Scotland

England has a four-day weekend in celebration of the Easter holiday - Good Friday through Easter Monday. So, in our usual fashion we decided to take a last-minute road trip to Scotland. We left on Thursday, since we weren't sleeping in our house after the boiler broke anyway. The first evening we stayed in Cambridge, England. We stopped in York for a quick walkabout and that evening we stayed in Berwick-upon-Tweed, just outside of Scotland. The final two evenings (Saturday & Sunday) we stayed in Edinburgh, Scotland at a wonderful bed & breakfast. While in Edinburgh we saw a number of the tourist attractions including Edinburgh Castle, Palace of Holyrood, and the Royal Yacht Britannia. There were still a number of things we didn't get to visit, like Edinburgh Zoo where they have the only koalas in the U.K. I told Matt he would have to take me back to see them! (Most of you know what a koala fanatic I am.)

We knew that London was pretty costly but had heard how cheap it was to travel around Europe. We haven't been to mainland Europe yet but plan to take many trips in the next two years. Unfortunately, it wasn't as "cheap" as we may have hoped to visit Scotland. We can get away with most of our weekend trips in the states rather inexpensively with little planning. Not so in the U.K. It didn't help that we traveled on Easter weekend, but holidays didn't deter us in the past. Anyway, everything was expensive - gas, meals, lodging, tourist attractions. Remember too, the british pound is basically twice the dollar. So, if a meal is $10 in the U.S. it would roughly be 10 GBP in the U.K. which is about $20 USD. There aren't a lot of chain hotels, so you have to search out vacancies in all of the old hotels and b&bs. While that isn't too bad, the cost can be more than expected, especially if breakfast isn't included. I love the history and character of the buildings, just wish it didn't take such a chunk out of our budget. I really enjoyed our stay at a B&B in Edinburgh, though.

Since I don't expect to work in England, we had always planned for me to be the travel planner. I love doing that kind of stuff and am definitely looking forward to it. However, the trip to Scotland was very last-minute and we thought we'd be okay. We learned our lesson. Initially I'll have lots to keep me busy with getting to know whats around our new town but also trying to visit as many new countries as we can. I might look for a volunteer opportunity or something for my downtime. Otherwise, I guess I'll just have to go shopping! (Just kidding, really!)

We are really looking forward to hosting visitors, so make sure your passport and funds are all in order. The guest room awaits you!

Recent trip to the U.K.

**Check out our trip photo album using the Web Album link on the left.**










Thought it was about time I posted an update...especially if I want you all to come back periodically to see what's happening. A couple of weeks ago I did type a great update but apparently didn't save the draft and lost it when I was updating. After that I didn't feel like writing again for a while.

Most of you know that I was in England from mid-March to mid-April. Matt and I thought it would be a good idea for me to get out of the house since I was bored and it seemed the paperwork wasn't going to be completed any time soon. He couldn't come back so I decided to fly out there. Admittedly, it wasn't the best trip. This whole process has been very stressful for the two of us, especially Matt, so the conditions weren't ideal. While we were able to get into the house there were a slew of problems to take care of - mainly the radiators and boiler. So, we were going between the house and hotels. The house is furnished, but we didn't send over any of our stuff yet to make it our "home". I sent out an email during the trip saying I didn't have access to cable or the internet for a while. I know, poor me. But, hey when you have to sit in a cold house all day without transportation it gets pretty boring. Anyway, I was definitely relieved to return to Colorado and to see Cheyenne again. Don't get me wrong, I'm still excited about this opportunity but I'm just ready to be settled.

I do have to give props to Matt for picking out the house all by himself. Women can be pretty picky, especially me. Anyway, despite the small problems we had in the house it is a pretty decent place. Compared to most living over there, we are doing really well. We have a detached house with a garage and a backyard. There are 3 bedrooms and 2.5 baths, kitchen, laundry room (w/a washer & dryer), dining room, livingroom, and small office. We also have a car, but I'm not sure I will drive as planned. It is a manual drive and I don't do well here in the states with one of those, so add it being on the left side and then driving on the left side of the road with all the crazy UK drivers and I think I'd pee my pants at the first busy roundabout! Maybe I'll take driving lessons.

Well, sorry it has been so long since the last time I wrote. I'll definitely try to be better once the move happens.