Blogs from Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire, Scotland, United Kingdom, Europe

Graeme gave us a lift to Aberdeen Airport. Our flight to the US is not until Saturday 5th May, but because it leaves London at 09:30, we have decided to travel the day before and we are staying at the Sheraton Skyline. We check -in and then go out to find somwhere to eat. We found a local pub called "The Pheasant". The food is really good with enormous potions. Once we have finished lounge we feel absolutelt stuffed, so much so that we go back to the hotel and rest for the rest of the day!! We were going to go to the hotel bar in the evening - but we do not make it and have an early night as we have an early start in the morning... read more

The town of Fettercairn, located not far from the rugged shores of the North Sea on Scotland’s east coast, is one of my many hometowns. The distinct, musty smell of coal mixes with the sweet smell of roasting barley from the town’s whisky distillery and musky, ever moist ground. Daffodils bloom in phases in the spring. Brilliantly yellow flowers first make their appearance while there is still a light dusting of snow on the ground. By the time the snow melts, the next blooms raise their sunny heads in dramatic contrast to the first ones that have faded into light beige. The third phase of daffodils bloom against the vibrant greens of the Scotland countryside. In autumn, the green rolling hills are covered again by flowers. Sprigs of purple heather coat the ground and bloom until ... read more

Less than two weeks to go! I decided it is about time I get myself organised. I had a successful trip into town today to get myself geared up. Think I have just about everything I need now. Exciting times. ... read more

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Only one month till I leave. So excited! Not quite sure what to expect. I am volunteering through projects abroad in Peru for 4 months. I think it will be an experience I will never forget. ... read more

The weather in Scotland was always going to be a talking point and today was no different. There is some nasty weather coming from a hurricane that started off the coast of USA and is due on Monday with warm temperatures, very high winds and rain. Hopefully this bad weather is short lived. We needed some breakfast so we made a quick visit to the nearby Tesco for some milk to go with our cereal, as well as food for lunch. With persistent drizzle it was an easy decision to have an in-car breakfast in the supermarket carpark. Once breakfast was over we headed for the Grampian Mountains and Cairngorms National Park. It is in this area The Queen has her holiday home, Balmoral Castle, and on this trip we are ever hopeful. Perhaps we’ll get ... read more

Here we go! i'm packing now and after that i'll call the cab to take me to the airport... then 9 days in Ireland! I've got a whole bunch of stuff I want to see, including Strongbow's Tomb The Book of Kells King John's Castle The Ring of Kerry Skellig Michael The Cliffs of Moher the village of Doolin, and... The Giant's Causeway! I've got 9 days to see all of these things, so i'm hoping to not have any transportation failures along the way :P It should be a hectic week or so, but when it's my first time to a new place, i kind of like to run around and see as much as possible lol. Hopefully I'll be able to update this blog once every day or every other day, and when i ... read more

The title is a Scottish phrase which means 'what's meant to happen to you, will happen'. Okay I had to look it up but I found it really fitting for this particular trip. Let's see where to start... Well, on February 18th i woke up super super early to catch a bus to the airport but then realized my ridiculous alarm let me down and decided to stop working. The irony is, I woke up to on the dot that I was supposed to be boarding that bus...super! So back on the England trip I missed the bus for other reasons and had no choice but to take a cab -which cost me 200 bucks!- to the airport because it was either that or miss my plane entirely. I am all about learning from my mistakes, ... read more

It’s not about what you do…it’s about how you do it. Traveling is a great experience, it opens your eyes (whether you like it or not) to the truth. Some of you might know that for me this truth was not that positive. After bailing out on my first backpacking trip and creating a growing frustration during exchange in Scotland (simply not enough satisfaction in what I was doing), I was lost. Until… …one day I found myself in the most unlikely of places (anyone who knows me would agree): A book store. Somehow I ended up at the religion section and started reading through some literature by the Dalai Lama. One book appealed to me most: The Art of Happiness, A Handbook For Living. It is a book of eastern philosophy made accessible to a ... read more