Salzburg, Austria

Good thing we had fortified ourselves with wine the previous night...

After hopping on the 9AM train to Frankfurt on our wait to Salzburg, we had about two hours to kill in the Frankfurt railway station. After wandering around to find a place to sit that was both inside out of the rain but also a place to actually park all of our stuff and SIT, we waited for 11:30 to come so we could catch our train to Salzburg. After a 25 minute delay, we were off! Fifteen minutes into the trip, we looked up at a stop and what do you know...it was the little local train station that we had just been at 3 hours before! Well, crap.

We were enjoying first class, however! The seats reclined, had wings on the sides of the headrest, had footrests, and were just generally pretty awesomely comfortable. There were maybe a half dozen people in our car, and between all of those factors (plus exhaustion) I was actually able to sleep for a couple hours!

The station in Salzburg was awesome, no other word for it. Still probably one of the best stations I've been through. The lower level had excellent signage and information, there was a grocery store where you could stock up on things for your train travel cheaply, an information room with maps and an English-speaking guide there who advised us that our hotel was a short 10-minute walk that we could easily do and save a taxi fare.

We arrived at The Pitter Hotel only to be informed that sadly, they had water damage from the recent rains, and they were unable to fulfill the reservation. They were transferring us to the Mercure hotel a short distance away and would take care of the room charges. Ok. We can go with this. I guess.

A taxi took us to the Mercure and we were able to check in after a mixup in which they were determined we had separate rooms. Nope, we're getting along just fine these days, thank you though. I had to contact Lori, our travel agent, to get it taken care of, however. It took her a whopping 5 minutes and then all was well.

Except now we were hungry. The hotel had a restaurant area, so we headed in that direction, only to be told that was for breakfast only. They had another Mercure hotel a couple blocks away that had the restaurant. Now, normally this wouldn't have been a problem. However, while we had packed a few long-sleeve shirts and a light jacket, expecting some 65-70 degree weather, we weren't really prepared for a damp 55 degrees, so two blocks sounded like an awfully long ways at 9PM. But again, we can go with this. (Are you sensing a theme so far in this trip?)

Dinner was good, although to be honest, I was so tired from all the travel and again, that jet lag, that I really don't remember much of it except that the waiter was extremely nice, the soup was hot, and the food was good.

We slept for 14 hours that night.

This put us pretty behind in our sight-seeing schedule, since most of the museums and attractions close at 5 or 5:30. Here's what we managed to squeeze in:

We walked to Old Town and explored their church area with a gorgeous cemetery (there are pictures, you'll see what I mean), catacombs dating to early Christianity gouged out of the rock wall, as well as the fortress overlooking the city, which we took a funicular to get to. (SO happy that wasn't out of order and we had to climb, although that would have fit in well with our theme this time.) Because it rained steadily all day and was very misty, we couldn't get any super awesome pictures of the sights but hopefully you can get an idea. It was definitely a city we'd love to go back to! As the birthplace of Mozart, they have a strong connection with music and the arts, and there are performances scheduled all over the city pretty much at all times. It was also just a lovely place to walk around: the building architecture, the river bisecting the city, all the shops and alleyways with more shops.

We headed back in the direction of our hotel hoping to find a coffee shop to warm up in. We found one but were reminded that not all countries have blanket no-smoking-inside laws when every table had an ashtry and most had people using them. Not quite what we had in mind... We quickly found another one and I'm so glad we did!

This coffee shop had a unique set up. When you first walked in it was very narrow with 2-top tables lining the left side and the hostess stand on the right. If you kept walking it opened up into a tiny courtyard surrounded by tall buildings, so it almost felt like the bottom of a pretty tunnel. Once you kept going (nope, we weren't interested in eating in the rain in the courtyard) you entered into the actual restaurant, which again was tiny but more square and with more tables. It was packed, always a good sign, and we snagged a table that was vacated a few minutes after we arrived.

After ordering coffee and hot chocolate, we decided we might as well eat. Chris ordered spaghetti carbonara and I had a flatbread pizza with artichokes, red and yellow peppers, olives, and some kind of other deliciousness. Oh my. I could get used to eating like that! We had also been told to try the Topfenstreudel, a kind of cheesecake. What a lovely way to end a chilly day!

Well, almost. I got wine that night too. Nothing warms you up quite like a glass of red after a long day of soaking in the rain. My shoes finally dried out 2 days later.

Austria, we will be back.

Germany

Ahhh, wine.

Yeah, I know, most of my posts of this vacation will probably begin with that refrain. What do you expect, I'm on vacation!

After landing in Frankfurt on try #2 (see previous post for details on that fun little detour), we met up with our friend who drove us to his house a short distance away. At this point we both were beginning to resemble zombies in desperate need of a shower and sleep, so that was first on our agenda. We had good motivation to not sleep too long, however; the local wine festival was in full swing and if we wanted to try the best wines the Rhine Valley had to offer, this was our chance! (LOL I totally just typed "the Whine Valley" - thank goodness I can correct the errors of the brain on here.)

Many of the whites and even some of the reds tasted pretty similar to what we grow in Michigan. Because of the climate, the reds aren't as lush and velvety as those grown in hotter, drier regions, while the whites stand out because of their range of dryness and depths of flavor. We also tried the local apple wine, which was similar to a hard apple cider. We took the suggestion of adding a splash of Coke to it and it was actually surprisingly delicious! (We were warned, however, that this is a very localized tradition; most other regions of Germany would be appalled to witness such a thing being done to the wine.)

Dinner was at a Spanish tapas restaurant the next town over. I swear we ate, and ate, and ate some more! There was Manchego cheese with olives, potato wedges with aioli, chorizo slices, meatballs, sardines, shrimp in a buttery garlic sauce, calamari, and something else that I can't remember on that table of deliciousness.

We also had the opportunity to visit the local castle. It seems that almost every town has their own (no, I'm not exaggerating) in varying stages of preservation. The one we visited didn't have much roof left but it was still pretty intact and had an operating restaurant within its walls. Although the view was pretty spectacular, because of the rain moving through, we weren't able to see as far as one normally can. It was still a pretty freaking awesome experience, especially since we essentially had the place to ourselves.

After a short night of sleep, made shorter by jet lag (which I hadn't remembered as being this miserable until I lived through it again- yes, I'm a big wuss when it comes to my sleep schecdule!), we were dropped off at the little local train station to catch the train to Frankfurt, and from there on to Salzburg, Austria. Little did we know it wasn't the last time we were going to see that little platform...

Europe, finally!

Ahhh, that long-awaited trip that we have been talking about since before we married and have been saving for since 2012 finally arrived: Europe!

While originally we had only been dreaming of Italy, when a friend moved to Germany last year, we felt that the opportunity was too good to be missed and added that to our list. Then, I decided I really wanted to take the train and take our time getting to Italy so that we could maybe, just maybe, see another country or two on the way. After all, once you pay the astronomical airfare (and pay physically with jet lag) to get to Europe, you might as well see as much as possible. Of course, we wanted to balance that need with it being a vacation, not a trip that we would need a vacation to recover from. (That being said, I wouldn't mind having to "recover" from a European whirlwind tour...There are worse things to have to recover from.)

As a(nother) side note, I can't believe I haven't used a travel agent before! Lori Visser, an agent in Rockford, sat down with me one day for a couple of hours, found out what we were looking for in terms of entertainment, tours, accommodation styles, etc. and set up a complete itinerary for way cheaper (and much more quickly!) that I could have on my own. What a way to make life easier for me, and support a local business while I'm at it!

Anyways, the plan was to fly to Frankfurt, Germany, via Washington DC, spend a few days there and then take the train to Salzburg, Austria. After a couple days there we would hop on the train again and head to Bologna, after which we would stay in a villa in the Tuscan countryside for a few days and catch our breath. (Ok, and maybe drink a LOT of wine.) Florence was next on the list, then a quick flight back to Frankfurt before catching our flight home the next day. Two very full weeks and we couldn't wait!

Well, wait we did. In Washington DC. On a plane for many hours, although after a bit we got sick of waiting and decided to spend our time in the wine bar adjacent to our gate. Six hours after we boarded the plane, the flight was finally cancelled due to a lack of available crew members when the mechanical issues took too long to repair. (It all began with a toilet...)

The bartender at the wine shop had advised us earlier to split up, one person at the customer service desk at the end of the terminal, the other at the gate to find out if the flight was a go or not. After the announcement, Chris got a text from me advising, "RUN! The flight is cancelled!" He managed to be the first in line, which allowed us to get a hotel voucher, booked on the next flight the following day, and generally made pretty comfortable. By the time I met him down at the desk, the line stretched 4 gates back. Thank you, bartender!!!!

We found out just how much we owed her when speaking to some other passengers the next day on the hotel shuttle. Apparently those further back in line had hotel reservations booked for them by the airline but when they reached the hotel, found out that there were no rooms available, so they ended up spending the night in the airport. Others who had been booked on a later flight to Frankfurt had their new flight delayed because there was no actual plane to take them. What a mess, and we were so grateful we weren't part of it! (Hey, we paid our dues in January in Chicago. Don't ask.)

Finally, FINALLY, we landed in Frankfurt and were able to enjoy starting our vacation!

Hopefully Chris will post pictures of our time in Germany. 

Montreal Trip

These are a month and a half old now, but better late than never. We took a short trip to Montreal over Memorial Day. Very cool city, fairly European-ish and foreign-seeming because of all the people speaking French. Not bad for only having to go as far as Canada, eh?

Bata Shoe Museum

History of Wine

Miscellaneous Montreal

Old Montreal Walking Tour

Museum of History and Archaeology

Edinburgh and Dublin pics

Here are the last pics from our UK/Ireland trip...

Edinburgh

Dublin

Close Your Eyes and Think Irish

I wrote this post while still in Dublin, and was waiting for Scotland pictures to get caught up before posting this one. However, Chris is taking too long, so I'm posting this one now. And as most of you know, we're in MI now, safe and sound! Hope to see you all soon!


Ok, so I said I loved Edinburgh, and I do, but Dublin definitely gives it competition! I'm so sad we only had 1 day!

So, everything went fine with the early flight and all, thank goodness. We got to our B&B, the Andorra, where our hostess kindly allowed us to check in and relax on the bed for a bit before we headed out. Not for long though, because I had read all over the Internet about this great walking tour of the 1916 Rebellion (The Easter Rebellion) done by two historians that was apparently completely fabulous. However, they do one tour per day, and it's at 11:30AM. So We only had about 15-20 minutes resting time before heading out for that.

It was a very cool tour. Our guide was hysterical, but also very knowledgeable. His colleague and he wrote a book (which we bought, of course) and he took us around the city to show us some key locations in the Rebellion, as well as monuments and important places of the key participants. If we had had more time I would have liked to proceed to the Kilmainham Gaol, where the participants were held and executed, but unfortunately, it is a ways out of town and we didn't have time to get out there.

That took a couple of hours, and then it was on for some Indian food!! We both couldn't resist samosas to start (veggie for me, lamb for Chris, accompanied by some amazing sauce!), and then the Tikki Masala sounded amazing enough that we both got that as well. OMG. I really could eat Indian twice a week for the rest of my life! As long as there were mango lassis to accompany it.

We spent the rest of the day walking around Dublin, purchasing my ornament and earrings, sitting in St. Stephen's Green, and just generally enjoying the city. It was warm and sunny, and perfect for strolling around and looking at the sights and tourists. (Sometimes the two were one...)

Being here for such a short time was really a mixed blessing: on one hand, I'm so glad I got to see this city, even for a short time! On the other hand, I feel like there is still so much I want to see! It's a little frustrating to only have one day in a place that really deserves at least a weekend, and a country that I want to take two weeks to explore. Next year perhaps...?

We'll fly home tomorrow, so see you all soon! We'll plan on keeping the blog going during our subsequent travels, and who knows, maybe another country is in our future...

Scotland pics, Part 1

Now Barb is ahead of me with blogging. I don't have all the pictures ready yet for Scotland. Here are pictures of our drive to Scotland, and of the Botanical Gardens. The other pictures of Edinburgh will come later.

Driving to Scotland

Royal Botanical Gardens Edinburgh

Falling in Love with Scotland

Driving to Scotland was when we realized driving on the left side of the road seemed normal now. Traffic circles could be interesting when we get back to the US. (After years of driving and never understanding them, I've finally figured them out- in England, of course!)

We arrived in Edinburgh with five hours still left with the car, but since we didn't really know what to do with ourselves, and I was desperate for a nap after my poor night of sleep, we dropped it off and got a ride to our B&B. We were staying at Ashlyn House, and to be honest, when we arrived, I don't know how they weren't fully booked! GORGEOUS interior, right next to the Royal Botanical Gardens, huge rooms, quiet part of town... it was perfect! Our room was absolutely stunning. They decorated it in the Victorian style, but not too overdone like so many. It had high ceilings (maybe 12 feet?) with beautiful double moulding around it, pink and white printed walls (although not too pink as to be girly) that looked like they were cloth-covered on the top half, with patterned plaster (paper?) for the bottom half, a padded, printed headboard with partial canopy that matched the curtains to the huge five foot windows. Like I said, gorgeous. I crashed for two hours and woke up feeling much more myself. Not wanting to miss anymore than we absolutely had to (due to time constraints), we headed to the Royal Botanical Gardens.

To both of our Moms: if you need a reason for traveling overseas, this is it! Just look at the pictures. We spend hours wandering in there and only scratched the surface it seemed! And even the things we DID see I want to see again! Huge gardens with an amazing variety of plants, all seemingly in bloom.

Dinner was Italian at a local place down the street. We ordered a bottle of red wine, some soup for me (still the throat thing) and some calamari for Chris, as well as a pasta and chicken dish for him and a dish of chicken with caramelized onions and peppers in a white wine and butter/garlic sauce for me. Exquisite! The chicken was so tender and juicy, and the onions went perfectly with it! I've kind of fallen in love with caramelized onions this past year.

We walked back to the B&B and had an early night, since the next day we wanted to do Edinburgh.

I pretty much love Edinburgh, and mostly because of one woman I met in a Christmas shop who was a total kindred spirit- foodie and Christmas lover who got excited when talking about either of the two, especially when she could point us in the right direction for her favorite food (unfortunately, we'd already eaten, so we couldn't work them in :( :( but next time for sure!)

So, I'm getting ahead of myself, talking about food. Let's back up to say that I once again slept very well the previous night, and after a light breakfast (for me anyways), we headed for Edinburgh Castle, a must-see according to every guidebook and website. I should also do a disclaimer that states that we were starting to get a little run down, all this traveling at the frantic pace, so if you notice that we're doing less and less in each city, that's why. We're exhausted!

So, the Castle. It has a really interesting history, although difficult for me to relate to you, since I get all the Charleses and Edwards mixed up. And the Bruces, Stewarts, and all the other inter-marrying monarchs. Go to Wikipedia.

Anyways, awesome views and we got to see the Scottish Crown Jewels, after once again encountering the Great Heathen Army. I was getting hungry and cranky before too long though, so we headed to find a pub for some cheap lunch (and ok, yes, some hard cider. Sue me!) I got a bacon cheeseburger American style, Chris had Italian Chicken, and we both left happy campers. (Well, happy until we found out the other places that had awesome food and we were too full to eat at them...)

I have been collecting Christmas tree ornaments from each country I visit this year, so I was on the hunt for a Scottish one (Yvonne, I forgot an English one, please get me one so I don't have a hole in the collection!) as well as some earrings. That's when we met the sweetie in the Christmas shop.

We walked down the rest of the Royal Mile to see the Castle at Holyrood, where the Queen of England stays when she is in Scotland. We didn't go in, partly because we were tired, but also partly because I think I heard people talking about Prince Charles either coming or being there. So closed to visitors. Back to the B&B!

Since we had to get up at 4:30AM to catch our flight to Dublin the next day, it was another early night.

Hexham Abbey & Hadrian's Wall

Hexham Abbey

Hadrian's Wall

Walking Hexham and Limping Hadrian's Wall

So by Wednesday morning I was still feeling pretty grim, but we headed out for Hadrian's Wall, although Chris promised that we wouldn't have to walk far on it. The drive from York to Hexham was beautiful and also driven safely, so it was a pleasant journey. We stopped in Hexham mostly because I was navigating and didn't know what we were doing. But we had been told at our B&B in York that the abbey there was worth seeing, so I guess it was ok.

They weren't joking. The abbey was really interesting, mostly because it really seemed like you should see monks walking around doing things as they did in the Middle Ages. One thing that immediately struck me was the wooden roof and wooden joint covers. Whereas in most abbeys the roof is either gilded, whitewashed, or painting, here it was left as dark wood. The abbey itself was pretty dark and cool inside. Besides the stunning stained glass, they also had a 13th century staircase that we went up, a Breeches Bible from the 17th century, and an Anglo-Saxon chalice. A quiet, peaceful break from driving.

We drove to the part of Hadrian's Wall that is where it's the highest, near Homestead Fort. After hiking uphill 1/2 mile (no joke, the information desk told us to expect that) and through another sheep pasture, we got to the wall. Snaking along ridges and over hills, it is in amazingly good condition in this spot. The workmanship is superb, the stones cut very square and stable enough to allow us to walk on it for a short while, just as the Roman soldiers would have done centuries ago. Looking at the views from the Wall, you can see why the location was chosen- there would be difficulty in hiding anywhere for miles! We really enjoyed the walk, but I was so sick and out of sorts that I couldn't do much at all before needing to turn back. I wish we could have seen more of it, but I guess that's for next time.

We stayed in a little village about 15 minutes from the wall called Wark in the Battlesteads Inn Hotel. Luckily for me, they had a restaurant in the hotel, so we didn't need to go far for dinner! It was also the place where I tried duck for the first time. I'm in love. It was beyond excellent, with an incredibly crisp, flavorful crust, but moist meat that fell off the bone, and then the bones fell apart from each other! Served with mashed potatoes, it was an excellent meal! I need to find duck in the US... Not sure what Chris ate or what he thought of it, since I was so busy rhapsodizing about mine that I'm not sure he ever got a word in.

That night wasn't good, as I couldn't sleep because of my cold. This is when I noticed that it didn't get completely dark outside until after 11PM, and began to get light at around 3:30AM. Are we in the Arctic Circle here?! Luckily, there was a lot of coffee for breakfast the next morning, and then we were off to Scotland!

(Continued next post)

York Pictures

York

Hay Bluff Hike Pictures

Hay-on-Wye and Black Mountains

York (The Old One)

So, Tuesday we picked up our rental car, which had been upgraded for us :) to a Ford Mondeo Ghia, which was awesome. Big and roomy trunk space, Chris had more leg and head room than he knew what to do with, and it drove very smoothly. Hmmmmm, next car perhaps? Anyways, he proved once again what a fabulous driver he was by getting us to York alive and well, and without a scratch on the car! What a guy! I was sick by this point, so we didn't want to schedule TOO much, but there were a few must-see things on our list.

The first thing I wanted to do was visit the Jorvik Center, which is all about the Viking settlement in York. (You know me and my barbarian fascination!) Lucky for him, Chris was interested too! Also, Yvonne had told us that it was really awesome (my words, not hers, she only uses awesome to mock us) and a must-do. It is split into two parts: the first is a moving ride in which a narrator explains the scenes before you, and life-like statues move, talk, and work, showing what the village was like. You also get the smells: food cooking, wood smoke in the forge, and yup, the cesspool as well. I was a little nervous, since by then I was sick and not sure how my stomach would do, but I must say, after Izmir on hot days, this was nothing! The ride was my favorite part, mostly because it got us away from the Great Heathen Army (i.e. the kids). The second part was a bit more like an interactive museum with a few people in period piece explaining their roles, as well as computer animation, more statues, as well as some artifacts. We didn't stay there long, mostly because the Army had already invaded and overrun the place, and were pushing, shoving, and generally being disruptive. I am still a little disappointed we couldn't poke around for a bit longer, but ah well. And sorry, there's no pictures- not allowed.

Next we went for lunch at a lovely Chinese place. Because of my throat, I ordered hot sour soup (as well as a bunch of other food, of course). When it came, it was much different than I was used to, but really delicious! Then we had fried chicken with a spicy sauce and an order of Beijing dumplings. The sauce on the chicken was sooo divine, we actually liked that better with the dumplings than the vinegar they provided!

Feeling full, we waddled to York Minster, one of the most important cathedrals in England, or at least one of the most well-known. That is also divided into two parts: the basement, which has the history of the cathedral (going back to Roman times) and the modern cathedral. We both really liked the basement, they'd done excavations and therefore could tell us where we were in relation to the Roman basilica, then the Saxon church, then the Norman cathedral as you walked through. They also had a lot of the artifacts that had been recovered during excavations that were hurriedly done before the church was reinforced due to weakness and severe cracking as it slowly collapsed. There were things like the stone that fell and hit some guy while he was sleeping during church, but didn't kill him, so it was considered a miracle. There were also the faces on the decorative pieces that hide the joining of the roof beams. There was also a room filled with chalices and gifts to the cathedral throughout the years (nice and glittery, that room!), as well as other artifacts and 3-D models of the cathedral as it changed over the years. It was really cool, but sorry, we couldn't take pictures there either.

We COULD take pictures in the modern York Minster, however. And wow. It seemed that everywhere we turned there were things to take pictures of. Pictures don't quite capture how massive this building is though. And the acoustics! When we came in, there were services being held, and the choir was singing. Although the service was in a different part of the cathedral, it sounded as though you were standing in the middle of it. Really lovely, and set a nice atmosphere for taking pictures and thinking about the history. By this point in the day I was about done for, having wandered around in a medicine stupor. However, Chris told me I needed to see one last thing, and took me to the Chapter House, a room separated by the cathedral by a hallway. Inside, the octagonal room was like nothing I'd seen yet! The floor reminded me of tiles I'd seen in Izmir, the ceiling was gorgeous, and there were beautiful stained glass windows on seven of the eight sides. Between were pointed arches, and on each side were all unique faces (you'll see some in our pictures) and intricate wood carving. The administration of the cathedral still meets in that room, and inside each archway was a seat. A very unique room, and I'm glad Chris saw it!

I was completely knackered by this point, so we got back to the car and drove fifteen minutes to our B&B for the night, the White Rose Villa. Can we say GORGEOUS?! We stayed in the Lavender Room, and it was huge! The shower was great, tons of hot water at high pressure, just what you needed after a day of walking! The bed was one of the most comfortable I've ever encountered in a hotel, and our hosts were absolutely wonderful. We ordered pizza that night (I told Chris it felt like an anniversary- traveling in the car most of the day, feeling tired, eating pizza...) full of bacon, ham, salami, and pepperoni, and apparently butter. Divine! Slept like babies, and woke up the next day to a full English breakfast and the drive north to look forward to.

(Btw, in case you couldn't tell by the length of the post, I'm feeling better and am back to my normal long-winded self. Sorry to those of you who were enjoying the succinct posts!)

Hiking with Sheep

Sunday we went hiking with Yvonne, Euan, and Yvonne's mum in Hay-on-Wye. I say hiking, because it was for me, although I think Yvonne and Euan would call it a walk :) As you remember from one of my previous posts (and if you don't, go back and re-read, slackers), Hay is just over the border into Wales, next to the Black Mountains, so the sites are quite amazing.

We hiked/walked up the Hay Bluff, going up the "easy" side, and down the more "challenging" side. Going up wasn't too bad, besides the fact that it was uphill. And windy. I mean, REALLY windy. When you look at the pictures, you can't see that the wind is actually pushing us around. I was wearing Chris' windbreaker (because I under-dressed, as usual) and I sounded like a flag snapping in the wind. Luckily, we were walking, and stayed warm enough, although there was definitely a nip in the air when we first climbed out of the truck! Also, I should mention that the areas surrounding the bluff, as well as the rest of Wales, are all sheep pastures. So while the views were amazing, I only saw them in snippets, because most of my attention was on the ground, trying to avoid poo. :) We got to the top, but because we came up the backside and all the good stuff is near the front, we headed that direction...

IS THIS A PLATEAU?! geez louise, every time we'd get to the top of a rise I'd think, "Ok, this is it, it's going to be awesome just over this!" and then I'd see more walking to do. We did get to the edge on the side though, and that created some great pictures. We even saw a glider taking advantage of the high winds and soaring almost eye level with us!

On the way back down, we went a different and more challenging route. Straight down is challenging, right? :) It was worth it though, because near the bottom was a herd of horses. I have no idea if someone owns them or if they're just there, taking advantage of the grass, but there were some very new colts posing for us and lots of gorgeous horses to admire. Maybe I don't need a puppy. Maybe I need a horse...

After letting Yvonne and Euan walk ahead to get the car and leaving us "snails" behind (yes, Yvonne, I talked to your mum and heard what you said!) we ran into more sheep and saw more lovely sites. Then relief arrived in the form of SUV, and we tiredly climbed in. We certainly earned the tea and cheesecake we ate when we got home! After the bacon sandwiches... And the roast chicken, cheesy broccoli/cauliflower, Yorkshire pudding, and potatoes we had for supper. MMMMM! I kind of want Yvonne and Euan to come live with us and cook every day!

All in all, a tiring day but worth the effort, because as you'll see, the pictures are gorgeous!

Warwick Castle pictures

Warwick Castle

Castles, Nobility, Intrigue, and Power

Wow, I think the title is almost as long as the post... (and probably more exciting)

Yvonne and Euan had Friday off, so we set out for Warwick Castle (pronounced Warick, btw), about a 90 minute drive from Eardsley. Unlike many of the existing castles now, which mostly consist of ruins, Warwick Castle has been restored to what it would have been like throughout various centuries. The drive there was gorgeous, and it was fun to have a day with the four of us doing something.

In the time of the War of Roses (Richard VI), the Earl of Warwick was considered the Kingmaker but died in the Battle of Barnet. Lots more history that I find interesting, but that would probably bore most of you.

Again, I'll pretty much try to let the pictures speak for themselves. Mostly because my head hurts too badly to try and form words to describe...

Bath pictures

Bath

Bath

Not pronounced like we normally would say it, it's actually pronounced Baahth. Just so you know. And because it's one of the only pieces of useless trivia I have.

So, we arranged to take the train there. The journey took us through part of SE Wales, which is gorgeous, and then East after we switched trains at Newport. A reasonably quick journey, uneventful (which we give thanks for these days!), although because their ticket-printing machine was having issues, we were about 20 seconds away from missing our train.

So, one of the first things we saw in Bath was a Nepalese restaurant, which was immediately chosen as our late lunch location. However, we had things to see first! We made our way to the Roman Baths, and it was there that we realized the schoolkids from England have this week off. OMG. Teenagers and kids are the same no matter which country or culture. Oh-ha! However, the Baths were very cool, lots of history (it was actually a site of worship as well as healing) and artifacts that had been recovered. To be honest, I'll just let the pictures speak for themselves. Just know that the complex was huge, and just seemed to go on and on! And the heating system was ingenious! Under the floor, there were ducts that would carry the hot air from the fires (also underground!) into the next room's floor, and also up the walls. Seeing these ducts, we realized that we had also seen them in private homes in Ephesus! That was what struck me the most, how similar the Roman buildings in England are to those in Turkey, even though the two are thousands of miles apart!

The cathedral was awesome as well, really lovely and interesting to look at. Covering all the wall surfaces and much of the floor were plaques and memorials to loved ones. And the ceiling was crazy! You'll see in the pictures...

Then lunch time. Mmmm. So Nepalese food is kind of a cross between Indian and Chinese. Quite lovely and delicious. We ordered popadams, then pork dishes with sides of rice, a chickpea and potato dish, chutney, and lentil-based soups. The spices made it really lovely, and our waiter was great. There was a French family dining at the same time, and they had a small girl, maybe one year old? The waiter played with her for awhile, then scooped her up and took her around the restaurant, showing her all the cool sights there. He later told the parents his own son, who is 3 1/2, is still in Nepal with his wife, and he misses him very much. He was also quite excited that we were from America, and immediately wanted to discuss politics, like so many other people we meet.

We then hiked up to the Royal Crescent, which was a relaxing way to sit, digest, and enjoy the sunshine. On the way back, we got lost, and again, thank goodness Chris was there. I would have freaked.

Our train was delayed 8 min, and while we giggled that they'd even announce that (after our 3 hour delay it seems a bit much to apologize for an 8 minute delay...), we did find that it meant we missed our connecting train, although there ended up being another in 30 minutes, so it didn't really matter. All in all, a really lovely day!

Pictures from Herefordshire and Wales

Hereford and Eardisley

Hay-on-Wye and Black Mountains

Eeek, I'm Behind!

So, I am sick. I will try to refrain from whining too much to you all, although I'm guessing Chris would love a break. Anyways, this sickness has allowed Chris to actually get ahead of me in the blogging process. I have a LOT of catching up to do, people! So bear with me...

First, I'll do separate posts for each place that we've been to. This will help if you only have 1 hour to read my post, not 5.

Second, I am getting Chris' help with remembering things, because to be honest, I'm really out of it right now. You'll notice the vacant stare in pictures. I am not drunk or high, just doped up on cold medicine and wishing I were dead.

So, overview of our time with Yvonne, although there will be separate posts for all the mini-trips we took in Hereford. First, I should say "Thank you" again to those two! Putting up with Chris and I for 9 days, cooking for us, driving us around, listening to us ask, "Are we there yet?" Not an easy job, that. However, we were able to cross many desired food items off our list: we ate Indian, Chinese (homemade ginger chicken, thanks Yvonne!), PORK, roast chicken with Yorkshire pudding and broccoli/cauliflower in cream sauce, fish and chips, Elderflower ice cream, a full English breakfast, homemade crepes...Ooofff, I get full just looking at that list! We're still wondering if Banoffee pie is a myth or not though. (If it's a myth, I won't worry about spelling, but if it's real, someone needs to help me out on that.) Oh, and we got addicted to English tea. We now drink it at least once a day, although more often if other people are having it. It's almost like it was in Turkey!

We went to Hereford on Monday and explored, then Tuesday we went to Hay-on-Wye, Wednesday was our sleepy day with laundry on the side, Thursday was Bath (see next post), Friday was Warwick Castle (see the post after Bath) and the Christy Moore concert in Hay, which rocked! Saturday Chris and I explored some pubs in Hereford, and then Sunday we went hiking in Hay. Monday was spent getting ready for the rest of our trip. So there's our first week in the UK in a nutshell. Now I can get started on the posts for individual places. Enjoy the pictures!