Adventures in Scotland

Today we set off on our fourteen day adventure to Scotland and England. We took the red eye from Dulles in Virginia to Glasgow, Scotland with a stop in Iceland. Concerned that I wouldnt be able to sleep up on the plane, I tried some melatonin the night before, as a trial run. I fell asleep quickly butg when I woke up, I felt groggy and walked around like a zombie all day. As a result, I embraced my awakened status on the five hour trip to Iceland. As everyone dozed contentedly around me, I stared at the colorful map and the blip that was our flight wending its way across the north Atlantic. I was the only passenger to see night turn to day as the horizon turned orange, yellow and red with the sunrise. In Iceland, as we exited the plane, the aggressive wind and 41 degree temperatures accosted us as we scrambled to don our warm jackets. The bus shuttled us to the terminal where we had just enough time to peruse all kinds of unique Iceland wares. Stuffed trolls and muscled Vikings, herring and salmon, sweet Icelandic chocolates, and more alcohol than I have ever seen in one place were displayed in the duty free area. Unfortunately time was short, so we located our gate, showed our passports one more time and boarded our three hour flight to Glasgow.

Here is a few words about food and traveling as a vegan. As vegans, we never know when we will find suitable organic plant based food. In Ireland, last year, the only veggies we could find were the neverending potatoes and canned mushy peas. In Switzerland, there were ornamental kale plants, but no kale on the plate! It was slim

pickings for sure.

I carefully planned this vacation so that we knew we would be in a healthy place every day. With happycow.com as my guide, I located all the vegan restaurants ahead of time, reviewed their menus and chose all our eating spots ahead of time. Edinburgh is known as the “vegan capital of the world.” I had at least 158 restaurants and health food stores to choose from. In addition, I packed healthy snacks including unsalted nuts, dried apples, oatmeal packets, miso soup, juice sweetened mini chocolates, almond butter, seaweed snacks and trail mix. I was about to purchase some McDougal soup we could prep with hot water when I checked the sodium and to my horror it was 1100 mg. I put that right back on the shelf!

We covered a great deal of territory today. The highlights included a lovely lunch at a spot hidden in an alleyway where Jack the Ripper could have made his domain. The restaurant was called Stereo. I enjoyed some vegan hot chocolate made with coconut milk to warm me up after walking in the cold temperatures. Our lunch was Jackfruit “fish” and chips, and a vegan mushroom pot pie. Both unusual

and tasty. KO warmed himself up with a Scottish lager. Its fun to sample dishes we don’t have at home and this experience was a pleasant one.

Next we walked for a couple of hours around Merchant City, the shopping district. The European clothes are a perfect fit for KO and he was able to find clothing,which is unavailable in the states, to match his slim build perfectly. We ended up in George’s Square surrounded by the beautiful architecture of the government buildings. As a break, we shared a blueberry vegan scone and a cup

of tea, as is the custom here.

The experts say to avoid jet lag, you should stay up until bedtime in the evening in the new location. Even though our eyes were bleary and I had not slept for twenty four hours, we soldiered on and took a long stroll through Glasgow University. The campus is breathtakingly beautiful! Built in the 1870s, it boasts Gothic towers and turrets as well as dark cloisters with commanding arches. Many famous citizens attended there including McGill who founded McGill University in Montreal.

The sun doesn’t set in Glasgow until past 9:37 p. m.so we had plenty of daylight left! We ventured over to The Hug and the Pint vegan pub near our air bnb. A light meal of rice, sauteed greens and veggie curry felt just right. It is 67 steps up to our air b and b, but the room overlooks the city and we have our own ample sized room and a private bath and we only paid 67 dollars for it! We also have kitchen privileges.

Getting ready to fall into a deep, well needed and earned slumber. We catch an early train to Edinburgh tomorrow morning.

People say travel can be too expensive and unhealthy. With some preplanning and research, I found lodging for less than 100 dollars a night including a washer, dryer and kitchen on night 5, vegan restaurants to fit our budget and transportation in a frugal range. Googleflights.com

lists flights for every day of the year for your destination. We chose the cheapest day to travel

here. Usually flights are 1100-1300 to this area but with careful monitoring of the sight, I captured flights for 606 a person, into Glasgow and out of London. Britrail passes saved us a lot of money too. We chose an eight day pass where you choose eight rides to be used in 30 days for a discounted price of $350. This is cheaper than some of the single rides we have taken and you don’t even need a reservation! This pass gives you flexibility at an excellent price.

So travel can be reasonable, healthy and tailored to your personal needs. As we approach our more golden years, we never know what the future holds. I keep hearing the story of the person who saves and saves and then waits to retire to travel and then suddenly comes down with a debilitating illness and never gets to go. Carpe Diem, seize the day! This means grab as much fun as you can, while you still can. I hope many of you will get to enjoy the wonderful, fulfilling, and life changing experience of travel too and you do not let the logistics of travel hold you back!

Looking to share the upcoming days with all of you!

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