Travelling versus Holidaying

'Travelling' as opposed to 'holidaying' certainly has plenty of ups and downs; especially with a seven year old, and especially on a budget....
Today we packed up the car in France, put on pretty dresses and nail-varnish and thought we could arrive at our hotel for around 2pm in order to casually stroll the streets of Barcelona looking and feeling great!
 We drove four hours to Barcelona, and tried to find the 'hotel' which we booked on 'booking.com'...... after a couple of hours of not finding it, we parked up and tried looking on foot. Too many people told us it was an apartment, to be careful, that it would be hard to find... and sure enough, we did not find it. We gave up and spent another hour or so driving around asking hotels and hostels if they had 'una habitation libre?' Finally at 10pm (we set out at 10am) we found a hostel where we could share a single bed for 30Euro..... Parking is dodgy and I have to move the car before 8am or from what I can make out, it will be towed.... But at least we have a bed. Parking is so difficult in Barcelona, and we had such a rough day that I think we are both eager to get out of the city and head for Valencia area first thing in the morning. I tried to play it by ear last week in Bize, France, where even the camping was fully booked, and hotels were hard to find and had early check in limits... so we tried to book ahead..... This hasn't worked either; so maybe a combination of the two; so tomorrow we drive until we find somewhere nice, and find a hotel; but we start the search early so as to enjoy the day. We are determined not to repeat todays wild goose chase.

One final thought; travelling with a seven year old may seem difficult to some, but today when we were both a little stressed but extremely supportive of each other, I tried to picture various friends and ex partners in the passenger seat. Although another adult may have been practically helpful, I could not think of anyone I wouldn't have fallen out with in that situation. She really is my true travelling buddy :)

Summer Solstice 2013 at Stonehenge

Once upon a time, an eager baby came out six weeks early. Some say she came out early because she knew her mother was visiting her birthplace, and she would only have a small window to have the privilege of being born in her mothers homeland of Wales; home to many wonderful myths and legends.... She also came early because she could sense that a special day was upon us; the Summer Solstice. On that night, a shooting star was spotted as if to highlight the importance of this event.  Seven years later, her mother decided it was about time she brought her little star to Stonehenge; to show her how important this date really is.

And so, she, I mean, I, booked us into a nice looking campsite, packed a tent (later to discover it was without pegs), bedding, clothing and pringles, and off we went. Before we even arrived at the campsite we were feeling positive; I had called  a lady called Elaine up, and she was ever so friendly, giving me a heap of information about the stones, and advice on bringing my daughter.

For full information on the campsite visit www.stonehengecampsite.co.uk

Berwick Rd  Salisbury, Wiltshire SP3 4TQ,  07786 734732-

we definitely recommend it! Camping with a real festival atmosphere at solstice, and no doubt brilliant at all other times too! Extremely satisfied customers.

We arrived, set up our tent, and began waiting for the first bus to Stonehenge; ready to see in the summer solstice.... We missed the 9pm one, and a few after that.... due to essential activities such as face-painting and cake eating! But we were up to the 11pm bus.... just about!

The delicious strawberry one-love cake that caused us to miss that first bus!

The bus is a great service; free for those staying on site, it runs up and down to the stones from about 9pm to 1am, then starts again at 5am; theoretically it has a cut off point but will run until the long queue has been transported section by section back to the campsite.  

The bus drops you at the bottom of a field-come-carpark, and there is quite a walk. We took a friend of mine who has fibromyalgia so it was quite a slog for her; but I'm sure if you speak to the campsite staff they would be more than happy to help, or at least advise somebody with any mobility issues; they are really approachable and no matter how busy they are, will always give you some time.

Happy Campers :)

 

The stones were no-where near as big as I expected, but I think that comes from having visited places such as the astounding Tikal in Guatemala; which is ridiculous in size!  Nevertheless, they were truly mystifying, and we felt honoured to be able to lean up against one and cwtch in for the night (cwtch = a common and much loved Welsh word, like cuddle, hug or snuggle).

Stonehenge

The fact that we were there with Jahzara meant that we stayed in one spot and were sober for the night - an amazing tool for people watching! My friend Natasha and I were very surprised (and disappointed) that there were't more hippies there, but we did meet people from all walks of life and many nationalities, and we were pleased to see a good number of people in wheelchairs, 'older' people and people with children.

If nothing else, security got in the way of a lot of photos that night....

There was of course, tight security, and plenty of police, although they weren't too invasive and did not trouble us (they did, however, escort a lovely lady we had been chatting to us out of Stonehenge, for removing all of her clothing and dancing round the stones; by all accounts, she never recovered her knickers!)

We ended up staying up until the sunlight; and witnesses something rather bizarre; although the sun had clearly risen, but was covered by cloud, there were still people waiting for it to rise..... because their smartphone was still telling them 4, 7 , 9 etc, minutes to sunrise! This was such a strange over reliance/ confidence in technology, that the builders of Stonehenge probably turned in their sacred burial grounds!

Wake me up when my Birthday is here! J with her awesome gift, signed by many at the solstice :)

One last bizarre occurrence was the queue for the bus back to the campsite. It never really bothers me when friends join other friends ahead in the queue; be in for a gig, or boarding a plane and so on.... but people in our bus queue for becoming increasingly irate each time they thought someone was jumping the queue. When the bus stop actually moved closer to the road, and the queue became a little shuffled, normal people became what I can only liken to football hooligans, shouting things like "you ain't getting on that bus, we ain't letting ya". My seven year old knows that is not how you behave, and a few people in the queue wondered out loud where all the peace and love had gone.... The whole affair became a sordid shouting match, and I just hope that those involved were a little embarrassed when they looked back on themselves  the next day.

Our campsite was so nice, we had to stay there twice! Yes, although we initially planned for one night, we decided we couldn't leave, and stayed another night. However, as our pringles supply was dwindling, we had to head out for food. The campsite staff again, were patient and very helpful; there was a burger van and a pizza stall at the campsite, but it was a bit pricey for us, and there was not much available for vegetarians so we were given the rundown of a few places; again by Elaine. We chose the Swan, which turned out to be a spectacular pub by the river, which served us an amazing meal, and a refreshing bottle of wine. We were taken care of by the lovely James, and really could not have asked more of him, or the pub. Their beer garden is across a busy road, so be careful if you visit, but its well worth it as the little river/stream really is a sight for sore eyes... and children currently eat free on a Sunday.... apparently (we visited on Friday, but were well taken care of anyway).

Search for the Swan@Solford, Warminster Road, Salisbury, Wiltshire SP2 0PR or call 01722 790236  http://www.theswanatstoford.co.uk/

 

 

 

The Swan Inn  and its Delightful Riverside Garden

 

Our last night was simple, yet magical. the sun went down, people got cold. Caveman instinct kicked in and a fire was made.... then songs were sung and instruments were played, and a good night was had by all.

 

 

The end.

Edinburgh; a wee review

Edinburgh with a six year old. 2013

 

This short guide to Edinburgh is written in terms of a single mum on a budget, visiting the city for a weekend with a 6 year old....

I find a lot of reviews/ guides will really hype something up as being totally 'amazing' and fun filled, or that you 'couldn't fit it into a weekend, let alone a day'.... and then I go, and find this is not the case; at least not for my daughter.

So this aims to be as realistic and honest as possible.... with pictures too! I have also included prices that I paid, in March 2013 because sometimes it feels like you are stuck in a maze trying to figure out how much it will all cost.

I found flights from Bristol to Edinburgh for £124 return for me and  J, and with cheap airport transfers that made it cheaper to fly than drive . A train from my hometown in Newport would have cost at least £150 for an adult alone.

We booked the Travelodge  a couple of miles from Edinburgh airport for £36, and paid the £7 for breakfast (kids eat free)... The room was acceptable - very clean, but cold, and no phone, so any room service had to be ordered at the bar, and to obtain our extra duvets I had to go down to reception at 1 in the morning. Saying that, the reception staff were very helpful. The breakfast was really not worth it, and has very little for vegetarians. A taxi from the airport to the hotel will set you back £8; however, the 747 Lothian bus will take you very close for £1.50 adult and 70p child. Take the 747 from the airport and tell the driver you need Edinburgh airport Travelodge at Ratho park. You then walk across the overpass bridge to Ratho business park where you see the Travelodge at the far end. There is a co-operative in the same vicinity (great for when you have forgotten your toothbrush) which also has a cash machine. It's open from around 8am to 9pm.

Just remember; children don't evaluate accomodation the same way most adults do. As long as they have a parent and a bed, they are usually happy!

From the Travelodge, we walked across the overpass and took the 747 to the airport and then the 35 Lothian service into Edinburgh city centre - cheaper than catching the service 100 airport link. Buy a day ticket for £3.50 and ride any Lothian buses all day (children £2.00).

Riding the Lothian buses :)

The buses all drop off at various points along Princes Street (the main street in Edinburgh, separating the old and the new side of town) and your first point of call should be the tourist information point as it contains information on various attractions, and also sometimes offers discounts (see Dungeon section). You can also book tours and accommodation from there. Edinburgh Waverly train station is located next door to the tourist information place, in Princes Mall, along with other shops.

 

 

In terms of trains; if you are staying in Glasgow, you can currently buy a train ticket to Edinburgh for around £12 return (kids go free on all trains), and then have free childrens entrance to Edinburgh zoo, which is normally around £11. We didn't have time to visit the zoo, but have heard it's a nice zoo.

The Royal Mile

 This place must have the most tourists per square metre in the whole of Scotland! There are numerous gift shops, a few museums (Museum of childhood for example), coffee shops, stalls and  jewellery shops where you can buy pretty Celtic designs of various prices and qualities. There are also plenty of places to eat around there although the prices were a little high for us, so we trecked back into town to eat at a reliably cheap Weatherspoons pub! The Royal mile is a picturesque stretch leading up to the castle, whic everyone will tell you "you can't miss it".... although we did not realise it was there until Sunday afternoon!

 

We spent some time looking round the Museum of Childhood; which, ironically was great for myself, at the age of 26 but not so interesting for J at the age of 6 because of course, there were clear instructions not to touch - what child accepts that?! Although there was a section for children to dress up in clothes of old, there is little in the way of things to do, touch and feel here, just to look at. But yes, for us grown folk, it is a truly magical and interesting spot.

 

Edinburgh Castle

Although pricey at around £15 adults and £8 children we really thought we should check out the castle while in Edinburgh. It took us around 2 hours to see the whole castle, with a couple of what I call 'sit down and sulk' breaks because J had gotten bored. There is a lot of interesting information to read on the way round, and a useful map which is numbered and labelled so that you don't miss anything . There is also an audio tour which you can take for around £3. There's a number of places to eat and drink within the castle as well, and plenty of sitting space if you have brought snacks. I think a morning or afternoon spent at the castle is more than enough time.

J's favourite part of the castle!

If you are visiting 3 or more castles in Scotland, enquire about the explorer pass (for about £30 you have unlimited access to a number of castles; enquire at the tourist information place next to Waverley station).

One of the views of Edinburgh

Rose Street

Rose Street runs parallel to Princes Street and is full of places to eat, drink, and shop (this is where we found our cheap weatherspoons).

 

Glasgow

We didn't think a weekend in Edinburgh was enough Scotland for us so we jumped on a train to Glasgow. It was a spontaneous decision so we caught the train for £12.60 return (kids go free under 16years) and wondered round for the day. We headed for Glasgow Green to look at the river Clyde and 'The People's Palace'; a free museum giving you a glimpse of Glasgow through the ages, with a kids room and the winter gardens. The winter gardens is a great indoor botanical space complete with a reasonably priced cafe. Perfect if the weather is cold. Kids meals are around £3, and soup of the day is also £3; main meals are around £5 and are served until 3:30pm. The cafe also serves coffee and cake at the usual prices of around £2 per coffee and £3 for a slice of cake.

The Peoples Palace, Glasgow

One thing Glasgow had which we didn't see in Edinburgh was lots of buskers and budding musicians, giving the city more character.

Edinburgh Dungeons

On our last day I took J to the dungeons, ignoring the advice to take children over 8 years old. Not a massive mistake; but the experience (an hour and a half roughly) really is well done, and a bit scary (and jumpy) for any age. J did cry at the end, and I felt terrible, but now she looks back fondly(ish) at the day. I would recommend that you do take the age 8 plus advice, but obviously you know your child. Whether you have children or not, I would definitely recommend the Dungeon experience, as its a fun insight into Scotland's gory past.

 

To get to the airport, we boarded a (number 35) Lothian bus for the last time and bid a sad farewell to Edinburgh; a truly beautiful city with so much to do; but also so so many ways to spend money, thus we came home rather penniless and a bit overspent!