Trip to Scotland

We went to Scotland from July 4 through the 12th and had a wonderful time. They say not to go to Scotland for the weather, and "they" are right. Despite some rain, the temperatures were agreeable and we managed to see this beautiful country up close and personal. The scenery on the very first day gave us a hint regarding how it was going to be.

We stayed in Oban on the west coast for the first few days, and sorteed out to the islands and up to Loch Ness. Even though we sailed out onto the water, we still didn't spot Nessie but the trip was worth it. There is a system of locks, which connect lochs together so that the inland lochs can be connected to the ocean. That way water transportation can be used far inland.

The views from high above Oban were very picturesque, our hotel was a building constructed in the 1700s, and our room was in the turret tower to the left. The town of Tobermory was colorful and quaint, and like most of the towns, it had its distillary. I sampled a few single malt scotches, and learned that there are over 150 different brands in Scotland.

Castles, castles everywhere. We stayed in Stirling next, where there is an extraordinary castle, including a beheading stone. People were being beheaded while we were there so we only saw it from a distance. The 4 most notable castles to me were Sterling, Duart, the Stalker island castle and Edinburgh. We'll get to Edinburgh later. The Duart Castle is where Sean Connery and Catherine Zeta Jones filmed part of "Entrapment."

Edinburgh is a big city, with the biggest of castles, and a summer residence for the royal family. The weather was pretty miserable that day, so the outside pictures aren't great. I did get an interesting picture of the prisoner of war facilities, used in the 1700s to house U.S. sailors from the Revolutionary War. And we did get to eat at the Hard Rock Cafe -- same ol', same ol'.

And then there was St. Andrews. We crashed a 2010 British Open practice round by going through a gate accidentally left open! More interesting than the golfers was the course and the clubhouse, and then we left to see the old St. Andrews church and graveyard. Can you imagine a church with 31 altars? Anyway, it was a glorious end to the trip.

There is more, but you'll have to put up with a slide show to see our William Wallace and Robert the Bruce stuff, along with the other monuments and memorials. The flights were long, but the trip was fantastic. Now we have to decide where to go next year.

Love,

John & Barbara

Memorial Day Tour

Good Morning!

On Memorial Day Weekend, Barbara and I went to a few of the sites here in the northwest upper mesa in New Mexico. First we went to Sky City, which is an Acoma Indian village on top of a tabletop mountain, originally built in the 1100s, and rebuilt after being destroyed by the Conquistadors in the 1300s. It has a dominant Catholic mission building, which is more of a tourist site now than an operating church. The people in the graveyard in the front of the church are buried in layers, so over the years 4 layers of parishoners have been buried. No pictures were allowed of the graveyard or inside the church. Some people live there year-around with no electricity, plumbing, or fresh water. Others just have their "summer homes" there. The pictures are of views from the city, some strange construction, and an adjacent mesa, much like Sky City with no town atop it. The only way up there until 1993 was a pathway and stairs cut into the rocks.

Next we went to the Bandelara Volcano and Ice Caves. The Volcano erupted about 10,000 years ago, and spread much of the lava which is around the Grants area. There are 15 volcanos which erupted in the general area of Grants. My pictures of the Ice Caves came out badly because of the lighting, but I have one from the rim of the volcano.

Last, we went to El Morro. It is another dominant mesa, which has a box canyon in the middle of it (awesome), Anazasi ruins, which originally had over 700 structures on top of the mesa, and the famous Inscription Wall, where travelers back to the 1300s have carved their names and dates into the rock. There is serious concern that the weather and wind will eventually erode these inscriptions, and they will be lost. I took several pictures, but only posted one of the more clear representations. There were some that were indeed better, but less dramatic.

So we had a great time, and hope to visit more of the state before we go -- less than 2 years left!

John & Barbara

Hawaii Pictures

Christmas in Hawaii

Hello all,
We are home, and it sucks. We had a great time in Hawaii, not doing anything, or planning anything, or having to be anywhere at any given time. The only thing we had to be on time for was Christmas Mass, and the time was mis-labeled on the event schedule. So we were a little early, along with most of the people, and had to wait 45 minutes for it to start. But who cares? We had nowhere to go, people were singing carols, everyone was happy, the sides of the church were open to the air, and life was good.

We pretty much got up, took a walk through the neighborhoods to check things out, went to Buckys, then sat by the pool or on the beach. There was a huge hot tub where everyone had a story to share, and we would go back and forth from there to the pool. After lunch it was more of the same until 3pm, when the restaurant next to the pool opened and it was MaiTai time. We walked to shopping centers where we shopped and re-shopped. I would go to the counter to pay for something while Barbara re-shopped, then the whole process would start over again.

I got to golf at Navy-Marine Golf Club. It is rated as one of the top 10 military courses in the world, and it was outstanding. The cab ride cost $40 and the round cost $20 -- Is there something wrong with this picture? I was supposed to golf with Charlie McKeldin at the Marine Base the next day, but things didn't work out, and the cab across the island would have been $200. NOT. Back to the beach.

We did miss everyone terribly at Christmas, so I don't think we will be going back at that time of year unless we drag you all with us. The New Year's show and fireworks was unbelievable. I don't think I have seen "pireworks" as beautiful as they were -- ever. We watched them from our 10th floor room that overlooked Waikiki, and the festivities went on until 2am.

The worst part about the trip was the trip. Don't take the Southwest partner, ATA, to Hawaii. Trust me on that one. We returned on the red-eye, and sleep was impossible. It has taken 2 days to recover. So we hope to see you soon, and will let you know when we can do that. It's blowing like crazy and cold as can be in Crownpoint, so enjoy some pictures of some much better weather.

Love,
John & Barbara