Ireland - Caéd mile failte!

Not sure how things could get any better but we were off to Ireland to find out. 

First stop Dublin. Even more character than Edinburgh, not as pretty but more charming than Paris and friendlier than even London I think Dublin has been our favorite capital city so far. The book of Kells and library in trinity college were fascinating. Temple bar area was lively and joyous. Good times!

Second stop Galway. Devondell B&B was like staying at your favourite grandmothers place. Berna, our host, was funny and generous and looked after us so well. The town of Galway seemed small and quiet at first until we wandered around after our dinner. So many people out and about! In the pubs or browsing in the shops but most were gawking at and cheering on the street performers like we ended up doing. More good times!

Third and final stop, Kilkenny. The ancestral Grace homeland. 'Twas an odd feeling to look around the cemetery at Tullaroan and see your own name on the headstones. So many fantastic and memorable moments in Kilkenny. Traditional Irish music and storytelling live at Kyteler's inn plus the best Irish stew and a pint o' Derry to wash it all down. The friendliest hosts and the nicest farm to stay at, dare I say it, better than the castle!!! We even got to help feed all the animals! The calves were cute but there is nothing cuter than the baby goat that just wanted cuddles!!! The best times!!!

Something we've found ourselves saying a lot over these travels we were repeating once more. "Why aren't we staying here longer?!?!?!"

Scotland

Scotland... Cold. Bleak. Drizzly. Scotland... Was actually quite pleasant and warm! Although it did drizzle once or twice... 

We caught the ferry over to the Isle of Mull where we were to stay in a castle. Yep, a castle. Seriously guys we stayed in a castle! We relaxed in the library with a vast array of scotch to choose from and divided our attention between the view of the coastline and the million dollar painting hanging on the wall, all the while imagining how awesome it would be to live there. The rooms were massive and the breakfast was somehow even bigger.

All too soon we were off. First to Stirling and the Wallace monument which is well worth seeing despite the 246 steps up a very narrow spiral staircase to the top. Then to Edinburgh and our stroll down the royal mile. Packed full of shops and street performers we were enjoying ourselves immensely. We finished our nights in a pub called "Ryries" a place full of character. A great summary for Edinburgh.

Lincoln and the lakes

Leaving Wales and heading for Lincoln you might think we would be getting bored of English countryside but we just weren't. Relaxing landscapes and farmland dotted with villages... Villages that might be described as quaint and picturesque but I'm sure the locals are sick of hearing that.. Villages with names that must have fascinating stories behind them, otherwise why would you name a town "Penistone"? 

Jokes aside we were still enjoying the trip as we headed into the somewhat unknown element of our trip. Lincoln. All we knew for sure was that Amanda's dad had grown up in nearby Woodhall Spa and that Lincoln had a cathedral. We were in for a treat because the city of Lincoln is beautiful. The narrow cobbled streets were full of surprises. The cathedral was better than Notre Dame in our opinions! Aaron the Jews house.. Who was he and why was it important that he was a Jew? And a shop full of of fossils run by a man and his cat that were both nearly fossils themselves. Everything was a pleasant surprise... Except for "Steep Hill" street... It lived up to its name.

Onwards to the Lake District and a sunny little farm near Ambleside, lake Windermere. You may have heard how pretty the Lake District is and it's all true so I won't bore you with more. Our highlights however were a walk down to the lake and around a castle (castles never get old) and watching ducks fighting over food while eating ice-creams next to the lake. Great stuff!

Wales

Have you ever been to wales? Have you thought about going? If you haven't then you should! Driving into wales we saw some amazing places but the scenic highlight was Snowdonia. The mountains seemed steeper, the trees were taller and the rivers more rapid. After the calm beauty of the Cotswolds it was a refreshing change. 

The charming little town of Bettws-y-Coed (one of many small and hard to pronounce places in Wales) is a highlight among many highlights. Walking through forests that were bright green with moss and ferns one minute then dark and creepy the next made wales a truly unforgettable experience for us.

English countryside

Our first taste of the beautiful country side in England was at a Bed and breakfast called frog mill. It was certainly different from the hustle and bustle of London. Quiet and serene. Bird feeder outside our window and the occasional cat bell or duck quack. Bliss. 

We spent a day exploring Cornwall visiting Port Isaac, Mevagissey and North Bovey. All wonderful and beautiful in their own ways. Port Isaac and Mevagissey were wonderfully coastal with lovely sounding seagulls, seagulls that you would actually enjoy having around unlike rude and raucous Aussie seagulls. North Bovey was a lovely little town surrounded by endless greenery. We ate our way through these places. Feeling the need to enjoy all they had to offer we started with a big English breakfast at frog mill B&B (tried black pudding) then a Cornish pastie and cream tea were to be had in Mevagissey. We then had dinner at the "Ring of Bells" which was a delightful little pub in North Bovey. 

Each time we drive somewhere it's a new adventure, there are very narrow beautiful lanes that are actually roads despite looking too narrow even to walk down and can seem rather hairy at times, especially if someone is coming fast in the opposite direction. 

Day 2 in the country side we headed to castle Combe via bath. Bath is so full of history and it was great to get a glimpse into the past. Big and busy compared to the other towns Bath still felt comfortable. We came to the conclusion that it would be a truly wonderful place to live with such beauty and history but also having the practicalities of work, schools and more than one doctor who probably doesn't also double as the vet...

The great monopoly challenge and much, much more...

As we left Paris we were given apparel for the next leg of our journey, t-shirts that had a monopoly piece on them. The hat for Amanda, the car for Pat, the shoe for Kerrie and the boat for Richard. London awaited and so did the great monopoly challenge.

The Eurostar was a wonderful journey through the countryside, a great start to the England part of our trip. Upon arrival at St. Pancreas.. Sorry Pancras.. We walked a short distance to our accommodation and discovered there was another surprise in store, a team building exercise to ready us for the great monopoly challenge. As we walked to our destination there was much speculation but we could never have guessed where we ended up. Hint hunt, the number 1 activity to do in London as suggested by trip advisor. We had no idea what were in for. 1 hour, the 4 of us and a room full of puzzles, the catch was that you could only get out of the locked room by solving all of the puzzles in the right order. We worked together and accomplished much. A great start to London.

Over the 3 days we had in London we had much fun playing a real life version of monopoly. We put on our shirts and took photos at every street and station on the monopoly board. Old kent road was rather memorable as the black cab waited and we ducked between traffic lights to take our shot. In amongst our monopoly game we also did a lot of walking and sightseeing. We have now seen.. *big breath* the river Thames, globe theatre, st Paul's cathedral, Tower of London, buckingham palace, st James park (and squirrels!), Big Ben, Westminster abbey, the British museum, Clive Owen crossing the street and of course every street and station on the monopoly board! What a wonderful adventure we had in London. Next stop idyllic country side, Devon and Cornwall. 

Paris by foot

We flew into France from Korea. Another 11 hour flight, more butt aches but no less pleasant than the first flight. First impressions began... Charles de Gaulle airport was very French.. Unnecessarily confusing and uncaring to the point of laziness. Catching the train from the airport felt odd... It almost felt like we were in Sydney with newer high rises surrounded by older derelict ones covered in graffiti. You could tell the difference once we actually got to Paris though. Paris is a wonderful a mix of historic, culture and arts. We adjusted to the time difference better than expected, so far no sign of jet lag. 

1 day to explore Paris.. By foot no less. We started the day with a good French breakfast, croissants and baguettes then off we set. We walked the Champs Élysées which is a busy street! We admired the arc de triumph, gazed in awe at the Eiffel Tower and queued at Notre Dame before getting inside and being creeped out by the horror movie style music being played on the organ. What an experience it all was, so much to see and love. As we began our walk back to the hotel we stopped for afternoon tea and it was delicious!!! By far the best creme brûlée and pear tart we have ever experienced! 

At every turn there are new experiences and so much to enjoy, tonight it was watching the French gather to watch their country play in the World Cup, so much dedication and atmosphere but for us it's a quiet night resting our weary, well walked bodies. 

Oh and I'm certain the amount of times we've exclaimed (or muttered) "Crazy French" is nearing triple digits!

Day 1

Excitement, some nerves and tired eyes started the day off at 3am. The freakishly early start was made bearable by the fact that we were heading off on our first big adventure! A free and completely unexpected upgrade to a limo for the trip to the airport was received with almost childlike excitement and before we knew it we were at the international departures joining the first of many queues for the day.

Some security checks - a random explosives swabbing and a full body scan - gave us some entertainment before we discovered the joys and eccentricities of duty free shopping. We didn't buy anything but found great joy in leaving weird selfies on the iPads as the wallpaper, and trying to figure out what "shark squalene" and "essence of kangaroo" might possibly be.

Taking our seats in the plane we picked some movies and settled in for the 11 hour flight... 11 hours... Gosh. I thought it would be easy. In the end it actually was pretty easy haha. Besides a slightly sore back and butt everything went well and we landed in Korea safe and sound. A beautiful country with beautiful people. Can't wait to see more on our return trip but for tomorrow?.. We're of to paris!!!

It's the final countdown!

So now all you can do is sing the song, sorry about that! We thought we would get a blog up and running to keep those interested up to date on our travels and for our own memories sake. So here we are 9 days to go (but who's counting). Ready....set...pack!