Scotland

After spending two days in Dublin we were on to Edinburgh. I absolutely loved Edinburgh, the city has great charm and the people were all so friendly. We arrived very early in Edinburgh and so we went straight to our hostel, checked in, had some breakfast, and planned out what to do for the day. The hostel was absolutely wonderful, it was located right at the base of Edinburgh Castle. I could not think of a better location.
After we ate we went first to the National Gallery which housed many works of art from both foreign artists and Scottish Artists. It was wonderful and it was free, which helps the pockets when traveling. We finished with that around noon and decided to do the castle next. The castle admission was 10 pounds but it was definitely worth it. Not only do you get to visit the castle but they have turned all of the interiors of the old structures into various museums. One was a prisoner of war museum, another a military museum, one held the crown jewels and so on. We spent probably a total of two hours there. It had been a long morning so afterward we went back to the hostel and took a much needed rest. After we made some dinner and then were back out on the town. We explored the town a bit more and walked up this hill that our hostel recommended. It was an absolutely beautiful view of the town and we were just in time for sunset!

The next day we booked a bus tour to take us up to Iverness through the Scottish Highlands to see Loch Ness. We were at the pick up point bright and early at 8am ready for another eventful day. We had another day of beautiful weather and our guide was wonderful. I could listen to someone talk with a Scottish accent all day and probably never tire of it. He was entertaining and extremely knowledgeable about the history of the area and everything we were seeing out our windows. We drove past Sterling Castle and our guide told us the story of William Wallace and how he actually died. Lets just say that Braveheart was a gentle version!
We reached Iverness around 1:30 and had a boat tour on Loch Ness at 2pm. The boat was equipped with sonar systems so we were really searching for Nessie, alas no monster. The boat tour was an hour and then we had the drive back to Edinburgh and we were back around 7pm. A long day but definitely worth it.

(meet Hamish - Highland cow)
The next morning we woke up and went to the National Museum of Scotland. There were a multitude of great exhibits and we easily spent two hours looking around. That afternoon we took a late afternoon bus to our next destination, Glasgow.

So this was kind of when the trip went south. I had gotten sick on the first day of Spring Break and was taking as much cold medicine as possible and was just not getting better. The lack of sleep and long days walking around probably were not helping either. We checked into our Glasgow hostel and I felt truly terrible. The next morning was even worse so I went to the doctor first thing in the morning.

The doctor said that I had a good old virus/cold thingy and a raging ear infection. I was exhausted and he recommended it would be best for me to rest as much as possible because if I kept going at the pace I was it would only get worse. So, i returned to the Hostel and prepared to go home. I was supposed to spend the next 3 days in London but I would have been kind of useless and would not have enjoyed everything if I wasn't feeling well. So I bought a ticket and with two hours was at the airport destined for Paris and then Angers.

2 notes on this experience.
#1 - My doctor looked like a better looking Gerard Butler. Apparently that is possible. As he was trying to tell me what my maladies were I was so distracted by the pretty that he probably thought I was high. My words were not making sense. I blamed my speech impediment on being in France for 3 months and not speaking much English (haha....yea right). Unfortunately no picture available.
#2 - It is actually possible to buy a plane ticket within two hours of departure and just get on it and go. I kind of felt like i was in the movies. Kind of cool even though I felt like hell. Also, flying with an ear infection might be one of the most painful experiences.

So now I am back in Angers getting some much needed rest and will hopefully be better by Monday when I am to meet my two friends Anna and Jayne in Antibes in the South of France. Wish me well!