Road Trip to Edinburgh

It’s nearly three weeks since we returned from holiday, and I still haven’t got to the end of my holiday posts. We did do a lot, and it has been busy ever since we got back. So, more holiday tales.

By the time Friday arrived, we were ready for a rest. In the short time we’d been on holiday, we’d already explored lots of places and our promise to ourselves to have at least one day on site, hadn’t so far materialised. We decided Friday was the day. It turns out that Friday was a good day to have a relaxing time on site because it’s one of the change over days, so a lot of people go home and there’s a 3 – 4 hour lull of quiet in between. I booked me and little Miss onto one of the craft sessions, friendship bracelet making, and we took a relaxing walk by way of the lakeside to our session.

 

That was a nice way to spend half an hour and we both come out with some cute beaded bracelets. Then we went to take a look at the ‘show home’ caravans for sale. Some were pre-loved and quite tempting, although others cost more than the remaining mortgage on my house and were definitely more in the category of mobile home than holiday caravan. It’s nice to look though.

 

Later on we spent some time (and money) in the arcade, Little Miss got to enjoy the soft play area and we grabbed some food from Chopstix, which was one of the on site vendors. Then, it was a relaxing afternoon of reading, walking Thelma and doing as little as possible. Saturday morning, we’d planned to go to Edinburgh on the train, but while we were getting ready I decided I quite fancied a cross border drive, so we all hopped in the car and headed for Scotland. It was a super easy drive and in just over an hour we were parked up at a park and ride on the outskirts, getting a cheap and short train into Waverley station.

 

I’ve been to Edinburgh a few times. It ranks highly amongst my favourite cities, and I think if I was looking to live in a capital city I’d choose Edinburgh over London any day of the week. Little Miss has never been though. We’d already warned her on the train that you have to keep an eye open for the small rodents called ‘Haggis’ that run about the streets, I think she may have believed us!

It was Irish themed, although you wouldn’t tell from this photo

 

The architecture of Edinburgh is grand and beautiful, and straight off the train we headed for the old town. It wasn’t long before we saw a Scottish bagpiper, an experience Little Miss hadn’t had before. We chose an Irish pub for lunch, enjoying a delicious Lamb Stew, before heading slowly along the Royal Mile in the direction of the Castle, taking in the street entertainers and buzz of visitors along the way. It was the week before Edinburgh Fringe, and already the crowds were starting to gather in anticipation. We dipped in and out of shops, and in one particular shop I spent a significant amount of time drooling over some very expensive tweed clothes.

 

I’ve always had a weakness for tweed. I think it’s such a classic and beautiful fabric. Mum was a bit shell shocked when she left that particular shop having accidentally spent £12.99 on a box of Peppermint Tea. She’d been too proud to leave it at the counter when she found out the price at the counter. We reached the castle, but we were only able to glimpse it from the barricades at the front since the Edinburgh tattoo was on, meaning only ticketholders could go in. Nonetheless, we got to see a bit of it. 

We headed back down, further into the old town, stopping for tea and cake along the way. It was absolutely buzzing, there were so many tourists and at the Grassmarket area which is home to many pubs, there were pipers, and every table filled with revellers and drinkers. It’s a vibe! After a long day of walking around and perusing some lovely shops, treating myself to posh candles and some nice natural beauty products, it was time to head back to the train station and to the car to drive back to Northumberland. As always, I’d had a wonderful time in Edinburgh and little Miss had been thrilled to visit Scotland for the first time, even if she didn’t spot any Haggis roaming the streets.

Northumberland: Bamburgh and The Holy Island of Lindisfarne

 Wednesday I enjoyed a gentle start to the morning. After walking Thelma, I was able to relax on the decking with a herbal tea and my book before anyone else was awake. Although we were keen to get across to Lindisfarne, and the weather seemed favourable, the forecast had promised strong winds and rain showers and we knew that, once on the island we’d be there until the tide went back out to reveal the causeway. We opted for Bamburgh instead since it was easier to get back from if the weather turned inclement. 

Bamburgh Castle

Bamburgh is beautiful, with its stone cottage lined Main Street and an imposing castle overlooking the village and the beach, it feels like an image from a history book. It was also quite busy when we arrived, and incredibly popular with dog owners. Thelma isn’t particularly keen on other dogs, she doesn’t realise she is one, so mostly, she tries to avoid them. 

Inside the cafe

We started off with a delicious lunch in a quirky little cafe on the main street. Jacket potatoes, iced coffee (as it turned out much warmer than the weatherman said) and cake. Then we perused some enticing gift shops. I bought a new notebook to add to my pile, and then we headed over the sand dunes onto the beautiful beach. 

Bamburgh truly is a stunning beach. Look one way and it’s sand dunes, the other is the massively imposing Bamburgh castle and out to sea you can see the Farne islands. The sea is clear blue/green and the sand is fine and white. Even though it was very busy, there’s so much space that you don’t have to be sat on your neighbours picnic blanket. We set up camp there. Thelma relaxed and watched the world go by while little Miss made sandcastles.

Then we rolled our jeans up and went for a paddle in the (freezing cold) water, it was so invigorating though and I kept going back in for more, right until the point I wandered too far in and ended up with wet jeans. It was warm out of the surf so they soon dried off.

We wandered back to the car, unexpectedly tired from scaling sand dunes and headed back to the caravan. After a quick freshen up and a snack, we decided to brave the club again. This time we left it until later, missing out on the bonkers bingo. 

Club ready

The club was playing 2000s dance music, so I joined little Miss on the dance floor for a boogie. The perfect end to the day. 

Thursday, the weather forecast was looking good for a day at Holy Island. Given that there are 2 windows of opportunity to get onto the island (and back off) based on when the tide is out, we opted to go for the later one. It meant we would drive across during the mid-afternoon and stay on the island until 8pm.

When we arrived, I was so glad we’d done it that way around as there was quite a crowd of people leaving the island, who had obviously come across early and needed to leave before the tide came in. It’s definitely not somewhere you can visit unplanned unless you want your car to be stuck in the water halfway across. This happens more than you would believe.

On the island the sun was shining but it was incredibly windy. This is my third visit to the island and it’s always windy. We parked up, and wandered along the street taking in the local produce that’s being sold along the way. I bought some local honey and a new t-shirt for Little Miss from the Holy Island Clothing company.

Holy Island is rich in History. The following excerpt is courtesy of History Hit.com.

Lindisfarne, also known as Holy Island, is one of the most important centres of early English Christianity. Irish monks settled here in 635 AD and the monastery became the centre of a major saint’s cult celebrating its bishop, Cuthbert. The famous manuscript now known as the Lindisfarne Gospels was created here in the early 8th century. The ruins now visible are those of a 12th-century Lindisfarne Priory, which claimed direct descent from the early monastery.

The Island is known for the famous Viking Raid that occurred there. The devastating Viking attack on the church of St Cuthbert in 793 sent a shockwave through Europe. A Christian community at Lindisfarne survived, and recorded the event on the famous ‘Domesday stone.’

So, there is plenty to see here. The priory itself was closed, but we were still able to see inside.

The church was open, and is still an operational church. The sculpture of monks carrying a coffin when you walk in the door is a bit disconcerting, but the church itself is incredibly peaceful and spiritual. We sat there for a while in quiet contemplation, before taking a look around. It’s so beautiful and ancient. Often times churches and cathedrals can feel bustling and not meditative and spiritual, usually because there are so many people around. Not so with this one, it’s very special.

We wandered down to the beach where a smaller island with a cross on it was visible. The walk back up was beautiful, so many wildflowers everywhere. Ones I don’t think I’ve even seen before. Back at the top we visited the Manor House hotel for a coffee. They were fully booked for dinner that evening though, so I booked a table at the Crown and Anchor, just opposite, for a bit later on. 

Then, we walked to Lindisfarne castle. The walk up to the castle is absolutely beautiful. Ok, so we were blessed with a good day, but I suspect that Lindisfarne is beautiful even in the bleak weather, because it’s so unique. We stopped a few times to take in the stunning views, and at one stop Mum decided she needed a longer rest, so she stayed on the bench admiring the views.

Me, Little Miss and Thelma carried on up to the bottom of the castle, getting battered by the wind the whole way. We didn’t go all the way up to the castle since we needed to get back in time for the table I’d booked, but we got close enough to see how spectacularly imposing it is.

What a beautiful place for it to be too, with views across the sparkling North Sea.

Back at the pub, we were more than grateful of a seat to rest in. We enjoyed a feast, I had a surf and turf burger which was quite delicious. Me and little Miss played cards while we waited for our meals, thoroughly invigorated and quite tired from the day’s activities.

After a hearty meal, and a hearty dessert it was time to head for the car. It was 8pm, the tide would be out and we could leave the island. What a fantastical place.

Northumberland: Bingo and Berwick

 The holidays that stick in my head from my childhood are the caravan holidays Mum would take me on. Sometimes we’d go as a larger family with cousins, other times just us. We’d stay in places like Skegness, Weymouth or Newquay and they were carefree and fun filled. Keen to relive those experiences with little Miss, this year I’d booked us a week’s holiday at Haven Haggerston Castle, near Berwick-upon-Tweed in Northumberland. 

The drive up from Yorkshire is a fairly straightforward one, over the moors and up through Newcastle, we were at our caravan by late afternoon. I’d booked one with a decking area for sitting out on, and also so Thelma could watch the world go by. We loved it! The site itself was huge, like a small town, but our little corner of the site, nestled in the trees was fairly quiet and peaceful. After unpacking and making a quick meal in the caravan, we quickly freshened up and headed out to the onsite club.

Ready for the club

Little Miss was thrilled that there was an arcade and a soft play area on site. Only promises to return later in the week would move her past them. The club itself was chaos. We’d arrived right in the middle of bonkers bingo. Once it was over though (we were grateful it was) there was live music which Little Miss was so happy to be able to dance to, and was a pleasant opportunity as there’s not much in the way of family nightlife back in Scarborough.

We had a great evening and made a mental note to miss the bingo slot on our next visit. Next morning, we were up early to go swimming. The pool was busy, but there was still plenty of room to play with the beach ball that little Miss persuaded me to buy. We had a blast. Little Miss has really come along this year with swimming and has so much more confidence.

Berwick town centre

The afternoon was sunny and hot, so we decided to pay nearby Berwick a visit. Berwick-on-Tweed sits on the picturesque river Tweed and is very close to the border of Scotland. Through history it’s been both Scottish and English, and architecturally it certainly feels more Scottish. 

We found a fabulous little dog friendly vintage tea room for a tea and cake break, before wandering down to the river front. It was beautiful, but incredibly hot. I don’t usually bring Thelma out in such temperatures so I was careful to make sure she got plenty of water breaks. 

The river Tweed

Feeling the heat

On the way back up to town from the river we decided to stop for a cold drink in the sunshine outside a nice cafe. Unfortunately they wouldn’t serve food outside and our desire to sit in the sunshine was stronger than our desire to eat, so it was drinks only. 

By the time we wandered back through town to the car park, checking out a few charity shops along the way, we were very hot. Back at the caravan site Mum treated us to a fish and chip supper from the on site chip shop, and we had a quiet night watching TV and relaxing.