Scotland Part 3

Day 6 

Today we were heading to the Botanical Gardens which was a 40 minute walk from 10 Hill Place the hotel we're staying at. I wanted to get a bus there, but James promised that it was just a short walk and the weather was nice so we should just walk there. 10 minutes in and it started absolutely pouring and we were soaking wet. The walk there was mostly uphill so I was sweating under all the layers, and wet from the rain at the same time. We packed quite warmly thinking Scotland was going to be much colder than Leeds but I think it's warmer, and with all the walking we're doing I can't wear my usual thick Zara coat. 

It was very nice once we got there. There was a Chinese garden section which had many familiar plants and massive trees. It was still drizzling so after an hour or so we went into an indoor garden area which had plants from warmer climates. The greenhouse was massive and hot and humid. These were the supposedly more exotic plants, but the hibiscus is everywhere in KL so I wasn't as impressed. This was the best part of the day because we met a CAT. He was so old he didn't even meow and just made little chirps. We probably spent 30 minutes just stroking him on a bench. I'm hopeless when I see a cat, they're too cute and I'm completely obsessed with them. 

Left the Botanical Gardens and took the bus back this time to the city centre. Walked around for a bit and found Mum's Place a Scottish restaurant that served pies. Had the best pies and milkshakes but the waitress was so slow it took us an hour from finishing to getting the bill. The food was so unbelievably good but we'll probably never go back there again because the service was so horrible. 

Marley the cat! 

We had booked on for a Whisky experience and it was surprisingly packed considering lockdown. The guy explaining it was 21 and that made me feel so old because the people giving tours are usually much older than I am. Making whisky was such a long labourious process I have no idea how the first people decided okay lets just ferment this for a few decades without knowing what it would turn out to be. I did like that at the end they gave us these crystal whisky glasses and a small bottle of whisky even though I don't drink it and its probably just going to sit on a shelf or be used for pepsi. It just feels so fancy!

Day 7 

The last full day in Edinburgh today so we started off by going to the Edinburgh Castle. I was really annoyed in the morning because we were unsure whether the castle would be open or closed because of high winds. Tried ringing them but no one answered until an hour before our slot to go in and I didn't have enough time to get ready. Half ran and half brisk walked there which made me even more grumpy. It was freezing when we got up there but it was worth it because it was so beautiful. The historical significance of the castle was it was a fortress and also a prison for prisoners of war. 

Took a few hours to fully explore the castle with the audio guides. Left just as it started to rain. Since we've been travelling for about 8 days now we decided to do laundry at this cafe where you can leave your clothes and come back later. The guy at the cafe was so amused that I was Malaysian and started singing the Malaysia truly Asia song. I miss having a stable home to do laundry in but its part of travelling particualrly since we're in between houses. James made me try a deep fried mars bar and I can confirm that its all hype and not nice at all. Just tastes like melted caramel and sugar in batter. Mars on its own isn't my favourite anyways so maybe that's why I didn't like it. 

Day 8 

Travelling to Fort William today so the morning was spent packing up , carting everything to the car and then a last stop at BRGR before we left. I got a new horror book called Twisted Ones to read for the rest of the trip since I finished my last horror book. I've read more this year than I have the last 5 years thanks to lockdown. Reached Fort William in the evening and made a quick pit stop to the fish and chip shop for dinner before calling it a night. Tomorrow we're climbing Ben Nevis and although I'm slightly scared people that have climbed it said it was definitely doable and a comfortable hike. Also, American Elections are happening right now!!! 

Had to stop because the windy roads were making me nauseous. 

Mist and fog on the drive up to Fort William.

Scotland Part 2

 Day 4 

Breakfast at Thomas J Walls Coffee today, a little coffee shop right opposite the National Musseum of Scotland. We wanted to go to Mum's Cafe originally but it was closed. I don't think I'm a breakfast person, I just can't eat much first thing when I wake up. 

We had pre-booked the National Musseum and when we got there it was super covid-proofed with a one way system in place and with many parts of the musseum cordoned off. There were 3 floors in the musseum, a fashion gallery of what people in different countries wore, an animal section and a science section. There wasn't much about actual Scottish history in the musseum but we did learn that Scotland was originally inhabitated by the Picts who were then driven out by the Scots who were from Ireland. Interesting how no one is really 'originally' from anywhere and people are constantly migrating and mixing their cultures. The Scottish people now are a mix of Picts and Scots from Ireland. 

I liked the exhibit about Mary Queen of Scots the most. She had such a difficult life and was then exiled by her son to London where she was executed by her cousin. Historically most things are just power centred and people end up being casualties. Almost every monarch was overthrown, ousted or exiled and many times by their own family. Familial ties can be so fragile. 

                                        

James did a kebab food run for dinner which turned out to be a super healthy kebab and not a greasy one with chips like I was expecting. 

Day 5 

When we were planning this trip James suggested going to the Edinburgh Zoo because we both love zoos and animals. Growing up I never really went to any zoos because my mum didn't believe in having animals in captivity. Did so much research about whether we should go and this article from the New York Times in particular made me realise that animals shouldn't be in zoos at all. James had already booked the tickets by the time I told him I didn't want to go anymore so I was feeling a little guilty when we went this morning. 

The enclosures at the Edinburgh Zoo were massive compared to any other zoo I had seen before. Each animal had almost a field of land and a closed area away from the public. Although this doesn't make up for being able to roam freely as they would in the wild it did make me feel slightly better about being there. Most animals had a list of public sponsors that paid to maintain them as well as support from the zoo itself. There were so many Malaysian animals too surprisingly like the Malayan Tiger, Tapir and Sun Bears. Best thing about it was the wallaby field where they were free range and you could just stroll into the field.

Because of lockdown rules in Scotland, everything shuts down at 6pm because of covid. So once we were done with the zoo and walked to Arthurs Seat we had dinner at this little burger diner near the hotel which did burgers and shakes and it was so good, even better than 5 guys.  

Ferrero milshake

Scotland Part 1

In between houses we're making a trip to Scotland and we'll be spending 2 days in Catlowdry, 5 days in Edinburgh, 3 days in Fort William and 4 days in Inverness. First time to Scotland for me so I'm quite excited but also not looking forward to moving around and having to pack and leave to different places so often. James travelled when he was younger and did lots of backpacking alone so this is nothing to him but living out of a suitcase for 6 weeks will be something new for me. 

Day One 

Once we moved everything to storage we got in the car and drove 3 hours up north to Catlowdry a small village near the Scottish border. The road was really twisty and winding, even worse than Cameron Highlands and thats only an hour long. There no streetlights once we got off the main road so it was quite scary driving in pitch black darkness. I made a Spotify playlist for the trip but it was only for 2 hours, think we'll need to stick to podcasts for driving after this. I really didn't like driving at night on the backroads because there aren't any streetlights and you can't see if a car is coming round the corner. 

After 3 hours of driving 

Once we checked in, the night drive into town to get dinner.

The B&B was run by this old couple who were really sweet and once we parked we saw a big tabby cat at the entrance. Breakfast was included and it was on really fancy china and everything was set on a glass plate. James said it reminds him of his grandma's house and mine too, mama keeps all the good plates in a glass cupboard. After getting the fish and chips takeaway we went back and watched The Holiday for the first time. The town was so deserted at 7pm on a Monday there were no shops open apart from the fish and chip shop and teenagers were just walking about aimlessly huddled in little groups. It must be so strange growing up in a place like this, so different from KL and the constant city buzz. 

The room was very nicely decorated and felt like I was in an old film. I do like having a bed-side table and the bed was so much nicer than my old bed at Lodge House I had a perfect nights sleep. I think curtains are the way to go. My room in KL has glass window in the ceiling so its never pitch black at night. 

Day Two 

After breakfast we set off to do a 8 mile hike around Kelder Forest Park but because there were so many road closures we were driving for 3 hours. I got really nauseous at this point and felt like vomitting. We stopped by the side of the road so that I could rest for a bit. I wasn't cold at all because I was so wrapped up but James was freezing in his sweats. We drove to a nearby small town called Hawick but by then I was feeling so ill I just wanted to go back. Kelder Forest Park day was a fail. Went back to the room and I recovered after an hour or two and then back out we went. 

Left the room just as it started to rain and by the time we had left the gate it was pouring. I had my mask up so I didn't get rain on my face but we were completely soaked within minutes. James had some issues navigating and we ended up in a forest that looked like it had been burnt down and completely covered in mud. Took about an hour to get back and by then clothes, shoes everything was completely soaked and I was so stressed. Put everything on the radiator and just went to bed. A few hours later we watched a Mandalorian episode and then got ready for dinner at the Hidden River Cafe which was only 12 minutes away but in pitch black darkness we missed the exit and had to go back. Dinner was amazing and made up for getting rained on earlier that day. One of the best meals I've had and it was all seafood tapas. I wonder how they managed to get such a pro chef in the middle of nowhere. 

I didn't get any pictures of the food except dessert because we were too hungry and by the time the food arrived we just wanted to nom. The restaurant was set in a wooden barn which had two floors and residential cabins surrounding it. It would be a good place for a family bonding trip because there's nothing to do except to talk to each other and maybe play board games. I suggested this but James said that it was unlikely my family would agree to something like that. 

It was so beautiful 

Cookie dough waffles with ice cream

Day Three 

After breakfast we packed up and were in the car on the way to Dryburgh which has the Scots Monument and a giant statue of William Wallace. It took about 2 hours to get there and the weather wasn't too bad so we got out and walked around. I think I hate walking even if its short distances I wish I could go drive everywhere. This trip has made me realise that I am 26 with the body of an 86 year old. 

Got back in the car and drove for another hour to Edinburgh. I think I was expecting a big bustling city like Manchester or London but its more like York but spread out. Population of Edinburgh is only 500k and the houses are much older, cobbled streets and it looked less urban. Parked the car and trekked through old town to visit Armchair books. I wish I could have spent longer in here but I didn't wear contacts today and my glasses kept steaming up because we had to wear masks and I felt so uncomfortable. I saw a Grimms Stories book which I'd never seen before and Alice's Adventures through the looking glass which is one of my favourite books. I wish I had gotten the Grimms Stories but it was £29 and it was more a novelty collectors item than a story book so I didn't get it. 

Went to the national monument which I struggled with at the beginning because I was wearing my Dr Martens and my heel was starting to hurt. Honestly, I am so scared and nervous for our Ben Nevis climb. I think Edinburgh is such a nice city to live in, the architecture is so pretty and the view from the national monument was amazing. James likes how the city is such a mixture of old and new with the castle on one side overlooking the high street on the next. 

Overlooking the Royal Mile

View from the National Monument 

Had an early dinner at KFC and James got the double down burger which I can't understand. Its just two chicken patties with cheese in the middle. I love the hotel that we're in because there's a rainfall shower which I feel is the epitome of luxury, that and an efficient kettle. First full day of Edinburgh tomorrow! 

Goodbye Lodge House

Our lease for Lodge House ended in September but we managed to extend it for a month because we can't move into the new place until December earliest. So this past weekend James and I have been packing up the house and sorting what needs to go into storage, what we're taking to Scotland and what we're taking to his mum's house for November when we'll be at her house. I'm an extremely sentimental person and this house particularly has been filled with so many good memories over the past year especially since we were both in lockdown and spent much more time at home. James on the other hand is the least sentimental person and just wanted the packing to be over with and done as efficiently as possible because he was excited about the Scotland holiday. Why does he get to have no emotional attachment and I'm feeling nostalgic over the house for the last few weeks before we leave?? 

Ordered 15 boxes but when they arrived they turned out to be tiny! This was about 1/3 of our stuff.

The end result after 2 days of packing. Thankfully we got proffessional movers to help move the stuff into storage. Took about 2 hours on Monday and we were sorted. The last few things to be packed had to be put away in bin bags. 

I'm going to miss the routine of living in Lodge House especially the neighbourhood cats. There were 3 cats that lived around us and it was nice knowing that almost every time you walked out of the house you would meet a meow. This was what the lounge looked like once we had packed away all our things. Its funny how I felt really upset about leaving right up till the morning of. Once the movers had taken all our things away it didn't feel like our house anymore. 

Christmas tree corner where we had the tree up for about 2 months. The lounge was the coziest room of the house and where we hosted games nights and dinners. The window over-looking 'cat patrol' the ginger cat that lived opposite us who was always on patrol. He would constantly be meowing from that window. The morning we left he actually came out right as the car was pulling away to say goodbye. We hadn't seen him that week and right when we were about to leave he came out and let us pet him. Surely its a coincedence but cats always seem to know things don't they? 

Lodge House entrance in the Spring time. 

Cat Patrols house

The Christmas tree that is waiting for us in storage now

Forever grateful for all the memories here, and looking forward to better things in Wakefield! 

October baby

 I turned 26 yesterday!!! Feels surreal that I've passed the mid-twenties mark and I'm closer to 30 then I am to my teenage years although it truly doesn't feel like it. James said that in the time he's known me which is about 4.5 years, I've changed a lot. He said that I'm much calmer now and more mature and I hope that's true. 

Previously I've felt that there was alot of pressure on your birthday. Wondering whether old friends would remember, missing celebrating at home surrounded by family, personally assessing whether you've done enough that year and whether you're becoming better. This year was different. I feel perfectly content with the friends I have, with my relationship with my family and although personally there are still so many things to achieve its a work in progress and I'm not overly worried about the things that I can't change. In the past things have seemed to work themselves and I wasted so much time being unhappy over the uncertainty of things. 

I had a pretty great 26th! Spent the Saturday before my birthday with Cally having drinks at The Liquorist which had a very homey and chill ambience. I'm so glad that Cally is in Leeds and that we've gotten so much closer over the last year. We can spend hours just chatting and its so nice to be around someone who just gets you. Then we went to Cat cafe with James and even though the cats couldn't be bothered about us it was nice spending time with the cats. I've always been a cat person and I love that you can go to a cafe and just be surrounded by them. James and I had dinner at Dough House and had a 20 inch pizza which was one of the best pizza's I've ever had in my life. 

Dusty pink SASKI leggings and the besttt cake

BESTIE

This 20 inch pizza which we finished in one sitting

Dinner with my favourite person 

On my birthday itself James had to work so I had calls with Assikin and Maria and family throughout the day. Played Among Us at night with James' family. I got presents from Maria, facemasks and beauty things and cake delivered from Jenny and Peter which was really sweet of them and THE SASKI LEGGINGS from the family that I've been wanting for 3 years now. Cally came over on my actual birthday day to give me presents and one of them were the pyjamas that I've been wanting. James got me the most beautiful earrings that I've been wanting, thick gold hoops that aren't too big plus 3 other pairs too. I feel very blessed and lucky for the support system and people I have. Here's to 26!