Belfast, Nth Ireland to London England 15th July 2007

We had a great crossing from Belfast to Stranrear in Scotland, in the world's largest and fastest ferry. At Stranrear we kick-started our BritRail Flexi Pass which has given us 8 days of train travel in the four week period we nominate - train passes are excellent value and well worth the money spent on the tickets. It gives total flexibility with rail travel and is an excellent mode of transport for many reasons - for example - all railway stations are in the centre of the city whereas airports are often miles away; trains run regularly and waiting time between trains is minimal.

We headed out of Stranraer and travelled through the beautiful Scottish countryside of Ayr, Dumfries and Carlisle - then into England through Lancaster, Preston and into Liverpool the home of the Beatles - John Lennon, Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr and George Harrison. In the evening we headed out on foot to visit The Cavern where Liverpool's most famous residents, the Beatles, began their career. Liverpool is currently undergoing a face lift in many areas as the city is preparing to be the European Culture Capital in 2008. The old Albert Docks are great to visit - it's here we found the excellent Maritime Museum.

After Liverpool we headed out to Colwyn Bay and Llandudno Junction on the Wales Coast - then down to Blaenau Fiestiniog in the beautiful mountains of Wales. This northern area of Wales is famous for mountain walks and hiking. At Blaenau Fiestiniog we stepped back in time and crossed the track to board a small but magnificent narrow gauge steam train which then ambled down past a slate mountain to Minffordd, from where we boarded another train and headed down the coast to the town of Pwllheli.

We travelled to Pwllheli in Wales to see if we could find my Great Granny's (Sarah Jane O'Boyle) grave site as she was Mum's very favourite Grandmother who died in Wales when Mum was 16 years of age.

Slate is the main industry of this mountain area and all along this coast of Wales. Apparently earlier on a lot of Irishmen came to this area in Wales for the construction of the railways and to work in the slate industry. There was also an Air Force base in the Pwllheli area during the 2nd World War - Mum tells me that Great Granny's daughter Lily and her husband Kenny lived in this area during the war as Kenny was in the Air Force - hence the reason for Great Granny to be away from Ireland and living in Wales.

We stayed in the Victoria Hotel B&B down on the coast and had dinner - chatted with the staff and put together some information for the following day. The Welsh are all very friendly and helpful. The Shire Council office was only a 3 minute walk from the Hotel so we set out in the morning at 9 o'clock to see if we could check the cemetery records. By the way, everybody here in this part of Wales speaks Welsh - most seem to also speak English. They all know about Paul Hogan, Steve Irwin, Neighbours, Home & Away and Vegemite!!!

We were helped at the Council by a lovely lady who ushered us into a room and brought out all the cemetery record books. We opened up the books for 1946 and there on the second page was the entry for my Great Granny. The lady then made some phone calls and arranged for a Superintendent to meet us at the cemetery to show us her grave as it was unmarked.

We took a taxi to the address where my Great Granny lived while she was in Wales - the current building seems to have been rebuilt since the time she lived there. There was a lovely old set of gates almost overgrown with trees and an area behind full of undergrowth. This area may have been the spot where their cottage stood - somewhere in amongst the greenery which backs onto the river. The taxi driver was unsure if there was a cottage in there but said it is possible. Sometime I'd like to go back and investigate it further - perhaps take Mum.

When we arrived at the cemetery the Council Superintendent was waiting for us beside Great Granny's grave. We took some photos for Mum - the grave is unmarked and is covered in short green grass. It was wonderful to find the grave especially for Mum's sake - she doesn't believe anyone has been there since she was buried in 1946. We took the names of stonemasons in the area so later on we can organise to put a headstone on her grave.

We said goodbye to Pwllheli and boarded a train for Birmingham via the coast of Wales. We stayed with Phill, Anne and Laura and had a great time. On our first night we went out to an Indian Restaurant for dinner and had a most magnificent meal - yummo! Phill took us on a great tour around Birmingham where we visited St Martin's Church of England Cathedral, the Bull Ring, the magnificent old Markets, the Jewellery Quarter and then topped it off by having lunch at an Aussie Pub - The Walkabout.

After spending a couple of great days in Birmingham we headed back up north to Scotland and met up with Victor and Heather. Pat and Victor used to work together at Burton Coal Mine. We went to a Scottish Pub for lunch and had Scotch Broth, Haggis and Scottish Beer the Bagpipes were being played outside and kilts were seen in every direction. Edinburgh is a magnificent old city - this is a place where I felt I really stepped back in time - the buildings are excellent. The newly constructed Scottish Parliament building is also very different - very controversial, very expensive and considered quite ugly by many people - it certainly is a 'talking piece'.

We decided to take a bus tour to get a good overall view of this great city and in the evening we went on a Ghost and Ghouls Tour of the underground vaults - not a good tour for the faint hearted or the claustrophobic! It certainly makes us appreciate our living conditions today when we see how the people of yesteryear had to live. In those early times, all food and human waste was collected in buckets during the day and at 10pm each evening all buckets were emptied by being thrown out the windows into the street below - the contents of these buckets would then be washed down the hills - it was not a good time to be out walking in the streets of Edinburgh!!!
We headed north out of Edinburgh to Inverness where we decided to hire a car to be able to get in closer to the north and west coast. We headed up to John O'Groats the most northerly point on mainland Scotland - then on to the Castle of Mey which was the summer home of the Queen Mother for many years. We visited Bettyhill, Durness and on down to Ullapool where we stayed in a lovely Inn overlooking the loch. This day was just beautiful and was our first day of sunshine since we arrived in Ireland, England, Scotland and Wales.

After leaving Ullapool we travelled south to the Kyle of Lochalsh and the Isle of Skye. We stopped off at beautiful Loch Ewe which was a safe haven for ships during the war. There was a little story from the soldiers who were based here at that time: After 6 months here we talk to ourselves - after 12 months here we talk to the sheep - then after 18 months here the sheep talk back!

We made a ferry crossing from Armadale on the Isle of Skye to Mallaig - a quaint little village nestled in amongst the many bays. We then headed onto Plockton, Glenfinnan and Fort William where Ben Nevis towers over the city. We drove up along Loch Ness and arrived in the beautiful village of Drumnadrochit. We kept out eyes open for the Loch Ness Monster but unfortunately he must have been resting because we did not see any sign of him! What we have seen in Scotland though are sea gulls almost the size of pelicans! Scotland has such beautiful countryside with so much to see - so we made sure we left some to see on another trip.

We headed out of Inverness once again and travelled through Aberdeen and Edinburgh on down to the famous city of York in England. York is a magnificent old walled city with so much to see and so much history. We stayed in the old Gillygate Inn and enjoyed the drinks, food and great hospitality. It was the Vikings who gave York its name, but it was Norman rule which lasted longer, then followed by the Tudor age. The magnificent York Minster took 250 years to build and was finally completed in 1485. York houses Britain's National Railway Museum which is the largest railway museum in the world. The medieval buildings in the old city of York are superb.

On our next train trip we travelled from York through Leeds, Sheffield, Derby, Birmingham, Bristol, Exeter St David, Plymouth and down to the end of Cornwall to Penzance and Lands End. The train trip from St Erth to St Ives is just spectacular - wide white sandy beaches and beautiful aqua waters - we thought for a minute we were back in the Whitsundays! We left St Ives and headed to London through Westbury and Reading. The sun is trying to come out - it peeks through the clouds every now and then! This is the coldest and wettest July in Britain - everyone is wondering where the summer is hanging out!

We arrived at Angela's apartment in Maida Vale in London and have settled in for the next week. We went out for a walk and visited the canals of Little Venice, Lord's Cricket Ground, the Prince Alfred Pub, the Windsor Castle Pub and met up with Angela's friends for a great afternoon. This is a beautiful part of London with lovely gardens and lawns in behind the apartments - this area is like a little village and we're right in the centre of London! Michael Flatley of Riverdance fame lives around the corner, as does Princess Diana's brother - and yesterday we met the late John Inman's partner (Are you being served). Angela has retired from British Airways and left today for 5 days in Hong Kong so we are the house sitters here in the centre of London while she is away - but believe me - it is our absolute pleasure! Today has been the warmest day we have had since arriving in this part of the world - a lovely day to celebrate my birthday!