I have had two weeks of vacation, which were sorely needed.
My first week was a complete wind down.
I took my peeps out to Peggy’s Cove to at least get off the balcony for one day….
One of the views from Peggy’s Cove Lighthouse
My daughter and I got matching tattoos. Ponyo!
Astrid does amazing work!!
We headed to the beach on the second week…temps in the city were close to 30 celsius and there was humidity, which meant melting on the balcony was not an option!
Hubbards BeachCatching some rays
Back in June, I was able to snag a reservation for a glamping dome down in the Annapolis Valley. What a quiet, relaxing little spot. We grabbed some food from The Noodle Guy (delish) and some local wine from Luckett Vineyards.
You can almost drive by….so take it slowWe hung out while waiting for our orderLuckett Vineyards are absolutely beautiful….I picked up a bottle of Tidal Bay and a couple of spritzers
Valley Sky is a MUST, and we are already planning a fall visit. Check it out!
I added a charcuterie board to our stay. Local eats!And I turned the temperature down for a soak in the hot tub! (It was 38 celsius with the humidity, blargh!)
We stayed in the Tidal Dome. The bed was super cozy, the lounge chairs with ottomans were soooo comfortable, and all the amenities made for a great stay. I was kind of sad when we had to pack up the next morning!!
So serene, and so many birds to listen to!My first cup of the day…
On the way home, we popped into Just Us Coffee for some fuel….and I needed a latte, haha.
Vanilla Latte…. Deeeeelicious
Now I am turning the corner to start getting ready for Back To Work on Tuesday (Monday is the Natal Day Holiday here).
While I am sad to be coming to the end of my vacation, I had some good times. I got a lot of rest.
I am very thankful for our trip to Cuba this year.
It was beautiful. It was hot. It was eye opening.
Being able to get away has been very good, for both the mind and the soul.
Travelling with a mental illness isn’t always easy. I have a lot of anxiety beforehand.
I know what you’re thinking: Everyone has some anxiety before they travel. Yes, I will concede to that.
The problem I have is, I see these anxieties as monumental issues, and that bad things ARE GOING to happen.
I think that WILL forget my passport, that I WILL get a personal item taken away from me, that I WILL be pulled aside in security and separated from my daughter, and the plane WILL have issues and we will have to do an emergency landing. I’ve already had to go to a doctor while outside of the country on a previous visit down south, so that is always in my brain.
These are real to me.
These things ARE going to happen, even though in reality I know they are not.
I usually feel a bit calmer once we make it through security. Why I get nervous I don’t know, because I am not, in any way, carrying anything illegal.
(Funny story: My daughter got pulled over when going through security for her backpack. When the woman opened the bag, she called over the young gentleman who flagged her bag. She pulled out the item in question, turned to him and said: “Hon, this is a book.” We had a good chuckle, but also glad that they do their jobs and leave nothing unchecked. Even if it is a book!)
My anxiety lessens even more once we arrive at our intended destination.
Then my anxiety about injuring myself sets in, lol.
It’s a never ending circle really, but I always find a way to shift my mind away and find the time to relax.
This vacation was just what I needed. I was able to process a lot of things and get back to where I want to be.
I am a little more motivated, a little more happier, and a little more me.
I need to make sure I make this happen again, even if it’s every two years.
We need time to rejuvenate our souls, somewhere close, somewhere far. A place where we disconnect from the day to day and take the time to reconnect with ourselves (even if it means an hour in bed, an hour running/at the gym, or an hour in the shower/tub).
Usually it’s me. I either get the head cold at the end of a trip, or right when I get back (Spoiler: I got sick too, lol).
It was TeenThing’s turn this time. The first day she really started feeling it was a gorgeous sunny day. I really didn’t want to stay inside all day, so after popping down to the pharmacy and gathering an arsenal of cold meds, I hoofed it back to the house and suggested a walk along the Water of Leith Walkway.
Once she was sufficiently medicated and fed, we began our journey. It was a 10 minute walk to the spot where we could hop on, so enough time for us to see if TeenThing was really up for the trek.
She was 🙂
What a hidden gem! This is a definite must do if you ever get to Edinburgh. We walked to Dean Village and back, took us about 2 hours.
Murrayfield Stadium. No games while we were there, booo.
Here we go!
“Mom, take a picture of me!”
Dean Village
There she goes.
Another serious “trip selfie”.
So pretty
Could have walked for hours. So beautiful.
We could have walked further, but we didn’t pack snacks (oooops).
The next day was cloudy and cool. TeenThing was feeling a little rough, but she agreed to a trip into town to check out the National Gallery.
Rooms and rooms of art. So many serious people in there sitting and staring at all of the paintings and sculptures.
We wandered and took in all of the art. Some of the paintings were HUGE. It was difficult getting photos.
The Campbell Sisters
So serious in here….
Man with Jawbone (this is the title, seriously)
Cain and Abel
Creepy Chair
Creepy Monk Statues
More subtle “trip selfie”, lol.
I was glad I didn’t have our time in Scotland fully planned, as it was good to have some downtime for TeenThing to get better. It was nice to have a couple of low key days.
After we had spent our time exploring the Gallery, we took the tram back to the house where we chilled for the rest of the day.
By the time our next adventure rolled around, TeenThing was feeling better 🙂
Since we were in Scotland, I could not pass up a tour to some of the Outlander locations!!
TeenThing and I hauled butt out of bed early one morning and got to the Royal Mile to take The Outlander Palaces, & Jacobites Experience Tour with Timberbush Tours.
This was a nice small group tour with like minded Outlander fans. It made for a really great day!
We started our tour with the drive to Midhope Castle. This property has ties to Hopetoun House, which you will see later in this post.
Midhope was the setting for Lallybroch. It is very run down, which is unfortunate as it is hauntingly beautiful walking up the dirt road. We took a few pictures here (and yay for fun travel mates who take pics for you!).
Waiting for Jamie 😉
At the entrance. Let us in Jenny!
The small area where we parked was also used in filming as the spot where Claire first met Captain Randall, right before she was taken away by the Scots.
After we all scampered around in the woods, it was time to get in the bus and head to Blackness Castle, the setting for Fort William.
Blackness Castle – The “Ship That Never Sailed”
The scene of Captain Randall’s flogging of Jamie.
Inside – Amazing.
Walking around the Castle.
No fun was had at this location.
After a snack grab, it was time to head to Linlithgow Palace, the setting for Wentworth Prison!
Linlithgow Palace was also the birthplace of Mary Queen of Scots. It is a gorgeous castle. We checked out the spots used for the prison scenes and then took a guided tour.
Yep, that is prison like.
The Kirk. There was a funeral being held that day, so we were unable to go inside.
You can see where the roof and floors were.
TeenThing gets the photo cred here.
The wine cellar was built with grave stones. This one was accidentally left facing out. Ooops!
The Loch.
Mary Queen of Scots
I could have stayed here for hours. The castle is amazing.
Our next stop, Callendar House. The location was used as the Duke of Sandringham’s kitchen in Season Two. It has also hosted Bonnie Prince Charlie and Mary Queen of Scots.
This was a really neat stop. This room was our only area to tour. We had a great time in here though!
Gorgeous from the outside!
We had a few minutes here to enjoy the grounds. It was super pretty here.
Our next stop – Culross. Used many times in Outlander. The Mercat Cross area was used as Cranesmuir, while the Palace had many rooms used in the series as well. The garden in back was used as Claire’s herb garden at Leoch. (Side Note: TeenThing was THRILLED to learn that Culross was also used as a location while filming Captain America, lol.)
A lot of the houses were painted grey or white during filming. This is such a cute little village.
A dram in Geillis’ parlour anyone?
Claire’s Herb Garden
Culross Palace
We had lunch in Culross and ate at a super cute spot called Biscuit Cafe. We had awesome sandwiches and some hot bevvies 🙂
Loved this little spot!
Yum!
This sandwich – the bombdotcom.
After lunch we hopped on the bus to head to Hopetoun House. This location was used as the home of the Duke of Sandringham. Two rooms upstairs were used as Claire’s rooms in France, and they also used a small area to the side to film where Claire and Mary were attacked.
But first……standing stones!!!
No touchy, lol.
Hopetoun House is AMAZING. It is Scotland’s largest home. It was host to a wedding while we were there. The staff here are wonderful.
This is the back of Hopetoun, where they filmed Jamie’s arrival to see the Duke. The duel was also filmed in the back yard as well.
The “back yard”.
Claire’s room in France.
Where Claire sat with the Duke asking for Jamie’s pardon.
I walked forever to get this shot, lol.
Part of the side of the estate where other filming was done (attack on Claire and Mary)
No serious selfies here.
You can see the “Three Bridges” from here.
We had lots of time here to look around and take everything in. The house is absolutely beautiful. The perfect spot to end our Outlander experience.
After all this excitement, we piled into the bus and head back into Edinburgh to the Royal Mile. We grabbed food, went back to our humble abode and crashed.
This post alone could have been multiple mini posts. I didn’t even put in a third of the photos, lol. It was a great day and the 9.5 hours flew by!
Even though TeenThing hasn’t watched Outlander, she loved every location we visited (with Culross becoming her number one favourite, because Captain America, lol).
Unfortunately, I never did run into Jamie Fraser.
Or did I?? 😉
It was as close as I could get, lol.
Come back next weekend. The Water of Leith and the Art Gallery are up next!
Our next couple of trips into town took us to quite a few spots.
First stop: Edinburgh Castle
I think I took a million pictures here. This castle could have it’s own blog post! Things we could not take pictures of: The Crown Jewels and the Stone of Destiny. I did take photos of some of the areas leading up to the room. We had to go up a winding staircase to get up to the Honours of Scotland. Thankfully not ALL the way up, lol.
There is so much to see at the Castle. You need at least 2 hours here, if not more, to really see everything. Also, going between 10-2 means a BUCKET LOAD of people, so if you want to feel like you need a little more space, head in a little later.
There is even a dog cemetery.
There is a prison exhibit, war/regimental museums and St Margaret’s Chapel, which was built in 1130. The views from the Castle are well worth some extra time to take in.
Grassmarket, Harry Potter and Greyfriars Bobby
Some neat little pubs along this stretch
Grassmarket. This area has a Saturday Market filled with vendors.
Parts of Grassmarket (and The Royal Mile) are pedestrian only.
We ventured down to Grassmarket through some little side streets and walked around for a bit. This area is full of food and stories.
We ate at The Last Drop. A fitting name for a pub sitting across from where public hangings used to take place 😉 There was good food here (TeenThing had mac and cheese and I had haggis sausages and mash), a great drink selection, and the staff were very nice.
Now, Harry Potter.
Potter fans know that JK Rowling started writing Harry Potter in Edinburgh. Once you are here and travel along the streets, you see the magic around you. The history, the architecture, and the atmosphere is definitely inspiring. There are a couple of streets that claim to be the inspiration for Diagon Alley. With so many small winding side streets, it would be easy to get inspiration from any of them!
You can see the inspiration for Harry Potter everywhere.
Supply List
Victoria Street lays the claim to Diagon Alley 😉
A little HaHa to break up the day 🙂
The Elephant House Cafe is an extremely busy spot, as you can well imagine (JK Rowling wrote two books at this location), and is very close to Greyfriars Kirkyard. The Kirkyard is where the grave for Tom Riddle is located, and behind the Kirkyard is George Heriot’s School, the inspiration for Hogwarts.
This Cafe is always packed. You can sign your name on the bathroom wall here, along with a bazillion other Harry fans.
Tom Riddle’s Grave
There is NO grass left here, lol. Also, the Kirkyard staff will lead you down to this area if need be.
This was one of my favourite stories of Edinburgh. Bobby was a partner for his human John Gray, who was a night watchman for the Edinburgh Police but died of tuberculosis. Bobby was a constant visitor to his master’s grave. He has his own stone in the Greyfriars Kirkyard where visitors leave him sticks.
And yes, we did rub his nose for luck 😉
Using our own two feet to explore the city was amazing, and I am glad we did because you really get to see all of the small nooks and crannies of the city.
Side Note: We had great experiences on all of our walking tours. You’ll get to see some of the sights on one of the tours in a later post 🙂
Next week: Outlander!
(p.s. If you are not a fan of the show, feel free to just come back for the pictures, the set locations we got to visit were amazing!)
The Midlife Reframe 