September 8, 2024. We had not even gotten off the plane yet when I heard a loud BOOM and looked down to see Mike’s boots next to my feet, flat on his back on the steps down to the tarmac. !!!!!!!!!!!
Orlando was 4,000 miles behind us, and with it our families, friends, pets, familiar food, favorite pillow and the toughest part, our baby grandson who would most certainly start crawling while we were gone.
Neither of us slept on our overnight flight. When we arrived in Manchester, England it was 45 degrees and raining–40 degrees colder than when we left hot, rainy Orlando. The Captain announced that Aer Lingus airlines was short-staffed, which was why we waited over a half hour to deplane onto wet, slippery steps that were shaking from side to side in the wind. No warm, dry tunnel leading us to the airport here. My legs were stiff and wobbly so I held on tight to the railing. Mike’s tried-and-true hiking boots that had kept him upright on glaciers, slipped out from under him and down he went. Luckily he was fine and did not knock me or anyone over. Still!
We rushed to our shuttle bus in the windy, rainy, cold morning and squeezed on with dozens of other weary travelers. With relief we found the queue for Customs was very quick and soon we were looking for the train station.
Our primary objective for the trip was visiting friends in Edinburgh, but first we were headed for adventure in the Isle of Skye, on the northwest coast of Scotland. Mike is really good at figuring out trains and had researched the best way to get there: take the train to Stirling Scotland and stay overnight. Rent a car and drive to the Roybridge, a small town near the Isle of Skye. The friendly customer service rep explained we could save money if we got a ticket to Stirling via Glasgow. Ok!
It is often unclear which train cars to get on when you don’t have a reserved seat, but a friendly fellow traveler told us we would be lucky if the train showed up at all, that this particular train line had terrible ratings. Hmmmmm. No problem, though, it arrived on time and we easily got seats.
But then the conductor announced that they were having engine problems and were not sure when we would leave. Good grief! He explained that he would “open the doors” so we could catch another train. Honestly we were frozen in space. Some people quickly jumped off the train and others stayed in their seats as though this happened all the time. We stood there for at least 20 minutes unsure what to do. Then the train simply started moving. Huh! We took our seats and the conductor never said another thing.
The trains in Europe are smooth and relaxing with huge windows, and apart from my fatigue I was thrilled to be getting my first look at England! Although it was considerably overcast, the rolling hills and fields full of sheep were striking. The grass was vibrant lush green as far as you could see.
We were so incredibly tired, but I struggled to stay awake to see the countryside. Finally we arrived at the train station in Glasgow, Scotland. There are simply so many trains in Europe that our next train was scheduled to leave from a different station in Glasgow. Mike found our way through the bustling fast-paced city of Glasgow. Though we were only there for an hour, I was already snapping pictures of the buildings, admiring architecture older than the United States. There was even a TARDIS parked nearby for the Doctor Who lovers!
The gray sandy color of the stone was not familiar to me and seemed unique to Scotland everywhere we went. And, as I’ve noticed in so many northern cities, people enjoy their fresh flowers, despite the lateness of the season.
Soon we were on our second train, heading for Stirling. I already knew I was going to love Scotland and the idea of 3 full weeks there was exhilarating!
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