From Brits to Scots

On Tuesday, we got up early in an attempt to make the most of our last day in London. After a long stop at the internet cafe and a trip back to Portobello Road, we went back to our apartment for lunch. After lunch, we walked through Hyde Park. The park was gorgeous and the weather perfect, and there were people everywhere enjoying it. There were tons of trees-it looked like a mini forest, and a large pond filled with ducks and swans. On the grass area surrounding the pond there were many wooden and fabric lounge chairs. Some were empty so we sat down. We relaxed in them for a few minutes until a man informed us we had to pay to use them. Boo. We got up instead and walked around the pond shore, careful not to step in any green duck poos. As we left the pond area we noticed a gate with large topiaries inside. Anxious, we went towards it and inside found a large tea house called "The Orangery" which overlooked a well groomed courtyard. This was perfect. We hadn't yet had tea in England and this was not only perfect timing, but it looked like the perfect setting, too! We sat down and ordered two peppermint teas. We weren't sure what all the different sweets and biscuits were, so we ordered 4 different kinds, just to be safe. The best ended up being cheese scones and chocolate and vanilla sponge cake.

We left "The Orangery" full and satisfied and finished our walk through the park and towards the nearest tube station. On our way, we came across Urban Outfitters. I couldn't possibly pass without going inside. Unlike the one I'm used to, it consisted of 3 floors and included a floor of music and a floor of "designer vintage" women's fashion. It was a nice reminder of home. After we looked around a bit, we went to the High Street Kensington Station and caught the next tram to Westminster, right next to Big Ben and the Thames River. It was quite chilly, so I grabbed some hot cocoa and we sat down on a bench and enjoyed the view for a while. Then we decided to catch a boat cruise. We were in luck, kind of. We were just in time to catch the last boat to Tower Bridge (just a few miles down the river). Unfortunately, it didn't come back through. If we wanted to be back near Big Ben and the London Eye during night time, which we did, we'd have to get there on our own. No problem. We got our tickets and waited for about 20 minutes for the boat. We noticed an abnormal amount of poles surrounding us. Feeling giddy, we discovered yet another ideal location for practicing pole dancing: The Docks. We shared the boat with just a handful of passengers and, as they all satyed inside the boat we had the open upstairs all to ourselves. This meant we could continue our dancing, without the poles though. Just to be sure we weren't being disrespectful, we asked the captain, a white haired curmudgeonly fellow, if we'd be allowed to dance on the top deck. Without even looking at us he replied,"Do whatever you'd like, love." Ya! Dancing freedom! We spent most of the ride dancing ridiculously as the sun set over London. It was good times.

Do whatever you'd like, love...

When we got back to the Houses of Parliament, after taking the tube from Tower Hill, night was barely falling. We walked around, enjoyed the buildings all lit up and got some great night photos. We got home around 11 and began packing our bags for the next days trip to Scotland.

We were up early on Wednesday, excited about our train ride and eager to see the countryside again. We left from the King's Cross Station around 10:30. The train was light with passengers and we were both able to get window seats and a table. We wanted to use the 4 1/2 hour ride to catch up on some writing but with the amazing scenery outside it was to do anything but stare out the window. We passed through classic English countryside, rolling, lush green pastures filled with sheep and their lambs, brick cottages with white trim and clotheslines blowing in the wind. When we got further north, the view got even better as we traveled along the coast of the North Sea. We were both real glad we had decided to take the train to Edinburgh. It had provided us with exactly what we thought it would-the opportunity to see some more of the country. We arrived in Edinburgh Waverly Train Station at 3:00 in the afternoon. We got our luggage and headed on what we hoped would be a short walk to our hotel. The short walk turned out to be about a mile, through the crowded and unexpectedly warm downtown Edinburgh sidewalks. By the time we reached The Clarendon, we were hot, sweaty and exhausted. We had been spoiled the past week by staying in a one bedroom apartment complete with a kitchen, two clocks and a heated towel rack in the bathroom. Now we were again reduced to a regular old hotel room with incomplete crown molding, no alarm clocks (or remote control) and a view of our unusable stone balcony. At least there's no gaping hole in the ceiling and a full Scottish breakfast is included. We took a much needed 2 hour nap and felt better, but a little hungry. We left in search of a Marks & Spencer, but came back with Subway sandwiches. Apparently, everything closes at 6:00 pm around here. We also found the nearest internet cafe, located on the basement floor of a McDonalds. Unfortunately, it closed at 10:30, and at the time, it  was 10:28. We needed more than 2 minutes. We carried our food to our hotel, ate, and went to bed.

We woke up this morning at 8:30, and headed down to a mysterious Scottish breakfast. The menu included baked beans, fried potatoes, bacon, sausage, eggs, and grilled tomatoes. Luckily, there was also frosted flakes and toast, which we gladly ate along with the only things on the menu that we were comfortable trying: beans and potatoes. The rest of the day will be spent touring Edinburgh Castle, Camera Obscura (a museum of optical illusions and special effects) and whatever else we may stumble across.

Only 2 more days left in Europe. We'll let you know how it goes.

Thanks again for reading! See you soon!

Miss you and love you all,

Jess & Chris