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We got up at 5:00 AM to get ready to go. We pulled our luggage (two bags each plus carry ons and purses) about four blocks to the underground. We made it and bought ONE WAY tickets to Heathrow Terminal 1-2-3. We managed to get us and everythng on by working together. We arrived to find we had to use an escalator or call for help to use the lift. Trista thought we could use the escalator. The plan was for Trista to go to the top of the escalator and we would send the bags up to her. NOT a good plan. Some bags turned over and slid back down. It was really a mess. I was the last one up and a bag previously sent up began to slide toward me. It hit me and I dropped my new watch. Chloe hopped on at the top of this up escalator to try to help and the bag (which I was keeping from sliding down) crashed into her because she had fallen. I had nowhere to step off and was yelling at Trista to “drag her out of the way!”. Two security men came running from around the corner and when they saw us with all our bags a mess and Chloe laying on the floor they did not see the humor in the situation. They just told us to “use a trolley”. We did.

We had lots of time and did some last London shopping in the airport. They are so particular about the size of everyones carry ons and even stopped people to measure them. But they did not care about anything we had bought in the airport shops. Seems sort of silly.

The flight was good but, of course, long. The movie channel worked this time which was helpful. Also, a very young gentelman and his two little children sat by me. His wife had suddenly and unexpectedly died in their home in England. The military was sending him to a base close to family so he could have help and support. It was very sad. The children wanted to know if I was moving because I had known their mother.

We had a long delay at Chicago but made it home safely. My husband and Chloe’s Mom were waiting for us and they were such a nice sight. It has been such a good trip and I really enjoyed traveling with Trista and Chloe.

We started the day fairly early and went to Leicester Square to purchase discount tickets to “The Lion King” at the Lyceum Theatre. We got seats in the “circle” section.

We then went to Victoria Station and caught a train to Dorking Deepdene. Trista wanted to visit there. She had never been but heard the name announced on the train all the time “calling at Dorking Deepdene”. We thought it sounded funny and we were hoping to get mugs or t-shirts or something funny with the name on it. We traveled to Dorking and found Dorking Deepdene was really just he name of the train station. The town itself was just Dorking which is funny enough. But apparently they don’t see the humor in their name because we could not find any memorabilia with the name on it, not even serious ones. The town was nice and we ate a pasty at a little shop there for lunch. I had never had a pasty before coming to England and really like them. We also saw a restaurant called Wimpys which apparently is quite common but struck us as funny.

We then went to Merstham to retrieve the rest of our luggage from Alice’s flat. She was home but it was hard leaving because she could not hear hardly at all and we were having a very difficult time making her understand we were not staying but WERE leaving Trista’s food for her. Then we headed for the hotel in London with all our luggage. We may not have planned too well as it was rush hour. The train was fine to Victoria Station but the underground was packed! It took about three passing trains before we worked out way close enough for Chloe and I to get on. We left Trista on the platform and she took the next train. Luckily Chloe and I had learned how to use the system and were able to go on.

We then took the underground to Embankment and walked to the theater. The play was really good but everything is catching up with me. I am tired and had to fight dozing off. There were several people sleeping which surprised me. After the show we retraced our steps and stayed up at the hotel until about 2:00 AM getting packed and organized for tomorrow.

We ate the breakfast provided by the hotel. It consisted of apple juice, corn flakes, milk, tea or coffee and toast we had to make ourselves served in a too small room. I figured out the old fashioned toaster (no help from the hotel staff) and made us each some toast.

We then left for the Camden Market. We used the Earls Court station of the underground. I love the underground. It is so easy; you can get almost anywhere in the city. We just rode the Picadilly Line to Leicester Square and changed to the Northern Line to Camden Town. So easy! We shopped for several hours. There are dozens of small places selling almost anything. We mostly purchased gifts for those at home but of course some for ourselves as well.

We got caught in a downpour. We were soaked and Chloe and Trista stepped into some puddles and had cold, wet feet all day. We ducked into a small restaurant and it was nicer soon and turned into a great day.

We also went to Leicester Square. We did some more shopping and checked on discount tickets to see “Lion King”. We hope to go tomorrow night. We ate dinner at an Italian Restaurant there in the square and then returned to the hotel.

After a little rest we gathered our clothes and went in search of a lauderette. The hotel clerk was of no help. She said it was somewhere off the high street. End of directions. After much searching and asking we found one a few blocks away. It took a lot of money but we finally had clean clothes. Trista exploded a soda there and we had no way to clean it up. We felt bad leaving it but we didn’t know what else to do.

We had spent the night at the Dublin Airport and flew out at 8:15. We landed in London, Gatwick at 9:15. We thought there was a direct shuttle to Heathrow but it was a very expensive bus ride on the National Bus Service. We found out there are four terminals at Heathrow and we did not know where we should get off. We stopped first at terminal 4. We decided to stay on the bus. The next stop (several miles away) was for terminals 1,2, and 3.

We tried calling our hotel to find out about their shuttle from the outside telephone but could not make it work.  We went inside and were able to reach the hotel and learned there is not a shuttle. The clerk said she could send a cheap “cop”. I suggested we could go out to the taxi stand but she insisted I should use her driver who would arrive within 30 minutes. We waited TWO(!) hours and Trista called her many times. She would not tell Trista which underground station. Eventually a young man did show up to get us. He was not a tazi driver but we went with him. It was about an hours drive to our hotel.

We learned from the clerk that were was no booking for us. It took me getting quite angry but we were given a room. It is an awful hotel. It is very old and stinky! The room is so hot and they could not turn the heat down. The room is very small for three beds. The bedspeads are stained. The bathtub is broken. There are holes in the wall in the bathroom stuffed with stainless steel which I believe is used to keep rodents from coming through. It smells of urine and natural gas throughout. It is really our worst accomadations on the whole trip.

We were glad to go out to eat and explore the area. It is a nice quiet neighborhood very close to the high street and the underground station. That will be helpful.

We decided to leave Ireland early. It is too expensive and we think we will be able to do more in England so we are going back there. So, after using the internet to change our flight we checked out of the hotel. Then we stored our bags in the hotel’s luggage room and spent the day in town. We rode the city bus to see Dublinia. Dublinia is in the old Synod Hall of Christ Church Cathedral. It is a multi-media exhibition that covers the medieval times from about 1170 to 1540. It is two stories of models and videos etc. of the development of Dublin. The first floor had a large model of Dublin. The whole exhibit was well done and took about three hours to tour.

Dublinia ends at Christ Church Cathedral. Both places require a ticket purchase but I would recommend starting at Dublinia. They gave us a discount on the cathedral ticket because we bought tickets for both places at once. I understand you do not get this same deal if you start at the cathedral. I found the cathedral to be very beautiful. We spent the rest of the day shopping and enjoying the downtown area.

We had to take a bus back out to the airport and they did not run all night or early enough the next morning. So we had to take a late evening bus for a flight the next day. We went to the hotel and retrieved our luggage and walked about two blocks to the bus station. Then we took a bus to the airport and arrived at 8 PM for an 8 AM flight. I was worried about the airport security letting us sleep there but it was no problem. McDonalds was open late and there was a coffee shop open all night. And there were LOTS of people spending the night in the airport. While many sat upstairs in the coffee shop we were trying to get chairs downstairs. People were stretched out on rows of chairs and some people were even in sleeping bags. I finally secured a row and the girls laid down with coats for blankets and got some sleep. I stayed awake all night but it was okay.

We started the day by eating at the hotel. It is included in the price of the room. It was very good and nicely put on. I had the best cup of tea I have had on the whole trip. The concierge at the hotel sold us tickets at a reduced rate for the Dublin city bus tour. We walked over to O’Connell Street to catch the tour bus. It is about eight blocks from the hotel. Taking Trista’s advice from other trips we decided to ride the bus for the whole tour and then decide what we wanted to get off to see. But by the Guinness Storehouse we decided to get off. This way the major place that Trista wanted to visit. The tour was pretty good. It showed all the steps of making the beer and explained it well. There were also displays and videos that told how the process originally started. Each adult received a pint at the end or children received a soft drink. Of course a gift shop was on the premises where we were able to buy a few souvenirs.

Our next stop was St. Patrick’s Cathedral. This was a beautiful church which has been in existence for over 800 years. St. Patricks is the National Cathedral of Ireland. They hold two sung services everyday except Saturday. We learned that over 300,000 visitors each year. Once again we rejoined the tour to complete the route.

One of the tourist guide books listed the post office as a “must see” . We didn’t really understand why we should see a post office but we went to check it out. First of all it was a huge, beautiful building. Then inside it was just as beautiful and we learned that many things go on in the post office. You could buy stamps, envelopes, and post cards. There was also a small office on the side that sold collectable stamps. Also people were there to pay bills such as municipal bills and to pick up their welfare checks. It was a really busy place.

We ate lunch at a small place off O’Connell Street on Henry Street. The food was okay but the place was really too small for eat in guests.

We went to join the tour again but found it was too late. How could we forget how early everything closes? We did not want to sit in our hotel rooms so we went to see a movie in the multi-plex on O’Connell Street.

I woke up at 4 AM. Trista and I had shared the nottom of a bunk bed. There was just not enough room for the two of us. The hostel was clean and we had our own bathroom but it was not going to work. It didn’t really matter-we only had a reservation for the one night. They did not have any larger spaces available for the three of us so we had to go in search of another hotel. We found a hotel around the corner that had a room for one night so we took it. It was very expensive but we had not been able to find anything else in Dublin.

It is packed with people here. The taxi drivers said it is always very very busy here. We went to Grafton Street. It is a major shopping area with no cars or busses allowed, only pedestrians. It was so crowded we were constantly being pushed and shoved. We were told it is one of the ten most expensive shopping areas in the world. I believed it.

We ate lunch at Captain America’s Cookhouse and Bar. It was very good food but expensive. Of course we had been trying to eat cheap to save money but this was high just like most things wer had seen in Dublin so far. Trista had noted that while living and traveling in Europe for the last few months that they did not have ranch dressing. It is such a common thing at home and she had missed it. Although Captain America’s advertised American food they did not have it either. Most people use a dressing called salad cream which seems to be mayonnaise based. Trista liked it but not as much as ranch. Looking around the restuarant one of the things I again noticed was people never use their fingers to eat. The french fries were not so different to watch eaten with a fork but it was interesting to watch people try to cut and eat thick hamburgers. We just picked ours up with our hands as we usually do. I am sure people had fun watching us uncouth Americans also.

At the end of Grafton Street is the Stephen Green mall. We spent several hours there and found it to be a beautiful shopping area. There were three stories of shops and restuarants. I think we looked in most of them; the girls love to shop. We didn’t buy much though because once again everything was so expensive.Everything in Europe seems to close early so we took a taxi back to the hotel.

The day started with us, once again, sleeping in. We were up late last night. Trista and I sat up until about 1 in the morning. We packed and checked out of the hotel but left our bags at the hotel in their luggage room. We scrounged but could not come up with the money for the bus into town. The cash machine was not working but they directed us to a cash machine by a little market a few blocks away. That machine was also out of service! At home you can buy something at a store and pay with a card and get change back. Not in Scotland; at least not at the market we were in. So we stood at an unused check out line and took all our money out of our pockets and purses and just came up with enough money to get the bus into town!

We finished out bus tour on our same tickets by visiting the Royal Yacht Brittania. I had not been that excited but it was really interesting. One thing of note; the only double bed on board was one Prince Charles brought when he married Princess Diana and they used the yacht for their honeymoon. All the rest, even the queens, were just singles. Sort of weird! Overall, the ship was very luxurious. It is now rented out for corporate dinners and such.

After the tour we searched(!) for a cash machine before returning to our hotel. Trista used the internet there to make us a reservation in Dublin and then informed me we should already be checking in at the airport! We took a taxi to the airport-made it. Then we flew to Dublin Ireland for the next stage of our trip. It was about one half hour bus ride into town and a short walk to our hostel. The hostel was nice and clean and we had our own room with our own bathroom. That was nice but we just did not have enough bed space and their was no couch or anything else to sleep on. We will have to look for somewhere else to stay.

First thing this morning we used the computer to try to book a room in Dublin. We had no luck. Either the rooms were to expensive , wouldn’t let three people stay in them, or were not available for the whole time.

Then we decided to eat breakfast at the hotel. It was a buffet but once we saw how awful it looked we decided to skip it. Sort of embarrasing leaving the dining room after we had taken a table and been directed to the buffet. We took the bus into town and ate at a small place called SNAX. It was located sort of in a back alley/street off Princes Street. We had a traditional scottish breakfast: egg, back hash brouwns, sausage, black pudding and tatlie scone. It also came with beans but no thank you! Black pudding is also called blood pudding and is just what it says; pigs blood cooked with a filler so it gels together. It was okay. I did not tell Chloe what it was until after she had eaten. She ate some of it but was disgusted after she learned what it was and said it made her feel yucky the rest of the day. Tattie scones are a potatoe scone and a variant on a gridle scone. A gridle scone is basically a scone cooked on a gridddle instead of being baked. Trista did not eat the black pudding but I did try it. I did not really care for it or their sausage.

We got on a different tour bus today. I find it interesting to listen to the different information we hear from different guides. We got off at the Edinburgh Castle today. The bus lets you off at the bottom of a hill in town and we walked up. First we had a guided tour outside which was very interesting and we hadn’t even entered yet. Then we toured inside. The self-guided tour took three hours. As you look over the walls of the castle you are on the top of a large hill and can see the whole town. It would have been a perfect place to defend.

On the way up the hill we had noticed a woolen textile mill and decided to stop in. They were in the process of making many different wool items, blankets, sweaters, shirts, etc. The place was set up to also be very educational and explained how the whole process worked. The store part sold the items they were making and they also shipped out items. We did not find it less expensive to buy Scottish woolens here at the source but perhaps that was because they are on the way to the castle and so many people pass by.

After finishing the bus tour we visited an open air market. It contained foods and crafts for sale. Of course, we managed to find our way back to Princes Street for some more shopping before riding the bus back to our hotel at the end of the day. We had pizza delivered for dinner.

We took the public bus into downtown Edinburgh today. After finally locating the correct place we bought tour tickets for the bus. The busses are the type you can get on and off of as often as you like. The tickets are good for 48 hours and also good for admission to Hollyrood Palace, Edinburgh Castle and the Brittania Yacht.

It seemed like a pretty good deal so we started the tour. It went all around the city with a guide telling us points of interest as we went. We got out at Hollyrood Palace. I enjoyed looking around the Palace. I have very much enjoyed the Royal’s living spaces we have seen. Of course there was a gift shop and we all bought a few gifts to take home. We could not visit the castle because it was SO windy it was closed. They were afraid someone would blow off the hill.

We ate at Jimmy Chung’s for lunch. It was a buffet and was quite good with reasonable prices. We then did some more looking in shops. I expecially enjoyed Jenners as I had never been in one before. We returned to our hotel fairly early. I think we are all tired and so feeling a little down. For probably the first time on this trip I went almost immediately to sleep.