Northchurch/Stratford-upon-Avon

During my 3 hour daily break while working as a carer, I did my best to keep in shape for my next adventure planned. Hiking the West Highland way in Scotland.
After doing some strengthening exercises, I'd get my cardio workout by either running along the canal path or riding the bicycle up in Ashridge forest. April was lovely up in the forest, so I started spending more of my time biking than running.
In Ashridge forest, the ivy was nice and green spiralling up the trees. Small fresh green leaves sprouted on the tree canopies and a blanket of green grass started to cover the forest floor of dried brown leaves and dirt. The birds were chirping happily and singing their songs. And the warmth of the sun was enough to allow t-shirts and tank tops while riding. Lovely.
I'd ride along the trail watching some of the herds of deer, trying to dodge some of the bigger tree roots and jump smaller ones. A few areas had hills that were fun to ride on and give a bit of a jump at the end. I'm not very skilled at that, but it was fun to try. Definitely need to work on my landings! Almost bit the dust a few times. Ha!
As it got into the beginning of May, the bluebells started to bloom. Now that was beautiful! Green and purple-blue sea beneath the white Birch and Ash trees. My client and I did a few drives so she could see them. She even showed me some favourite local viewing spots for them. Fantastic! And the aroma... smelled sooooo gooooood!
Some of the farms nearby were lambing. Little babies running around after their mom trying to feed. Really sweet.

We did have a crazy hail spell one day in the second week of May. Large hail just a little shy of the size of a marble came thundering down around the house. Hearing it in the conservatory was amazing! The Magnolia tree and potted flowers in my clients yard sure got a beating though.
My trek plans for the West Highland Way was going well. I put up an event page on the couch surfing website and also on Gumtree and managed to find 3 people interested on accompanying me. An English fellow named Martin, Megan from Glasgow and a French lady, Catherine, living in Glasgow. They all seemed nice from the emails so hopefully we'll all get along and keep pace with each other.
Martin and I had a chance to meet on one of my breaks. We had lunch and walked around Berkhamstead. He sure is in good shape. He does lots of hiking, running and even biking up in mountain ranges. I asked if he'd mind hiking with someone slower then him, and he said it would be fine.
Megan likes to cycle as well, so I hope I can keep up the pace.
Now at the end of May, I've left my client in the hands of her new carer with a promise to revisit before leaving the country and headed to my cousins again out in Stratford-upon Avon. I planned to spend a few days with them before heading north for my trek.
My cousin's Jill and her son Kye came to visit us at Helen, Ronny, Jo and Nicola's place. Also my great aunty Ena was sprung out of her care home for a few days as well. We had a lovely afternoon in the sun having lunch and cake and playing table tennis. Aunty Ena did pretty well, being 93 years old!

The "travellers"were passing through Stratford as well. Strange that they parked along the roadside right beside the main roundabout, but I suppose they don't have many choices on where to park their vardos.
Helen and I did our usual walks out with the dog in the nice wooded areas. Again, more bluebells to be seen. We went on a drive with aunty Ena to a garden centre and an outdoor store so I could by a head net for midges and an inflatable pillow. Found one for 6 pounds! A bargain!
Today we're all just hanging around enjoying time together while the girls are in and out doing their own thing. I'm all packed up and ready to catch the bus into Birmingham to meet up with Martin tomorrow so we can drive up to Scotland together and pick up the girls!

Northchurch/East Scotland

Well, it's been 3 months already with my job placement. Since I work 7 days a week with a 3 hour break during the afternoons, my employer highly encourages time off after 3 months. It's a full on job, and isolating, so I welcomed the holiday.
I did take 4 days off in mid-December for my cousin Margo's memorial. My aunt emailed an obituary for me to read since I was the only Canadian family member there. And I turned out to be the only family member there. I was hoping Margo's nephew would come, so I could meet another relative from my grandmother's side... but he didn't show up.
I was glad for Pat and Sarah's company and hospitality. They were close to Margo, like family, and were good friends. I stayed at their place in Scarborough. Sarah and I got on great. We're about the same age and connect well. Shame she had to work, but I only had 2 days there anyway so it was fine. I spent the other day walking in town checking out the shops, market and the beachfront.
I spent my Christmas with my client, her family and some of her friends. It was really nice. I truly felt like a part of the family. We even had a trip out to Goring, a place that won a village of the year award. However, when we visited, the river was flooding the land's edge. People were placing sandbags to create a barrier for the flood... maybe not the best time of year to see it.
I spent a lot of my break time walking or riding the bike along the canal in Northchurch. Also going up to Ashridge Forest. Just up the hill, it was a large wooded area with trails and open fields. Lots of people visit there. It was a little sanctuary for me. Great to get in some nature time... and find solitude.
I also went on a little trip to the zoo with my client's family. We saw Woburn Safari Park. It really was like a safari, you stayed in your vehicle and drove around the parkland to see the different "enclosures." I use the term loosely because the grazing animals were free to roam around. The predators were through a double gate that led to separate enclosures for them. It was really neat. Though, some people had damage to their vehicles when entering the monkey area. Signs warned people of that possibility... they have ripped off windshield wipers.
From tigers, wolves, bears and lions to ostrich, rhinos, elephant, oryx, camels, bison, zebras, etc. to monkeys, tortoise, snakes, penguins and sea lions. This place had all kinds from the animal kingdom. Pretty neat place. The smaller and aquatic creatures were in a section of the park where you could walk. A chance to stretch the legs and watch some shows. Neat place.
Now, my past 10 days have been fantastic.
I met up with Ashley, one of the girls from my caregiver training course. We decided to go up to Scotland together on a camping trip. Right, camping in Scotland in March... yes I know... it's cold. But we had a plan. We rented a campervan from a company called Spaceships near Heathrow. The owner modified the vans to suit camping requirements. It was amazing! It had a fridge, DVD player, 2 burner stove, dual battery system, blankets, pillows, storage space, cookware, glasses, utensils, plates, bowls, fuel for the stove and more. I was really happy with it.
We planned to wildcamp with it in order to balance our budget for the trip.
After stocking up on food at the grocery store, we left London and headed north to Selkirk before cutting across to Melrose in Scotland. It was pretty late by the time we got there... and dark. We drove up to Scott's View and pulled over at a nice spot near there so we could see the viewpoint in the morning.
And it was lovely the next day! There was a little bit of fog covering the hills and over the river. Very nice.
After breakfast, we headed into town and visited Melrose Abbey. A beautiful ruined monastery dating back to 1136, with a Gothic appearance and built in a St. John's cross shape. Many statuary and decorations of plants, dragons, gargoyles and saints. Even had a lead container that supposedly held the embalmed heart of Robert the Bruce (one of Scotland's kings whom lead the wars of Scottish Independence against England). An engraved stone was now placed above the ground to mark the burial site of his heart.
The abbey sure was grand!

I could walk up one of the steep, narrow spiral steps to the roof and see the gargoyles and bell up close. The view over the grounds showed many tombstone's all around the ruin. Many Scottish Kings and nobles were buried on the abbey's grounds.
From there, we left the Scottish Borders to head to Edinburgh. Once heading north, we started to see sprinkling of snow here and there. It was very pretty, especially with the old arched stone bridges over the rivers. So nice.
Our second stop of the day was the Edinburgh Butterfly and Insect World. Really colourful butterflies, snakes, lizards, fish, scorpions and Tarantulas. Ashley and I both got to hold the Tarantula while she was out. Their abdomen is really soft from their fine hairs.
Next, we parked in the city centre near Edinburgh castle where we made a pit stop to have a quick visit with my friends John and Sinclair (whom I met up with at Glen Etive while camping). It sure was nice to catch up over coffee.
Then, we drove to Pitlorchy where we took a narrow road heading to Foss, and camped out near a river. Looked like a hydro plant was nearby using the river for hydro power. We could hear it faintly where we stayed, but only if we were outside.
It sure was comfortable in that campervan! I didn't have trouble sleeping at all. Only trouble I encountered was getting Ashley out of bed. She loved to sleep in. Ha!
Once we were awake, fed and finished enjoying the river, we drove up to Inverness. Passing the borders of the Cairngorms National park along the way was lovely with the snow on the hills.
We visited the other Loch Ness Monster exhibit I hadn't seen, which was Nessieland. It was more mythical as opposed to scientific and more targeted towards children I think. I have to admit, the Nessie models were pretty cool. And the documentary of locals having eye-witnessed accounts of the Nessie sightings was entertaining.
We popped over to Urquhart Castle and ate lunch before the long drive north to Thurso.
En route, we passed Dunrobin Castle. It had a falconry and a garden overlooking the ocean. Unfortunately it was closed when we went by. So, I took a couple pictures of the estate building since it looked so neat. Maybe another time I could visit. Sutherland was a nice county.
We got close to Thurso and about 5 miles before the town we took a side road to Castletown where we camped out at Dunnet Forest. Again, it was dark so any exploring would have to wait till morning.
We made some pasta for dinner, and it took longer than it should had with all the wind. Very stormy. Even a bit of hail and wet snow. Luckily the snow didn't stick, but it was freezing! We had a short rock wall barrier at the parking lot that we tried to use as a wind breaker. It helped, but took us a while to boil the water and cook the noodles. It sure was delicious once we ate. We really needed a warm dinner!
I woke fairly early the following day. Too early for Ashley, so I snuck out of the van and went for a pleasant walk through  Dunnet forest. Yes, it was cold, but I had my thermals on under all my layers and was very comfortable. A couple people were walking their dogs along the various trails. A small woodland, but the birds seemed happy.
By the time I got back to the van, Ashley was up and after filling our bellies, we went to the beach at Dunnet Bay. Again, very windy and cold. Ashley had a short looky-loo and waited for me back in the van while I walked along the beach a little. Then we went up to the viewpoint at Dunnet Head. It's the most northerly point of the mainland of Britain. Caithness is a stunning county with all the coastal cliffs and beaches. And the viewpoint revealed a few mini lochs amongst the hills. On a clear day, you would be able to see the three islands, Stroma, Hoy and even the Orkney mainland, but the clouds were too misty for us to see across the water.
There was a light house and WWII fortifications up there. Soldiers used for the area for a lookout and station for the Royal Air Force. Had we been there at the right time of year (such as spring and summer), puffins nest along the cliff side. As it was, there were none. I did however see some Gannets. Large white birds with yellow faces and black tipped wings.
While driving to our next destination, we couldn't help but make pit stops to take photos of the beautiful coastal scenery and stone housed homesteads.
We drove to John o' Groats. A small fisherman village with a tourist shop and eatery. The North Sea was crashing waves along the breakwater something fierce! Poor little fishing boat at port was not going anywhere!
Duncansby Head was our next stop. It is the most north-eastern tip of the British mainland and is famous for the rock pinnacles rising out of the sea, known as the Duncansby Stacks.
There is a small light house there, and walking the path that goes beyond it is where the delights are seen. Fascinating layers of the sedimentary rock cliffs and a deep cleft (named Geo of Sclaites) carved out in the cliff. I'm sure birds would frequent here, but given the extremely windy winter day and the crashing of the waves through the cleft, they did not hang around. And rightly so. It was a force not to be reckoned with. I have to say, one thing I love is the ocean. Nature is truly amazing and beautiful, even in it's violence.
Continuing along the little path, we came to the Thirle Door (which is an arch carved at the cliff base) and the Duncansby Stacks. I could only imagine how nice it would be to be up there on a sunny calm day enjoying a picnic. The rock architecture was marvelous.
After heading back south along the coast, we made a quick stop at the Ackergill Tower. It looked to intriguing from the road to pass up and the driveway itself was inviting me. The twisted arms of the trees alongside the driveway coiled over the drive like something out of Sleepy Hollow. It was eerie and fantastic.
After that, just past Wick, we stopped to explore the Whaligoe steps.
The 330 some odd steps were made of stone dating to the late 1700's but fairly well maintained by locals.  The volunteer caretaker told us there used to be 365, one for every day of the year, but over time, erosion had worn about 30 of them away.
We took care descending the zigzag staircase against the stone cliff wall. Once at the bottom of the haven, we could see the ruins of the harbour. A narrow grassy area called the Bink had the remains of an old salt storage area the fisherman used for curing the fish. There was also a round pit that was used as a barking kettle to heat tar to coat fishing nets and floats for waterproofing.
It is said the name came due to a whale that had washed up in the harbour. The crashing waves forced the whale to be beaten against the cliffs and then washed into the harbour, where the local fisherman then harvested for food.
A Neist (small steps onto the lower rocky shelf) was made as well to help the boats moor more easily. There aren't many harbours on the north east coast, so it was frequently used in the earlier years. But by the 1960's they stopped using the harbour.
We drove to Dunbeath and stayed at Inver Caravan Park. The owners were a lovely couple who invited us into their house for the paperwork and offered us a cup of tea to get the chill off. They also had a friendly cat that would chat to you and demand some love. Very cute fella.
Ashley hopped into the shower while I made dinner. Well, I tried to. It was so windy, I spent 45 mins trying to get my water to boil. A nice woman in her caravan saw me struggling, and asked if I'd like to use her stove inside to make my dinner. I was so grateful! I was starving! I just love how friendly people are here in Scotland. She was planning on going to the Orkney Islands, but with the storm, the ferry's weren't running. Her and her husband were staying at the campsite hoping in a couple days it would ease up enough to get there for vacation. They were from Europe and she was a painter. She made cards and post cards with her talent and was more than happy to show me.
The next morning, we passed through Inverness again at took the Great Glen route to Fort William. We shopped around in town for bit and had some lunch.
Then we continued to Glencoe. My favourite place! And it was just stunning to see all the hills with the lightly dusted snow caps. I really wanted to go on a little hike, but Ashley wasn't into it. So, I suggested maybe I'll go for about an hour, and she could take the van and pop into the town and look around. She didn't like being out in the cold and preferred to be in the van or inside somewhere. Poor girl, guess she thought the trip might be a bit warmer. But when your on a budget and camping, it's cold in the north in winter. The wind didn't help much, but it's Scotland.

So, that's what we did. She went into town, and I decided to follow a trail that took me up across from the 3 sisters. Similar location to some filming spots for the last Harry Potter films. Ah, it was gorgeous. Just love it.
Once she picked me up, we headed to Glen Etive and drove to the end at Gualachulain to our wild campsite. The same place I've stayed before and met John and Sinclair. Some of the little waterfalls were iced over and had icicles hanging. Also saw a heard of Red Deer, which we both were happy photographing.
We watched one of our DVDs to enjoy our evening.
Since I wake up before Ashley, I went for a little stroll along the shore and up by a creek. Birds were singing away. Even heard an owl during the night which was nice.
After breakfast, we went to Callander to look at the tourist shop and have a stretch. I bought myself a tartan scarf for a souvenir... plus it would keep me warm. A highland cow was by the parking lot fence giving himself a good scratch on the barbed wire. With all that long hair, it coated the barbs and twined around them, so he didn't get any cuts. Friendly bull too. He liked to be petted. Filthy though. Our hands were caked in dirt after, ha ha.
We continued on to Stirling. After looking at the castle, Ashley and I both decided to visit the National Wallace Monument instead.
The walk up to the tower was nice. Had a lovely view of Stirling, especially up on the tower itself. A narrow winding staircase led up to a nice platform that went all the way around so you could get a 360 degree view.
On the way up, there were numerous floors with historical displays. Level 1 was the Hall of Arms. Lord Wallace's broadsword was displayed in a glass case. The story of William Wallace was charted throughout the floor as well. Describing his belief in freedom and peace, uniting the Scottish clans against King Edward I of England, his victory against the King in 1297 at Stirling Bridge over the River Forth and about his betrayal, capture and execution.
Next level was the Hall of Heroes. Stained glass widows and marble busts depicted medieval warriors.
The third level talked about the construction of the monument. And lastly was the crown, or the viewing platform. One could see the Stirling Bridge where Wallace had won his famous victory battle from up there.
When we headed out, a costumed man was telling the story of the Battle of Stirling Bridge. After his story, he was more than happy to take photos with the tourists and give us a sword to play with. That was very entertaining. I love the accent too. I know it's not on most people's list of attractive accents, but it's on mine :) I thank Sean Connery and Liam Nissan for that.
We strolled around the town a little bit before heading to north England's Lake District.
It was a scenic drive. The Lake District was full of mountains, lakes, trees, farms and small towns. We found a campsite on a farm in the northern part in Troutbeck. I believe it was called Gill Head Farm. A family working farm. When we arrived, the owners were working with their sheep. Seems some were lambing.
We could smell the farm, but wasn't bothersome. It was nice to have full facilities anyway. We slept well regardless of where we stayed. All bundled up with our blankets.
In the morning, we had sunshine that made the drive to see Ullswater, Windermere, Crook and Kendal a nice drive. We did get a little stuck however. My fault. We were driving along a lakeside that was so picturesque, I had to get out and enjoy it and take a photo. There wasn't a pull over spot, so I went off the shoulder of the road and parked 3/4 on the grass. Well, turned out that tall grass was sprouting on thick mud. The tires kept spinning when we tried to move on. I had to get out and push while Ashley drove. Sure got our left back end muddy, ha!
Before dropping the campervan off in London, we made a quick stop in Warwick to see the castle. We didn't have a lot of time, but we managed a good look.
Originally built in 1068 by William the Conqueror, it had been rebuilt with stone in the 12th century with extra work over the years. We went in and walked along the wall, visiting the multiple towers with the nice views. A falconer was working with an eagle. He was very large and came quite close to us. Really neat.
Then we went inside and saw the armoury, hall, room chambers and servant working rooms like textiles and laundry. Lots of people dressed up reenacting. Outside on the grounds were areas to learn archery, but we had to push on to get the van back in time. Lots of extra attractions like the Merlin Tower and dungeons to visit... but all at extra charges.
After dropping the van off and Ashley and I saying out goodbyes, I caught the metro to my friend Simon's place in London. We met online. I was feeling pretty isolated with my job and only having 3 hours a day to have personal time, so I went onto the couchsurfing website and a dating site to try to meet people interested in my area for coffee or walks. Just someone to socialize with. That's how we met. We skyped often and became great mates.
He had a nice flat that was so comfortable and warm after camping up north. It was great. We spent 3 days together. He took me to a Borough Market with all it's fantastic food, walked along the Thames and visited a modern art gallery (of which 5 people were rolling around on the floor and spooning to music. 2 clothed woman, and 3 completely naked men. Was a bit of a shocker! Lol, though I didn't mind, he he), went to one of his frequent pubs in London, walked around Greenwich, one of his favourite areas of London, had a night out in the pubs in his neighbourhood and watched a couple movies. A great way to end my vacation.
I'm now back in Northchurch with my same client as before getting settled back into my routine. Won't be too long before I have to leave the UK though. My working holiday visa expires on July 4th. But there's still time to plan more adventures before I have to leave!

Stratford-upon-Avon

After a long day of travelling by bus and train, my cousin Helen was a welcome sight. And dinner with the rest of the family was wonderful. It had been about 8 years since I last saw them all.
The next couple weeks were fantastic. Helen likes to keep busy and with her 2 daughters Jo and Nicola,  I always had options on what to do for the day. Helen and I routinely went on walks in the mornings and evenings with their dog Murphy. Whom had a dodgy temperament. He was known to bite on occasion. A rescue dog, but they're making progress with him. He's always on good behaviour on his walks.
One really nice walk was a misty morning, where the fog gave a mystical atmosphere along the canal in Wilmcote (the parish my cousin lives in). The little bowed bridges here and there where great for photos. And I was fortunate enough to have chatted with some nice folks cruising along in their longboat on the canal. I watched as they used the lock to go from one height to another on the water. I had never seen that before. Really neat.
They were kind enough to offer me a ride, since I've never been on a longboat. Of course I took the opportunity and hopped on. They don't move fast, just a nice slow coast. This man lived on his boat and paid to dock his boat in different locations. Some people stay in one place year round. Others move along.
You can get to many regions via the canals as they were once used for transporting. The UK has a nation wide canal network. Vital back in the Industrial Revolution when roads where mostly medieval mud. Coal was the main commodity transported along the canals to reach London. But there were numerous goods and commodities transported in large quantities by water. Towpaths were walkable along both sides of the water for horses back in the day. Which is now more for leisurely strolls.
I spent a couple days exploring the town of Stratford-upon-Avon. Started with looking at the shops in the shopping centre and along the streets. Went to the Royal Shakespeare theatre to have a look around. There were costumes, photographs and paintings displayed from the theatre performances. Some with major actors that would occasionally work with the theatrical actors, giving helpful tips during rehearsals.
The Swan theatre looked nice. Lot's of wood to help with acoustics. And there was a tower I went up that gave a nice panoramic view of the town.

From there I went to the Holy Trinity Church. The resting place of William Shakespeare. Then passed by Hall's Croft, which was Shakespeare's daughter's (Susanna Shakespeare) home. Inside was full of furniture, paintings, fine china, ornaments, etc. that she kept.

Walking down that main road toward Shakespeare's birthplace was nice. I really like the different designs the timber framed houses had. And some with the heavy, large oak doors with decorative engravings and large ornamental knockers. So neat.
I didn't go inside Shakespeare's birthplace, just looked at the outside. I think I'd have to be more into poetry and theatre to really appreciate his lifestyle, history and belongings. As it is, I never understood poetry. I have a hard time understanding what poets are trying to say. Guess I'm more of a direct person. Plus, my budget couldn't afford it. Visiting all the houses related to Shakespeare were not cheap.
However, I'm told his wife's house, Anne Hathaway's Cottage, was very nice to see. There was a lovely garden around the thatched roofed home. Maybe one day I'll visit it as opposed to just looking at the outside.

My cousin Jo took me out for a nice day's drive to see the Cotswolds area. Our first stop was the Broadway Tower, a 20 m folly overlooking the countryside. Passed a beautiful countryside estate on our way to the quaint village of Lower Slaughter, where a picturesque old mill sat along a canal.
From there we ended our drive in Bourton-on-the-water. Known as one of the "area of outstanding natural beauty" locations in Britain.

Another place I enjoyed was a wooded park in Warwickshire with numerous trails one could walk, horse ride or bike along. Of course, we had visited this location a few times with the dog.
My great Aunty Ena had her 92nd birthday while I was there. She lived in a care home as she suffered from memory loss and was too frail to be completely on her own. Helen spent a lot of time with her and   visits to either the care-home or her coming over was common. We had some great times. Even had more extended family come for visits. Aunty Ena had 3 children, one lives in Australia whom I visited, and the other 2 here. One being Helen, the other Lesley.

It was great to get a chance to see Lesley, her husband Pete and their 2 daughters, Sarah and Jill.
Nicola had taken me to Shakespeare's mother's Tudor Farm, MaryArden's Farm. We were lucky to be there on a day when a bunch of children were on a field trip. The kids were dressed up in clothes suited to the era. Very cute.
Demonstrations of the daily living routine took place. Like making bread in the kitchen over a fire, or stew and their dinner manners at the table. Craft and skill demonstrations as well. There were many different farm animals and even birds of prey with a falconer. It was interesting to talk to the falconer. He keeps the various raptors at his home and spends a lot of time with them. The birds were quite attached to him. Lots of love there. It made me very happy to see that bond.
Other animals like pigs, sheep, geese, horses, goats and cattle where there. I learned about hedge laying, an old country skill using sticks from hedges to make barriers. Sure was an interesting place. Very interactive.
I also spent a day walking around another town called Warwick. I visited the museum, St. Mary's church, Smith Street, St. John's House museum and the Lord Leycester Hospital. I thought the St. John's house was nice. History from 400 years. A Victorian style kitchen with all it's wears, a schoolroom, costumes, toys and games, childhood displays and a little garden.
The castle there is quite large, but I needed more time to visit after all I had done in the day, so another on my to do list for the future.
The next day, my cousins drove out to Malvern Hills. We did a quick stop in Worcester to see the cathedral and grabbed some sandwiches for a picnic lunch up there. It was lovely. Great views of the Severn Valley and 3 counties.
After spending a few more days at my cousins, I got another job placement for work. This time in Bedford with a young man.
Bedford was a small place. A nice canal ran through it, but other than that, not much to see. On my breaks I'd try to run to Priory Lake to get a chance to change my environment. Find a little nature. The town was mostly stone buildings and pavement streets, so it always had this dirty feeling to me. Even though it wasn't littered. Just that feel of all grey and no greenery.
My placement lasted 1 month before I switched to a new client. Our personalities didn't quite jive, so we talked about it and thought it best to change. At least it wasn't as stressful as the elderly lady I cared for before with the lack of sleep I got.
Now I'm in a town called Northchurch in Hertfordshire. My new client and I get along splendidly. She has a very comfortable home and her family is so welcoming and caring. I'm happy working with her and feel relieved to have such a great client and location.

York

The train ride to York went by quickly and comfortably. I found my accommodation easily in the town centre. The Fort Boutique Hostel was a basic set up, but very comfortable and centrally located. Quiet too.
After settling in, I took a small walk around the town to stretch my legs, had dinner and had a read before calling it an early night.
The next morning, I started my sightseeing with the York Minster. I walked around the outside of it. There was a section enclosed where they were carving the limestone for restoration. It's always under restoration due to the type of stone. Limestone just doesn't seen to erode slowly.
It was neat to see the stone worker's and how they duplicate all the original decorative designs and shapes.
The entry fee was a bit too steep so me right then, so I put it on my to do list and just marvelled at the  Gothic architecture of the church itself. I really liked the grotesques and gargoyles. Many had their tongues sticking out. Made for lighthearted humour as was more common at the end of the Gothic Architectural period.
Then I walked the medieval streets in the city centre and looked at all the shops. I loved the look and feel of the old part of town. The cobbled streets with narrow alleys (called snickelways), old lamp posts, quaint little speciality shops, little eateries and tons of tourist entertainment. One of my favourite stores was the Vom Fass. It sold oils, vinegars, spirits, liqueurs and wines. I was able to sample pretty much everything. The amazing variety of oils and vinegar combination you can do there is to die for. Hmmm, pistachio oil... and the mango raspberry balsamic vinegar. Yum. I also tried his Blood orange with vodka cocktail, that was nice. So many nice things he made. If I ever lived here, I'd be a frequent customer!
I window shopped at the Chocolate York Sweet Story, but decided against the tour as I plan to do that in Europe where the amazing chocolate is made. Am I hoping for some trade secrets for their exquisite chocolate... maaaayyybeee. He he.
Another nice thing about this part of town is that there is minimal traffic. Hardly any cars drive through this part of town, making it easy to walk anywhere, day or night.
I really liked walking down the Shambles street. This is a very old street, dating back to the 14th century, and many of the timber framed buildings don't have their foundations anymore and lean at different angles. This is also where the butchers sold their meat. It once had 25 butcher shops, but now there are none. You can see the hooks still in the stone facades of the building where they hung meat up, and where the shelves were to display. In those days, they would have had a runnel in the cobbled street for the blood to drain away.
I can see why this street is popular for the ghost tours. In which there were many. Tons of ghost walking tours to choose from, as well as haunted houses. If I could afford to do it all, I would. But as it is, I chose to attend the Ghost Trail of York, one of the walking tours starting at the York Minister. With a fee of 4 pounds, I could afford it.
The evening had a perfect start. At 7:30 pm, it was already dark, the air was cool and a misty light haze of fog descended on the city. Couldn't have been a better atmosphere for a ghost walk. Our guide dressed in fashionable garb of top hat and tails, black trousers and a black umbrella.
We saw the Treasurer's house, St. William's College, Holy Trinity church, Mad Alice Lane (a snickelway named after a woman was hanged for poisoning her husband), King's Square, the Shambles, and ended in Newgate Market. He had many historical facts and funny jokes amongst the ghost stories. Wasn't very scary. Though entertaining, especially at a good backpacker price.
The tale I thought was the scariest was a story of the children of Bedern. A man running an orphanage/workhouse took in strayed children and waifs and put them to work. He paid little on food or clothing for them, keeping his earnings more for himself. Many of the children died of starvation and exposure. Soon, too many of them perished and instead of burying the bodies, he'd be lazy and stash them away, such as in a large cupboard to rot. As months passed and bodies piled up, and he thought he could hear screams from the locked cupboard. It drove him mad and one night, he took a knife and massacred the remaining children. He was found the next morning by the authorities, mumbling to himself amongst the deceased, and he spent the rest of his days in an insane asylum. The area is now known for this tale and people claim to hear children laughing or screaming in the Bedern area and feel icy finger touches. A sad story, but a favourite to be told none the less.
He also pointed out a few black cats along the streets. Not real ones... but statuettes and decorations. No one knows why they're there. One even dates back to the 19th century. But, it's fun to try to find them all, placed around the city. It's now an activity for tourists, especially with children... go on the cat hunt in York. There are 22 known cats around the city, but they say there could be more. Some of the newer ones were made by a local architect named Tom Adams who was obsessed with cats. Interesting. Something to do anyways while strolling the streets.
I loved taking photos of the snickelways and the Shambles street buildings. The crooked, leaning buildings made a neat frame for night photography. Just wished I new more about it. I need to learn more about night photography. On my to do list.
After the tour, I walked around taking some photos before heading to bed.
In the morning, I took a free walking tour by the Exhibition square just by the wall of the city. The volunteer guide knew a lot about the history of the city. It was a lot to take in. We saw the King's Manor (headquarters for Henry the VIII's North council), ruins of St. Mary's abbey, the 4th century Roman fortifications, the architecture of the Yorkshire museum, one of the medieval gateways (Bootham Bar) to the city and wall, St. William's College, went into the old 15th century Holy Trinity Church and sat in the boxed pews and finally the Shambles. Nice to see some of the sights I saw on the night tour in daylight.
I thought the fortifications of the Romans were cool. The Multangular Tower was fairly intact, and 1 of 8 that remains. Seeing the layering of the construction of the walls had a story all in itself. Different eras, different rulers, different construction. The Romans started out the walls back in 71 AD. Then, in 8oo's the Danes (the Danish) in rule restored the walls. Then, restored again in the 12th-14th century in medieval times and again in the 19th century. Very neat.
Since I was on a history kick, I decided to check out the viking settlement, Jorvik. York had about 9 metres of archaeological layers in the soil, and most dating to the viking age. The moist, oxygen free  peaty soil helped preserve any organic remains of textiles like clothing and leather, and timber. Items that usually deteriorate to dust over time from rot. The peat also preserved animal bones, insects, plants, seeds, pollen and human parasitic eggs. All ways to identify diet, health, climate and the environment around the vikings during that era.
This attraction had not only viking artifacts and history, but smells back in their day to really get a feel for their way of life.
Unfortunately, the original smell of a viking in the first exhibit room was too strong for me and I was extremely nauseous. I had to rush through it. Which was a shame because the glass floor covered the excavation site of 3 viking properties with  household items found with them. The glass showed one property and part of the fence that divided the areas by horizontally weaved wattlework between vertical stakes. This being a popular way in the 10th century of boundary establishment.
Amongst the items found were coins, combs made of antler or bone, leather scabbards, amber (fossilized wood resin used for jewelry), knives, brooches used to fasten clothing, and timber.
From there, I took the little cart ride (known as the time cars, taking me back to AD 975) through the next exhibit of the village. They had wax figures to demonstrate the people working in various areas of the village. The smith with his smokey smelling furnace, home-cooked stew at an amber worker's place, passed a man on the toilet (in which they also added the smell here, yuck!), saw into domestic homes and yards, a bone/antler carver, a leather worker, a wood turner, butcher and the market place. They had sound effects and can hear the vikings talk to visitors in Old Norse. The reconstruction was all based on their excavation findings and was well done. I enjoyed that part of the tour. It allowed very good insight to the daily life of the vikings.
Next was an exhibit on what the vikings may have looked like via facial reconstruction, how they lived and any diseases or afflictions they might have endured from the revelations of their skeletons. Also, what their diet was from residue in pottery and everyone's favourite... the encased coprolite. What is that you say? Why, coprolite is fossilized faeces. Nice eh?
The last room displayed weapons used in battle and skeletal remains showing the woulds inflicted from them. Brutal battles back then, that's for sure.
All and all, it was a neat exhibit. Just wished the first room didn't make me want to hurl so much with that smell. Oh well.
After that, I had a bite to eat and checked out some shops on my way to the Bar wall. I entered by the Bootham bar and walked along the walled city. The view was really nice. Quite a pleasant walk. The Monk Bar was neat, as it's portcullis was still in working order.
Then I did more window shopping before calling it a day.
The next morning, I took a train to Scarborough to visit my cousin Margo.
While in Inverness, I had found a lovely Scottish thistle bookmark cross-stitch kit. I worked on that while on the train. A perfect way to pass the time on transport. Starting up a new hobby.

However, easier said than done. I was reading the instructions, and for you that don't know me too well, I've never sewn before. I have trouble sewing on buttons on a shirt! And that's basic stuff. So, needless to say, I was having a bit of trouble getting it right. My stitches were messy and too thin.

Lucky for me, my cousin (3rd cousin, she was cousin to my grandma) does cross-stitching and embroidery, so who better to teach me?

We had a warm reunion when I arrived. She was very happy to see one of her Canadian family members since the distance prevents regular visits. 

She was unable to speak as she had lost that ability from her stroke. But, we were able to communicate well enough. She always had a paper and pen handy.

Catching up was great, she had big smiles when updating her on the family and my travels. And she was more than happy to teach me how to cross-stitch. I finally got it! New hobby here I come!

After staying the night and part of the next day with her, I reluctantly headed back to York.

I had left my belongings with the hostel so I was able to retrieve them and stay a final night there before heading south. 

I looked at Clifford's Tower and walked along the River Ouse admiring the Yorkboats to pass the remainder of the day.

Now, I'm waiting for my bus to take me to Birmingham where I'll then take the train to Stratford-upon-Avon to visit more of my cousins. I'm excited to see more family!

Fife

After a cool night, I got up to admire the view over Loch Tay. And noticed the mount across the Loch had a dusting of snow. No wonder it was so cool that night.
The drive along the loch was stunning. I really can't get enough of the rolling green hills, woodland and lakes.
I drove to Killin where I checked out the small cascading waterfalls of the Falls of Dochart and scenery of the hills surrounding the village. Then I made my way to Strathyre to go on my last hike.

Strathyre was a small village, so finding the starting point for the Beinn an t-Sidhein trail was easy. It turned out to be the steepest hike I'd done too. May not have been the tallest or longest, but once out of the forest and heading up, it was extremely steep. Ha, probably didn't help that I lost the trail. There was a fork in the trail, one with a coloured marker (other than the trail I was following) and one with no marker. So, I assumed the uncoloured marker was the one I was currently on... it was just missing. Ended up walking a sheep trail through mud and bog. Thank goodness my boots are gortex and still waterproof.
The path sort of just went up... and disappeared and reappeared here and there. So I headed up, scrambling up the slippery side of the hill, even up a creek. Once at the summit, I found the trail I should have been on... much more laid out and less slippery. Ha ha, well it was a challenge at least.

With the wind blowing the rainy clouds in and the sun working it's hardest to shine, another rainbow decorated the landscape. Almost seems like a daily occurrence in Scotland. Just beautiful.
Time to start the drive to Fife. I took the main road to Perth, headed over the Bridge of Earn and took a small side road following along the Firth of Tay inlet to Tayport. I checked out the wooded area there for possible camping, but payment was required to park at the forest. And with lots of private farmland around, there wasn't really anywhere to wildcamp. Wouldn't be easy from here to find any more wildcamping now that I was in more populated areas.
I drove through St. Andrews, which was very busy, and Kingsbarns until Crail. It was already dark and hard to find somewhere to crash for the night. I found a sign for a campsite, but it was closed. A nice lady saw me standing at the gate (debating whether I should just go in anyway and check in at the office in the morning) and offered a cup of tea with her and her husband in their RV. Figured I could ask them for any other camping suggestions.  Turns out the couple were volunteering in the celebrity golf tournament in Kingsbarns. That explained why the area was so busy. They were really funny and I ended up staying 1.5 hours with them. They did suggest  a place I could probably camp near the beach and the Fife coastal path (which stretched the coastline from north to south 117 miles). After a heart felt goodnight, I took off and found a gravel parking area amongst trees and dunes for the beach access in Fife Ness, completely deserted and just slept in the car since I was tired enough to just pass out.

The next morning I had a little looky-loo of the fishing village and then drove to Elie. Another little fishing village. I walked to the Lady Tower. More of a rocky beach and some interesting sandstones constructing the tower itself. Then strolled along the beach in the harbour to the fisherman's wharf and a bit of the town. The tide was out revealing lots of golden sand in the sunshine. It really was a beautiful day. 

I then made my way to Kinghorn and checked into Pettycur Bay Holiday Park campsite. It was pricey, but there weren't really any other camping options. After pitching my tent, I walked on the mixture of black and golden sand on the beach nearby and watched the sunset.

In the morning I drove back to Edinburgh to drop off the car. As soon as I got over the Forth Road Bridge and passed the exit for Queensferry, there was construction on the motorway causing huge traffic delays and traffic jams as people had to go the same route for diversions. I ended up being late. But luckily, I called them and one of the staff members said he'd wait for me. Once I returned the car, he even offered to give me a ride to the city centre so I could check into my hostel. What a nice guy. Great service! Good on ya Enterprise!
I checked into the Caledonia hostel again and spent the rest of the day roaming a bit.
And finally, to conclude my time in Scotland, I was able to meet up for a drink with my camping and drinking pal, John. I was able to keep in touch with both John and Sinclair, whom I met near the beginning of my trip in Glen Etive and it was a perfect way to end my month time up here. Shame Sinclair couldn't make it, but I was sure we'd meet up again. I enjoyed it so much in Scotland that I knew I'd come up again before I left the UK.
And now, I'm heading off to York!