Banchory Lodge

... for a week or two would be fun, but who would really benefit from it? So I decided to use the time I have to better the world community and do some volunteer work. That sounds exceptionally cheesy, but I would much rather be helping out the long-term development in a country I have significant interest in than just frolick on a beach drinking way too much alcohol.<br><br>I had researched some volunteer gigs previously, just for loose ideas for ...

A month in and no activity? What's going on, Sarah?<br><br>WELL.<br><br>Moved in OK, Freshers week was a blast, but I just haven't quite gotten to the exploring part yet. Made a trip down to the beach, a few around town.. And it's actually quite nice here. It's cold yes, but it's a fairly quiet city. Not too big but not too isolated.<br><br>However uni [the evil *******s] have decided to give ...

... all taken care of the adventuring will begin. I'm starting to think Ill hop over to Dublin for a day or two before I start traveling south because I am dying to taste their Guinness! Ill write as soon as I know, but I think Ill be lounging around Scotland for two weeks while I get my ducks in a line. Obviously there isn't much to log yet but i promise it will get interesting soon!!!!

Tomorrow I'm catching the a 2pm flight out to Heathrow, a couple of hours of transit and off to Istanbul...arriving just after 11pm. There's no public transport other than taxis and its probably gonna be expensive to Sultanahmet where I'm staying. But the flight's cheap so can't complain really. <br><br>For the past few days I've been packing and repacking, readjusting my inventory each time, trying to strike a balance between travelling light and having the ...

I made it back to Stonehaven today. Amazingly, the sun was out in full force, a complete contrast from yesterday. I walked along the North Sea for a bit, enjoying a Cornish pasty, and then made the roughly three-mile hike up to Dunnottar Castle, also overlooking the sea. The hike was amazing, but largely uneventful. The photos say more than I could hope to.<br><br>I leave for the U.S. tomorrow morning around 8:30 a.m ...

Heather and I should have known better. We left the house at 1:30 to catch the train to Stonehaven. It was overcast, but not yet raining, and in our haste we each forgot to grab an umbrella. By the time we arrived in Stonehaven it was raining pretty steadily. The walk from the train station to the city center only lasted about fifteen minutes, but by the end of it, my clothes were soaked ...

I rose around 9:00 and went for a run down Union Street (the main drag). People looked at me like I was nuts. Apparently exercise isn't an Aberdonian specialty, particularly at 9 a.m. Afterward, I found a small out-of-the-way sandwich shop where I bought a roast beef and bacon sandwich with spicy English mustard. I enjoyed the sandwich on a bench facing Soul Casino&#8212 ...

... who's used to the driver being in the left front, cars look like they're being driven by babies, for example, or pets, or if the seat is empty, by no one at all.<br></li></ul>Over the coming days, I'll explore some Aberdeen some more, then make my way to Inverness and Stonegate. I had hoped to make a trip up to Skara Brae in Orkney, but under the circumstances and with the limited amount of time I have here, I decided not to push it. Alas, perhaps another trip.

Super windy, but at least the sun was shining. The Wigwam was so much better than the cold tent! Were awake pretty early again so had yummy crumpets and headed further north again following the coast. Drove along the costal trail and through the outskirts of Edinburgh as we've been there before. The sea was super choppy, it was still blowing a gale! <br><br>Drove over Forth Road Bridge ...

... said we'd go back and sure enough, our next freeloader prompted the visit and this time it was open! As it's not a National Trust property, we paid a yearly membership fee of 7 pounds which allows us to visit as many times as we want to. It's one of our favourite places so I'm really quite excited about visiting it in all weather, it must be an incredibly atmospheric place when the wind is howling as it often does around here! We explored the ruin pretty throughly and it didn't ...