I am back from three fabulous weeks in England and Ireland. For me this trip was very special, it picked up where I left off last May. I had planned a stop in London to visit a friend on the way home  from Italy and had to put that stop on hold. I am thrilled that I was able to make this trip happen. 

I travel to visit friends, meet new people, have great experiences and enjoy good food! My adventures involve friends, food and lots of laughter! 

My visit to England was to see my friend Gina’s London. Over the last three years I have heard so much about her favourite places and seen photos of her adventures. I couldn’t wait to see all the things I had heard so much about. I enjoyed every minute of exploring London, whether it was in the sunshine, grey skies or bizarre little storms with tiny hailstones. I had the best cinnamon bun at a French cafe, it was flaky and had just the right amount of cinnamon sweetness! Borough Market and all it’s wonderful food stalls. Oh my! The cheese shops were dreamy! Afternoon tea at Brown’s Hotel, my introduction to clotted cream and strawberry jam on scones! Yummy! Agatha Christie’s Mousetrap was a great performance, I really did suspect every character at some point throughout the play. A few refreshment stops introduced me to a few new favourite drinks, The French Daisy and Elderflower Spritz. A sunny stroll along the river from Tower Bridge to the London Eye. A tour of the Tower Bridge and a walk across the glass floor, took a video too, since it wasn’t long ago I was terrified of heights. A quick tour of the Tower of London to see the crown jewels, wow, they are sparkly and beautiful! A hop on hop off bus tour in a rainstorm was fun, always a great way to get an overview of a city. I also spent a few days in North London with another lovely friend, Carole. This was so nice because I got to see another aspect of London. Fortunately the days were sunny to enjoy this beautiful area.  

An afternoon train ride to Cornwall to spend a week in Padstow. A little comical since we took a bus from the train and ended up standing on the street in Padstow looking pretty wide-eyed and lost. Thank goodness for Jan, a kind lady who helped us find our cottage. This was our week to relax and Padstow was the perfect choice for a relaxing week. Everything we needed was within walking distance. A foodie town with wonderful restaurants, bakeries, shops and a very helpful lady at the tourist information office. We giggled at how often we were asked where we were from because of our accents. To my delight a lady working in a shop had even been to Saskatoon! We explored walking paths and a beach along the estuary and took the bus to the neighbouring town of Wadebridge for a little shopping and lunch. Hired a driver for a day tour of Cornwall, this was great since he showed us places we would never have otherwise seen. We visited filming locations of Poldark, quaint villages along the coast, and the Minack Theatre, a stunning open-air theatre overlooking the Atlantic Ocean. I continued my love affair with cream tea, clotted cream is a delight and I sure miss it. 

On to Ireland, we made our way to Galway City to visit a friend of mine from high school. This was wonderful, so special to reconnect after 25 years! We experienced a rare snowfall in The Burren and explored the Cliffs of Moher on a beautiful sunny day! Incredible! Then just like a scene in a movie the bus dropped us off to walk down the road into Doolin, ‘just follow the signs’! haha! What signs? We can see the ocean, a round castle and a village in the distance, as we walked down the hill the village disappears and we wonder if we should have made the one right turn instead of following the main road. We kept walking and soon found someone to ask directions. We round the bend in the road and saw the main street of Doolin. Yay! We were meeting friends who had cycled to Doolin for dinner and fun! It was a great evening, lots of fun and laughter. I especially liked the signs in the pubs “Guinness is good for you, gives you strength”.  A Sunday afternoon in a pub in Galway City listening to an Irish trad session was so cool. I am amazed how people know the words to so many songs. A day trip in Connemara was lovely, it was nice to see the beautiful countryside. Especially Lough Nafooey when the sun came out and the lake was completely still with the hills reflecting in the water! Stunning! The last few nights we spent in Dublin. A hop on hop off tour, we hopped off at the Guinness Storehouse. After the tour, learning to pour a perfect pint and lunch we walked to explore Dublin. Funny how we chose to eat at Il Fornaio Enoteca twice, delicious authentic Italian food and great wine. More pubs and great Irish music! Thanks for a great time Ireland! I will return soon. 🙂

I am often asked what the best part of the trip was or the top three things. All three areas I visited were special in their own way and offered something different. London is iconic, mixed with history and international flare. Cornwall is classic and charming with lovely people, gorgeous scenery and delicious food. Ireland is welcoming, friendly and musical with so much natural beauty that photos cannot possibly portray the images captured in my memory. 

Feels good to be back to adventures! 

Still sparkling  😉