All Aboard!

 Escaped London ByTrainTo York...

Took the train in a first class coach from London to York to pick up my car.  Met a really nice woman who insisted on waiting with me until Enterprise came & picked me up from the train station.  People are just so nice!  Drove off with a 5-speed, 4 door Hyundai.  And of course I got involved with heavy afternoon traffic.  Was nervous at first.  Intersections engineered in the UK don't really have stop lights.  Most of the intersections are controlled by roundabouts.  If they do have stoplights, they're at the super busy roundabouts!!  And there are "Give Way" signs to replace stop and yield signs.

During my first week to 10 days in the UK I have had SIM card trouble.  The first international card let me use data, but wouldn't allow texts & calls.  That's a problem.  A BIG one. So I bought another SIM card as the first company couldn't figure out what the difficulty was. This new card allowed phone calls and texts, but I couldn't use data.  Seriously?  What are the odds here???  But alas, both have been figured out.  Now I am in communication business with my phone.  Whew!

I decided to drive on up the coast and landed at Meg's Island Guest House in Cleethorpes, Lincolnshire.  But I have to admit, it was the name that caught my eye!   It stormed the entire time I was there. I took a walk and thought the "Working Men's Club" was funny sitting right next to the "Sweet Indulgence" shop. Cracked me up!  

 

Several people asked me if I was going up to see St. Mary's Lighthouse near Blyth, Northumberland. Had not heard of it before but since I was asked about it, I decided I should go.

It was stormy with the tide high.  The rocks had many young seals on them that had been abandoned by their mothers (it was time I was told when I became upset).  The staff had gone home, so that kept me from climbing to the top.  But it was a great time anyway. 

 

I had seen pictures of the kelpies at Helix Park near Falkirk Scotland before.  But had never made it there.  So I decided to drive to the park and got stuck in a motorway that was stalled due to an accident.  I also had to maneuver this roundabout.  In my nervousness, I had to go around 4 times to get to the right exit.  There were 5 spokes coming in with 3-4 lanes.  But I eventually made it through!  I won't lie, it can be intimidating!!

It was a really great afternoon. It rained (don't care...) and there were lots of families picnicking and many had brought their pups with them. 

                                

   

What do you think I wished for??

From Falkirk, I traveled north to Aberdeenshire and decided to stay in Ellon through this week.  On the way I stopped at a lovely place called Brae's Cafe in Auchinblae for lunch.  It was pretty empty (the time was around 1400 hrs) so there was ample opportunity to talk to the owner and other customers.  Two older women (in late 80s) come to the cafe once a week for good food and gossip.  They told me they had lived in the area their entire lives.  What a fantastic lunch - I am so glad I stopped. 

I really felt like I needed more driving practice in heavier traffic before taking on a bigger city again.  But my British Google Maps girl directed me straight through downtown Aberdeen (population of about 205,000).  I did pretty well.  I think British Google Maps girl needs a name.  What do you think I should call her?

I took a ride up north to Peterhead yesterday - an old fishing town on the north sea. Peterhead is just 70 miles east of Elgin - where my sisters and I stayed during our 2017 trip (when we attended the Highland Games at Gordon's Castle). It was a beautiful day and unusually warm for this time of year.  Castles are on the agenda for tomorrow.

I had supper in the hotel last night and met 2 brothers - Allidstar & Colin.  They had wonderful things to say about Oban (had just come from attending Highland games there) and told me I would really enjoy it.  It was spirited conversation and about local happenings and customs.  Like how important it is to give a wave thank you when a driver has yielded to you on the road.  I think I've shared before that the roads are much smaller than in the US.  Many 2 lane roads are turned in 1 with cars parking where you would usually drive.  And it's all perfectly legal & expected.  For instance, during the day in front of businesses and at night with street parking in front of homes.  So a great deal of yielding goes on.  My server was also a competitive Highland Dancer!  So we talked at length about the games.  Most enjoyable supper indeed.  If you are ever in the area, I would highly recommend The Station.  Dorothy and the staff are just wonderful!

I still have to remind myself that I don't need to rush anything in this trip.  And that there's always tomorrow for getting to the next place.  No need to hurry at all......