Destination: Airport Desolation

So we had our one night stay in Glasgow. We stayed in a travellodge, a little splurge from normal but we had to catch a plane the next morning so we thought it best. That night we went and saw Red Eye at the Cineworld. Cineworld is a 40 story building ALL THEATRES!!! Oh my, I was in heaven. We left the next day to fly to Oslo, Norway. We left very early and went to the bus depot where we purchased our tickets to the airport. Got to the airport 2 hours before our flight left.....and then realized that the woman at the bus counter had sent us to the wrong airport. AHHHHHH!!!. So we quickly found someone who directed us on how to get the right airport which involved taking a taxi to a main train depot then taking the metro to the airport. We got to the airport at 11:17 for our 12:00 flight. Ran down to the check-in and they told us we had to go somewhere else, they lied. They had in fact just closed the check-in for the flight. We were next in line but we didn't know so we were not allowed to leave on that flight. You have to check in before 40 mins before your flight. 39 and your out of luck. The people there were very sneaky because we were in line or queue for the flight but they were not being nice that day and cut off the line right before us. Hmmm. Well we had to pay an extra 80 bucks and had to leave on the next flight the following day at the same time. So... we are at the airport and have no were to stay for the night...so we decided to brave it and sleep at the airport. We found a nice cozy spot upstairs and spent the rest of the day reading, looking around and sleeping in the airport. It wasn't the best night sleep but it wasn't that bad. Lucky for us the seats were cushy. See photos below. Oh yeah and right about 11:30 they had a fire alarm. So we had to wake up and run outside with everyone. In the morning we were the first to check in and flew to Oslo. PS. Ryanair charges for food on their plane. Crazy huh. Luckily we had food.

Norway was nice. We landed late so we had to stay at a hotel. Expensive but did the trick. The next day we found a nice campsite right outside the city with a nice bus stop right in front. We camped there for the next few days and took the bus into the city. The campsite was nice. It had stoves you could use, clean bathrooms, and nice people. There was also a great little supermaket right next door. Well enough about camping. Norway was a neat city and we will have to spend more time there when we have more money. Norway and Sweden are very very expensive. Expect to pay lots. On our first day in Norway we went to the national museum. It was nice, small but had some really nice pieces including the famous "Scream". Its a nice free place to visit. We also visited the central bibliotek or library where we got to use the internet for free for an hour each. While eating some lunch we wandered into a public square where a group was dancing. Confused by the message of the performance we stayed to see what was going on. We quickly learned what their dancing was about and who it was about. See picture below for answer. The next day we spent more time walking around sight seeing. We caught a train which was a deal at 500 kroner the bus was 650 we were happy that the woman at the train depot told us about the youth rate. Note to self always ask for the youth or student rate. I am good at that at the theatres and will try and use my student ID until I no longer look like my picture. Oh yeah don't trust the information people in Norway. I had a bad feeling about them when they said that all the hostels were full and most of the hotels were full but they knew of one they could book us a room for 1,000 kroner. We didn't believe them and looked for ourselves and found 5 out of 6 places had plenty of room. Camping really is the way to go. Our train to Sweden was fast and comfortable. We got there with plenty of time to find the campground and take the metro to it. Well that's all for now stay tuned...

Now the pictures:

Cineworld: Great theatre



Our plush stay in Glasgow.



We have to stay where!!!!??????



Yeehaw for airport camping!!



Changing of the guard in Oslo



Dancing??? Hmm..



Ahh that's who they are dancing for...They got me again!!!



Camp Oslo.



Taco night at camp Oslo.



A paper flower tree for my sister. Awww

Where is waldo!!

Where is Waldo? (aka Amanda)

Destination: Burger Temptation

Warning to readers and viewers the following burger is not approved by the Seth Maxwell Burger Association of America: Viewer discretion is advised!!

Wow after that intro you probably have no clue what to expect. Well first we decided not to continue up into the highlands; it was looking expensive and we really liked a little town we passed though on our way to Pitlochry so we backtracked a little and went to Perth to camp for a few days before going to Glasgow to catch our flight to Norway. So we packed up our things said goodbye to our old camp site and caught a train to Perth Scotland. The Perth camping was not as nice as the Pitlochry camping but the views were great. The Perth campsite was situated about two miles north of the city about an hour walk with 40 pounds or so on your back a quick 20 min run with nothing on your back. We timed both. The nice thing about Perth vs. Pitlochry is that they had more of a city; a museum etc. to visit and a movie theatre YAY!!! so we got to enjoy that. See below for more pictures of our old camp and our new camp. Alse see how others are "camping" in the photos below. Well now back to the title of our blog. Burger temptation. On our first day in Perth after walking 2 miles from Pitlochry to the train depot taking a train to Perth walking another 2 and a half miles to our new campsite this is with all our gear mind you. We found ourselves without food for dinner. So we decided to walk another mile and a half to the little town of Scone (promised Scoon not like the pastry). Anyway after walking to Scoon hungry tired and wet, did I mention it rains all the time in Scotland, we found a nice little "chip shop". Man those brits are crazy about their chips or French fries to you Americans. So we decide to get a hamburger and fries a little taste of home. Boy were we off. See picture below. It seems that when you are ordering food off a chip shop menu all the items are chipified or to the laymen battered and thoroughly deepfried. Boy was that a heart attack sandwich if I ever had one. Two hamburger patties with cheese battered and deepfried. Gosh I think it nearly killed us.

Well enough about our eating habits. See photos below of me trying to burn our the memory by making my own burgers. More little odds and ends. Glasgow is like one big open shopping mall. I have never seen as many shoe stores in one block. They have a chain of stores here called T.K. Maxx not sure if we got it wrong or they did. We found a rather interesting doll in Pitlochry sorry if it offends anyone. We were offended. Well just go on and read the other photo titles. They are self explanatory:

Now the photos:

THE BURGER!!! AHHHHH!!!



Pitlochry Camp:

My stove wall creation. It was so windy it just had to be built. I was rather proud:



Our lovely camp in Pitlochry. The only bad thing about this camp was that about 4 times or so a day fighter jets fly overhead about a 100 feet up so close that you have to close your ears. Its an amazing site but gets old. The jets were so fast and so random that I couldn't take a picture but they were spectacular.



Amanda cooking us a lovely grilled cheese sandwich lunch on our great little stove.



Perth Camp:

We were put in the "hole" I didn't make up the name that's what the lady told us. Wasn't sure if it was because we were American or if it was because they were booked. I think it was the latter Amanda thinks otherwise.



You just cant complain about those views. That was on one site and the Tay River on the other. Sorry no photos of it.



My redemption hamburger:



Miss photos:

Uhh...What the hell kinda doll is this!!!



Did we get it wrong or did they?



A nice walk on the river in Pitlochry. Not sure what river. Will have to check on that.



Amanda and I had our third go at Mexican food. Still not great but we figured out a trick. If they cant make what you want make it yourself. We ordered 3 sides of beans tortillas and cheese and made our own burritos.



Someone's idea of camping:



Another great camping idea:



The force is strong with this one!!!:



Goodbye for now!!

Destination: Highland Celebration!

The other night in Edinburgh we spent our evening in a pub called the Royal Oak. They had some great local folk musicians playing, so we spent our evening enjoying the sounds of Scotland and joining in song. The next day we hopped on a bus to Peebles, just south of the city, to see the highland games. We had a great time. The music was wonderful and there were so many sweet puppies to keep me occupied throughout the day. After some food and fun, we hopped back on the bus and went to...IKEA!!!! We saw one off the side of the road so we decided to spend some time there to ease some of our homesickness. On our last night we hiked up Holyrood Mountain overlooking the city. The last two days have been spent in the town of Pitlochy in the Scottish Highlands where we are currently camping. This campsite is far from roughing it; there are nice bathrooms, full indoor pool with jacuuzi, full bar and restaurant, laundry facilities, and a convenience store. It's about two miles form the main town. This morning Seth and I ran into town to visit the tourist bureau and grab a bite to eat. I think we'll stay here for a few days before continuing further into the highlands. Lochness monster here we come!

Now the pictures:
From our hike up holyrood mountain: (a view of the city at night) (the castle is on the left)


The Royal Oak:


One of the many Scottish bagpipe groups (there were about 20):



A very cute dog. There were more puppies than bagpipes!!



Some Scottish dancers: (Amanda's Favorite)



One of the better pipers:



Our new home:



Amanda making dinner:

Destination: Shoe Sensation

Well its us again. We had a good day yesterday. Today we are a little tired. Yesterday we walked miles and miles. We saw I think ALL of Edinburgh. We got approval from Amanda's mom so we went and got Amanda some new shoes. Here others were not good for running. See picture of Amanda running for example. Also see picture of new shoes. Anyways. After we went to this running store which was way more thorough than most American running shoe places. They even have a slow motion computerized camera that you can analyze your running and determine a perfect shoe for you. Its rather nifty. So after we got some shoes. We walked to a camping/backpacking store Tiso's (pronounced TYZO). It was a four story shop filled with backpacking goodness. We were looking into buying a portable stove device. (hot food is so much nicer than cold food). After more walking we went to a different theatre. It was an old theatre but still really nice. It seems like a lot of the old theatres in LA are all broken down and don't have good picture or sound. But this one didn't. See picture below. We went to subway where they only offer 6inch and you have to ask special for a footlong. America is so greedy and fat. Something also interesting is that all the shops including starbucks close at like 6:00 pm. It seems that after 6 people stop work and go to the pub or see their family. We ended our day at the top of the city at a location I can no longer remember but I'll show you a photo and maybe you can fill me in on the location. I will try and find out and post the answer. Well that's all for now. This may be our last day in Edinburgh. We are looking into going to Peebles for a festival and then possibly the Maxwell castle or Ireland. We will see...

Now the pictures:

Look at my new shoes (whoo hoo):



And photo 2 of the shoes:



A great looking pub for Gary:



My family flower shop:



Another picture from the other day at Castle Edinburgh:



Lastly a picture of us all toasty in the theatre:

Destination: Mexican Flirtation!

Well we are having a blast here in the great city of Edinburgh. We visited the castle Edinburgh yesterday and saw great views of the city. We also happened on a mexican food restaurant; if you know Amanda and I you know how much we love mexican food so we had to try it. DO NOT EAT EDINBURGH MEXICAN FOOD! It wasn't even close. It was as if they got their idea of mexican food from a picture they saw somewhere. The cooks must have never had real mexican food in their life. It was fun anyway and we got a laugh out of it. We were not expecting too much going in but were still surprised at what we got. Note to any business people out there. Come to Edinburgh and create a buried shop with true mexican food... You will make millions. Sadly I didn't take pictures of the food to document the experience but we have one from the outside.
Edinburgh castle was great. It was way expensive to get in but I think it was worth it. You can spend the whole day inside looking at the exhibits. If you want to know anything about the military history of Edinburgh definately come to the castle. We had a great guide who told us tons of information. Right outside the castle was a Edinburgh tartan weaving factory. We saw how the make all that plaid. I spent my time hunting for my family tartan and crest. Finally found it. See photo below. I also found my family castle which is in the south of Scotland. See photo below.
After the castle and before dinner we went exploring a little and found a movie theatre called the Odeon. Not sure if its a chain but it was the nicest theatre I have seen. We got the student rate no questions asked..About £4.5. We saw crash...great movie if youhaven'tt seen it. I'll take a picture of the theatre today; its raining so we thought we would see a movie tonight. Wellthat'ss all for now. As the Brits say Cheers!!

Photo:

Fako Mexicano!!



Edinburgh from the castle!



Our guide:



Maxwell Castle:



A nice young boy offering us bread named Kristoph: (He and the bread were a little stale)



My family Tartan:

Destination: Desperation

This is Amanda writing this time. Our first week here has been very difficult, Seth was feeling sick for about three days and then I was sick for a day or so; I think it was bad food + no sleep+ walking very far distances. The last two nights we spent camping in London. It was a very nice campsite along the river Thames, however, it took about three hours for us to walk there. It was at this point that we decided there were a few items we needed to mail back home to lighten our load. We have learned very quickly that getting lost is just part of the deal with traveling. On the upside, we met some nice people at our campsite. They invited us out to a local pub for dinner and drinks. This place was called the Rose and Crown in Chertsey and was built in the 1400's. I found that the company was great, but the Guinness was not. This place was definitely Seth's cup of tea (excuse the pun) with live music and lots of good company.
because we were having such an awful time in London, we decided to move on. So, today we are in Edinburgh Scotland. It is quite chilly here, but we find it much more to our liking. We will take lots of pictures so all of you can see it too.
Thus far I have determined aspects of British life that I like and dislike. First, I like their currency, I think it looks better than our money. I like the cool weather and the rain. I also like the history of the cities we've visited. Things I dislike include some terrible food, no grocery stores anywhere, high prices, and everyone smokes!!!!!! I suppose everyplace has its ups and downs.

Photos:

Parents say goodbye:



Seth and Amanda not looking so good:





Our first night camping:



Dinner:



Our camping friends Chirs and Pete: (Pete is getting ready for the night at the pub with a quick cut.)