Long Weekend in England & Scotland

In early November, I (David) took a four-day-weekend jaunt across the pond to visit my friend Thomas who lives in England. The trip was a bit of a whirlwind with half a day in Manchester, 1.5 days in Edinburgh and another half day in London at the end. I'm generally not a fan of crossing oceans for less than a week's vacation - but this was a special situation - the flight was free (skymiles sale) and I was more focused on visiting with a friend than really accomplishing any sightseeing....so overall I would do something like this again if the opportunity presented itself.

First stop - Manchester! We arrived in the early afternoon, checked into our hotel and wandered around the city center. The Christmas Market had just begun that weekend so there were lots of people meandering around. I really wish we did these in America! There are tons of food vendors with chocolate, booze, and typical Christmas foods. There are also a lot of different Christmas decorations and events to enjoy.

Manchester itself seems like an interesting city. It really grew up in the late 1800s so there are lots of buildings from that time period - not unlike Chicago or Pittsburgh - but with a small older core that you can't see in America. That evening we grabbed dinner and visited a bunch of bars in the gay district. There's one main drag that hosted more than a dozen bars that people seemed to move between. We spent a good while talking with a group of English 20-somethings that were camp counselors in West Virginia. Pretty random. All-in-all a fun Saturday evening/afternoon.

The Christmas Market in Manchester. The weather is typically British.

Inside joke store name... ;) It burns!

Old pub in central Manchester.

Manchester Cathedral...not too impressive on the outside.

Lots of cool late 19th century buildings.

Probably the best meal of my trip...fried gnocchi! I took the opportunity to eat lots of mushrooms since Paul wasn't around.

A bar in Manchester. English bars tend to have a cool cozy interior theme.

The next morning we got up and set out to catch our train to Edinburgh. Unfortunately, our train was cancelled! In all my travels I think this is probably the first time that's ever happened. Luckily, there was another train heading to Edinburgh from Manchester's other train station (about 1 mile away) in a couple hours. We made our way to the that station, stopping for a late breakfast along the way at an Italian cafe nestled in a department store.

The train ride to Edinburgh passed through some lovely English and Scottish countryside. The route passed just east of the esteemed Lake Country - with it's hills and pastures. Not a bad way to spend a couple hours. Since the previous train was cancelled, this train started very full. There weren't enough seats for everyone and a group of middle-aged "Spice Girls" didn't have a seat for about the first hour. They parked themselves on their luggage near the doors and were about the most stereotypical drunk British women you could imagine - heavy northern English accents, short skirts, spilled Prosecco, and lot of profanity. It was like watching a live episode of the Kardashians. Delightful!

We arrived in Edinburgh later than expected, so by the time we reached our hotel (the historic Waldorf Astoria which Thomas was very excited to visit) it was already nearly dark (which happens at this time of year and at this latitude at around 4:15 PM). It was Sunday evening, drizzly, and cold so we wandered around the city center for a bit and found dinner at nice cozy pub/restaurant before turning in for the evening.

Bucolic England near the Lake Country.

Meals in Edinburgh mostly consisted of large pieces of meat (chicken here).

The central Edinburgh train station built in a bit of a gully in the city center.

Lots of cute Scottish streets.

The next morning we wandered around some of the same areas, but this time with more lighting, and visited the free National Museum of Scotland - a hulking confusing mass of buildings regaling visitors with all the highs and lows of Scottish life since prehistoric times. The rooftop terrace provides excellent views over the city center, obscured only by the persistent freezing rain.

Edinburgh Castle from afar.

Victorian stuff abounds.

Breakfast of champions (oatmeal)!

More cute Georgian style streets.

Interesting alleyways galore.

Cathedral in Edinburgh near the castle.

A splash of color is always appreciated in gloomy climes.

Edinburgh from atop the National Museum of Scotland.

This just looked very British to me.

Whiskey!

The local coca-cola replacement. Tasted like Inca-Cola in Peru too (bubble gum).

Fall in Edinburgh.

Edinburgh is a really delightful city. The streets are quaint and full of charm. There are tons of pubs and restaurants and the mass scale of the Georgian architecture makes this city fairly unique. The people here were also very friendly and helpful. I'd recommend a visit in the summer though, when you have less of a chance of it being rainy and freezing cold.

The next morning we set out early again for our train trip back to London. This trip, since it wasn't cut into two, was a very long 4.5 hours on a train. There were some interesting sights along the way though - old English towns, the North Sea and more countryside. When we returned to London, we made our way back to Thomas's flat where we hung out for a bit before going to dinner and calling it a night.

Last meal in London - seafood risotto.

Peace out UK - I'm sure we'll meet again...just maybe not in winter.

Oxfordian Meadows

After a fun introduction to Oxford, I spent the last two days of my short trip exploring more of the museums and neighborhoods of the city.

On Friday, Peter had to work (in London), so Janice and I set off for some breakfast and museum hopping. We went to a proper hipster cafe, Handlebar, for some avocado toast. Next we walked to one of the main attractions of Oxford, the Ashmolean museum. It's an impressive museum, with objects stolen gathered from all over the world. There were particularly great exhibits of Egyptian and Roman artifacts. Great place to spend a few hours learning about all of the places the British empire once controlled.

A neat building along the river. Janice and Peter actually looked at an apartment in here.

Tons of impressive architecture all around town.

Handlebar, the bike-themed cafe.

Yum!

Yes, they have a whole temple.

Mummy with all of the coffins.

Some replica statues showing how they originally would have looked.

A Faiyum portrait! I love these.

The cascading stairways of the modern interior of the Ashmolean.

They even had a small exhibit about Cairo.

We made our way to our next two stops - the Natural History Museum and the adjacent Pitt Rivers Museum. Along the way we passed through the cute lamb and flag passage and by a few more impressive University buildings. Both of the museums were equally as impressive as the Ashmolean. Together, it's a trifecta of world-class exhibits. The Natural History Museum has stunning architecture and a combination of old traditional exhibits with updated modern exhibits. The Pitt Rivers is a fascinating collection of objects organized by function. If you have just a day in Oxford, these should be your three stops.

Now that's a nice logo.

Lamb and flag passage.

The outside of the Natural History Museum is great...

...but the inside is even more impressive.

A modern photography exhibit hanging over the Pitt Rivers museum.

Rows of objects in the Pitt Rivers.

After a few hours in both museums, we took a walk around Oxford University park and made our way to a place called Gee's for lunch. It was a lovely restaurant in an old greenhouse, with a nice set menu. We enjoyed some wine as well. :)

Great buildings left and right...

A bit cloudy, but the park was nice.

Some trees were flowering, making it a lovely early spring day.

Janice at Gee's.

Lunch was delicious.

Our next stop was Christchurch, one of the most famous parts of Oxford University. Like the other colleges, you have to pay to enter and can only visit certain areas. Christchurch was particularly popular, with many more tourists than the other parts of the University we visited. It does have impressive architecture and is worth the visit. We then walked through Christchurch Meadow, down Merton street, and popped in for a quick pint at the Bear Pub.

Carfax tower.

Christchurch.

Really cool tree/vine growing up the building.

Impressive ceiling details.

Yet another Harry Potter-esque dining room.

Postcard Christchurch view.

Inside the church.

A plaque in the meadow.

Quiet streets and pleasant walks.

Unicorn!

Nice place for a cheeky pint.

As evening approached, we walked around a bit more, passing by Oxford castle before walking along the Oxford canal to a neighborhood called Jericho. It's a scenic walk - I recommend it, and the Jericho neighborhood is worth a visit to escape the touristy center. Janice and I had another pint and a snack at a restaurant called the Rickety Press. It's a great place to hang out, and was one of my favorite pubs of the trip. Peter joined us for dinner at the Old Bookbinder, where we had messy hamburgers and enjoyed some wine. Finally we walked home via Bulwarks lane and one more pint at the Royal Blenheim pub.

The hill that was the site of the original castle.

Oxford Castle.

A nice restaurant along the canal.

Evening canal walk.

Great place to grab a beer in Jericho.

Dinner time!

Walking home through an atmospheric alley (Bulwarks lane).

The Royal Blenheim, Janice and Peter's favorite pub in Oxford.

Since Friday was a Janice day, my final full day in Oxford was a Peter day! Janice had a pre-booked full day wine tasting, so Peter and I went off on a walking tour of some of the more southern neighborhoods of the city. We walked through an area called Isis, passing the Iffley lock and through an upscale residential neighborhood, ending up at the Jolly Postboys for lunch. I loved this place - it's a bit out of the way from the main part of Oxford, but we had an awesome lunch and by far the best beer I had in Oxford (a New England style IPA).

Found them!

The Isis restaurant.

A bridge over the canal.

We saw a boat go through the locks. There was a nice biking/walking trail, popular on a Saturday.

We walked through a fancy neighborhood.

Yay, good beer!

Gotta have fish and chips.

After lunch, we went through Florence park, a very popular local park with busy playgrounds and tennis courts. We made a quick stop at Brewdog, before going back to the Royal Blenheim pub ("a proper old man's pub") to meet Janice and her friends, and heading back to Janice and Peter's for the night.

A big row of trees in Florence Park.

Octopig mural?

Lots of beer options at Brewdog.

We stopped in a Korean grocery store and they had Pokemon drinks.

The sun came out! People went in boats! Everyone rejoiced!

See, it is sunny sometimes in Oxford.

Too soon?

My time in Oxford came to a close, and the next morning I took the bus to Heathrow. Oxford is a great place to visit, with world-class museums, impressive architecture, and a compact downtown that is great for exploring on foot. Every place seems obsessed with telling us some part of Harry Potter was filmed there, but hey, I guess they know where their tourist bread is buttered. Now, when do I get to visit Peter and Janice again? :)