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| Newhaven Harbour, Edinburgh |
So, the initial plan is that we’ll have a four night city break in Edinburgh to celebrate our sixteenth wedding anniversary, with a short pause on the return journey to visit Tom’s aunt in Harrogate. Then Tom’s PhD work creates a couple of extra stops; a meeting in Sheffield and a course at the OU in Milton Keynes. Once we take travel time and costs into consideration, we decide to book a couple of extra nights in Premier Inns along the way rather than dashing backwards and forwards then we’ll come home reasonably refreshed… won’t we?
Well, Edinburgh’s terrific and the Premier Inn’s in a great spot at Newhaven Harbour. We have sea views from our room and an excellent Loch Fyne restaurant right on the doorstep. There’s so much to see in this wonderful city and we make the most of every minute covering mile after mile until our feet can’t walk any further.
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| Proving we've yet to master the 'selfie' |
After whistle-stop visits to Harrogate, Sheffield and Barnsley, we’re beginning to feel a little institutionalised although Premier Inns are great; they’re clean, comfortable, do exactly what they say on the tin and breakfast there sets you up for the rest of the day. But, my goodness, eating out in the evening is a different story. Perhaps we notice it more because given where we live we rarely bother to venture out to a restaurant, but we quickly discover that finding somewhere economical to eat that doesn’t involve non-stop fried food and utterly indifferent service is almost impossible. ‘My lips are very dry,’ Tom observes at one point. ‘It’s probably scurvy,’ I reply because it’s so long since I’ve seen a fresh vegetable.
With just two nights left before we can go home, we arrive at Milton Keynes and are pleasantly surprised to be shown to a room with a balcony.
And there, sadly, the nice surprises end. Tom checks his phone and finds three missed calls. My mother-in-law, we are dismayed to hear, has had a mini-stroke…
To date, MiL’s tired, of course, but doing well. A few more test results to come, but so far, so good. It’s been a shock to all of us and a reminder, as we needed it, of the importance of showing our loved ones how much we care about them.
Comments
May I also wish you and Tom a belated Happy Anniversary. I'm glad that you had that fine time in Edinburgh...it's a marvelous place with all those hills... a bit like an Escher drawing come to life.
I know what you mean about dining out. While in London, I usually have a huge hotel breakfast, a very nice lunch at some nice place, and then just get something very light later on in the evening. It's so different now from when I first began traveling back in the 1980s. (Truth be told, it's pretty expensive here in NYC, too!) xo
It was, Frances, and thank you for your good wishes. There was so much more we could have seen in Edinburgh but our feet couldn't take any more. It's a pity that eating out turns what ought to be a pleasure into something of an ordeal. Reasonably priced, healthy options are thin on the ground! Cx
Thank you, Clare. We took the closest option in MK because we were too tired and worried to go further but it was very far from being pleasant! Hope you have a better time.
Angela Britnell
Dining out while traveling is always harrowing, just because you don't eat your normal fare. :/
We are off to Edmonton on the evening flight - it's winter there, and only the thought of the children and grandchildren can tear me away from springtime here!
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