Week 3

Balloch:

·       Monday was a long walk in Balloch Country Park.  A lot of dog walkers out on a long weekend.  We went on a cruise around Loch Lomond, the largest in Scotland (Loch Ness is the deepest.)  Hard to hear the recorded narrative.  The hotel and restaurants here get C’s from us but at least the locals are friendly.

·       Tuesday was a bike along the loch.  Most of it was great but a 2-mile stretch along the sidewalk right next to (I mean we shared a curb) 50 mph traffic was no fun.  I think each day here has had at least some rain, today included.  We stumbled on a park with mobile homes and glamping pods, mostly for second homes, which has us thinking about looking for some to stay as we wander.

Glasgow:

Wednesday we took the train into Glasgow, which was only 45 minutes.  We left the beautiful scenery around to a city with a mix ugly 70’s architecture and great 200-year old buildings.  A smaller percentage of tourists than Edinburg (a good thing on my scorecard.)  Walked around a lot and spent 2 hours in Kelvinwood Art Museum.  Great Indian dinner – no gluten in the restaurant. 

·       Thursday We went on a guided van tour.  Only 5 of us (all Americans) with Jeff narrating and driving.  First was Stirling Castle.  We watched Outlaw King about Robert the Bruce on Netflix to the night before prep for the visit.  I now understand 1% of Scottish history.  We stopped at Glengoyne distillery, which bills itself as having Scotland’s slowest whisky, for a tour and samples.  Karen’s unsophisticated pallet liked the 12-year but John’s refined taste liked the 18-year.  We’ll be buying the 12-year back home.

·       Friday was Karen’s birthday.  It rained about an inch.  We took a hop on/off bus tour and hit the Riverside Museum which was focused on transportation (our grandsons and Kent would have loved it) and had a great tapas dinner to celebrate.

·       Saturday we took a local bus Pollok Country Park (a recommendation from Peter’s cousin, Davey) and it was a hidden gem.  A long walk and a chance to get outside the touristy areas.  A lot more Asians and Mideasterners on the south side of the river and the shops weren’t as high-end as the city centre but the homes weren’t too different aside from less dense - it wasn’t like going from Georgetown to Anacostia.

·       In Glasgow we weren’t younger than the average tourist.  And the youngins in town, locals and tourists, like to drink a lot.

·       If Scotland has an area that is ugly, they keep it very well hidden.

Carlisle:

·       This was a one-day stop on Sunday to work around the one-day rail strike (announced well in advance, with another coming up next Sunday.)  We took a bus just over the border in England.  I still don’t get how the Scotland isn’t exactly a country designation but they get their own World Cup team, etc.  We walked around town and along the Hadrian’s Wall path (most of the wall was just earthen mounds.) There were half marathons in Carlisle and Glasgow on the same day as the London Marathon – great running weather, cloudy in the 50’s (low teens Celsius.)  Next stop London to meet work buddies from Sitecore and Vertex.  Our guess is the Ibis hotel was once a hostel or dorm and they added bathrooms recently and awkwardly.  After talking with a woman at the table next to us at dinner we’ve added the Lakes Country in England on our list to see someday and the busboy put Luxor, Egypt there for us.

Misc notes:

·         We’re doing our best to manage the time difference but it’s tougher to deal with long-term than for a few days.

·         The UK has smaller and cleaner thrift stores than the US, but there are a lot more of them per capita, I’m sure.

·         A couple from St Louis we ate dinner with (great Thai food) said they had 4 pickpocket attempts – 2 successful.  One he grabbed the guys hand on a crowded subway but the thief wore a loose jacket that slipped off easily, so he kind of traded his wallet for an old, smelly jacket.

·         Most American changes to English have been improvements but after thinking through the phrase “to the hospital” instead of “to hospital” I agree with the Brits on the logic.  It doesn’t make sense to say “he went to the school” or “he went to the work.”

·         I still have trouble with left/right logic when crossing streets, especially intersections.  And pedestrians do jaywalk but the cars don’t cut them the same slack they do in Boston.

·         People have strong opinions on politics here, including US presidents, but it doesn’t seem as touchy or tense or personal as in the US.  I predict Scotland will pass a referendum on independence in 2026 – that could make things edgier.

·         Bus subsidies in UK range from 5 to 13 pence a trip.  Money well spent.

·         Hard to fathom how we would have gotten along without iPhones for booking rooms and travel, navigating streets, and finding restaurants.