A great week in Scotland – Part 1 – Edinburgh

We were recently invited to a Scottish wedding in Edinburgh so decided to have an extended trip and explore the City and surrounding areas. Edinburgh was a first for both of us so we had lots to explore. Arriving from Perth through Doha straight into Edinburgh was brilliant. Travelling on Qatar airways was fantastic. […]

Arriving from Perth through Doha straight into Edinburgh was brilliant. Travelling on Qatar airways was fantastic. Doha airport is out of this world, like another planet, so airy and spacious. We spent a relaxing hour or two here.

Some of the amazing sculptures around Doha Airport

We stayed at Apex Grassmarket Hotel and had a room overlooking the Grassmarket. We had such a nice view of the castle as well. Edinburgh is such a great city for walking around and there’s so much interesting history here. There is a big French influence as we found out from all the restaurants we ate in. This must come from Mary Queen of Scots who grew up in France.
Over the next couple of days we walked our feet off enjoying all the sights of Edinburgh. In between our stay we also hired a car to explore what we could of Scotland. Our first port of call was of course the magnificent Edinburgh Castle.

Edinburgh Castle

There are so many tours around but we decided to go at our own pace and be free to roam wherever we liked.

Next up was the very pretty Dean Village which is about 20 minutes walk from Edinburgh Castle. This is a heritage listed village and well worth a visit.

Dean Village

Well Court built in the 1880’s and recently refurbished

Looking through the archway into the courtyard of Well Court

The clock tower rising above what was once the social hall

Next up we had a bit of lunch in a lovely little French restaurant called Escargot Bleu, it was French right down to the waiters and chef!

To walk off this wonderful lunch we headed to Holyroodhouse Palace and the gallery. This was one of my favourite places, very old and beautiful. Gorgeous garden and also enjoyed walking around the rooms. I didn’t realise that this is the Queen’s official residence in Edinburgh so is very much a working palace. Even that night Princess Anne was flying in for a formal dinner with the University.

Holyroodhouse Palace

Holyroodhouse Palace was founded by David I in 1128 as an Augustinian monastery in 1128. In 1501 James IV built a Palace for himself and his bride, Margaret Tudor – the sister of Henry VIII and the grandmother of Mary, Queen of Scots. Mary spent much of her later turbulent years here and was married twice from here.

The arches of the ruined abbey

From the gardens

One of the walls still standing

This place was definitely a must see for me and if you’re a history buff then you shouldn’t miss it.

One thing I loved about Edinburgh were all the quirky little alleyways and the names above them.

One rainy afternoon we had lunch in the lobby of The Scotsman Hotel. A beautiful baroque building dating back to 1905 and was once the home of The Scotsman Paper.

A few more photos of street scenes below.

The famous pierced lady who claims to be the most pierced human – I don’t think she’s lying!

Two “wee” scottish boys dressed for the “Independence for Scotland” march

The famous Greyfriars’ Bobby – a skye terrier who guarded his master’s grave for 14 years.

The famous West Bow Street

Cobblestone alleyway

We also found time for a quick walk around Greyfriars Kirkyard. Still an active church with a famous burial ground going back to the 16th century. It was very hard to actually read the names on all the plaques.

The details on this grave are very intricate

As I mentioned there are some fabulous restaurants in Edinburgh and below are some of the ones we tried:

Angels with Bagpipes
Le Bistro
Cafe Anduluz
Vittoria on the Bridge
Divino Enoteca

Also some of the photos from those restaurants
Angels with Bagpipes

Hake cooked with capers, golden raisins, salsify, parsley root, rainbow chard

Finishing off dinner with a Scottish whiskey of the moment!

Tapas from Cafe Anduluz

A delicious Spanish Rioja

Tapas from Cafe Anduluz

Divino Entoteca

Divino Enoteca

Sporting his harris tweed waistcoat

I would definitely recommend a visit to Edinburgh if you’ve never been before, we had the best time and clocked up many steps on our walking apps!

Part 2 to follow

Day tripping around Fuerteventura, Canary Islands

I think the best way to see anywhere new is to go on an organised excursion. I did just that when I visited Fuerteventura with the excellent Pie de Caracol tours, with driver and guide Luca. It was a long day from 9.00 am until 8pm so we really packed a whole lot in. Normally it’s not so long but because one of the major roads was closed because of a bike race, Luca had to devise some other way to drive around the island.

We started at Corralejo and drove down to La Oliva, bypassing the capital Puerto del Rosario due to road closure, to Betancuria, Ajuy, Costa Calma and back to Corralejo with so many stops along the way. Luca was so informative and had a wealth of knowledge about the island.

Amazingly we saw a rainbow, a miracle when you think there is hardly any rain on this island.

Some of the hundreds of terraces that you see dotted around the island.

Our first stop was the Colonel’s House in La Oliva. There is not much historical information that exists about the house but it is believed to have been built in 1740, for Colonel Melchor de Cabrera Bethencour.

One of the old structures surrounding the house

A few minutes walk away was the old church of Our Lady of Candelaria, where you could wander inside and have a look at the beautiful ceiling. It dates back to the 16th Century and its dark tower is made of volcanic stone.

On the journey towards our next stop of Betancuria we stopped at the famous lookout, where the Morro Velosa warriors are located. Even though this island is quite barren when the sun shines the colours on the volcanoes are amazing.

This tiny house is the one you can see in the far distance in the above photo My canon powershot did a fantastic job

Onwards then to Betancuria, an old colonial and picturesque village once the capital of this island. Founded in 1404 this was once a fertile valley due to the fresh water streams nearby, sadly these have long since dried up and the only plants that grow are aloe vera and agave.

BETANCURIA

After a quick bite in Betancuria we headed over to Ajuy, an old fishing village on the West coast. This is where we had lunch and then a cliff top walk along to the caves below.

AJUY

Blue rowing boat just perched on the black sand

Ajuy village overlooking the black sand beach

COSTA CALMA

The furthest south we drove was to Costa Calma, a resort area with a natural lagoon. The lagoon fills up in the afternoon creating a shallow area for paddling in contrast to the wild sea beyond.

Standing in the lagoon looking out towards the Jandia Natural Park

Driving back we stopped at a windmill, salt flats and sand dunes. There is so much to see and do on Fuerteventura but I’m pretty sure we came close to seeing nearly everything with the wonderful tour from Piedecaracol.com.

Lastly some more from my gallery

Lazy cats in Betancuria

A typical local restaurant in the countryside

An old limestone house next to the windmill

Salt Flats and Sand Dunes

The Del Carmen Salt Works, the only salt works still in operation in Fuerteventura

An old whale skeleton amongst the salt pans

The sand dunes of Corralejo, now a national park and a favourite with wind and kite surfers

Standing at the top of the sand dunes which cover over 2000 hectares of golden rolling sand

Finally back to our starting point at 8pm. A fabulous and interesting day. Many thanks Luca.

Day tripping around Fuerteventura, Canary Islands – 5.4.2019 – 9.4.2019

Fabulous Fuerteventura, Canary Islands

One of my very dear friends lives on the island of Fuerteventura, Canary Islands. Whilst I was in the UK visiting my parents I decided to take a trip out to see her and also celebrate my birthday! I was there for four days, plenty of time to see the island and eat in the great fish restaurants that it’s known for.

Fuerteventura the second largest of Spain’s Canary Islands, sits in the Atlantic Ocean 100km off the north coast of Africa. It’s known mostly as a holiday destination due to its white-sand beaches and year-round warmth cooled by constant winds. It is the oldest island in the Canary Islands dating back 20 million years due to a volcanic eruption. It was declared a biosphere reserve by UNESCO in May 2009.

As the first night was my birthday, Lorraine had booked a fabulous restaurant called La Playita overlooking the bay of Corralejo. What a fantastic night with the table decorated with balloons and banners and then the whole restaurant singing happy birthday to me.

Walking through the beautiful town of Corralejo

One of the many statues of fishermen’s wives looking out to sea, waiting for their husbands to come home

Waking up the next morning I wandered into the garden to take some photos. Lorraine lives at the end of a residential street overlooking the sand dunes. You can see Tenerife in the distance from the garden. I was hoping the sun would break through as it wasn’t as warm as I had thought!

Sun rise with the sand dunes in the far distance

The next day Lorraine took me into Corralejo again and have lunch. Fuerteventura is a very barren island due to the lack of rain and volcanic landscape. Nothing really grows here and most of the food is imported. There are many aloe vera plants scattered around and this is one plant that does grow well.

Enjoying the beautiful view with a glass of Spanish wine

Typical Canarian fish dish cooked in wine, tomatoes and olives

The car ferry to and from Lanzarote in the background

The next day I booked an excursion to go around the island – I will be writing another post separately about this.

Before we set out for my last day on the island we had to walk Rocky and Poppy her two little dogs. We walked just up the path from where she lives so I could feed the chipmunks, which run wild throughout the island.

Rocky surveying his domain

Rocky and Poppy in their favourite position on the couch

El Cotillo

After our walk Lorraine and I drove to El Cotillo, a small coastal town on the Northern side of the island. It has a lovely harbour and beautiful scenery with plenty of restaurants and bars. El Cotillo is home to El Toston Tower built in the 1700’s to defend the village from pirates. We had lunch in El Mirador overlooking the bay. I loved all the murals and paintings that you see dotted around and also the way they use old rowing boats as decorations.

Lunch at El Mirador

Speciality salad with the local delicacy of fish pate

Exploring the town after lunch

Some of the murals and mosaics found around the town

Resting in the shade

For our last night we ended up eating in the beautiful El Marquesina and of course because it’s a speciality seafood restaurant I had the fish of the day.

Turbot with garlic and wine and baby Canarian potatoes

Lastly a very short clip from inside El Marquesina

A fabulous time in fantastic Fuerteventura

“Wander often, wonder always.”

Entertaining ourselves in Essex!

I was born and grew up in the UK but now live in the beautiful city of Perth, WA, however we always get back to the UK at least once a year to visit my parents in Essex. As it’s normally for a month we like to travel around visiting friends and relatives. There are also some great country pubs in Essex where we go for gourmet lunches and dinners!

The Bear Inn, Stock

Rustic gastropub with timber beams and a wood burning fire. Great food and service.

The Green Man, Herongate, Essex

The Peter Boat, Leigh-on-Sea, Essex, is one of our favourite pubs. Sitting on the banks of the Thames Estuary it’s a great place for lunch and then a walk through the High Street. Although there are at least four other pubs in this small street, The Peter Boat is always the most popular. I started going here when I was 17, and over 40 years later it’s still a number one choice for me!

West Mersea, Essex

We had lunch here one day at a place called The Oyster Bar. What a great find this was. A very casual cafe but serving gourmet seafood. There are some cute houses around here as well.

Hubby’s favourite – jellied eels

Fresh crab and prawn salad

Waiting for their fish and chips inside The Oyster Bar

Southend on Sea

We had been recommended the next place by my uncle who like my hubby is a great seafood eater – they see food and eat it! Sorry couldn’t resist. Anyway this “restaurant” is called Billy Hundreds and I’ve added a link as the history is fascinating. Briefly:

“Over 140 years ago my Great Grandfather William Pullum worked as a fish porter in the famous Billingsgate Market in London, his porters badge number was 100.

He was known as Billy Hundreds..” to read more click on the link above.

It’s a Spanish tapas place, just a small shack on Southend Beach and on a windy day sitting underneath the alfresco blinds you almost feel you could be blown away. The menu is adventurous specialising in fish tapas but also with many other fishless dishes. Also the wine menu is pretty decent too.

I’ve taken the liberty of adding a photo of my Auntie Val eating alfresco at this restaurant!

Auntie Val eating a yummy plate of tapas!

Tilbury Fort

Tilbury Fort is a great place to visit and somewhere I had never visited before, even after all those years living in Essex. It’s located on the Thames Estuary and was built in the reign of Henry VIII in 1539, due to international tensions between England, France and the Holy Roman Empire.

20160728_131312 — Overlooking the Thames Estuary

20160728_131720 — The entrance to Tilbury Fort

20160728_133440 — Looking out onto the moat

There is a lovely pub for lunch nearby called The World’s End.

It’s always nice to get back for a visit, but nothing beats our home in Perth, WA

Mlini, Croatia

An old post converted to blocks from classic!

Five days/Four nights in Mlini

After leaving beautiful Perast we headed off to Croatia again taking the scenic route. After much thought as to how to make this journey I decided to book a driver, although more expensive, as it seemed the most comfortable way to go. Our driver took the coastal route and was able to stop where we asked so I could take photos of the stunning coastline. It also meant that we got to take the mini car ferry across the Bay of Kotor.

Day One

We stayed in a little bay just passed Mlini called Srebreno although the address of the hotel was in Mlini. We had an incredible apartment called One Suite Hotel, big enough for four adults with two toilets and completely fitted out kitchen and most importantly a licenced bar on site! The hotel was approximately five minutes from the beautiful bay of Srebreno with its own ferry pier with boats directly to Cavtat and Dubrovnik both 30 minutes away.

After checking in we went in search of lunch and also a nice restaurant for dinner later. Right on the beach is a newly built Sheraton, slightly out of place I thought in this sleepy village. Srebreno is an extremely well looked after village and many of the buildings seem very new, although there is still a sleepy small place feel about it. I loved it on sight and as we wandered along the seafront was happy that I had chosen this place rather than Dubrovnik.

Against the good advice I was given I did not buy reef shoes to go into the sea. There are very few sandy beaches in Croatia and this one was no exception, most are pebbles. So with flip flops on I walked down to the edge of the pebbles and into the sea and threw my flip flops back onto the beach. The water was very “refreshing”. Getting out was a problem and I most certainly did not look like Ursula Andress/Halle Berry in 007 more like a creature from the deep treading on Lego. Walking on pebbles is painful.

That night for dinner we went to Marinero, up the hill in between the pine trees. We asked the waiter for his recommendations and had a local dish, Brudet, which is a fish stew made with whatever fresh fish they have on hand.

Brudet, Croatian Fish Stew – so delicious

Day 2

After breakfast we walked down to our little pier and caught the ferry into Dubrovnik. Our plan today was just to walk around the old town. Although getting into the old town is free you do have to pay to walk the ramparts. Even though it was September the place was so busy with many tour groups and queues everywhere, so we decided against walking around the walls. Apparently to get the best of this place I read that you should actually stay inside and then you have the place to yourselves in the evening and early in the morning.

Tonight’s restaurant was Puntazella. Another fabulous place with great food and service. We actually went here twice as it was so good.

Sunset through the pine trees from Puntazella

Day 3

Today we took the bus to Cavtat, a beautiful historic town, southeast of Dubrovnik. It takes about 20 minutes by boat or bus. With its tree-lined harbour and wonderful old buildings its a great way to spend the day exploring.

A map showing the bay with Srebreno, Mlini and Plat, with Cavtat and Dubrovnik

After getting the bus back we spent the afternoon relaxing on the beach and hobbling in and out of the sea. That evening we walked around the bay into Mlini itself for cocktails and then back for dinner at Portun. Once again a wonderful restaurant just across the road from our hotel.

Day 4

I think today was the highlight of our trip, an excursion to the Elephiti Islands. These three islands consist of Sipan, Lopud and Kolocep. Sipan is the furthest away from Dubrovnik with Kolocep being the nearest. The day trip (leaving from Dubrovnik) included time at all three islands plus a delicious lunch on board with free flowing wine and beer!

Our first stop was Kolocep and we stopped here for around 45 minutes, enough to have a quick walk around and a drink. Next up was Lopud this was also for 45 minutes. Enough time for you to get a feel of the islands and take a few photos. I could just have easily stayed on both for a few days. Then we were back on board for lunch and onto the last island of Sipan where we spent nearly 3 hours. Sipan has one of the few sandy beaches in Croatia. To get there we had to walk for a while before then taking a golf cart down a dirt track, I was adamant that I wanted to see it though!

Leaving Dubrovnik

Enjoying the local Rose before heading back

I would really recommend this trip, it’s really easy to book once you are in Mlini as there are ticket centres everywhere.

Day 5

As we had a late flight back to the UK we could enjoy the whole day, so we headed back into Dubrovnik by bus this time. Even though Dubrovnik is now just a tourist attraction and extremely busy I could still enjoy walking through the old town and soaking up the history within its walls. There are so many alleys, doors and courtyards to walk around and cafes to stop and have a drink. The only thing missing (much to Anthony’s dismay) were shops, proper shops! He does love a department store which I’m glad to say there were none.

The bus stopped at the top of the hill and we had to walk down so many steps!

And that concludes our short trip to Croatia. We had two more weeks in the UK before flying back to Perth. Still a long wait for our two boys Zac and Rufus who were enjoying their own holiday in kennels ):

Montenegro

Perast and Rafailovici

Why Perast and not Kotor? Well after much research I decided on Perast as I had read it was so much more peaceful than Kotor. It’s just a few kilometres north west of Kotor and consists of just a small promenade situated around a beautiful bay. It was described by a taxi driver as the Vatican of Montenegro, which I thought was very apt. Not many cars are allowed here it’s very strictly controlled.

I had booked a small waterfront apartment called The White Terrace. It was a fabulous place and the owner Bob picked us up from Tivat airport. With only two days here we had to make the most of this time.

The promenade is lined with apartments and restaurants and on our first night we ate at the oldest restaurant Armonia. We had a lovely table right on the waterfront, food and wine we’re delicious.

The next day after breakfast we had a walk along the promenade and took in the beautiful views .

20180906161207_img_8706 — Our apartment on the first floor

After this we took the local bus into Kotor to have a look around the old town. The contrast between the two places is staggering. Kotor is where the cruise ships dock almost docking right onto the street. Spilling out passengers by the dozen the pavements were packed with tourists.

We decided to just have a walk around the old town ourselves and soak up the atmosphere. Kotor did not disappoint. It has a vast history being founded in the fifth century and is now a UNESCO world heritage sight.

Our daily lunch.. Ripe juicy tomatoes with creamy mozzarella

20180906_144026 — Could it get any closer

After an afternoon spent here as nice as it was, we were glad to get back to peaceful Perast. We thought we’d have a swim from the little platform in front of the apartment, well Anthony plunged straight in whereas I did it the hard way down the ladder. What a shock, very cold and as we found out later there are icy springs spouting every so often, at least we went in.

With just one night to go we ate at the fabulous Konoba Skolji restaurant where I had read some great reviews. We chose to share the famous ” lamb under the bell”, slow roasted lamb, absolutely delicious.

And that was the end of two fabulous days in Perast.

The next day we were going to Rafailovici for two more days before heading into Croatia.

Rafailovici

I decided the easiest and fastest way to Rafailovici was by taxi also more comfortable. It was less than an hours drive and we were there by 1pm. It’s just past Budva and supposed to be quieter, I never like to stay in the most popular place and prefer to stay just outside the main area.

Our taxi driver was quite chatty and wondered why we were going to Budva as he said it was horrible! This wasn’t the first time we’d heard this opinion. So I really wasn’t looking forward to the next two days. On the positive side it was only two days and it was somewhere new.

After checking into Hotel Aleksander which was right on the seafront we headed out for lunch and a look around. Some photos of my first impressions.

Couldn’t find a bed of nails so next best thing is a bed of boulders

20180907_165807 — A much needed mojito 🍸[[[[[[

We did have a swim and the water is crystal clear but as the water is a bit cold made it very quick. After a wonderful dinner at the hotel overlooking the sea we headed back for an early night.

So the next day after breakfast we took a hotel van and driver to Lake Skadar,

The lake is located in Zeta – Skadar valley and is surrounded by mountains, and it’s 7 km away from Adriatic Sea. Two Thirds of Skadar Lake is in Montenegro and the rest is in Albania. Skadar Lake is the largest lake in the Balkan Peninsula.

We chose the two hour boat trip, but one hour would have been enough for me. If you ever visit Budva it’s worth having a trip out here as the lake and scenery are beautiful.

Ruins of Besac Castle

Any chance to drink the delicious Montenegren wine

For our last night here we headed into Budva itself. The atmosphere here is completely different to Rafailovici, for a start there were so many more English tourists whereas I had heard no English at all in Rafailovici. It seemed to be more for local Montengrens holidaying. Budva like Kotor has an old town which we wandered around, it’s an amazing place and I loved it here.

It took absolutely ages to find the restaurant we wanted to eat in, we had actually found it straight away really but were told it was just a museum. It was only when going back and asking if there was a restaurant there the girl said oh yes at the back! We ate at the Citadella restaurant which has amazing views overlooking the sea.

And that was that. I’m so glad we got to visit Montenegro and see the wonderful sights, eat delicious food and drink divine wine, but most of all to meet the lovely friendly people of this country.

Next up was Croatia.

Category: Europe

A great week in Scotland – Part 1 – Edinburgh

Edinburgh Castle

Dean Village

Holyroodhouse Palace

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Day tripping around Fuerteventura, Canary Islands

Day tripping around Fuerteventura, Canary Islands – 5.4.2019 – 9.4.2019

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Fabulous Fuerteventura, Canary Islands

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Entertaining ourselves in Essex!

The Bear Inn, Stock

West Mersea, Essex

Southend on Sea

Tilbury Fort

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Mlini, Croatia

Five days/Four nights in Mlini

Day One

Day 2

Day 3

Day 4

Day 5

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Montenegro

Perast and Rafailovici

Rafailovici

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Edinburgh Castle

Dean Village

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Day tripping around Fuerteventura, Canary Islands – 5.4.2019 – 9.4.2019

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West Mersea, Essex

Southend on Sea

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Five days/Four nights in Mlini

Day One

Day 2

Day 3

Day 4

Day 5

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Perast and Rafailovici

Rafailovici

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