United Kingdom Archives - Page 2 of 2

July 25, 2017July 24, 2018

Scotland’s exquisitely beautiful coastline

A view of Scotland's scenic coastline from Dunnottar Castle, near Stonehaven — A view of Scotland’s scenic coastline near Stonehaven

NEAR ORKNEY ISLAND, SCOTLAND – Right now I’m traveling with a white-knuckled husband who is gritting his teeth. No, I’m not talking about my driving. We are, in fact, riding in a very comfortable express bus from the Orkney Islands along the mainland coast of Scotland to Inverness, still a 3-hour trip once we are off the ferry.
It is a fantastically beautiful sunny morning. The rugged coastline is exquisitely lit up, with shadows in just the right places. There are sheep and cows posing in the fields, traditional thatched roof barns right next to the road, and all other sorts of daily life things that hold your eyes in wonder.
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July 13, 2017July 24, 2018

Fairies and Unicorns in Scotland? Of course!

KIRKCALDY, SCOTLAND – Washing dishes with FAIRY liquid.

FAIRY brand washing up liquid, “By appointment to Her Majesty the Queen”

Yep, that is what we have here in Scotland. FAIRY brand washing up liquid (dish soap to us Americans), “By appointment to Her Majesty the Queen” (It says so right on the label).

And it works great – like magic (I am assuming). I bet it used to have a picture of a fairy right on the label.

It took me a few days to think this through. It was so odd to me to find a commercial product named “FAIRY.” Where is the strength in that?
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July 10, 2017July 24, 2018

Edinburgh has a bit of a sweet tooth

In Edinburgh, sweets are available just about everywhere — Buying sweets on the street in Edinburgh

EDINBURGH, SCOTLAND – The food here is really wonderful.

OK, I see Pizza Hut, KFC, McDonald’s, but we don’t eat there even in the states. Otherwise, it is cooked to order and takes a few minutes more. Time is no problem over a good beer anyway.

In the morning we can walk across the street to the little hole-in-the-wall grocery and buy fresh-baked croissants, meat, and curry or chicken pies for the rest of the day. It’s great this inner city living. Continue reading “Edinburgh has a bit of a sweet tooth”

July 6, 2017July 24, 2018

Adventures in grocery shopping

KIRKCALDY, SCOTLAND — Melanie and I walked to Aldi the other afternoon to shop for groceries. Our meandering path led us past lots of lovely old stone homes, some with leaded glass windows, some with ornamental wooden gingerbread embellishments at the gable peaks, many surrounded by stone walls and lovely flower gardens.

Arriving at the grocery store, we were confronted with a challenge… how to unlink one of the shopping carts parked in the cart corral outside so we could take it inside to do our shopping.

Linked shopping carts outside Aldi — Linked shopping carts outside the Aldi store

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July 2, 2017July 24, 2018

If it’s Wednesday this must be Stirling (Castle)

Stirling Castle sits high atop a rocky crag in Stirling, Scotland

SCOTLAND – Melanie and I have been in Scotland for just about two weeks now. We’ve (mostly) adjusted to the 8-hour time difference from back in Stanwood, Washington; figured out how the buses and trains work; can make proper change when we pay for something; and we’re getting used to some of the differences in language (yes, they speak English, too, but it often sounds quite different from the American English we’re used to).

In our past travels, this would have been the point in the trip when we had to head back home (and back to work) after a much-too-short vacation, with way too many places still on our “we should go there” list.

But not this time. We’re just getting started…
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