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102 days of adventures coming right up!!!

Finally, finally...I am heading for adventures afar.  While I've been fortunate enough to have a few trips in Canada I'm now ready to spread my wings again and cross the pond. 

Of course travel right now is a gong show between lost luggage, canceled flights, hot weather, strikes and of course good old Covid who has proven it isn't going away anytime soon.   I know it will be the most challenging trip I have ever taken.

I will be away 100 nights (101 if you count the night on the airplane going over).  Yes that's 100 nights of accommodation as on this trip I am not staying with anybody or doing any petsitting.  I did up a cost projection on Excel and nearly fell off my chair when I saw the total cost of my accommodation.  I justify it by saying it is my holiday for 2020, 2021 AND 2022.  I am the first one to admit it is quite a daunting itinerary!  

So here's a rundown of where I am going...

London

I can see the nodding heads...of course she's going to London.  Anyone who has read my blog knows London is my soul city.   I will be spending six days there upon my arrival, another two weeks in September then a few days here and there in October with my final week of the trip spent there.   I am already fretting it won't be enough time!  You could spend a lifetime exploring London and not see it all. 

Some highlights will be seeing Superbloom at the Tower of London, riding the new Elizabeth line (I will forever think of it as Crossrail though),  touring Buckingham Palace again (did it previously in 2002) and also touring the garden for the first time.  I have a huge list of places and things I want to do.  I will never grow tired of London!    

Edinburgh 

What can I say...I love this city.  It wasn't love at first sight - it had to grow on me.  I really didn't care for it my first trip but I always give a place a second chance and I am so glad I did!  I am staying at an Airbnb in a residential area.  I hope to visit some places I haven't been to before that are out of the city centre or totally out of the city .  Rosslyn Chapel comes to mind.  I also plan to take in the Edinburgh fringe festival and I have a ticket for the Edinburgh Tattoo  (bucket list!) so I will be battling the crowds.  My friend Amanda will be joining me for a day and we hope to walk part of the Water of Leith. 

Durness

After an overnight stay in Inverness and a four-hour bus ride I will be staying in a tiny village called Durness which is where my Scottish ancestors were from.  I will be visiting my great great great great grandparents' graves along with some great great great aunts and uncles.  The village is as far north in Scotland as you can get before you fall into the North Sea.  It should be very interesting!!!  Due to lack of choice my bed and breakfast there is my most expensive accommodation of the trip.   There are a few tourist attractions there as well but my first priority is to get to Balnakeil cemetery which is a half hour walk from my Bed and Breakfast to see the "rellies".  


Orkney Islands

My next stop will be the Orkney Islands where I have an Airbnb room in the main town of Kirkwall.  I will be there just less than a week and will be hopping the local buses to see the sights.  Car rental and tours are way out of my budget and my research has shown I can get to the main sights with the local bus so why not.  

Shetland Islands 

I then get on an overnight ferry to Lerwick where I have a Bed and Breakfast booked for 8 nights.  I've got a boat trip booked one morning to see the sealife and once again I will be "on the buses" to visit the main sights.  I will be doing lots of walking as well.  There is so much history on both Orkney and Shetland.  Shetland is closer to Norway than Britain!!! Speaking of Norway...

Norway 

Next up is a flight to Bergen, Norway where I will spend a couple of days before boarding a Hurtigruten ship that travels the Norweigian coast up to Kirkenes and back again. The ship stops at different places both ways.  This is not a traditional cruise but a working ship that drops off goods and local passengers.  However, there is an option to go for the whole route and that's what I did.  The trip is 12 days.  Included is three meals a day and of course my cabin but instead of entertainment, there are lectures and beautiful scenic views out of the windows or from the deck. To me this will probably be the most relaxing part of my trip.  I booked it back in November 2020 to cheer me up and as a 70th Birthday present to myself.  I thought by 2022 things would be you know, back to normal.  The rest of this trip has been worked around this coastal journey.  

Gloucestershire, England

After two more weeks in London, I'll be spending ten days in an Airbnb in Gloucester doing family research as well as some sightseeing.  My grandparents came from this area and I am digging deeper than I have previously.  I'll be seeing where my grandpa was born and spent his early years, where he and his siblings were christened as well as roaming around graveyards.  I will be visiting some pretty villages as well. 

Italy

After a few days back in London I am off to Sorrento, Italy for a week!!  I am on a package holiday that includes airfare, transport from Naples airport and a hotel in a village above Sorrento.  I have been wanting to visit Pompeii since I was a little girl and finally it is happening!!!  I'm also looking forward to visiting the Amalfi coast and an island or two.  And I may just go to Naples to try their famous pizza!  

Weymouth, England

Upon arrival back at Gatwick airport  I will hop a train where I'll be spending a week at a Bed and Breakfast on the seafront in Weymouth, Dorset. I have always wanted to visit the Jurassic Coast on the English Channel and I decided it was time.  To be honest my original plan was to visit the Isle of Man to keep the island theme going but I could not find suitable accommodation there.  Note to self: look earlier next time!  I am excited to visit some of the towns along the coast and maybe do a bit of relaxing before heading back to London for the final busy week of my trip.  

And yes there will be rest days when all I do is perhaps my laundry and go to a cafe to catch up on my journal.  That is why I try to spend a week in each place.  
 
I won't be taking a laptop with me so won't be blogging from the road but hopefully posting on my Restless Prairie Girl Facebook page daily or every other day as the situation permits.  I hope you will follow along!!!    
 


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