Day 76 (June 17): Durham

Last Sunday in Durham.

we have really enjoyed Mass at St. Cuthbert's

there's a sweet little garden in front of the church

After Mass we had the pleasure of a visit and lunch with a family and some of their friends from the church.  Their two oldest children had their First Communion at that morning's Mass.  We enjoyed eastern Carolina-style barbeque, yummy quesadillas and salsa, and sangria!  It was a very nice way to spend our last Sunday afternoon in Durham.

Long naps, a long walk for Chris, reading, and a bit of TV.  Good day.

Day 62 (June 3): Oban to Fort William

Sunday morning was bright and sunny, another beautiful crisp day!  In the morning we took a walk up to McCaig's Tower, a "folly" built overlooking Oban harbour, and enjoyed the views.

unfinished but interesting nonetheless

looking to the left towards the ferry dock

and to the right (St. Columba's Cathedral is that tower on the far right)

Our train tour continued with a ride back to Crianlarich where we picked up the Fort William train. This part of the journey takes the traveller along lochs, around mountains and hills, over bridges and up into the Scottish Highlands.  We arrived in Fort William, a rather humble loch-side town, in the late afternoon.  The town is popular with backpackers, climbers, and walkers as it's the endpoint of the West Highland Way and is very close to Ben Nevis, the highest mountain in the British Isles at 4,409 ft.

before dinner we took a walk along the loch

We had a yummy dinner in a pub called the Grog and Gruel (I had an extremely yummy mushroom quesadilla) and then embarked on an impossibly long walk into Glen Nevis to see what we could see.
 

Ben Nevis is behind this hill, not visible, and about twice as high, apparently

Our lodging for the night was rather humble as rooms were scarce in Fort William this weekend.  I shared a bunk room with two pleasant Japanese students while everyone else was together in a four-person bunkroom next door.  Shared bathrooms down the hall...  I felt very backpacker-y and student-ish.

Day 61 (June 2): Isles of Mull & Iona

Our plans for today were a day trip to two islands in the Inner Hebrides.  At 9 am we queued up for the ferry which would take us from Oban to the Isle of Mull. 

you probably can't make it out but there is a small castle tower (ruins) in amongst those trees

Then we rode in a coach across this beautiful island (while being informed and entertained by our driver/guide) to catch another small ferry to the gorgeous Isle of Iona.  We had almost 3 hours on Iona, most of which we spent walking and enjoying the views and scenery.

taken from the highest point on Iona

my husband and youngest daughter are those two specks on the rocks

Just before catching the ferry back to Mull, we quickly toured the abbey on Iona which is on the spot where St. Columba and his followers built a church and established a Catholic community way back in the mid-6th century.

the restored abbey, built on a medieval foundation

bracken grows everywhere on the mountains and hillsides around the sea lochs

We at dinner on the ferry because we needed to attend Mass that evening, which we did at St. Columba's Cathedral in Oban.  

A bit of relaxing in our room and welcome sleep!

Day 41 (May 13): Fort William

Weather today in the northern Highlands was stormy -- yup, not just a bit of rain, but a LOT of rain and a LOT of wind plus cold temps.  Stay-inside day.  We braved the storm to walk to church in the morning, and then spent the rest of the day in our lodge room, resting, reading, playing cards, watching Scottish TV.  Fortunately there is a Tesco Metro and a Morrison's in town and our lodge has a small kitchen and dining room for guests so we didn't have to eat all our meals in a restaurant while we were in Fort William.

Our plans for today had included a gondola ride partway up Ben Nevis but due to the weather that will have to wait for another time.

Day 22: Durham

sausage rolls for lunch...  another yummy English treat

Today was full of footpath-adventuring.  In the morning I ventured out to get some photos of Prebend Bridge.  I wandered down some footpaths on the way home.

this is probably my favorite--the river was like glass

This evening (on our way back from a special Mass where Fr. Robert Barron preached!) we diverged from the road and took footpaths instead.

all along this path there were views of city garden plots

here's what we saw at the end of one path

We also met some very sweet cows and their baby calves, but I don't have any pictures of them.

and here's the view that was waiting for us at the end of this path

Day 20: Durham

Another fairly quiet (and rainy) day here in North East England.  We started out with a 25 minute walk to church.  We'll be attending Mass at St. Cuthbert's while here in Durham.  It's a lovely old building (no surprise there) and it was packed with people -- many older folk but a lot of not-so-old and a handful of children and younger families.  It's such a blessing to be in Mass on a Sunday morning, so far from our home, and yet still hearing the same words spoken and doing the same things, knowing this is going on world-wide.

new polka-dotted umbrellas are always fun

I talked Chris and Caroline into walking a short distance into the centre of town and getting takeaway fish-n-chips for lunch.  It was yummy and the smell brought me back to my New Zealand childhood!

Naps, walks, tea & scones, books, and now they are watching Britain's Got Talent.  I don't think it is impressing them.

Day 19: Durham

A Full English breakfast, or my approximation thereof, this morning: buttered toast, tomatoes, English-style bacon, fried egg.

The real thing also includes baked beans, a sausage, and "black pudding"

Oh, and I think only one tomato half.

a sweet building with a rich history

We visited the small Durham Heritage Museum in town today, the best part was the building it was housed in, an old church which (of course) is no longer used as a church. 

Then a few stops in a couple of shops, and back to the flat, with a stop here and there for pictures.  Durham has some really cool old bridges.

Old Elvet Bridge was built in the 12th century!...  can you see the yellow fields in the distance?

I spent the rest of the afternoon and much of the evening deeply immersed in travel planning.  Now that I've had a week or so to recover, I am ready to think about new adventures!

Day 13 (April 15): York

Sunday Mass at St. Wilfrid's this morning.  Then a short walk over to tour through "the Minster" -- York's famous Cathedral.

the church was full

photos are okay in the Minster

It's a pretty impressive one, as far as Cathedrals go.  And I've seen quite a few.

We took a break for a nice lunch and then finished our visit.  Then we headed out to walk on the rest of the City Walls -- it's about 3 miles total and we'd done a small section the day before.

daffodils are a nice touch

Day 6 (April 8): Paris... and back to London

inside St. Etienne-du-Mont

Easter Sunday morning we went to Mass at St. Etienne-du-Mont just a few blocks away, just behind the Pantheon.  Another really great service, even though I hardly understood a word.

Afterwards we collected our packs and got on the Metro, planning a few stops as we made our way to the train station.  We got out near Moulin Rouge for a quick look around and pictures and then walked several blocks to see the Basilique du Sacre-Coeur.  It was crowded.

Lunch and then off to catch the Eurostar back to London.

Day 4 (April 6): Paris

First on the agenda this morning was to go up to the top of the Notre Dame cathedral towers.  Lines were long so best to get in early.  We managed it and got some good views all-around.

view out the front of the Cathedral

view back towards the cathedral itself

The afternoon's task was the Louvre.  We split our visit up with a break in the middle for lunch & ice cream...  that museum is exhausting.

central courtyard inside the Louvre--no entrance grander

It was Good Friday so after a quick break at the hotel we went to a service at St. Sulpice.   

Then bed.