2 July
Liam had a water heater, instant coffee, and the British version of a Twix bar in our room, so we gobbled that down for breakfast. Liam was not in great shape when we left his apartment from his wee bit of wine the night before, but he was a gracious host and we had gotten a great sleep in his comfortable, quaint flat.
Back on bus 35 to the airport to rent our car and we heard the agent say "You've rented the smallest manual automobile we have." Oh no! What were we in for? We were okay though...we now drive a Ford Fiesta and we love it. Driving on the left is an experience as many of you know who have done it. Mackenzie was screaming, "Curb, tree, curb!" as I got too far to the left of the road, but seriously with the steering wheel on the other side, it was hard to gage.
Edinburgh was our first stop for a quick tour and lunch. Mackenzie pointed out all of the places she was last August when she was performing at the Fringe Festival. The memories were bitter-sweet since we called her 1/4 way through her time in Edinburgh with news of her Dad's passing. Edinburgh is a great town and a must see...probably for more than the few hours we gave it!
Mackenzie used the MapsMe app and we headed north through Dundee, Aberdeen, and finally to Peterhead where Jim's mother was born. Okay, so it wasn't as easy as that...there were a lot of screams from Mackenzie as I tried to drive a car with the steering wheel on the right side while shifting with my left hand and driving on the left side of the road. I think I gritted my teeth the entire time, athough I do have the round abouts down pat and Mackenzie began to stop digging her nails into her thighs after the first 2 hours.:)
We finally did arrive into Peterhead: a working class town for fishermen (which Jim's family were) and oil workers. The buildings are all a drab brown with brown roofs and the town sits on the edge of the North Sea. Of course, we had no idea where to stay and the B&B's were too few, so I pulled up in front of a local hotel and Mackenzie jumped out to see if there was room available...there was, but she said it was too sketchy, so we drove on and found the Palace Hotel...don't let the name fool you...this was no palace!
It was however a nice local place and the price was right. It also had a nice restaurant/pub where we could watch one of the Wimbleton matches and listen to the locals speak Gaelic. I got a fish fry made with the local Haddock and it was enough for a family of four! (Good thing that I can eat like a family of four!) We each had a local beer and I had a wee scotch with no help from the bartender who said he didn't know anything about beer or scotch (we are in Scotland, right?). The food and drink here is inexpensive and it's a good thing since the dang British Pound is worth so much more than the US dollar.
This was a good spot to be in for the night and think about Jim and his roots. He would have loved to have come back here again.
We cuddled up and watch stupid British TV...naked butts and all. It's amazing what isn't censored here!
Tip of the day: When buying snacks for the car in Scotland, buy things that aren't sold in the states...like Dorito's Cool Originals.
Keep your Pecker Up! (get your head out of the gutter...it's a Scotish expression),
The Traveling Women
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