Scotland

So... where was I.... there was the awful trip from Dublin to London to Edinburgh. The highlight of which was buying my Irish shamrock bracelet on the ferry and having drinks bought for me by a bunch of Irish coppers on their way to a car rally in Wales. The journey - all night and all the next day - was awful and insane but the kind of tri that I won't forget and that does seem appropriate somehow to have in my travelling memoirs. Also, by comparison, it made the flights back to Auckland seem much more reasonable! I picked a hostel for Edinburgh out of the Lonely Planet and the place was okay. Very close and central, a little pricey and it's only real failing was it's bathrooms. By the time I hit Edinburgh, spent ages wandering around looking for a supermarket etc... and called home I was ready to crash and get some much needed sleep. Bright and early the next morning I was trundling along with my suitcase to the bright, cheery yellow offices of Haggis. I do urge anyone that's planning on doing a tour through Scotland to go with Haggis. They're a bit pricey in that you have to pay for accom. & food etc... yourselves (they're really just providing the guide and coach) but they are utterly fantastic and everyone that I've spoken to has loved them. You also end up getting a really good overview of the history of Scotland over the week that you're with them.