It was our last day in Scotland and I was incredibly sad about having to leave, but my spirits were infinitely cheered by the fact that we would also be visiting our last castle of the trip: Craigmillar Castle. Continue reading “Exploring Ruins: Craigmillar Castle – Edinburgh Day 9”
After a week in Scotland, we left Edinburgh for the day to head over to Stirling and visit the astounding Stirling Castle. About an hour’s train ride away, it was nice to relax on the train and watch the Scottish countryside go by while we were brought to our next destination of adventure. And what an adventure Stirling Castle was! Probably one of my favourite days of the trip, we spent all day in Stirling exploring every nook and cranny the castle held. Continue reading “Exploring Stirling Castle – Edinburgh Day 7”
Our first castle of the trip was Edinburgh Castle. More of a military fortress than a royal home, Edinburgh Castle is full of museums of war and houses Scotland’s Crown Jewels, as well as the infamous Stone of Destiny. Edinburgh Castle sits at the top of a hill and has survived countless attacks, its position proving to be pretty much impenetrable – in fact, the only successful takeover of the castle was done by the Scots themselves, when they were taking back their castle from the English. Continue reading “Exploring Edinburgh Castle – Edinburgh Day 2”
It was time for us to say goodbye to our kibbutz and head out for our next adventure, which, as it turned out, would leave us feeling a little blind. I’d been in caves before, but never have I had an experience quite like this one. Continue reading “Israel Day 25: Cave Spelunking”
To my great joy, I soon discovered that Anne Boleyn’s childhood home, Hever Castle, was just a short train ride away from London, so of course I had to go and see it! Not only is it another castle to visit, but it’s also connected to Anne Boleyn – I wasn’t going to let that opportunity slip by me. Not even getting stranded in the middle of nowhere could dampen my spirits about this day, and getting stranded in the middle of nowhere did indeed almost happen! Continue reading “Visiting Anne Boleyn’s Childhood Home”
My visit to Kensington Palace was a pleasant one, although it did contain probably one of the biggest frights of my life, which is ironic considering I went to the London Dungeon the day before.
Kensington Palace focuses more on the modern line of royals (so, Queen Elizabeth II and her family), as well as on Queen Victoria, so if those are the things that interest you, Kensington is the palace to go to. Continue reading “Exploring Kensington Palace”
My days in England just kept getting better and better. On June 16th, I went on a tour of Richmond and Hampton Court. I got to see things that have survived all these years against all odds, heard a fantastically morbid ghost story, and then was later given a heart attack by what I thought was an actual ghost hissing in my ear. It was an amazing day. Continue reading “Richmond and Hampton Court”
If I only had time to do one thing in London, it probably would have been the Tower of London. It’s an incredible fortress to visit, steeped in fascinating history and architecture worth marveling over. It was a place of celebration, but also of torture and execution – lucky for me, my day was spent celebrating and the only torturous part was having to leave at the end of the day. Continue reading “The Tower of London”
My twelfth day in London I decided it was high time to get to know the city a little more intimately. I decided to take another Sandemans tour, a company I had the pleasure of getting to know in Barcelona and Amsterdam. Just like in those cities, I opted for their free walking tour in London, and once again Sandemans blew me away. Continue reading “Getting to Know London”
I spent a day in Bath while I was in England and it was like walking through heaven – Jane Austen heaven specifically. It was a day of sophistication and poise, and Bath was a beautiful place to go and visit. Continue reading “Exploring Bath, Jane Austen Style”
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