Planning the journey

The development of holiday plans is something that always takes time and is, for me at least - Yes I know some people would call me sad - part of the fun of the holiday itself.

For 10 years now we have alternated between holidays in Europe and those further afield, often on the other side of the Atlantic. 

So it was clear we would be Europe based for this year's holiday. Two years ago, when we were in Croatia, Drew suggested we ought to visit Scotland as we had not visited before. So we agreed to this in principle, time then to think about the details. So over the last year we have begun more detailed planning about the holiday.

One of the first thing we agreed was that we would go to one of the quieter and more remote parts of the country. As a Celt, all be it a Brythonic rather than a Goidelic Celt, I had always appreciated, whenever I watched BBC Parliament, hearing the name of the constituency off the West of Scotland called Na h-Eileanan an Iar otherwise known as the Western Isles or the Outer Hebrides. 

So we began to look for places that would give us a sense of remoteness and came across a house in Crosbost, a small village on the Isle of Lewis which to confuse people like me is part of the same landmass (island) as the Isle of Harris. The house is called Seaview@Repose, which seemed perfect for its remoteness, its closeness to the sea and its promise of restfulness. I particularly liked the warning in the important information: "Property is situated on a crofting township with sheep." I've stayed in places which warned against, dogs, wolves and biting instincts, but this is the first time I've been warned about the presence of sheep. It made the place even more endearing to a Welsh man!

Having sorted the central part of the holiday, we booked it last September, we then began plans for the journey there, and the journey back; journey is probably the wrong word, as the travelling to new places, is another essential part of the holiday. 

Given we had gone with Drew's desire for a week of quiet and peace (though he's taking me with him, so there is little real chance of that!). I did the rest of the planning and included in my planning an intention to visit some of the restaurants in Scotland (and in Northern England) which I'd heard of from TV programmes like Great British Menu. This led to some challanges, as our route would have been more logical, if we hadn't made some 'most go' restaurant decisions. For example we had always loved the look of Tom Kitchen's food but when looking to book found it was closed on Sunday and Monday, so instead of a route which went up the west coast and came down the east coast, in a logical manner, we had to reroute to go to Edinburgh on the day we would have originally been in Glasgow, which had a knock on effect.

Still after the complex planning we found a route which meant we never spent more than 230 miles of driving in a day or 4.5 to 5 hours even on the busiest day. This is nothing compared to the 350 to 360 miles we have travelled in a day when in the USA or Canada. We also will only double back on our route for about 15 miles in the whole journey, so almost every road will be a fresh one for us.

So our overnight stops are:

Tuesday	Langho
Wednesday	Edinburgh
Thursday	Auchterarder
Friday	Uig
Saturday to Friday	Crossbost, Isle of Lewis
Saturday	Inverurie
Sunday	Glenesk
Monday	Glasgow
Tueday	Nidderdale
Wednesday	Birmingham
Thursday	Cardiff

I will fill in a little more detail on each night's accommodation in tomorrow's post.    

The Scottish Trip

It amuses me to start my holiday blog with the title of a Max Boyce song which describes a very different journey from the one we have planned for this year. But our holiday this year is indeed a Scottish Trip, and I hope dear reader you will join us on this trip over the next three weeks.

The route once we get to Scotland looks something like this:

Outline Route for the Scottish Trip

though in fact the overlap in the centre is less than it looks due to the actual details an outline map cannot show in detail. I'll share detailed routes as the days progress. 

This is the sixth holiday where I have blogged about my journey and I always worth explaining that I often use the blog more for my own memory of these trips than for the audience, but it is nice to have you on the journey for company and I hope you will enjoy the trip.

I began the process of keeping a holiday blog on a South East Asian Cruise in 2006. I have since done the same on a train tour of Southern Europe in 2012 and for North American touring holidays in 2011, 2013 and last year.

Those who have followed the blogs before will know that food plays a big part in these journeys, this year this will be even more evident than in the past as we visit a number of Michelin starred establishments, as well as other lovely places which don't have a star yet.

I hope you will enjoy the journey and the food, feel free to comment on any aspect of the trip in the comments section below.

Retirement - Six Months on

Well today is six months since my last day in work. On the 29th of January my Facebook status said:

and it was in this optimistic spirit of looking forward to the next exciting part of my life that I began these next six months.

 Yes I knew I would miss my colleagues and friends, but every new start also means saying goodbye to the past, so on that day it was a pleasure to go out with the team and enjoy a meal together while they, and my other colleagues, at the University were very generous with their gifts.

So on that last day I set off from work with an amazing selection of cards and a wonderful range of things to ease me into my new status as a retired person. On the left is a photo of these on my table in the front room at home.

So what happened next?

Well so far the first six months have been an absolute delight. Some things haven't changed at all: 

• I'm still getting up at 6.30 each morning and earlier at weekends
• I'm still going to Mass each weekend
• I'm still enjoying cooking and eating

Other things have changed quite a lot:

• I am now able to go to Mass each day
• I have taken on the cleaning at home 
• I've started to learn Spanish ready for future trips
• I have much more time to read then I could ever manage except on holiday

Each of these has been good for me in different ways. 

The first because I'd always hoped when retired to spend more time with the Lord, and as a Catholic daily Mass, where possible, is a way of balancing the rush of daily life with those precious moments in the loving presence of the Lord. So now, not only do I get to Mass, but I have the pleasure of a time of quietness and prayer as I walk to the Church. The routine of leaving the house at 9.00, getting to Church at 9.40 and taking part in 10.00 Mass followed by the 40 minute walk back home is a great central focus to the day. The amazing benefits of four miles walking (it is about 2 miles each way, I walk down one route and return by another) has seen me losing two stone in weight in the last six months.

The second because I have been able to spend some valuable learning time looking at the best way of cleaning some of the more difficult spots. You Tube has been a great help on this and I have made frequent visits to Lakeland for just the right cloth to clean Stainless Steel, shower bases, upholstery etc. Who knew there was so much to learn about cleaning a house, the fun of learning something new, and useful has been really good. The purchase of a new Dyson and the various add-ons for dusting, crevices, mattresses have opened up a whole new world of interest, and yes even conversations involving the comparisons between the various models of Dyson and the various tools. This is so much not a conversation I had ever had before that it is like a whole new world opening up.

The third, though not the most successful, is the most challenging. I am faced with my own previous failed experience of learning a language. I get so interested in structure and process that I fail to actually get to the point of being able to speak. But plenty of time to keep pushing on this - so more challenges ahead.

The fourth, my greatest way to relax for all the years I can remember, is to read. On retirement I had a list of over 500 books I wanted to read and had never had time for in the past. I was hoping to schedule 50 a year for at least 10 years, but so far I have only managed 19, though a few weeks away may well increase the level of reading.

And what else?

Among unexpected (or at least unplanned) developments have been the time to read online newspapers. I read articles from the Guardian, Telegraph and Independent every day of the week. The daily e-mails from the above, and the Times, have got me back into politics, something I studied at A level, in a way I did not expect. The, to my mind, disastrous outcome of the referendum has also meant a lot more effort on my part trying to understand the nature of our nation and the future we face.

Another unexpected development has been being invited to spend four hours a week (two hours twice a week) helping with admin in my local Parish. It amuses me no end to be doing the routine kind of admin that I used to have staff colleagues to do when at work. The very routineness is relaxing and enabling, meaning I can be useful but never feel any stress over this engagement.  

I have also been able to engage with other wider faith related initiatives these have included:

• the wonderful NightFever events run by the Oratorian team at Newman Hall; the Catholic University Chaplaincy in Cardiff
• Engagement with the Archdiocesan Evangelisation Team
• Support for the visit of the relic image of Our Lady of Guadeloupe to the Cathedral in Cardiff 

Summary

So life has been busy and fun, there are other things I am sure I haven't mentioned above. But overall I have found the first six months of retirement, enjoyable, fulfilling and like a reward for all the hard work I put in over the years and got me into the position to be able to live happily in retirement. 

When this started six months ago I had no idea if my plans for retirement would work out as I hoped they would. I am so glad to say that they have and that this new period of my life has so far been rich and fulfilling. I would describe them as exciting, unexpected and full of promise. I hope and trust they will continue to be so, come back in a year's time and I'll sure I will be able to share some more.