Gloucester Cathedral & City Break

Not all city breaks require a trip to the airport, right?  Sometimes a road trip is in order and England has plenty to see and do.  Gloucester offers a cathedral, a city center and a revitalized Victorian port to explore.  It's only a 2.5 hour drive from London so it's an easy one.  Gloucester is in Gloucestershire, neither of which is pronounced like it looks.  Kind of like Worcestershire sauce.  It's "glaw-ster"  and the county is pronounced kind of like "glaw-sta-sher".  Matt will probably tell me this is still completely wrong because of the American accent in the mix, but it's close enough.

Starting 2017 with a Walk & a Word

I like to start the new year off with a walk and a good think.  I don’t really do New Year Resolutions. (It’s January so I can still talk about this stuff , right?) Not only am I never successful with resolutions, but I can’t even remember them come February. Last year at the encouragement of a few friends, I picked a Word for the Year. A word to guide and encourage. Something to focus on. They all expressed that this was a positive thing for them, that it made a difference. So I went for a walk on New Years Day in Folkestone to come up with my Word for 2017.

A day at Hampton Court

I think I've mentioned before that Matt and I keep a list of things that we want to do in London.  Hampton Court Palace was at the top of that list for a long time and late last year we finally made the journey.  The royals used to travel from Hampton Court to Westminster via the Thames, passing through the locks along the way.  It sounds so romantic. I knew that I needed to combine that Thames boat trip with our visit to the Palace.  So on a beautiful fall day, we crossed this one off of the list.  

On Becoming British

It's official.  I'm a British citizen.  The process has been long (4 years) and expensive (£4K), with reams of paperwork.  But I've been lucky.  It can take a lot longer and be much more complicated.  Going through the process as the spouse of a British citizen definitely makes things easier.  It started with a Visa, then Indefinite Leave to Remain and now Citizenship.  My ceremony was just a few weeks ago. 

Horningsea, England

During our weekend excursion to Cambridge,  we stayed in a tiny village just outside the city called Horningsea.  The village has one pub and one restaurant with rooms which is where we stayed.  The Crown & Punchbowl is an old coaching inn dating back to 1764.  Old coaching inns are dotted around England and we will always pick one of these over a regular hotel.  We've had the best luck. 

Our Family Road Trip Wrap Up

I can't tell you the number of road trips I've taken with this guy.   Philip is younger than me by four years.  We would pile into the car and spend the next 8 hours playing "Mom, he's looking at me!", "Her foots on my side!", "Dad, are we there yet?", "I have to pee!" and that old classic "She's touching me!"   We were always pretty adept at tormenting each other.

Our road trip from the UK to Ireland, Scotland and back last year was much of the same.  This time I got smart and claimed car sickness which meant I got the front seat!  It brought back so many memories of traveling together as children.  It was so great to spend a whole week with my brother, my dad and my husband.  My three favorite guys.  Im certain they all still love me, in spite of putting them through that road trip.

I don't have my UK drivers license, so Matt had to do all of the driving.  It was a lot of driving.  (What was I thinking?)  Matt loves my family, but we're a pretty odd bunch which I'll be the first to admit.  After a week in the car with the three of us, he took on this stunned expression. 

I'm sad this is my last post about our epic Too Much Road Trip with stops in Dublin and the Great Mounds in Ireland,  Belfast and the Giant's Causeway in Northern Ireland, then over to Scotland and the Trossachs, the Highlands, and Balmoral Castle. 

Of course we had to visit Loch Ness, we grew up on those legends. The freshwater loch extends for about 23 miles so we drove along it for quite awhile.  We were in search of the perfect place for my brother to jump in.  He really wanted to swim in the loch, but it was a cold, rainy day.  He was easily talked out of taking a dip. Alas, no sign of Nessie.

As we were driving along, I shouted "Castle!"  Matt knows it's futile to resist.  I can't pass up a castle.  This one was the Urquhart Castle in Drumnadrochit.  It was built between the 13th through 16th centuries and the ruins are now one of the most visited in Scotland. 

We bypassed Inverness and turned South towards the Cairngorms National Park.  We spent a memorable night in Aviemore at the charming Cairngorm Hotel.  There were bagpipes, live Scottish music, whisky and a ton of laughter.  The next day we continued south driving through the Cairngorm National Park which spans over 1,500 square miles in central Scotland.  Hours and hours of spectacular views, although there may have been a few naps that day.

Scotland is breathtaking.  I just sat back and took it all in.  There is no chance that I was going to capture it with a camera.  But all I have to do is close my eyes and I can see it.  The clouds move slowly across the landscape changing the light which reflects off patches of color.  It's like looking through a kaleidoscope.

I'm just dying to know the stories behind this house with the star shaped wall surrounding it. You get the sense that Scotland is just full of stories.  You can almost feel them swirling around you, stories of heroes and battles, intrigue and love.  I've obviously spent too much time reading the Outlander series.   

In the afternoon, we came across a guy paragliding.  Or he attempting to paraglide but things were not going his way and he had to keep starting over.  We drove a little further along the valley, pulled over for a stretch and to see if he would make it.  (He didn't.)

Somehow one of us saw some deer hiding in the brush on the other side of the valley.  Can you spot two of them in the photo above?  It was taken with the telephoto lens, I can't believe we spotted them.  Matt took the camera over to the ledge to get a few more photos when he gestured for us to come look.  We had almost missed these beautiful creatures down in the valley. 

They were a distance away and not too disturbed by us.  I think they are red deer.  There is something so exciting about spotting and photographing animals in the wild.  Oh, to be a wildlife photographer.  I could have watched them for hours. 

Our last night on the road was spent in one of my favorite cities, Edinburgh.  Matt and Philip went to explore the castle, while dad and I took a bus tour of the city.  My dad fell in love with Edinburgh, too.  He could quickly imagine himself living there. 

I love the feel of Edinburgh and the people are so open and friendly.  There is a lightness to the city that is a nice change from London. 

Dad then went in search of a nap and I went in search of the guys who were on their way to a whisky tasting. 

I think Philip loved Scotland. The chance to travel with him again like we did when we were kids was a highlight of my time in the UK.  From the day that I arrived on this side of the pond, I've been dying to share some of this with him.  I'm ready for them to come back. 

The next morning it was time to head back to London.  But not before we fulfilled one of Philip's bucket list requests. He wanted to drink a beer on Hadrian's Wall.  So that's exactly what we did.  Cheers, Bubba.

I'm so incredibly thankful to have had that week with my three favorite guys doing what we all love to do... explore.  It was a week of moments that I will treasure for the rest of my life, peppered along with moments of "Dad, he's looking at me!!!"

Who are your favorite road trip companions?

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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?

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