Restless Prairie Girl

I realize I haven't told the whole story of my 4 nights in Dubai in February 2018.  I did a stop off with Emirates airlines (the best!) on my way from London to Sri Lanka.   I told the story of my first 36 hours  so now it's time for the next 36 hours.   The next morning I walked to a coffee shop near the hotel and had a huge coffee and a croissant.  I remarked in my diary that I was still trying to channel "Adventurous Laurie - where has she gone?".  I was battling a cold and the lethargy that came with it.   After breakfast, I walked along the marina to the Marina Mall (a walk I never grew tired of) where I once again dragged myself onto the Hop On Hop Off bus.  Today it was a water day.   I got off the bus at the nearby Beach area and dipped my toes in the ocean.  This  area is very touristy but fun too.  It's got restaurants, movie theatres, shops and of course a beautiful beach.  This is a fancy-d...

For a few years now I have been wanting to revisit Leeds Castle.  I had visited previously in 1988 - 32 years ago!  On July 9th of last year my wish finally came true!  I was able to get a train (after waiting for a bit) to Victoria.  An electrical work train had derailed between Clapham Junction (busiest rail station in England is its claim to fame) and Victoria had closed down five routes so everything was backed up.  Luckily I made the next train from Victoria to Bearstead, Kent which was luckily not affected by the derailment with not much time to spare.  I had gone on a weekday rather than a weekend to avoid crowds however that had disadvantages as well.  Upon getting into the van that would take me to the castle I found out that the last pickup at the castle was at 3 p.m. and it was now 11:30 a.m.  That left me just three hours at the castle.  If I stayed later I was facing an expensive taxi ride back to the station instead of a five-po...