Galway Ireland Day One

Yippee yahooey! I'm in Ireland - I'm in Ireland - my number one bucket list wish fulfilled. I can't even tell you just how happy I am. The picture up above and to the right might look like I'm clenching my teeth and maybe not too happy but really I was just freezing. How could it happen that we leave MN in March and the weather jumps to 70 degrees and we go to England and Ireland where the temps are usually 60's this time of year and they have had, "the most wicked winter that they could ever remember" (or so they told us). Don't let the sunshine fool you in the picture either - this is the first day of sun we have seen and the temp this evening was about 35 degrees and I only had a windbreaker (no not Tom) or raincoat on. I know I was chilled but not freezing because I was way too pumped to be here in Galway.

The pic of Angela is at the Petra House Inn (she has her own room) and she is delighted that she can skype Michael with a little privacy. Huh, doesn't she think we would like our privacy too - we aren't that old YET! Tee hee!

The third picture is in our room where they had the sweetest little shamrock cup and saucer set, tea, biscuits and a hot water teapot. We are really embracing the "tea time" thing here in Europe and I think I will search for one of those teapots that you can just plug in and they boil the water in about 2 minutes (is that called a microwave ??? - it's so much more romantic to have a tea pot that you plug in just for tea time).

Today we traveled from York to Manchester by "rail" (they say that instead of 'by train') boarded a plane to Galway and rented a car and set off to find the Petra House Inn - yes, we got lost AGAIN - seems they don't need street signs in Europe - or at best they are an afterthought and Tom finally relented and stopped at a Petro station (gas station) to get directions. We were in the middle of "rush hour traffic" in the city center of Galway and by the time we made it to our Inn - we were stuck in high gear and wound as tight as a spring. We rang the door bell and 10 seconds inside the door with the most mellow, friendly and cheerful Irish man, our Inn keeper Frank, we went from 100 miles an hour down to zero. Frank has the smoothest, most calming voice and he took one look at us and knew we needed some nurturing.

He knew who we were, said he was expecting us and without even taking a credit card or our credentials said, "would you like to see your rooms!" They are the sweetest, coziest rooms and face the front of the house. Ours even has a huge bay picture window in it. The room was ready, sparkling clean and a welcome sight. The house had the smell of something baking and Angela asked Frank what it was. "Oh, we just popped in a few loaves of bread that will be ready for breakfast when you are." Ahhhhhhhhh, nurturing, comforting, home!

Tom and Frank brought in the luggage and Tom asked Frank for a suggestion of where to eat supper. We are just about 7 minutes walk from the downtown of Galway and though there are lots of places to eat, Frank suggested one of the closest An Pucan. Frank said, "they are doing some nice things with their menu these days." Isn't the Irish brogue the best ever? I do admire a good Australian accent too!

We came back to our room and were met by an e-mail from Think Bank telling us our credit card had been compromised but no charges had been added to it yet - still they suggested closing the account immediately. We do tend to have a black cloud overhead but we brush it off because we have the luck of having Think Bank that catches these things quick as a flash. It really gives us confidence in our bank and the fact that when I called (by skype - cool huh - free) the phone was answered within 3 rings by a real live person who could actually help. So - life is good.

We are off to Araan Island tomorrow (well, we will try to do that if we don't get lost) - we may check out Salthill and possibly the Abbey nearby. Angela isn't too thrilled to go to the abbey as it would be the 4th one she's seen already - they sure do have a lot of Abbey's in Europe! But what the heck, it is Holy week - what did she expect.

Off to our cozy beds. More tomorrow.

Whitby and the Steam Engines from Tom

Tom is writing today's blog ... here goes nothing ...
OK so I'm not the writer Terri is but after I had such a fabulous day she suggested I do the writing.
The day actually begin with planning late last night.Since we're still getting use to the time difference we don't get to bed until 1 am. Terri had heard that the steam train through the northern England moors(think of moors as foggy marshes as in Sherlock Holmes' Hound of the Baskervilles movie) wasn't running until April 2. Surprise surprise last night when we discovered a small railway station in Pickering that housed a steam train(think Petticoat Junction TV series) that journeyed all the way to the northeastern coast! We were thrilled but didn't know what to expect. Got up at 8 and after a breakfast of porridge(oatmeal) coffee, OJ, fried eggs, bacon(= crispy ham here), and toast(delivered in those cute toast holders that England has) we got in our Hertz black "gangsta" Mercedes and drove the 26 miles to Pickering. After driving down the quaint shop filled main street we turned the corner to find an ancient train depot.Got out and went to the ticker window(bars and all) where a delightful lady assured us that yes the train was running(since March 27) .After exchanging the 21 pounds for the round trip price for the three of use Terri and Angela retreated to the combination tea room/gift shop while I parked the car in the North Yorkshre Moor Railway lot. Angela had a scone while Terri had the scrumptuous potato leek soup(other choice carrot-parsnip...yikes!) and roll with a Sprite. We bought some postcards then at ten to noon the air was punctuated by a shrill steam whistle(thought I was watching Von Ryans Express) announcing it was time to board.
Each antique rail car had multiple individual berths big enough for 4 passengers complete with upholstered seats,wood paneling and a window that opened(with the usual warning that sticking your head out when passing another train wasn't a good idea). As the conductor yelled all aboard and we started to roll(chugga chugga) we were SOOO excited!The scenery including fir forests, hills dotted with sheep,farms divided by centuries old moss covered walls, along with periodic stops in tiny English villages was a treat to behold. After 88 minutes(these trains are prompt) we arrived in beautful Witby a seaport on the NE edge of England near the Scottish border. Borrowing my brother Mikes suggestion I asked a local where a good place to have lunch was and we were directed over a bridge and down multiple streets to the hilltop and oceanfront Duke of York pub which as we discovered had tables with commanding views of the sea. I swear one beefy patron nursing a beer with his ruddy face,black cap and turtle neck black sweater looked every bit like a vintage Old England fishing boat captain.

In pubs you order your food from the bar then they bring it to you.Terri got fish and chips(fries), I got a hot beef sandwich and Angela got lasagna. The pint of Stella beer on tap washed things down quite well for me too I might add! After lunch I left Terri and Ang with their books in the pub while I journeyed up 199 (yes they advertise the number) steps up to the ruins of a > 1000 year old abbey located high on a windswept cliff overlooking the town. After catching my breath at the top my eyes were awestruck by the view from that height. I will never forget standing there alone while the wind whipped at my jacket on that gray drizzly day while I gazed at the town below and even beyond at the ocean pounding at the shore. I became even more speechless as I turned around and walked amidst the roofless abbey structure which was as big as the Gonda AND Mayo building combined. As I rubbed my hands over the stones it blew my mind that the structure was as old as it was. It was really a time in my life that I will never forget...really.

After our 3 hour layover ended we returned to the depot and boarded our train home. Aside from getting lost in York on our way home it was a delightful day as you can see by the pictures. Tomorrow we journey to Ireland to see what beauty awaits us there. Good bye England. It was fun to see ya!
Chat more tomorrow!
Tommy(note the new hat)

James Herriot Land

We made it, we made it alive - oh my gosh - we made it driving on the "wrong side of the road" the whole way - well the right side of the road for England that is - but we did have a few close "shaves". We happily found a parking spot (very tight) and got out of the car - though it took us a minute or two to steady our shaking knees :o)

What a treat it was for us to see the original office and home of the author, James Herriot (Alf Wight). He is one of our favorite authors who wrote," All Creatures Great and Small" and many other wonderful books.

We used the audio guide (the remote I am holding in the pic) and took part in all of the interactive activities they had in his office and home. Angela milked a cow (see pic), examined x-rays and pulled a baby calf out of the backside of a "fake cow" - hmmm - maybe she has a future doing something like that.

Tom was in his glory - we took pics of him in the house, by Alf's car, in his office and even the makeshift tv studio they recreated from the tv series, All Creatures Great and Small. It was a very fun day. We dined in a great little cozy pub out of the rain and damp cold. Ahhh - warmth and some good food. On the way back to York, we sought out the Byland Abbey (built in the early 1200's) it was a mere skeleton of it's glory days but a treasure to behold nestled in the hidden countryside.

We made it back to York without calamity though the roundabouts with their various exits gave us a scare at one point when we thought we were going in the wrong direction. Tom quickly turned around and got us back on track.

We came back for another round of hot tea and biscuits, have been watching American Idol - of course, what else do you do in England, watch American T.V. Now we are contemplating supper. We will walk down into York for supper - Angela wants pizza as all she really has eaten for 2 months are potatoes. Tom wants to be more adventurous - I'll let you know who won tomorrow.

York and Thirsk

When we landed in York, we easily found our way to the front of the station (dragging along way too much luggage and one of the suitcases developed a "limp" as one of the wheels busted) and caught a "too small" taxi for all of our luggage. The taxi driver however, was easy going, jovial and put the suitcases in the back and left the trunk ajar because it couldn't close. We squeezed our way through the small streets (which were under road construction) and settled in front of the most quaint little street with row houses. At first we didn't know where our Inn was but we saw a small sign that said, "Hazelwood Inn" and once inside the iron gates, we found the sweetest little bed and breakfast Inn where Carolyn showed us the breakfast area (included in the price and Tom loves those meals best) and finally to our room which was on the third floor - stairs only - good exercise during this stay especially since we had to haul all of those heavy suitcases up all those stairs.

Our room was warm and ready for us and it wasn't long before we were out the door to explore York. We were guided by Carolyn to the Gillygate pub for supper and it was my first try at England's fish and chips (really fries). Yummmmmy! Tom had pork roast with more potatoes and carrots than a family of 5 could eat. Angela had "jacket potatoes" or our baked potato and a salad. We took a bit of a walk after dinner to move that food on down the digestive track and headed back to our room where Angela and I found the hot tea maker and shortbread biscuits waiting. Nothing like a warm cup of peppermint or herbal tea to help settle that food in your tummy.

Angela drew a bath and soaked for quite a while - then it was my turn - ahhh - it was a nice end to our day! We are eagerly awaiting our trip to Thirsk tomorrow (home of the author James Herriot - his pen name - real name: Alf Wight). See pic above of Tom driving on "the wrong side of the road" - will we make it to Thirsk in one piece? I hope so!

Day Two and Three

Up and going early, we were met by a rain, rain and more rain - I know, what did we expect in London but honestly - rain every minute of the day, 45 degree days and a bit of a wind made for a damp, chill you to the bone day.

We forged on and walked over the London bridge, down through Dead Man's Hole (a spot off the London bridge where dead bodies would often wash up after being dumped in the Thames River - ewww!) and went on the London Tower Tour.

Tom enjoyed the torture chamber area (double ewww!) while Angela and I preferred the beautiful Crown Jewels! The movies they had of Queen Elizabeth's coronation were awesome too.

After a long, wet walk back to our hotel, we opted to dry out and chill out at the lounge and ready for the Earth Hour dinner special. As it was daylight savings time day - London decided to sponsor an Earth Hour where everyone in London turned off their lights or used minimal lighting for one hour. It was awesome to see all the lights suddenly dim in London. The restaurant in our hotel where we enjoyed a wonderful meal was lit primarily by candles which just added to the ambience and excitement of the Earth hour concept. It was even a bit disappointing when the lights came back on.

We considered going to the London Eye as we were to leave in the morning for York but we were exhausted (knackered as they say in England - actually we were still jetlagged) and didn't fancy going out into the torrential rains that were pummeling London. We instead retired to our room for a warm bed and a good book. Ahhh.

The next morning Tom shouted out all of a sudden -" holy crap - is it really 11:35 a.m. we have to get out of here." We scrambled, packed as fast as possible and were downstairs and checked out of the hotel by 12:15 - amazing - I still don't know how we did it. At first, I was worried that our reservations for the train to York were for 12:35 (as originally planned) but Angela checked our trip itinerary on trip it and made us all relax a bit when she found that it was 2:35 not 12:35. Phew! We caught a taxi to London's King Cross station, grabbed lunch at Burger King - and by the way, it does not taste the same as our Burger King in the US, though the fries are better than ours, the meat and condiments had a bit of an odd flavor. In addition, they had NO ketchup - never have, never will - what is that anyway?? Fries with no ketchup - for shame, for shame.

We found a spot to sit, watched the pigeons walk all around the inside of the train station and awaited our train. We were a little concerned as we needed to know the Platform number that the train would come in on and we soon found that they only post the platform 5 minutes before the train is ready to leave. It was also super crowded in the train station and on the train and we were much relieved that, thanks to the help of Keith, Angela's boyfriend Michael's uncle - who advised us to get reservations in advance of coming to England. In fact, Keith saved our vacation when our tour and plane tickets were canceled three and 1/2 weeks before we were to leave for England - thanks Keith - you helped plan a wonderful and so far - stress free trip for us!

We had a beautiful train ride to York (and they have free wi fi internet on the train so Angela caught up on her skyping - hmmmm - I wonder who she is skyping with all the time, could it be .... Michael. ) Yes, so far Angela lives from internet connection to internet connection. We found they have hotspots all over England and you can purchase internet service for England and Ireland and pick it up in numerous spots (we are now living to see if we can get a connection in Galway). Yes Michael, she thinks of you just about 24-7 -- cute!

London 2010

Well - 24 hours in London - here goes nothin'

The Flight - a non-stop flight certainly is the way to go. Imagine - in Minneapolis, MN and 8 hours later - taking the Heathrow Express to Paddington (even the names sound so English). After supper and a sleeping pill I awaited blissful sleep but that was not to be. It is hard to believe that the airlines can put seats so close together but for the no frills bargain cost of $1000.00 you too can be squashed like a sardine into the smallest possible seating configuration (no reclining on these seats but of course that wasn't mentioned for seats 36A and B when I booked the reservations - hmm must have slipped their minds at Delta). Also, must have been an engineering majors greatest plight to figure out how to fit that many humans into such a small space and to add insult to injury - it is always fun to walk all the way past the first class and business sections just to show us zone 3 people what we could have had for another $1000.00. Hah!

So much for the US leg of the trip. On to England. It was 10 times easier to go through customs in England than it ever was to go through in Canada - phew - what a relief. With the wonderful assistance of from the waiting UK airline assistants we were swiftly moved to the Heathrow Express where we took a 5 minute ride to the last train that would deliver us to Paddington station where our Angela awaited us.

When we got into the Paddington station it was if Tom had instant radar for Angela. He wound his way in and out of the crowds and found Angela in a station of 1000's of people within minutes. Watery eyes met us as we hugged up our little girl. It was so great to see her after two 1/2 months.

We caught a taxi and off we zipped to the London Bridge Tower Hilton. That's right, it was blocks from the London bridge. What a beautiful structure. We checked into our hotel and headed up to our room. The bed was so inviting as we

With bags in tow and after a lot of long missed hugs, we found our way to the taxi stands and there lined up were the cutest "super nanny" type cars all in a row. We made our way around London to the London Tower bridge Hilton. Oh, it felt so good to find our way to our room but not to bed as we were trying to cheat jet lag.

Too late, I was done in and so out of it that I crashed immediately. Tom was much more adventurous and he and Angela went out and about our Hotel and found the London Bridge Tower. (see pics) I slept through the rest of the day and all night till the next morning as I did not even sleep one hour on the plane. I was however, bright eyed and bushy tailed by 8:00 am the next morning and ready to go!