September 12th In Scotland

We left London Town around dawn to catch our plane to Glasgow.  Paul and I decided to take a cab from the Glasgow airport since we didn't know where we were going and needed to catch up with The Rauzi's.  Within 20 seconds after getting inside the cab we were questioned about our American political leanings by the cabbie.  It was all in good fun.
Thankfully, we found Cynthia who was searching for us on a busy pedestrian street in downtown Glasgow.  The boys went off to sort out the car hire and Cynthia and I fled on foot and found the bagpipe museum where we learned about all things bagpipes.  We even got to try our hand at the pipes and sadly I discovered that I suck at playing bagpipes.  A little disheartening given my Irish/Scot genetics. 


We ate lunch at the famous Willow Tea Rooms designed by the famous Charles Rennie Macintosh.  Later on we went to the modern museum of art and another interactive art show.  The boys turned in early and Cynthia and I found a nearby Irish bar and witnessed a near brawl...good times! 

Tomorrow we head to Oban in the highlands!

Catching Up - September 11th in London

Sorry we are behind with travel updates.  We ran out of time toward the end of London and had to catch an early plane to Glasgow.  But I made notes and can fill you in.

Tuesday - September 11th in London
The day did not get off to a promising start.  We finally got up on time and moving in the right direction and wanted to make the most of our last day in London and catch up on some of the sights on our list.  So off we headed to Westminster Abbey which was third highest on my list, and weaved our way on foot to stand in front of this beautiful church. As we were gazing up at this beautiful structure eager to get in, we noticed the sign that said, "Closed on Tuesday."  After a few swear words and near tears, muttering things about who wanted to see the place where there have been royal weddings, burials, and coronations through the centuries, I collected myself and off to the Churchill War Rooms down the street.  The line was a mile long and they said it would be a long wait.  Damn.  So off we raced through St. James Park to Buckingham Palace to catch the changing of the guard.  Luckily, we found a great spot to watch and our noses were pressed against the wrought iron fence in anticipation...right before there was an announcement there would be no changing of the guard today.

                                            Westminster Abbey where we did not get to visit

Frustration with a side of depression was setting in but luckily the Royal Mews, where the Queen keeps some of the Royal horses and related equine regalia, was around the corner.  It is a working stable and the minute I caught sent of the familiar odors of a horse barn my mind and body calmed (it’s a horse-girl thing).  This place was really cool!  We got to see some of the horses that pull the carriages during royal weddings, the Queen’s Jubilee, and other formal outings.  The golden carriage commissioned in 1760 was on display and it has been used in the past five coronations of queens and kings. 

Buckingham Palace 

where we did not see the changing of the guard

Queens Jubilee Carriage at the Royal Mews

                                                       Krissy the Equestrian Guard

                                                                

Tomorrow Glasgow to meet up with the Rauzi’s in Glasgow Scotland!!

We are still here!

Hello - sorry I've been tardy with posts, but been busy travelers and internet service issues. I'm sending this from my phone as we drive through the highlands. I will try to update tonight.  It's raining...imagine that!
                                 The lads!

The Tower and The Shard on Monday

Good day-
Yesterday was great fun in London.  We spent most of the day at the Tower of London which was high on my list of sights.  This made all those shows of The Tudors come to life!  William the Conqueror began building the Tower of London in the early 1100's and his successors continued to add on through generations.  We stood on the spot where  two wives of Henry VIII, Anne Boleyn and Catherine, among other unlucky people, were beheaded.  Following the beheading site, we were treated to viewing some torture equipment.  On a less bloody note, the Crown Jewels was also fun to see. 

Note to McCollum Cousins, in my research on Grandma's side there was an ancestor that slightly misbehaved toward authority in Dublin and I believe was a guest in the Tower.
I also believe a Jacobite ancestor from my maternal side might have been a guest.

View of Tower Bridge from Tower of London Next we walked across the Tower Bridge and took a tour into the towers to go through an exhibit on the building of the bridge in the late 1800s.  Paul was fascinated by the engineering and other boy stuff regarding bridge building.

Luckily Paul was able to get a hold of a business related colleague and friend, Graham, who happens to work close to the Tower Bridge.  Graham took us to a fun pub located right under the London Bridge and it was great to talk with him over a pint or two (note - I'm drinking out of a pewter tankard).  Graham helped us get into the Shard's 52nd floor and Paul and I had a beverage overlooking London at night.  It was a beautiful experience, thank you, Graham!

The Shard is the tall building in the background

Views of the city and Tower Bridge from the 55th floor of the Shard at night.









Tuesday is the last day we will be in London and we'll send you an update before heading to Glasgow Scotland!

In London

Hello -
We've been busy with travel and sleeping at odd times to catch up to UK time, so this is the first chance we have had to blog.  So far, we are having a great time in England.  We are staying in a small inn outside of London in one 17 rooms housed above a pub/brewery built in the late 1800s, The Brewer's Inn (in Wandsworth, England).  The horse-loving person I am is enjoying the beautiful draft horse pictures on the walls of the days when they pulled the big beer barrel wagons. Amazing Full English breakfast each morning and lovely ales on tap for later in the day.

 

Yesterday I fulfilled my personal holy trinity of sports venues and we visited Wimbledon (the other two venues were Notre Dame Stadium and St Andrew's Golf Course).  Some of you know that I am a big tennis fan and this was a highlight of my life!  Our hotel is only about 5 miles from the suburb of Wimbledon so we didn't have to go far.  The tour was great and we got to see a lot of behind the scenes parts of the All England Tennis Club, including the interview room where I got to sit in the player chairs where they go after the matches to meet the press.  Centre Court was beautiful and we got to sit in the stands (the good seats) across from the Royal Box on court.  A goose bump moment as I imagined all my heroes through the years that have played and won the tournament.  Our guide provided us with Wimbledon history, even things I didn't know.  We followed our tour with lunch in the Wimbledon Cafe and a tour of the museum.  I won't go into detail about our shopping in the Wimbledon Store.

Later in the day, Paul and I introduced ourselves to the train station and headed into Central London.  We walked around Parliament Square and caught glimpses of Westminster Abbey and such.  Sadly, Big Ben is under construction and covered in scaffolding and hidden from view.  We tried to find a pub showing the Chiefs game but no luck, the only game the UK sports station showed was the Cowboys. 

I am writing this as I have my Full English breakfast and now going to get ready for a full day in London Town...stay tuned.

Back to Scotland!

Hello from New Jersey (awaiting our flight to England) -
Paul and I were asked to join our good friends, Tom and Cynthia Rauzi, on their trip to Scotland.  'Hell yeah', was our immediate response.  We were in Edinburgh two years ago but did not make it to the highlands which has been on my bucket list.  While in the lowlands last time, I saw a few ancestral connections in Edinburgh and around the Kingdom of Fife, but now I get the awesome opportunity to see a few more DNA strands scattered about the beautiful highlands.  I suspect there might be a bit of whisky tasting as my friend Dr. Rauzi has identified a few distilleries to visit along the way.  My threat to buy bagpipes is falling on deaf ears from my family.  Anyway, so very excited to go explore and spend time with the Godparents of Kaitlyn.
Before we join The Rauzi's in Glasgow, Paul and I will be going to London for four days.  We have been to England one other time but not to London and we're most excited.  We change planes in Dublin but will only be there for an hour so probably not a lot of time for me to get into trouble...maybe.