UK and Europe 4 month sojourn!

[Scash]

Some more shots of Annecy.

 

[Scash]

We then headed back to Paris for the Rugby World Cup bronze final. In the morning we visited the grave of Jim Morrison from the Doors and also did a Catacombs tour.



And a quick dinner before the game. A shared plate of garlic butter snails followed by steak and frites.

 

[Scash]

And of course a visit to a wine bar!

 

[ellen10]

We stayed in Beaune, in 2017 when the tour de France was in the area. Loved the Burgundy wines!
We also loved Annecy, we had beautiful weather and did a cycle ride around the lake. Unfortunately for you the weather wasn't as good, but still a pretty town. We also loved the fresh food market.
France is my happy place!

Really enjoying your report and photos.

 

[Scash]

Thank you for the Lot 61 coffee recommendation @MARTINE. I am on the back end of what I suspect was Covid and my taste buds are a bit shot, but I really enjoyed the coffee. It was strong and smooth and just how I like it. I normally have an espresso or macchiato but found that so many I have had throughout Europe and UK are quite bitter. I also had the banana bread which was really nice. Will be heading back there again in the morning.

 

[Scash]

What a difference a roughly 4 hour flight south from Edinburgh makes.

 

[Scash]

We arrived in Malta about 8:00 pm yesterday so just had a bite to eat, a nightcap and then crashed. Today we did a walking tour around Valletta for some history and sights. Malta is quite a geographically strategic island and has been the object of many invasions and wars going back centuries. It was one of the most intensely bombed areas during WW2. It really is a gorgeous place and it’s a shame we only have three nights here .

 

[Scash]

Dinner…tequila sunrise and octopus salad!

 

[MARTINE]

Great pics @Scash - its such a compact magic place to visit. Enjoy your coffee!

 

[Scash]

So back in Edinburgh for our last night . Had a lunch booking at the Little Chartroom but started with a glass of champagne from the local gin distillery Lind & Lime. Both the gin and champagne are worth a try.

Champagne...yes it is champagne that they make in collaboration with a champagne winery.



Food was awesome.



The bread is worth the price of admission just on its own.



A twist on a negroni to start.



Starter of Mackeral. A little too fishy for me but OK. Side dish was awesome.



Main of Partridge etc was so good.



Wine of course



Plus desert

 

[Scash]

Well our trip is nearing its end and the journey home begins. We departed Edinburgh by train and headed to Bedford to visit with a friend for two nights before heading to LHR to fly home. All was going smoothly until we approached the first stop in Newcastle. The train stopped short of the station with the train manager announcing they were just waiting for a platform. After about 15 minutes or so we proceeded to the platform only to be advised that there was a major signaling failure and our train was cancelled.

It was complete mayhem as people scrambled for other trains only to have them cancelled. After about 4 hours we gave up and booked a room for the night in Newcastle and rebooked the train for the following day!

The upside was we found a great coughtail bar doing happy hour

 

[Scash]

We made our war to the station the next morning to find everything back on schedule. We arrived at our friends place who then took us on a tour to Cambridge. We wandered around the streets then did a punt tour on the river.

 

[Scash]

Followed by a beer at the Eagle.



And a coughtail and dinner at Parkers Tavern.




The Corpus Clock AKA the Grasshopper Clock in Cambridge.

 

[VPS]

Followed by a beer at the Eagle.

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And a coughtail and dinner at Parkers Tavern.

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The Corpus Clock AKA the Grasshopper Clock in Cambridge.

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Isn’t the Eagle pub amazing

 

[Scash]

Isn’t the Eagle pub amazing

Yes it really is. So much history and so glad we went there!

 

[Flyfrequently]

Raclette at O’Savoyard on the recommendation of a friend who spent a lot of time in this area in his younger days skiing and as an instructor.

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Racette is just the best @Scash !!

 

[Scash]

The holiday is now over and we are sitting in the CX F lounge at LHR awaiting our chariot. It is a wet and cold day but as I’ve discovered typical of UK weather! We are fortunate to be in CX F for the first leg to HKG and then J to BNE, but scored 1A and 2A in the F cabin as the plane was changed to the 4 class 777 even though they aren’t selling F tickets.

 

[VPS]

Safe travels - back home to reality soon

 

[Flyfrequently]

An epic TR @Scash , thanks for taking us along.
Enjoy F and happy travels home
Have a "Cloud Nine" for me please!

 

[StayGoldPonyboy]

Truly a trip of a lifetime. Thank you for posting so much information, I know I will refer back to this thread when I am planning upcoming holidays.