Photoblog: Driving Around Britain
New travel photos up at Flickr.
In October, Mum, Emily and I hired a car and drove ourselves around England, Wales and Scotland. We saw lots of old castles, visited the Lakes district, Snowdonia National Park in Wales, Glasgow and Oban in Scotland where our ancestors are from, and many places along the way!
Thursday 11th October
Emily, Mum and I bade farewell to the Haggis Cornwall Crusaders in Salisbury. Here, we collected our car and began our self-drive tour of Britain. First stop: Bristol Travelodge, which turned out to be a nightmare to find. Many thanks to Mum and Emily for driving and navigating. You did a splendid job. :)
Friday 12th October
The first morning we set out, with the aim of arriving in Halkyn, Wales by that evening. We drove through Telford and Wellington, towns associated with my great-grandfather on Marts' side. We had a picnic lunch by the River Avon, next to the first Iron Bridge ever built:
Later, we arrived in Wales, stopping at an enchanting little town called Llangollen.
We also visited some stunning Roman remains, the ancient city of Viroconium, near Wroxeter.
Saturday 13th October
The next day we drove along the North coast of Wales, past seaside towns (one of which was Rhyl) and along a coastal toll road, with some stunning cliff and ocean scenery.
Then we made it to the beautiful Snowdonia National Park. We drove through some breathtaking scenery, stopping along the way for photos.
We stopped at a cute little town for lunch in a cafe. I had a delicious tomato and lentil soup and it seemed like everyone else in the town was eating chips + curry.
More driving until we came to Caernarfon Castle, built in 1283. We spent quite a bit of time wandering around the castle in the rainy weather. Good fun. :)
Then we found Conwy Castle, but it was closed for the day. In the photo below you can see our massive blue Volvo.
Sunday 14th October
Drove from Halkyn to Penrith. Goodbye Wales, Hello Lakes District. :)
We caught a car-ferry across Lake Windermere which was rather good fun.
And most importantly, we visited Beatrix Potter's House!
We stopped for lunch at a town on Lake Windermere.
And by the end of the day we were in Glasgow!
Monday 15th October
We walked around Glasgow a bit in the rain. It was fun being in a city again, and I loved the accents. Didn't see a great deal, but I was grateful to find an internet cafe. I think that night we had pizza at an old-school Italian restaurant with a waiter who was a bit of a character. :)
Tuesday 16th October
Next, we were on our way to Oban. Quite a lot of gorgeous scenery on the way into the Highlands.
For my entire trip, I was very lucky with the weather. The sun kept coming out just when I needed it and rainbows followed us.
Stopped at the Falls of Lora, turbulent waters that form at the mouth of Loch Etive when a particularly high tide runs out from the loch.
Then we arrived in picturesque Oban.
We also drove up to McCaig's Tower, overlooking Oban and the harbour.
And we visited High Street, where my maternal great-grandfather grew up. This is mum outside No. 21.
Wednesday 17th October
Today we drove to Port Appin, tracing our Campbell family history. We found the smithy that used to be run by my great-grandfather, we visited the local cemetary to search for Campbells and we spoke to a lady at the post office who knew a bit about the family. Pretty exciting!
We had lunch at a cafe that overlooked Castle Stalker:
And we also stopped to explore the impressive Dunstaffnage Castle, near Oban.
Thursday 18th October
We drove from Oban to Edinburgh. Our accomodation was rather nice...close to the centre of town and featuring four-poster beds. We spent some time in the afternoon looking in the shops and wandering about the city.
Friday 19th October
Our final day in Scotland... We visited a "Georgian House", a museum on Charlotte Square set up to look like something from Pride and Prejudice. Then Em and I used the internet while mum went to the dentist (We finally found someone who wasn't booked out!). In the afternoon we toured Edinburgh Castle, which had some nice views over the city.
Yay! Kilts! :)
In the evening I met up with Frances and Kristian for dinner and drinks. It was really fun to catch up with them. I wish I could have stayed in Edinburgh longer. I'll be back! :)
Early the next morning, while it was still dark, we boarded a plane, said goodbye to Edinburgh (and Britain) and flew to Paris, where the next leg of our adventure began.
In October, Mum, Emily and I hired a car and drove ourselves around England, Wales and Scotland. We saw lots of old castles, visited the Lakes district, Snowdonia National Park in Wales, Glasgow and Oban in Scotland where our ancestors are from, and many places along the way!
Thursday 11th October
Emily, Mum and I bade farewell to the Haggis Cornwall Crusaders in Salisbury. Here, we collected our car and began our self-drive tour of Britain. First stop: Bristol Travelodge, which turned out to be a nightmare to find. Many thanks to Mum and Emily for driving and navigating. You did a splendid job. :)
Friday 12th October
The first morning we set out, with the aim of arriving in Halkyn, Wales by that evening. We drove through Telford and Wellington, towns associated with my great-grandfather on Marts' side. We had a picnic lunch by the River Avon, next to the first Iron Bridge ever built:
Later, we arrived in Wales, stopping at an enchanting little town called Llangollen.
We also visited some stunning Roman remains, the ancient city of Viroconium, near Wroxeter.
Saturday 13th October
The next day we drove along the North coast of Wales, past seaside towns (one of which was Rhyl) and along a coastal toll road, with some stunning cliff and ocean scenery.
Then we made it to the beautiful Snowdonia National Park. We drove through some breathtaking scenery, stopping along the way for photos.
We stopped at a cute little town for lunch in a cafe. I had a delicious tomato and lentil soup and it seemed like everyone else in the town was eating chips + curry.
More driving until we came to Caernarfon Castle, built in 1283. We spent quite a bit of time wandering around the castle in the rainy weather. Good fun. :)
Then we found Conwy Castle, but it was closed for the day. In the photo below you can see our massive blue Volvo.
Sunday 14th October
Drove from Halkyn to Penrith. Goodbye Wales, Hello Lakes District. :)
We caught a car-ferry across Lake Windermere which was rather good fun.
And most importantly, we visited Beatrix Potter's House!
We stopped for lunch at a town on Lake Windermere.
And by the end of the day we were in Glasgow!
Monday 15th October
We walked around Glasgow a bit in the rain. It was fun being in a city again, and I loved the accents. Didn't see a great deal, but I was grateful to find an internet cafe. I think that night we had pizza at an old-school Italian restaurant with a waiter who was a bit of a character. :)
Tuesday 16th October
Next, we were on our way to Oban. Quite a lot of gorgeous scenery on the way into the Highlands.
For my entire trip, I was very lucky with the weather. The sun kept coming out just when I needed it and rainbows followed us.
Stopped at the Falls of Lora, turbulent waters that form at the mouth of Loch Etive when a particularly high tide runs out from the loch.
Then we arrived in picturesque Oban.
We also drove up to McCaig's Tower, overlooking Oban and the harbour.
And we visited High Street, where my maternal great-grandfather grew up. This is mum outside No. 21.
Wednesday 17th October
Today we drove to Port Appin, tracing our Campbell family history. We found the smithy that used to be run by my great-grandfather, we visited the local cemetary to search for Campbells and we spoke to a lady at the post office who knew a bit about the family. Pretty exciting!
We had lunch at a cafe that overlooked Castle Stalker:
And we also stopped to explore the impressive Dunstaffnage Castle, near Oban.
Thursday 18th October
We drove from Oban to Edinburgh. Our accomodation was rather nice...close to the centre of town and featuring four-poster beds. We spent some time in the afternoon looking in the shops and wandering about the city.
Friday 19th October
Our final day in Scotland... We visited a "Georgian House", a museum on Charlotte Square set up to look like something from Pride and Prejudice. Then Em and I used the internet while mum went to the dentist (We finally found someone who wasn't booked out!). In the afternoon we toured Edinburgh Castle, which had some nice views over the city.
Yay! Kilts! :)
In the evening I met up with Frances and Kristian for dinner and drinks. It was really fun to catch up with them. I wish I could have stayed in Edinburgh longer. I'll be back! :)
Early the next morning, while it was still dark, we boarded a plane, said goodbye to Edinburgh (and Britain) and flew to Paris, where the next leg of our adventure began.