My parents decided to pack up their things and head over to England so they could see their grandchild Connor for the first time and also see some sites around the United Kingdom. My old man would only be around for a week so we wanted to pack in as much as we could in the short time.
First, we decided to start things off by taking a day off because my moms plane did not arrive until midnight and I was pretty tired of driving back and forth to Heathrow Airport. The day off allowed us all a chance to play with Connor and take a break before heading off on our first trip.
Our first trip was to Edinburgh which is the capital city of Scotland and getting there would involve a six hour car ride with a packed car and a 3 1/2 month old. Was this a nightmare waiting to happen or what? It turns out that Connor is a champ and loves traveling because he did not fuss until we entered Edinburgh. The drive was pretty easy except the half-hour or more spent looking for our hotel in the city center. The architecture and feel of Edinburgh is just amazing and you just cant help being surrounded by history on every street. After finding the hotel we went out on the streets of Edinburgh and ended up at a restaurant named, The Filling Station that served some incredible food. Among the vast amount of beer consumed, everyone tried their hand at eating what they called, “The Haggis Stack”. It was haggis, potatoes, and gravy and it was actually fantastic. The rest of the trip was spent touring the city, eating food, and trying scotch at several different locations.
One of the highlights of our trip to Scotland was a little rest stop named Westmoreland that gave off one of those down home country feelings. They served fresh food with the ingredients coming solely from local farmers throughout the area. The food was fantastic and we made sure to check it out on the way back too.
After getting back from Scotland we decided to take another day to rest and hang around the house before heading back out.
Next, we woke up early to catch a one-hour train from Bicester to London for a fun and exciting day trip. The train ride was over before we realized it and we were moving around in the London Underground. Our first stop of the day was at the British Museum where we spent about two hours marveling at numerous exhibits that existed throughout history including the Rosetta Stone and mummies. After the museum we stopped off at a rather old tavern for a bite to eat and a pint of my favorite beers. The lunch was over so we went back to the underground so we could visit Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, Parliament, Westminster Abbey, The London Eye, and the Tower Bridge. After the day was over I think everyone was ready for a nap including Connor.
Finally, our last trip was to Stonehenge and the beautiful city of Bath. The drive to Stonehenge was less than two hours but it was raining the entire time. Not bad considering this was the first time it rained the whole trip. Stonehenge was a quick stop before we headed off to the city of Bath. In Bath the ladies did some shopping while dad and I checked out one of the best preserved Roman Baths in the world.
All in all it was an exciting, jam packed trip that was lots of fun.
A stubby looking brown bottle with a white, red, and gold label just happened to catch my eye the other day so I thought it was time to give it a taste. The beer in question was
However, that wasn’t the first time that I came across a beer from the Wychwood Brewery. Actually, I was told about Hobgoblin almost immediately after arriving in England. My first thought was that I really wanted to try it simply because of the name. I mean “Hobgoblin” just sounds like a bad ass name for a beer.
