Pictavia October 13, 2007
Posted by jezra56 in Scotland.add a comment
Today we were in Angus territory which is where the Picts orginated. Their main claim to fame is that they were the only tribe to ever make the Romans turn around and give up the fight, with the Roman Army eventually retreating behind the relative safety of Hadrian’s Wall. (more…)
The Isle of Skye: Scotland at its best October 9, 2007
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We started out for Skye via the Kyle of Lochalsh and the Skye Bridge at about 9.30 am. Early starts just don’t seem to be working as we never wake up before 7.30 am!
It was overcast and misty as we drove from Invermoriston via the A87 towards Skye (also known in Gaelic as An t-Eilean Sgitheanach or The Winged Isle). The cloud was so low it obscured the rugged peaks of Glenmoriston but visibility at road level was good and the forecast for the day was no rain and 15%-30% cloud cover so we were optimistic that it would soon clear. (more…)
Have you ever resuscitated a spider? October 8, 2007
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Have you ever resuscitated a spider? I must confess that I certainly hadn’t – until this morning…
I was happily rinsing a plate in the kitchen sink and when I turned off the tap I noticed a daddy-long-legs in the drain, feebly witching after an inadvertant sluicing. (more…)
Amesbury to Cardiff October 2, 2007
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After an enjoyable breakfast at Little Chef, where at last Alex was able to connect to the Internet with her computer but using my battery as hers had died somewhere between Friday and Sunday. By 9.30 am we were on the road to Stonehenge which was only ten minutes away from the Travelodge. The wind was very fresh but although it was cloudy the rain held off. We took photos and visited the gift shop which seemed to be full of Italian tourists. (more…)
The Best Laid Plans… September 26, 2007
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The Internet. Or perhaps I should begin with the lack of it.
For a country so dense in population and with a massive telecommunications network it then seems odd to find that in our pocket of Greater London (Ilford) we have been unable to get any Wi-Fi connection. The preparations we made before leaving Australia for 30 days of pre-paid Wi-Fi internet access have come to mean nothing when there is no “Hot Spot” nearby. So once again we are incommunicado until we find somewhere that we can actually pick up a signal. (more…)
Pre-flight and Stage One September 24, 2007
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Flights that require check in at 3 am are inhuman. Fortunately as a night shift worker I’m familiar with interrupted sleep patterns but it doesn’t mean I have to like it! Still, there is something about starting out on holiday in the wee hours of the morning that I’ve always loved. It’s like a signal that the holiday has started. (more…)
Ready for Take Off September 23, 2007
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Well, the day has finally arrived! In around 12 hours I’ll be sitting in a plane waiting to take off for the big adventure. Everything has been packed, checked and double checked and now I can only sit back and wait for the hours to roll by. We checked in online this morning so we have our allocated seats and should be able to get our baggage checked in smoothly without having to wait in a long queue. (more…)
Only 12 days to Go September 11, 2007
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Less than 2 weeks to go now and today I made sure that global roaming was activated on my phone, which leaves only a couple of details left to take care of. One of which is our Wi-Fi internet connection for the UK. We’re going to use BT who offer a 30 day plan for a very reasonable cost and that means we have no worries about having to find somewhere to connect; we just have to be within a 100 metre range of a BT hotspot. The last detail is to get some cash in pounds but than can wait till next week. A quick trip to Travelex is all that takes. (more…)
Ooops! September 10, 2007
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This might be hard to believe (or not given my recent track record) but I did it again! All I can say is thank goodness for last minute changes in plan. After the embarrassment of miscalculating the accommodation at the start of the holiday, I found out today that I had miscalculated the end as well. If it hadn’t come to light we would have had nowhere to stay on our last night in the UK as I’d booked the hotel at Heathrow for the 21st October as being our last night. Not a lot of good when by then we’d have been in the air and on our way to Dubai given that our last night in the UK is actually the 20th October! The only reason I found the mistake was because I tried to cancel the booking and it kept telling me there wasn’t one. Alex then kindly pointed out that the confirmation for the booking quite clearly stated: arriving 21st October, leaving 22nd October. So, there it was in black and white. Wrong day. (more…)
Last Minute Hiccups September 5, 2007
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You wouldn’t think that after months of strategic planning and drawing up itineraries practically to the minute that something as basic (and, let’s face it, important) as the arrival date in the UK could have been, well to put it mildly – misjudged. I had it fixed in my head that we departed Perth on September 24th (got that part right), and arrived in London on September 25th (WRONG!!) Because we are taking the early morning flight from Australia, and the impact of the time shift in flying east-west, we actually arrive on the evening of the 24th. Of course the accommodation was only booked from the date I thought we were arriving. (more…)
Ancestral Trail 2007 