Tag: travel
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Dublin meetup
I’m in Dublin on a work trip and having a really great time. I’ve never been to Dublin before so it’s nice to have a look around. My coworkers are a fantastic bunch of people and incredibly hard workers so it’s looking like this will be a very productive trip. However it’s not all work. We had lunch at…
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Cycling in the rain: BRING IT ON!
I got completely drenched cycling the kids to school this morning. But as I was peddling along and struggling to see through the curtain of rain battering my face the glass half full part of me was happy about one thing: the fresh, clean air. I, and all the other people in the city, have to inhale the…
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Igloos and ice-skating
It’s another beautiful day here today with sun and blue sky. The only thing missing is the snow but it’s so warm there’s no chance of that happening. One day I’d love to visit Kakslauttanen Arctic Resort in Lapland where there is guaranteed snow and where kids can also visit Santa Claus. Kakslauttanen have these fantastic-looking glass…
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Inverness
We’re in Inverness. My Mum and Doug are still here and we thought it would be nice to go away for the weekend. I have been wanting to explore the countryside in this part of Scotland as it’s particularly beautiful but a bit too far for a day trip. We decided to spend two nights…
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Park City
I am in Utah for work and have been so busy I haven’t had the chance to write any posts or read any blogs. It’s a good busy though as I’m getting to meet so many of the talented people I work with. Even going to the toilet can be a challenge because I see…
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Stromness to Aberdeen by ferry + train
My post yesterday about Skara Brae and the Ring of Brodgar was rather rushed because we had to dash for a long day of traveling. But both places were absolutely fascinating. Skara Brae was particularly good. How often do you get to see the house, including furniture, of a Neolithic human? All the walls were…
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Ring of Brodgar and Skara Brae
We visited some more neolithic sites yesterday. First stop was The Standing Stones o’ Stenness and the nearby and well-known Ring of Brodgar. Both are stone circles about 5000 years old. The stones are huge and heavy and would have been quite difficult to move and stand upright in their positions. Why did humans build…
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Orkney and the Tomb of the Eagles with puking and ticks
We’re in Orkney. We caught the ferry from Aberdeen yesterday afternoon and arrived here just before midnight last night. The ferry stops in Kirkwall, Orkney a few times each week on its way to Shetland. Here’s a map showing the route we took on the ferry and also the route we plan to take back.…
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To Aberdeen by bicycle via Drum Castle
We cycled back from Banchory to Aberdeen yesterday and it was rather hellish. I thought I was going to die. We arrived home and I collapsed in a heap with a very sore butt and feeling sorry for myself. I’ve decided to give up cycling for good. Just kidding 🙂 We thoroughly enjoyed our stay at…
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To Banchory on the Deeside cycleway
We stayed in Banchory last night and I’m typing this from a very comfortable hotel bedroom. For a little while now we’ve been wanting to extend our cycle ride on the Deeside cycleway but felt that Aberdeen to Crathes and back was about our limit given we’ve got small kids and the Bakfiets. If wanted…
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Craigievar Castle
We booked another Co-Wheels car today. I think I’ve got the system all figured out and have tried a few different cars now including electric, petrol, and hybrid. Most of the problems I had in the beginning were down to user error, I’m embarrassed to say. We drove out to Craigievar Castle, about 30 miles…
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Glen Garioch and Tolquhon Castle
We have had another terrific day today. I almost feel a bit bad that I have so many terrific days and I hope that I’m not rubbing it in too much by writing about them on my blog all the time. There’s something so fun about writing about my experiences. It’s kind of a way…
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More photos from the Shetland Islands
Dad came with us to the Shetland Islands and took much nicer photos of the puffins than I did so I thought I’d share his photos as they’re really terrific. He also took some nice ones of Shetland Ponies: And some of the beach: Seals (that’s Lerwick in the background): A photo of Scalloway: And…
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The Shetland Islands
I’m not quite sure how to begin this post. I’ve just had a fantastic adventure in the Shetland Islands and saw and did so many wonderful things so this is probably going to be a long post. On Friday evening we boarded a ferry, the MV Hjaltland, for the Shetland Islands. The Shetland Islands are at…
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Dunnottar Castle
I took Dad to Dunnottar Castle today. I booked the electric car again which I had no problems starting but we couldn’t get the plug out of the charging station. I phoned Co-wheels and they weren’t sure either so they said I could just leave it there and that’s what we did. I have been…
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Provence
We’re currently staying at a truly magnificent place in Provence. My sister and her husband have organised a weekend celebration for their wedding rather than just the usual day and so a group of about 30 of us have gathered in this lovely part of the world to drink and be merry. There are quite a…
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Evolution and adventures
Explaining evolution to kids is harder than you think especially when you’re riding a bakfiets at the time and they’re firing questions at you from the box in front. It started on the cycle ride home today with, “How come some kids have brown skin?”. I tried to explain that humans have evolved to have…
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Brig o’ Balgownie
Bridges are very clever things. Spanning rivers and harbours they hold a lot a weight and somehow manage, most of the time anyway, not to fall into the water. Aberdeen has some very old bridges including one of the oldest in Scotland, a medieval bridge over the River Don called the Brig o’ Balgownie. It…
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An Automattic family
My work trip to Barcelona has come to an end and yes, there were some dramas and yes, Barcelona is a really cool city, but the best part of the trip was the people. And I’m not referring to the people of Barcelona – although they were, without exception, very friendly and welcoming – I’m…
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