In 2003 Mr Cool and I moved to London for 18 months. It was the coolest thing I have ever done, bar making people that is! We had such a blast, but it was hard as well and we learnt so much. We ate our way through various countries, taught in some really really bad schools, met some fabulous people and found that our Mr Cool and I are actually, quite simply, perfect for each other.
Way back then, people didn't really have blogs, but I began sending emails home to friends and family, telling tales of our travels. It was a great way to journal about what had been going on and sharing the crazy, embarrassing and nutty things we got up to. The fun thing was that my friends and family would forward my emails on to their friends. Random people would email me asking to get added to my email send out - talk about flattery! It was great. So, now, all these years later, I thought I might add them to my blog, as 'Vintage B' items. It is a great way to remember our travel tales and also some hilarious moments!
These posts are not edited or formatted in anyway, they are literally plucked from the 'Airport' and pasted onto the blog post thingie. I really want them to be authentic travel tales. So, if there are errors, I apologise, I was probably in the middle of bustling Covent Garden avoiding spilling my coffee on the terminal, or a caravan park in Wales with hippies cueing up behind me to use the internet, or bobbing somewhere in the Mediterranean while my dinner table was being set.
I hope you enjoy them. Beware, there are lots and they are being chosen randomly.
Mwah,
B
Date: Thursday, 14 August 2003
Subject: Belindaland: M&B GBA - Bonnie Scotland
Hellooo out there from the land of 'Heilin Coos',
'Weee moooses' and 'Scottie Dugs' - that is from
Scotland in case that was not obvious enough.
We have travelled far in our little tent, thinking
that we were roughing it, but I think we were kidding
ourselves. We realised this when we arrived at a
campsite at the foot of some amazing mountains in
Scotland. It was midge infested (blood sucking,
swarming, annoying and easily inhaled bugs) and the
facilities were in basically a converted caravan. We
pulled up in our oma-mobile, unpacked our four man
tent with extra room for sitting, our butterfly backed
folding chairs, folding table, our portable stove,
saucepans, cups, plates, bowls, extra cutlery, huge
washing up bowl, volumous air mattress, proper quilt,
pillows, towels, mocha pot and Ikea kitchen
accessories and looked around. All the other tents
were miniscule; fit into a shopping bag kind of thing
with a tiny gas bottle with a fixture on top especially
for tiny saucepans that doubled as bowls etc etc ...
and all of their gear fitted neatly into backpacks or
panniers (bags for bikes). The other campers ate
re-hydrated space age protein based food stuffs from
vacuum sealed aluminium packages; we hopped into our
car and went to the local inn, I had a venison burger
(as you do - I renamed it - the Bambi Bap) with a tall
fizzy drink then reclined to my tent to sleep it off.
We only stayed in that campsite for one night, no-one
can live in those conditions!
We made our way to Glasgow (with a G, Mikey!). We did
not plan to stop here, we had heard that it was not
all that good. But I actually planned the itinerary -
which on some occasions meant that we were to travel
up to 200 miles a day - which is quite a task - I kept
forgetting that all the distances are in miles - oops.
So this stop in Glasgow is half way between where we
were and where we are meant to be .. if that makes
sense. As teachers we are flexible, plans are only
there to be altered as required. We are in a campsite
at the moment that is in the middle of council
housing, quite strange really. Last night I nearly
had my trainers (sneakers) pinched while I was
showering! Thieving Scots!
Scotland is one of the most amazing countries I have
been to. It has everything, Lochs, Mountains,
coastlines straight from a postcard, funny cows, cosy
pubs .. ooh it is lovely. We really expected it to
look like England, but it is nothing like it. England
has rolling hills, here there are mountains so amazing
I can't even begin to describe their grandeur - other
than to say that you can see God's fingerprints in
every one. It is like when God was making the UK he
smoothed England virtually flat which bunched up all
the land in Scotland - it is lovely.
We camped at Inverness for four nights - we were
feeling a bit road weary so decided to have some easy
days. We drove up to John O Groates which is the most
northern town in Scotland. It is just an end of the
road kind of place, selling lots of stuffed toys and
touristy stuff. We had read about a place called the
Dunscanby Stacks which are kind of like 'The 12
Apostles' in the Bight in Australia. We packed a
picnic lunch (not really my thing, but Mikey loves
eating things on rugs amid stinking paddocks, spilling
crumbs and being swarmed by bees and bugs and such)
and walked a few hundred metres to where we had a view
of the stacks. It was amazing.
As I was finishing off my dessert peach, I saw a
strange shape in the water. I stood and looked over
the edge, it was a seal! So I called Mike and he
confirmed it, although he was looking somewhere
completely different - he was seeing another one.
Then all of a sudden, there were a dozen, then two
dozen, then three dozen! We moved around the headland
to get a better view and I counted 47 seals in the bay
and more were coming around the headland. It was one
of the most amazing things I have ever seen. One
second they would be lazing belly up catching some
rays, the next they would all simultaneously dive
under the water and then reappear licking their
wiskery lips (do seals have lips?). We sat and
watched them for about half an hour. When the seals
started moving out of the bay we walked back to the
car, agog that we had seen such an amazing spectacle.
When tourist busses pulled up, I wanted to rush over
and say, "We just saw 50 seals in the bay! They were
just swimming and playing and ..... well, now they are
gone, you have missed them ... SUCKERS!" But I
refrained.
The day we moved on from Inverness, we had a picnic
lunch (again) and circumnavigated Loch Ness, I thought
I saw a few monsters, but it was just some nutty
backpackers skinny dipping! Cast your mind back to
Mikey's famous 'Its not a bridge until...' test from
earlier editions... I am ashamed to say that Mikey has
formed a new test to test if a Loch is a Loch. Don't
ask. All I can say is that it requires being out of
view .... gross. Loch Ness is an official Loch. Nice
One Mike!
We have seen so much in the last few weeks, that I
can't remember what I have documented and what I
haven't, so I am sure there are bits I have missed. I
guess when we get back to Australia, you will all have
to have us over for coffee so that we can show you the
photos! Hint, hint!
We are in Glasgow at the moment, at an Internet Cafe
that is actually cheap - we were so shocked, we bought
coffees and a couple of hours ... hmm, adding that
into it, this isn't actually cheap! Oh, well it is
nice to get some things down and hear from friends and
family.
From here we are going to a place called Carlisle
which is right on Hadrian's wall which was built .. um
ages ago and goes from coast to coast, it was built to
stop someone from getting into England. I will tell
you more about it in the next exciting instalment ...
at least I hope it will be exciting. We have realised
that we are already half way through our summer trip,
it is a bit sad, but we have seen so much so that is
good.
Well, I must sign off, time hear does press on and we
haven't seen anything of Glasgow. We are hoping to
see some art galleries and museums so that is going to
be fun.
Oh, while I think of it. Mike and I have been sharing
in some very meaningful and highly philosophical
discussions as are customary with road trips. I need
someone to offer Mikey some counselling on a
particular topic of discussion. Mikey thinks that
bees get sick of eating honey, because they are
forever making it! Help! His email address is:
Later skaters, or Up yer Kilt as they say here!
B
