Go Know!

A tale of two journeys

New York, NY Frequent readers will have sensed that it must be time for us to dust off the suitcases, and you would be correct.

However, this trip takes a different form than our past adventures, in that we are dividing forces and covering more territory this time.

Don had a craving to visit Southeast Asia and China. Me? I’m just not a fan of heat, humidity, dengue fever and mosquitos in general, and any countries ruled by Communists.

Don tells all

New York, New York Here it is: the cost of 25 nights (26 days) of our trip in the U.K.

Our nearly one-month trip to the UK – from London to Edinburgh – was a particularly good trip. The weather was great and we got to revisit some places we hadn’t been in fifty years and some places new to us. (Plus, we got to visit dear friends. I’m careful not to say OLD friends, because that might be interpreted incorrectly.)

It was great, Britain

Edinburgh, Scotland Yes, our trip had a few glitches, as they all do. But overall, it was a relaxed and rewarding trip through a very special part of the world for us.

The faces of Scotland

Edinburgh, Scotland Nearby our hotel is the beautiful National Portrait Gallery, always worthy of a visit.

Where do I begin?

Edinburgh, Scotland Today we explored more of the National Museum of Scotland, to see what could top Dolly. We were most interested in our friends the Vikings, but ended up starting a little earlier in history — with prehistory.

Hello, Dolly!

Edinburgh, Scotland We ended our day at the National Museum of Scotland, greeting the world’s most famous sheep. Dolly was the world’s first cloned mammal, born in Edinburgh and proudly preserved here.

A rather unholy day

Edinburgh, Scotland We started out with great ambitions today, booked on a tour that would take us to the Holy Island, Lindisfarne. The priory on this island was a prime target of the Viking raiders, who thought those monks had a great gift shop. It was going to be a long day, but we were very eager to see this famous place, where Saint Aidan founded his monastery in 635AD.

Every stone tells a story

Edinburgh, Scotland Today we walked the Royal Mile, the ridge where people have lived before recorded history. At its top was the perfect place to place a castle, and to start our walk. We have toured the castle previously, and have also been here on the esplanade when the Military Tattoo was gloriously paraded.

Feels like home

Edinburgh, Scotland We took the train north to Edinburgh today, and it felt nice to be back in a place with so many memories.

Back in the time machine

Beamish, outside of Newcastle, England If you ever wondered what life was like in 19th and early 20th century northeast England, Beamish is the place to visit. This 300-acre open air museum is rated England’s best.