brimstone Hill Fortress in St Kitts

With a port on every day of the cruise, and with dinner and shows taking up most of each evening, this cruise provided relatively little time left to enjoy other on-board activities.  Be assured there is a lot more on offer than shuffleboard and ballroom dancing, although you could have done both if you’d been interested.

I recognise that cruising solo may not be for everyone.  You need to be independently minded and happy with your own company.  But the opportunities to meet people were certainly there – four years later I’m still in touch with many of the people I met on these cruises.  For me at that time in my life, cruising was a perfect holiday for me, although I’d have to say that the experience is even better now I’m able to share the experiences with Selena.

Okay, I made him throw in that last bit.

Cruising is something wonderful that we share but it's something that we both love individually.

Would you ever cruise solo?  Why or why not?

TWITTER | FACEBOOK | PINTEREST | SUBSCRIBE | BLOGLOVIN

Skipton Castle in Yorkshire

 

 

 

 

  

 

I will never pass up a chance to explore a castle.

I want to see every one in Europe.  (It could happen.)

When we found out that we were close to one in our drive through Yorkshire, we decided to stop.

Skipton is an adorable little town.  There was a market and we had lunch at a local pub.  

The castle is the centerpiece of the town.  According to their website,

"Over 900 years old, Skipton Castle is one of the most complete and best preserved medieval castles in England and is well worth a visit at any season of the year."

I'm so glad we stopped.  It was fascinating to walk through all of the rooms.  

In the center is a beautiful courtyard with a great tree standing guard.

Skipton Castle is privately owned and there are no audio tours or guided tours,

but we were provided with a free tour sheet to guide us through.

Admission was £7 each and it was a great way to spend a few hours.  

Add it to your list if you are in Yorkshire.  

TWITTER | FACEBOOK | PINTEREST | SUBSCRIBE | BLOGLOVIN

Stalking the Locals in Salzburg

To nap or not to nap.  That is the question.

After our Sound of Music Tour, we went back to the room to regroup.

The clean white sheets were calling my name and we had that discussion that we

often have on a travel day at about 2pm.

"Should we nap?"

I will admit that occasionally the answer is a resounding "Yes."  And those are some of the best naps.

But, not on this day.  We decided that we just couldn't do it.

It would be a shame to leave Salzburg without experiencing

the views from the Hohensalzburg Castle.

I'm so glad we got up and out, because what came later was one of the highlights of the trip.

A funicular took us up to the Fortress which was built in 1077

and is one of the largest fortresses in Europe.

It also has the distinction of being one of the few that was never conquered in her long history. 

There are several tours and attractions including a Fortress Museum and a Marionette Museum.

As it was off-season, not everything was open but the views from the top are not to be missed.

Austria takes my breath away with its majestic mountains and medieval rooftops.

  

Last week, I had the privilege of attending a travel bloggers meeting sponsored by BritMums.

It was an amazing day and I'm still buzzing with ideas and inspiration.

One of the guest speakers was from the Tourist Board of Costa Brava.

In his charming, Spanish accent, he passionately told us

"Don't just give me castles and cathedrals, give me a story."

When we travel, we try to hit the highlights of the city that we are visiting.

What will we regret not seeing or doing if we never get back to this place?

And in most big cities of Europe, that involves castles and cathedrals.

But, we also try to spend some time "stalking the locals."

Which led to one of the best evenings of our trip,

and hey, it involved beer.

Win. Win.

 

Our Sound of Music tour guide told us not to  miss the beer hall so we marked it on the map and headed that way.  It was late on a week night and once we got out of the main tourist district things quieted down.  After a bit of wandering, we found a small door that we thought must be the right place.

Matt tried it a few times but it wouldn't open.

We were about to just go back to the hotel when Matt tried that handle one more time and it opened.  

We followed the sound of laughter and smell of food through the halls

and eventually found the Augustiner Braustubl.

I'm sure in the high season many tourists find this place.  

It's highly rated on all the travel sights as one of the best beer halls in Europe.

But on this night, it seemed we were the only tourists there.
  

 This is a traditional Austrian Beer Hall

that serves beer brewed by Monks in a tradition dating back hundred of years.

We found a place to sit and Matt sent me off to figure out how to get a beer.

You should have seen my beaming face when I returned a short while later with two frothy mugs.

Success!  I did get in trouble and there was some back and forthing but I figured it out.  

Here is a video from Samantha Brown that gives you the basics.  Take a look.

I had no idea what the fountain was for, I thought maybe rinsing between pints.

And the part she doesn't show is where you go visit the man at the cashier booth

to pay for your pints.  Or in my case, ask about the wine selection and get scolded in German.

I think it was probably the best pint of beer I've ever had.

Matt was sent on a mission to find food

and soon after he proudly plopped this massive plate of meat down in front of me.  

"Um. What's that?"

"Pork knuckle."

"I'm not eating pig's feet."

"It's not trotter."

"Trotter?  I'm definitely not eating trotter...  What's trotter?"

"Pig's feet."

"See.  I'm so not eating that."

"It's the knee, not the foot"

"I'm gonna find something else."

 

I came back with a baked potato and a pretzel, 'cause you can never have too many carbs after a long day of exploring.  (I did taste the pork and it was pretty good.)

This was the coolest place.  In the photo below, you see cabinets lining the walls with plaques.

The locals keep their own mugs locked up in the cabinets for when they visit. 

But it was really all about the atmosphere.

There are several big halls, each open and well lit,

completely different from a small, dark British pub.

Large family groups were laughing and enjoying each others company.

It was festive but in a relaxed way. 

I can't recommend a trip to Austria highly enough. 

We are still talking about it and it's a definite favorite for us both.

The scenery, the train rides, the food and the people all made for a very memorable weekend.

And I promise to remember those wise words

and to not give you only castles and cathedrals as we continue our journey.

What has been your most memorable trip?

TWITTER | FACEBOOK | PINTEREST | SUBSCRIBE