England/Scotland/Ireland Trip Report from June 2006
Aug 12th, 2006, 07:08 PM
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Apr 2006
Posts: 74
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
England/Scotland/Ireland Trip Report from June 2006
Hello all, this is my stab at a trip report for our trip to England/Scotland/Ireland this past June. I’ve never written a trip report before, so I’ll only post a few days worth, and if anyone has suggestions on things to include (that I may have omitted), let me know, I’ll do the best I can, as I post more days.
First off, let me thank all the posters here, who answered my specific questions, as well as the general information and advice I got by perusing threads on all different topics. It made the planning of our trip easier and more enjoyable. I also got straightened out on a few things (particularly where driving was concerned) that made the trip smoother! Here’s a few miscellaneous comments on our trip before I start posting the day by day report:
1. Our trip lasted from Saturday June 3rd through Tuesday June 27th. The trip was split basically in half. My wife and I (M and K) were celebrating our 20th wedding anniversary (a year late!), and we traveled to London/Scotland/Northeast England/Ireland the 1st half of the trip, then our son P (who is 20) joined us in Ireland, and we continued on to Southeast England/London before returning home.
2. To keep costs down, we made every attempt possible to stay at Hilton hotels throughout the England and Scotland portion of the trip. (I travel a lot on business, and was finally able to cash in the Hilton honors points and AMEX reward points I’ve accumulated over the years).
3. I realized when reviewing my notes from the trip, I often noted a site we visited or meal we ate was ‘expensive’ or ‘a bargain’, but sometimes did not jot the amount down! So there are times when I can’t provide specific details on amounts, sorry about that!
4. I was on the lookout for the DCC (Dynamic Currency Conversion) problem, but I have to say that on the entire trip, we did not run into a single occurrence of it. At the beginning of the trip, I made a point of always asking for our bills in the local currency, but after awhile, I stopped asking, because it never happened.
5. Finally, in case I don’t mention it enough during the report, we never met nicer and more pleasant people than we encountered on our trip, particularly in Scotland and Ireland. One person after another was happy to chat awhile…help out with directions and suggestions…we can’t say enough about our friends on the other side of the pond!
OK, here goes, please feel free to critique if I am leaving out useful info.
First off, let me thank all the posters here, who answered my specific questions, as well as the general information and advice I got by perusing threads on all different topics. It made the planning of our trip easier and more enjoyable. I also got straightened out on a few things (particularly where driving was concerned) that made the trip smoother! Here’s a few miscellaneous comments on our trip before I start posting the day by day report:
1. Our trip lasted from Saturday June 3rd through Tuesday June 27th. The trip was split basically in half. My wife and I (M and K) were celebrating our 20th wedding anniversary (a year late!), and we traveled to London/Scotland/Northeast England/Ireland the 1st half of the trip, then our son P (who is 20) joined us in Ireland, and we continued on to Southeast England/London before returning home.
2. To keep costs down, we made every attempt possible to stay at Hilton hotels throughout the England and Scotland portion of the trip. (I travel a lot on business, and was finally able to cash in the Hilton honors points and AMEX reward points I’ve accumulated over the years).
3. I realized when reviewing my notes from the trip, I often noted a site we visited or meal we ate was ‘expensive’ or ‘a bargain’, but sometimes did not jot the amount down! So there are times when I can’t provide specific details on amounts, sorry about that!
4. I was on the lookout for the DCC (Dynamic Currency Conversion) problem, but I have to say that on the entire trip, we did not run into a single occurrence of it. At the beginning of the trip, I made a point of always asking for our bills in the local currency, but after awhile, I stopped asking, because it never happened.
5. Finally, in case I don’t mention it enough during the report, we never met nicer and more pleasant people than we encountered on our trip, particularly in Scotland and Ireland. One person after another was happy to chat awhile…help out with directions and suggestions…we can’t say enough about our friends on the other side of the pond!
OK, here goes, please feel free to critique if I am leaving out useful info.
Aug 12th, 2006, 07:13 PM
#2
Original Poster
Join Date: Apr 2006
Posts: 74
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
June 3rd Saturday
And we’re off! Got up at 4:30 AM, used Dial7 limo company to go from upper west side of Manhattan to JFK. The pick up was 5:45 AM, for an extra $5 we upgraded to the exec sedan. Right on time, new sedan and courteous driver. It was drizzly all the way to the airport, hopefully not a sign of things to come on the trip. We had just enough miles in my American Airlines frequent flyer account to treat ourselves to first class to London Heathrow (which was strange since I’ve been flying Continental in recent years…these were FF miles that had been sitting in my American account for many years). Several perks at JFK for flying upfront….express check in line….comp admission to the Admirals Lounge (M was impressed, her 1st time at a club like this before a flight).
Boarded an older 777, but the seats were still incredibly roomy. Pretty much non stop food and drink during the flight. We had a fruit tray and some sticky buns shortly after takeoff, then cream cheese omelets with turkey sausage. For airline food, it was quite good. Not such a great selection of movies, M watched Syrianna, I watched Firewall. Had a cheese tray and drinks during the movies. As if that wasn’t enough, they served dinner toward the end of the flight, we each had feta cheese pizzas, and a big ice cream for dessert. Stuffed!
We got through customs quickly (one last perk for flying upfront). Baggage reclaim turned out to be a pain. We got all our bags right away, but we had a metal pull rack (that we bungee our bags to)…that was checked separately at JFK, and came out at the very end of the planes luggage. Finally got everything together, stopped at the ATM and met our driver. We used Justairports, we were very happy with their service. Even though we were late because of the luggage snafu, the driver was right there waiting for us. A very nice guy, he gave us a little tour of the west side of the city, with a running commentary like a tour guide! We tried to give him an extra tip, and he simply would not take it.
Our first hotel stay of the trip was the Waldorf Hilton (On Aldwych right off the Strand). Looked a little old fashioned on the outside, but newly upgraded rooms inside. The bathroom had a huge bathtub and heated towel bars, the bed room itself was fairly small. It was late, around 10 or 11 PM, but we decided to take a walk, to shake off the jet lag. Strolled down the Strand to Charing Cross, then down to the Thames. Lots of college age kids around on a Saturday night, to us it felt a lot like a Manhattan weekend night. We walked awhile along the river, then back to the hotel around 1 AM and crashed.
And we’re off! Got up at 4:30 AM, used Dial7 limo company to go from upper west side of Manhattan to JFK. The pick up was 5:45 AM, for an extra $5 we upgraded to the exec sedan. Right on time, new sedan and courteous driver. It was drizzly all the way to the airport, hopefully not a sign of things to come on the trip. We had just enough miles in my American Airlines frequent flyer account to treat ourselves to first class to London Heathrow (which was strange since I’ve been flying Continental in recent years…these were FF miles that had been sitting in my American account for many years). Several perks at JFK for flying upfront….express check in line….comp admission to the Admirals Lounge (M was impressed, her 1st time at a club like this before a flight).
Boarded an older 777, but the seats were still incredibly roomy. Pretty much non stop food and drink during the flight. We had a fruit tray and some sticky buns shortly after takeoff, then cream cheese omelets with turkey sausage. For airline food, it was quite good. Not such a great selection of movies, M watched Syrianna, I watched Firewall. Had a cheese tray and drinks during the movies. As if that wasn’t enough, they served dinner toward the end of the flight, we each had feta cheese pizzas, and a big ice cream for dessert. Stuffed!
We got through customs quickly (one last perk for flying upfront). Baggage reclaim turned out to be a pain. We got all our bags right away, but we had a metal pull rack (that we bungee our bags to)…that was checked separately at JFK, and came out at the very end of the planes luggage. Finally got everything together, stopped at the ATM and met our driver. We used Justairports, we were very happy with their service. Even though we were late because of the luggage snafu, the driver was right there waiting for us. A very nice guy, he gave us a little tour of the west side of the city, with a running commentary like a tour guide! We tried to give him an extra tip, and he simply would not take it.
Our first hotel stay of the trip was the Waldorf Hilton (On Aldwych right off the Strand). Looked a little old fashioned on the outside, but newly upgraded rooms inside. The bathroom had a huge bathtub and heated towel bars, the bed room itself was fairly small. It was late, around 10 or 11 PM, but we decided to take a walk, to shake off the jet lag. Strolled down the Strand to Charing Cross, then down to the Thames. Lots of college age kids around on a Saturday night, to us it felt a lot like a Manhattan weekend night. We walked awhile along the river, then back to the hotel around 1 AM and crashed.
Aug 12th, 2006, 07:15 PM
#3
Original Poster
Join Date: Apr 2006
Posts: 74
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
June 4th Sunday
Off to explore London. Grabbed a quick breakfast in the lounge in the hotel, which was complimentary with my Hilton status. Nothing special, we just had toast, coffee, fruit. Strolled from the hotel up to Covent Gardens and meandered around…lots of street stands and several street performers out, even fairly early on a Sunday morning. Also, this was the beginning of a streak of fantastic weather, most days sunny and even a little warm. We worked our way over to a bus stop in Piccadilly to catch the Original Bus Tour, the yellow line. Hopped up on the top deck, this was a great London orientation for us. We did almost the entire loop, which took about 2 hours. Our guide was very low keyed and too dry a sense of humor (we had much better guides on everything else on the rest of the trip). However we got terrific first impressions of everything….Trafalgar, Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, Hyde Park, Buckingham Palace, Tower Bridge, St. Pauls…I think we criss crossed the Thames about 6 times. This was an excellent introduction to London for us.
We took a little break at the hotel, and since our bus tickets were good all day, we hopped back on the bus (I think it was the red line, not sure), took it from Aldwych to St Paul’s Cathedral and strolled up to the Museum of London. Grabbed a quick bite to eat in the café there, pretty bland (however, many good meals to come later in the trip!) We spent about 2 hours in the Museum, basically it was a continuation of our ‘London orientation’ day. 1st part of the museum was a little boring to me (as I recall, it was more about the archaeology of the city), but from the medieval history section up to present times was very cool (especially for someone like me who forgot all the European history I learned in school!)
Left the museum and took our first ride on the Underground to Soho. Trains run very quickly and also a very smooth ride. We walked through tiny Soho square, which was jammed with people (to those familiar with it…I thought this is what Gramercy Park in Manhattan would be like if it was open to the public). Went to Mass at St Patrick’s, which was right off the square. A very nice experience….great young choir, a pleasing mix of gospel and contemporary music.
We slowly ambled back to the Waldorf, people watching all the way, and chilled out a little while. Then went to Rock and Sole Plaice for dinner. Both had fish and chips, and mushy peas for the 1st time! About 25 £ with tip. We’re not exactly fish and chips connoisseurs, but we thought it was excellent and very fresh. Strolled back through Covent Gardens to hotel, it was just as lively and upbeat at night as earlier this morning. A great getting to know London day!
Off to explore London. Grabbed a quick breakfast in the lounge in the hotel, which was complimentary with my Hilton status. Nothing special, we just had toast, coffee, fruit. Strolled from the hotel up to Covent Gardens and meandered around…lots of street stands and several street performers out, even fairly early on a Sunday morning. Also, this was the beginning of a streak of fantastic weather, most days sunny and even a little warm. We worked our way over to a bus stop in Piccadilly to catch the Original Bus Tour, the yellow line. Hopped up on the top deck, this was a great London orientation for us. We did almost the entire loop, which took about 2 hours. Our guide was very low keyed and too dry a sense of humor (we had much better guides on everything else on the rest of the trip). However we got terrific first impressions of everything….Trafalgar, Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, Hyde Park, Buckingham Palace, Tower Bridge, St. Pauls…I think we criss crossed the Thames about 6 times. This was an excellent introduction to London for us.
We took a little break at the hotel, and since our bus tickets were good all day, we hopped back on the bus (I think it was the red line, not sure), took it from Aldwych to St Paul’s Cathedral and strolled up to the Museum of London. Grabbed a quick bite to eat in the café there, pretty bland (however, many good meals to come later in the trip!) We spent about 2 hours in the Museum, basically it was a continuation of our ‘London orientation’ day. 1st part of the museum was a little boring to me (as I recall, it was more about the archaeology of the city), but from the medieval history section up to present times was very cool (especially for someone like me who forgot all the European history I learned in school!)
Left the museum and took our first ride on the Underground to Soho. Trains run very quickly and also a very smooth ride. We walked through tiny Soho square, which was jammed with people (to those familiar with it…I thought this is what Gramercy Park in Manhattan would be like if it was open to the public). Went to Mass at St Patrick’s, which was right off the square. A very nice experience….great young choir, a pleasing mix of gospel and contemporary music.
We slowly ambled back to the Waldorf, people watching all the way, and chilled out a little while. Then went to Rock and Sole Plaice for dinner. Both had fish and chips, and mushy peas for the 1st time! About 25 £ with tip. We’re not exactly fish and chips connoisseurs, but we thought it was excellent and very fresh. Strolled back through Covent Gardens to hotel, it was just as lively and upbeat at night as earlier this morning. A great getting to know London day!
Aug 12th, 2006, 09:01 PM
#5
kebmag: Don't worry about TheMasher - he's a lunatic who started attacking threads about 12 hours ago -- so far the editors are asleep at the switch. they will have a LOT of garbage to clear out when they finally get around to it.
<b>Great report</b> so far looking forward to the rest (BTW - if you want to make sure TheMasher doesn't take over/ruin your thread - You might want to e-mail the editors and bring it to their attention.)
<b>Great report</b> so far looking forward to the rest (BTW - if you want to make sure TheMasher doesn't take over/ruin your thread - You might want to e-mail the editors and bring it to their attention.)
Aug 12th, 2006, 09:09 PM
#6
Original Poster
Join Date: Apr 2006
Posts: 74
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Thank you Joan and Janisj. When I saw the 1st reply was from that psycho, I thought this must be some godawful trip report!
Also, Janisj a personal thanks to you, you provided some 'tough love' advice on driving times and distances in Northern Scotland (which we heeded, as you will see shortly) which made the Scotland part of the trip very relaxing!
Also, Janisj a personal thanks to you, you provided some 'tough love' advice on driving times and distances in Northern Scotland (which we heeded, as you will see shortly) which made the Scotland part of the trip very relaxing!
Aug 13th, 2006, 04:03 AM
#8
Original Poster
Join Date: Apr 2006
Posts: 74
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
June 5th Monday
We slept a little late this morning, tired after all the running around yesterday. Grabbed a quick breakfast at the hotel before heading out. We jumped on the Red line of the Original Bus tour, our tickets were still good for a few hours from yesterday. First stop today was St Paul’s Cathedral, we spent about 4 hours there. Magnificent building, and our 1st cathedral stop of the trip, so very awe inspiring. We particularly enjoyed the crypt, so much history there (Wren, Wellington, Nelson…) M did the dome climb also, all the way to the top! I think it was 530 steps total, 85 meters from the floor. We were also struck by all the military history in a religious building (of course, this was just naiveté on our part, as we continued our trip, we saw how prevalent this was in England and Scotland). Grabbed a quick bite to eat at the Crypt Café before heading out. We set out for more exploring, taking the Red Line again to the Marble Arch.
We strolled through Hyde Park (near Speakers Corner and down Lovers Lane), just getting the pulse of the city. We’re used to Central Park…what we saw of Hyde Park was very pretty but flatter and more spread out. We meandered around the perimeter of the park, more people watching! Our legs were holding up, so we kept walking past Wellington Arch, and looped around to the front of Buckingham Palace. A grand sight, also the most crammed with tourists! We finally had enough walking and grabbed the tube back to the Waldorf.
Rested up awhile and went for our long overdue anniversary dinner in the Divan room at Simpsons on the Strand. Great ambience for a celebratory meal. We had lobster bisque to start, then for our entrée we had roast beef carved tableside from the trolley (dinner came with Yorkshire pudding, cabbage and roast potatoes). Deciding to try new things, we also ordered the bubble and squeak (I think it was cabbage and potatoes fried into a pancake?) For dessert, it was bread pudding for M, and treacle tart for me, both smothered with custard. A great meal, totaling around 100 £.
We slept a little late this morning, tired after all the running around yesterday. Grabbed a quick breakfast at the hotel before heading out. We jumped on the Red line of the Original Bus tour, our tickets were still good for a few hours from yesterday. First stop today was St Paul’s Cathedral, we spent about 4 hours there. Magnificent building, and our 1st cathedral stop of the trip, so very awe inspiring. We particularly enjoyed the crypt, so much history there (Wren, Wellington, Nelson…) M did the dome climb also, all the way to the top! I think it was 530 steps total, 85 meters from the floor. We were also struck by all the military history in a religious building (of course, this was just naiveté on our part, as we continued our trip, we saw how prevalent this was in England and Scotland). Grabbed a quick bite to eat at the Crypt Café before heading out. We set out for more exploring, taking the Red Line again to the Marble Arch.
We strolled through Hyde Park (near Speakers Corner and down Lovers Lane), just getting the pulse of the city. We’re used to Central Park…what we saw of Hyde Park was very pretty but flatter and more spread out. We meandered around the perimeter of the park, more people watching! Our legs were holding up, so we kept walking past Wellington Arch, and looped around to the front of Buckingham Palace. A grand sight, also the most crammed with tourists! We finally had enough walking and grabbed the tube back to the Waldorf.
Rested up awhile and went for our long overdue anniversary dinner in the Divan room at Simpsons on the Strand. Great ambience for a celebratory meal. We had lobster bisque to start, then for our entrée we had roast beef carved tableside from the trolley (dinner came with Yorkshire pudding, cabbage and roast potatoes). Deciding to try new things, we also ordered the bubble and squeak (I think it was cabbage and potatoes fried into a pancake?) For dessert, it was bread pudding for M, and treacle tart for me, both smothered with custard. A great meal, totaling around 100 £.
Aug 13th, 2006, 04:06 AM
#9
Original Poster
Join Date: Apr 2006
Posts: 74
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
June 6th Tuesday
We’re off to Scotland. Got up fairly early, we had a 7:45 AM pickup to go to Stansted airport. We were impressed with Justairports car service (on the day we arrived in London), so we used them again this morning. Rush hour coming into the city was horrendous, we had heavy traffic going to the airport but it moved slow and steady. I think it took about 55 minutes total. We had a very interesting chat with our driver, talking about schools and life in general in London…we really like getting the local take on cities from the cab drivers.
Stansted seemed brand new to me (compared to many airports I’ve been in). We got through security quickly, and waited for our plane in a crowded but pleasant waiting area. We flew Easyjet to Edinburgh, the flight wasn’t crowded at all and it was a very smooth flight. I got a chuckle how the planes are designed to get you on and off, with little maintenance between usage. (The seats don’t recline…there are no seat pockets to litter in front of you…there are no little plastic instruction sheets on how to use your seat cushion, it’s all printed on the seatback in front of you).
We got an automatic transmission car from Hertz in Edinburgh. I like to drive and got used to driving on the left side of the road in no time at all. The roundabouts were a little tricky at first, but once I got used to them, I started to like them more and more (no need to stop if there is no traffic to the right, just keep rolling through them!) The only hitch in the driving that took me a few days to get used to…I was a little close to the curbs on the passenger side, no problems other than that.
We had about an hours drive north on the A9 to our hotel in Dunkeld…namely the Hilton Dunkeld. This was one of the pleasant surprises of the trip. We had only selected this hotel because it was close to Struan (which we would be visiting in a few days), but it turned out to be a great place for us. We were told it was originally a summer home for a Duke many years ago…it’s set way back from the entrance road, and rests on the banks of the River Tay (albeit a very narrow river at this point). We had a very relaxing rest of the day…tea and scones on the hotel terrace…took a long stroll along the River Tay…I went for a short run on the treadmill…took a steam and swim in the hotel spa. Then we had an excellent dinner in the hotel. Smoked trout and brie appetizers…mussels and shrimp chowder…for entrees, I had salmon over mashed and M had ginger coated bream. We shared bread pudding and tart for dessert. Nice end to a very relaxing first day in Scotland.
We’re off to Scotland. Got up fairly early, we had a 7:45 AM pickup to go to Stansted airport. We were impressed with Justairports car service (on the day we arrived in London), so we used them again this morning. Rush hour coming into the city was horrendous, we had heavy traffic going to the airport but it moved slow and steady. I think it took about 55 minutes total. We had a very interesting chat with our driver, talking about schools and life in general in London…we really like getting the local take on cities from the cab drivers.
Stansted seemed brand new to me (compared to many airports I’ve been in). We got through security quickly, and waited for our plane in a crowded but pleasant waiting area. We flew Easyjet to Edinburgh, the flight wasn’t crowded at all and it was a very smooth flight. I got a chuckle how the planes are designed to get you on and off, with little maintenance between usage. (The seats don’t recline…there are no seat pockets to litter in front of you…there are no little plastic instruction sheets on how to use your seat cushion, it’s all printed on the seatback in front of you).
We got an automatic transmission car from Hertz in Edinburgh. I like to drive and got used to driving on the left side of the road in no time at all. The roundabouts were a little tricky at first, but once I got used to them, I started to like them more and more (no need to stop if there is no traffic to the right, just keep rolling through them!) The only hitch in the driving that took me a few days to get used to…I was a little close to the curbs on the passenger side, no problems other than that.
We had about an hours drive north on the A9 to our hotel in Dunkeld…namely the Hilton Dunkeld. This was one of the pleasant surprises of the trip. We had only selected this hotel because it was close to Struan (which we would be visiting in a few days), but it turned out to be a great place for us. We were told it was originally a summer home for a Duke many years ago…it’s set way back from the entrance road, and rests on the banks of the River Tay (albeit a very narrow river at this point). We had a very relaxing rest of the day…tea and scones on the hotel terrace…took a long stroll along the River Tay…I went for a short run on the treadmill…took a steam and swim in the hotel spa. Then we had an excellent dinner in the hotel. Smoked trout and brie appetizers…mussels and shrimp chowder…for entrees, I had salmon over mashed and M had ginger coated bream. We shared bread pudding and tart for dessert. Nice end to a very relaxing first day in Scotland.
Aug 13th, 2006, 04:20 AM
#10
Join Date: Jun 2003
Posts: 933
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Good report.
Glad to hear you liked the Hilton Dunkeld. We stayed there 2 years ago, but heard that it had gone downhill about 6 months after that. Hopefully its on the up again. The surroundings are so lovely.
Glad to hear you liked the Hilton Dunkeld. We stayed there 2 years ago, but heard that it had gone downhill about 6 months after that. Hopefully its on the up again. The surroundings are so lovely.
Aug 13th, 2006, 05:20 AM
#11
So glad you made it to Simpson's - for one tradtional dinner you probably couldn't have chosen better.
"<i>please feel free to critique if I am leaving out useful info.</i>" -- nothing that I can think of, seems just right. Oh - maybe a description of your room at Dunkeld.
"<i>please feel free to critique if I am leaving out useful info.</i>" -- nothing that I can think of, seems just right. Oh - maybe a description of your room at Dunkeld.
Aug 13th, 2006, 07:59 AM
#13
Original Poster
Join Date: Apr 2006
Posts: 74
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
June 7th Wednesday
Stirling, Wallace, Bannockburn today. M had to have her morning tea on the terrace (which we never have at home, we’re coffee drinkers!), I skipped breakfast, still full from dinner. It was about an hours drive to get from Dunkeld to Stirling. Picture perfect weather to start the Scotland portion of our trip. Our first views of the Scottish countryside were very impressive. We started off at Stirling Castle, our first castle visit of the trip. Tremendous views on all sides, especially to the Wallace monument. Enjoyed poking into all the nooks and crannys, and learning about the castle’s military function and its use as a royal residence. We left the castle for some lunch, were light on cash and had some trouble finding an ATM that would accept our card. Had to walk way downhill from castle, to find a Royal Bank of Scotland. Marched back up the hill, and had lunch at Darnley’s House. Tasty food, and only about 12 £. M had some kind of cheese and pickle tray, I had a ham, cheddar and tomato ciabatta.
We hopped in the car and headed off to Wallace Monument. Driving on the other side of the road is second nature now, especially on the roundabouts. We got to the car park of the Wallace Monument, to discover that the shuttle to the base of the monument was not working! So we did a long steep hike to the base, paid our 13 £ (I think) admission, and then a long climb to the top of the monument! Well worth the climb..stunning views from the top, about 90 meters up from the ground. Could clearly see Stirling Castle..the Stirling Bridge battlefield below…the Trossachs and Ochil Hills. We stayed up top at least 20 minutes catching our breath and enjoying the sites.
Next we drove to Bannockburn, saw the battlefield site and the Robert the Bruce statue. We got there at the end of the day, it was very quiet and peaceful, had the place to ourselves. Chatted with an old timer out walking his dog, who gave us all the ‘inside’ information on the area, a very interesting conversation!
Headed back to Dunkeld, ate in the village at a pub, I think it was called the Royal. Filling meal, we had potato skins (topped with their thick ham), M had ginger soup, and roast beef and Yorkshire pudding, fish and chips for me, about 15£ total.
Stirling, Wallace, Bannockburn today. M had to have her morning tea on the terrace (which we never have at home, we’re coffee drinkers!), I skipped breakfast, still full from dinner. It was about an hours drive to get from Dunkeld to Stirling. Picture perfect weather to start the Scotland portion of our trip. Our first views of the Scottish countryside were very impressive. We started off at Stirling Castle, our first castle visit of the trip. Tremendous views on all sides, especially to the Wallace monument. Enjoyed poking into all the nooks and crannys, and learning about the castle’s military function and its use as a royal residence. We left the castle for some lunch, were light on cash and had some trouble finding an ATM that would accept our card. Had to walk way downhill from castle, to find a Royal Bank of Scotland. Marched back up the hill, and had lunch at Darnley’s House. Tasty food, and only about 12 £. M had some kind of cheese and pickle tray, I had a ham, cheddar and tomato ciabatta.
We hopped in the car and headed off to Wallace Monument. Driving on the other side of the road is second nature now, especially on the roundabouts. We got to the car park of the Wallace Monument, to discover that the shuttle to the base of the monument was not working! So we did a long steep hike to the base, paid our 13 £ (I think) admission, and then a long climb to the top of the monument! Well worth the climb..stunning views from the top, about 90 meters up from the ground. Could clearly see Stirling Castle..the Stirling Bridge battlefield below…the Trossachs and Ochil Hills. We stayed up top at least 20 minutes catching our breath and enjoying the sites.
Next we drove to Bannockburn, saw the battlefield site and the Robert the Bruce statue. We got there at the end of the day, it was very quiet and peaceful, had the place to ourselves. Chatted with an old timer out walking his dog, who gave us all the ‘inside’ information on the area, a very interesting conversation!
Headed back to Dunkeld, ate in the village at a pub, I think it was called the Royal. Filling meal, we had potato skins (topped with their thick ham), M had ginger soup, and roast beef and Yorkshire pudding, fish and chips for me, about 15£ total.
Aug 13th, 2006, 02:13 PM
#15
Join Date: Jul 2006
Posts: 171
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Great report!!! I can't wait to go in September...what is it with driving on the road in England...I remember hitting all sorts of curbs on the passenger side...I'd bet that most the cars driven by out-of-country'ers have balled tires on the outside passenger! 
Can't wait to read the rest!
Tara
Can't wait to read the rest!
Tara
Aug 13th, 2006, 05:06 PM
#16
Original Poster
Join Date: Apr 2006
Posts: 74
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
June 8th Thursday
Very busy day today! We had tea and cookies for breakfast on the hotel terrace, then headed off to Struan and Calvine, about 25 miles north of Dunkeld. We were visiting a clan center for my father’s side of the family. Very pleasant and scenic drive, the center itself was in a touristy area right off A9, but the people at the center were very nice. There was a small but interesting museum in the back of the clan gift shop. We headed off to find Struan Church, where supposedly the founder of the clan was buried.
We missed one of our turnoffs, which turned out wonderfully, because we ended up at least 5 miles off the nearest main road….lost and exploring. One of the best ways to see the countryside! Nothing but gorgeous hills (and a lot of sheep) as far as the eye could see. We eventually backtracked to the church, a very small and old building. There was a tiny single lane road to get to the church (if there had been another car, it would have been a tight squeeze). We found lots of headstones with variations of our surname, but could not find exactly where the clan chief was laid to rest.
We headed back down A9, stopped in Pitlochry and strolled over a suspension bridge for lunch at Port-Na-Craig. Nice place, M had fish and chips, I finally had the steak and ale pie I had my heart set on! Not bad, around 20£ total. Headed back to Dunkeld and visited Dunkeld Cathedral (which was right on the edge of the hotel property we were staying at…we had no idea when we booked it!) It’s a beautiful site, the cathedral was in 2 sections….the church was constructed in the 1300s, then the Nave in the 1400s. The Nave was wide open, with the late afternoon sun streaming in, it was gorgeous.
It was just a two minute drive back to hotel, for some end of day spa stuff…we took a swim…hot tub…another swim…steam room….another swim…dry sauna! We were beat so we headed back to the room and had cheeseburgers and fish and chips sent up from room service.
Very busy day today! We had tea and cookies for breakfast on the hotel terrace, then headed off to Struan and Calvine, about 25 miles north of Dunkeld. We were visiting a clan center for my father’s side of the family. Very pleasant and scenic drive, the center itself was in a touristy area right off A9, but the people at the center were very nice. There was a small but interesting museum in the back of the clan gift shop. We headed off to find Struan Church, where supposedly the founder of the clan was buried.
We missed one of our turnoffs, which turned out wonderfully, because we ended up at least 5 miles off the nearest main road….lost and exploring. One of the best ways to see the countryside! Nothing but gorgeous hills (and a lot of sheep) as far as the eye could see. We eventually backtracked to the church, a very small and old building. There was a tiny single lane road to get to the church (if there had been another car, it would have been a tight squeeze). We found lots of headstones with variations of our surname, but could not find exactly where the clan chief was laid to rest.
We headed back down A9, stopped in Pitlochry and strolled over a suspension bridge for lunch at Port-Na-Craig. Nice place, M had fish and chips, I finally had the steak and ale pie I had my heart set on! Not bad, around 20£ total. Headed back to Dunkeld and visited Dunkeld Cathedral (which was right on the edge of the hotel property we were staying at…we had no idea when we booked it!) It’s a beautiful site, the cathedral was in 2 sections….the church was constructed in the 1300s, then the Nave in the 1400s. The Nave was wide open, with the late afternoon sun streaming in, it was gorgeous.
It was just a two minute drive back to hotel, for some end of day spa stuff…we took a swim…hot tub…another swim…steam room….another swim…dry sauna! We were beat so we headed back to the room and had cheeseburgers and fish and chips sent up from room service.
Aug 13th, 2006, 05:12 PM
#17
Original Poster
Join Date: Apr 2006
Posts: 74
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
June 9th Friday
We left Dunkeld and headed off to Edinburgh (via Saint Andrews). Got an early start, grabbed breakfast from the buffet at the hotel, and hit the road. We’re feeling quite British now…got the driving down pat…thinking in terms of liters and pounds (not gallons and dollars). This was the first day of the trip that the weather was not sunny all day…misty and cool, in the 60s. We poked around Saint Andrews castle first. Explored a very claustrophobic tunnel under the castle. Had an eerie look to it, castle beaten down by weather and the North Sea over the years.
A very short walk down to Saint Andrews Cathedral next. Very interesting site, dating back to the 12th century. Bizarre tombs and relics inside the cathedral museum. Climbed to the top of St Rule’s tower, you pass through a subway like turnstile to get in. We couldn’t see much from the top because of the mist, but still loved the feel of the place.
Stopped for lunch at Cabretta, M just had soup, I had turkey, brie and cranberry baguette. Of course, we saved room for ice cream sundaes….St Andrews (vanilla ice cream, toffee sauce) for M and Banana Split (with vanilla and pineapple ice cream) for me. Fantastic! Total was around 20£.
After lunch, we strolled around the 18th green and the 1st tee at the Old Course. Easy for me to say, but the course does not look that hard, it’s wide open! Got some nice pictures of the bridge as you come up the 18th fairway and a few shots where they filmed scenes from the Chariots of Fire movie. Then we headed off to Edinburgh, trying to hug the coast as much as possible on the drive down. Saw quite a few run down areas, but also what looked like some summer vacation spots (not sure about that, my notes are spotty…)
We got to Edinburgh, and thought we knew where the hotel was, but we were wrong! We could see the hotel but had to go around the block quite a few times to get to it. We stayed at the Caledonian Hilton, which was a splendid hotel. Very old style, which we love, and we got upgraded to a suite which was enormous. Also, there was no air conditioning but we did not need it (the heat was not as bad as I’ve been reading about lately in Europe). We strolled around, trying to get a feel for the city, went to a restaurant (recommended by the concierge) called Creelers. Enjoyed poking around the back roads on the way there. We both had sweet potato soup, M had scallops and I had pan crusted haddock over mashed. Great meal! Took a very slow stroll back to the hotel along Princes Street, and called it a night.
We left Dunkeld and headed off to Edinburgh (via Saint Andrews). Got an early start, grabbed breakfast from the buffet at the hotel, and hit the road. We’re feeling quite British now…got the driving down pat…thinking in terms of liters and pounds (not gallons and dollars). This was the first day of the trip that the weather was not sunny all day…misty and cool, in the 60s. We poked around Saint Andrews castle first. Explored a very claustrophobic tunnel under the castle. Had an eerie look to it, castle beaten down by weather and the North Sea over the years.
A very short walk down to Saint Andrews Cathedral next. Very interesting site, dating back to the 12th century. Bizarre tombs and relics inside the cathedral museum. Climbed to the top of St Rule’s tower, you pass through a subway like turnstile to get in. We couldn’t see much from the top because of the mist, but still loved the feel of the place.
Stopped for lunch at Cabretta, M just had soup, I had turkey, brie and cranberry baguette. Of course, we saved room for ice cream sundaes….St Andrews (vanilla ice cream, toffee sauce) for M and Banana Split (with vanilla and pineapple ice cream) for me. Fantastic! Total was around 20£.
After lunch, we strolled around the 18th green and the 1st tee at the Old Course. Easy for me to say, but the course does not look that hard, it’s wide open! Got some nice pictures of the bridge as you come up the 18th fairway and a few shots where they filmed scenes from the Chariots of Fire movie. Then we headed off to Edinburgh, trying to hug the coast as much as possible on the drive down. Saw quite a few run down areas, but also what looked like some summer vacation spots (not sure about that, my notes are spotty…)
We got to Edinburgh, and thought we knew where the hotel was, but we were wrong! We could see the hotel but had to go around the block quite a few times to get to it. We stayed at the Caledonian Hilton, which was a splendid hotel. Very old style, which we love, and we got upgraded to a suite which was enormous. Also, there was no air conditioning but we did not need it (the heat was not as bad as I’ve been reading about lately in Europe). We strolled around, trying to get a feel for the city, went to a restaurant (recommended by the concierge) called Creelers. Enjoyed poking around the back roads on the way there. We both had sweet potato soup, M had scallops and I had pan crusted haddock over mashed. Great meal! Took a very slow stroll back to the hotel along Princes Street, and called it a night.
Aug 14th, 2006, 04:26 AM
#18
Original Poster
Join Date: Apr 2006
Posts: 74
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
June 10th Saturday
We absolutely love Edinburgh! Except for New York City (which is our home), it may be our favorite city. We started the day off with the breakfast buffet in the Caledonian Hilton, not bad at all for a buffet. In addition to the usual fare, we tried pork and leek sausages, and fried toast. Today was our exploring Edinburgh on foot day. Back to great weather again, sunny, high 60s. We circled Edinburgh Castle to get to the top of the Royal Mile. The castle looks amazing, but we’re holding off until tomorrow to go inside.
Our first stop was St. Giles. There’s so much history here, it’s hard to keep track! Touted as the heart of Edinburgh since the 9th century and (we think) the central church of Scotland (at one time?) Beautiful stained glass throughout the building. I suppose it’s obvious to natives, but for a first time visitor, it’s really hitting home how much World War I (and of course WWII and the Boer War) is imbedded in the fabric of the British cities. There are memorials everywhere you turn, especially in churches. We went outside and studied the exterior, the medieval architecture is stunning.
Exploring the ‘closes’ is very interesting. Little alleyways leading from up on High Street all through the lower parts of the city. They are everywhere, each with their own personality. Next we did the tour of Mary Kings Close. This was an hour long underground tour of life in some of the closes in Edinburgh in the 1600s. (The bottom of which is now part of Princes Street Gardens). We had a so-so tour guide, but it was still interesting. Next we strolled all the way down the Royal Mile, then back up to Regent Road leading into Princes Street, then cut through Princes Street Gardens back to the hotel. This was a very cool day, we like poking around and getting the feel of a city on foot.
We went for a traditional Scottish dinner at Jackson’s on the Royal Mile. I finally had haggis (I thought they were great!) and lamb for dinner, and M had a pork appetizer and salmon entrée. Dessert was pecan brownie and ice cream for me, M had parfait. Very good meal, about 70£ with tip.
We wrapped up the night with the Ghost and Ghouls tour, which met near St. Giles. The tour was 90 minutes long, our tour guide was a woman named ‘Faith’, who was a very charismatic and animated guide. I was ‘volunteered’ to be a criminal who spoke out against the king, so I was ‘flogged, knifed and my tongue was cut out’! Faith told quite a few ghost stories and led an underground tour of the ghostly vaults. We walked back to the hotel, we were wiped out, a lot of walking today!
We absolutely love Edinburgh! Except for New York City (which is our home), it may be our favorite city. We started the day off with the breakfast buffet in the Caledonian Hilton, not bad at all for a buffet. In addition to the usual fare, we tried pork and leek sausages, and fried toast. Today was our exploring Edinburgh on foot day. Back to great weather again, sunny, high 60s. We circled Edinburgh Castle to get to the top of the Royal Mile. The castle looks amazing, but we’re holding off until tomorrow to go inside.
Our first stop was St. Giles. There’s so much history here, it’s hard to keep track! Touted as the heart of Edinburgh since the 9th century and (we think) the central church of Scotland (at one time?) Beautiful stained glass throughout the building. I suppose it’s obvious to natives, but for a first time visitor, it’s really hitting home how much World War I (and of course WWII and the Boer War) is imbedded in the fabric of the British cities. There are memorials everywhere you turn, especially in churches. We went outside and studied the exterior, the medieval architecture is stunning.
Exploring the ‘closes’ is very interesting. Little alleyways leading from up on High Street all through the lower parts of the city. They are everywhere, each with their own personality. Next we did the tour of Mary Kings Close. This was an hour long underground tour of life in some of the closes in Edinburgh in the 1600s. (The bottom of which is now part of Princes Street Gardens). We had a so-so tour guide, but it was still interesting. Next we strolled all the way down the Royal Mile, then back up to Regent Road leading into Princes Street, then cut through Princes Street Gardens back to the hotel. This was a very cool day, we like poking around and getting the feel of a city on foot.
We went for a traditional Scottish dinner at Jackson’s on the Royal Mile. I finally had haggis (I thought they were great!) and lamb for dinner, and M had a pork appetizer and salmon entrée. Dessert was pecan brownie and ice cream for me, M had parfait. Very good meal, about 70£ with tip.
We wrapped up the night with the Ghost and Ghouls tour, which met near St. Giles. The tour was 90 minutes long, our tour guide was a woman named ‘Faith’, who was a very charismatic and animated guide. I was ‘volunteered’ to be a criminal who spoke out against the king, so I was ‘flogged, knifed and my tongue was cut out’! Faith told quite a few ghost stories and led an underground tour of the ghostly vaults. We walked back to the hotel, we were wiped out, a lot of walking today!
