It has been a long day riding on the bus. We stopped every hour and one-half to two hours which helped break the day up. We left at 7:45 this morning and arrived at our hotel at 5:45.
Our first stop was at a farmhouse that was built in 1645. The lady of the house served scones that she had baked that morning with clotted cream and jam and of course tea. I passed on trying them as they are full of sugar and flour. They looked delicious. She gave us the history of the house. Beatrice Potter owned the property at some point and when she died, donated the land to a trust of some sort. Local farmers then rent the property and care for the land. Care of the house is a mutual project between the trust and the families that live in the houses.
We drove through the Lake District which was beautiful countryside. We stopped at some lake for a photo opportunity. We continued north and ended in Edinburgh, Scotland. We stopped just over the border at a little town and had lunch. I think we made one other stop somewhere to have snacks and coffee. I kinda lose track of the day.
I had dinner in the hotel tonight. It was late and I don’t like going out on the streets to find food after dark. I had a hamburger and it was OK. The meat had a funny texture to it but it was edible. Service was good. I asked for iced tea. They bring me a cup of tea that had a tea bag in it that they had added one ice cube to. I asked for a glass of ice – it melted immediately. I kinda got a glass of iced tea tonight!
Tomorrow I get to sleep in a bit as we don’t start our group until 8:45. Breakfast is before that in the hotel. We will take a bus city tour of Edinburgh and then we are touring Edinburgh castle. We are to be done by 12:30 and then the rest of the day and evening is on our own.
I’m not sure what I want to do tomorrow. It isn’t supposed to rain so I will probably get out and walk around a bit. I haven’t done much souvenir shopping yet so may try to look at some shops. There is a church or two I would like to go into if they are close enough.
I am sending some laundry out in the morning and it is to be back in my room by 5:00. It will be good to have clean clothes again. It will also be nice to spend two nights in the same place. I won’t get to see much of Scotland as we head south on Friday. I would have loved to get further north in the country but we only have two days here.
Friday we depart for York and then will spend the night in Leeds. It looks like it will be another long day on the bus as will Saturday when we drive back to London.
The countryside is absolutely beautiful. So very green and lush. It feels like springtime to me. The flowers are blooming and the fields are so green it almost hurts your eyes to look at it. There is a very slight hint of autumn in the trees though. The high tomorrow is to be 64. After the heat of London it feels good to be cool again but I may need to purchase some warmer clothes.
I love seeing all the dry stack rock fences. Makes me feel right at home!
Friday and Saturday are forecasted to be rainy days. It looks like that might be the case in Dublin when I get there Sunday. I may need to get an umbrella tomorrow to get myself prepared.
I had a period of time this afternoon that my legs got restless. It was so hard to sit still so I wouldn’t bother the lady in front of me. I wanted to get up and walk for a bit but we are discouraged from doing that on the bus. My legs finally calmed down and I enjoyed the rest of the drive.
The insurance adjuster sent me a text and an email today. Things are moving on his side. He still hasn’t sent the payment for the windows but is paying for the total siding repair and the roof. I hope to have that money in my bank account by the end of the week. Not sure when he is going to send window money.
My first week of this grand adventure is done. 13 more days to go. Part of me is ready to come home today but Ireland awaits. I trust I will find Ireland to be the best part of the trip.
Grateful for another safe day of travel, grateful I can send laundry out tomorrow and grateful for comfortable hotel rooms at night to rest in.