Exploration

In my last post, I spoke about my trip to Germany during EURO 2024, and how great it was. Well, we were only in Germany for a few days, so we decided to adventure to a country we hadn’t been to before. So we spent a few days in Vienna in Austria. We had a 5 hour FlixBus from Munich to Vienna, which was a trek. I have never really been on a bus for a long while a few times. I did once get a night bus from London to Edinburgh, which was horrendous. And then a bus the length of Ireland, because someone (me) flew into the wrong airport. The bus did what I needed it to, I was able to get to where I needed to and it was cheap, and fairly comfortable.

Luckily our hotel was right on the bus route for the Big Bus open top tour, so we were able to do proper tourist stuff. For once, as when you are on a football trip, you sometimes don’t get the chance to do a lot of tourist things. I have only ever done one bus tour, and it was in Edinburgh back when I was at school. It was pretty cool going round the city and learning lots of different things. Like, that Pavarotti would run out of the city opera house to get a sausage from the food stand across the road. Okay, that probably didn’t happen, but it was a fun little anecdote that made me laugh. We were able to jump on and off the bus, and get to explore different areas. Like, I never knew that Vienna had so many public parks.

It was such a fun few days. A good thing was that for an additional €10, we got to go to the city’s amusement park and right on this really old ferris wheel. It was a 20 minute ride and you could see an amazing view of the city. Such a cool thing to experience.

I really enjoyed Vienna, it was such a nice city. I learnt so many things that I didn’t know, like the amount of social housing in the city, the fact that Vienna was split into 4 after World War 2. Things that were so interesting, that I had no idea about. There were also so many different museums, that we never got anywhere near, due to lack of time. I would love to go back, and see other things. Hopefully

Take A Break

Recently I have enjoyed some time off work. It wasn’t the usual, staying at home and pottering about. For once, I actually went away for some sunshine, away to Cyprus (with stops in Amsterdam and Paris). I hadn’t been abroad since 2019, before the pandemic, and it felt great to get away. I had never been to Amsterdam or Paris before, so it was nice to see somewhere different

Amsterdam was a flying visit, and was really hot. The transport into the city centre, from the airport, was very easy, and the city seems very walkable. You just need to be mindful for the bikes, as they are everywhere, and they don’t always follow the traffic lights. There are designated lanes for bikes, to keep them separate from cars and pedestrians. We took a trip on a canal cruise which offered wine and cheese along with the canal cruise. When I travel with my friend, we never really do tourist stuff, so it was a nice different experience.

It was a lovely way to see the city, and was so relaxing. I would recommend it to anyone who needs to see the city, as it was a lot of fun, and super relaxing. And I think it was the only way for someone, as clumsy as me, to see the city without being run over by a bike.

The main point of the holiday was for the Scotland football game in Cyprus. For me and and my friend, it is has been our annual holiday, our chance to experience another country. We were based in Paphos, which is a lovely part of the country. Spent a lot of time chilling out, and reading, which to me is a great holiday. And also spent a lot of time singing Scotland songs at the pub. Which is normal for a tartan army trip.

@suewantsariot

Scotland are in Cyprus. In Paphos, outside the wonderful flairspaphos. #bagpipes #scotland #footballawaydays #cyprus #tartanarmy #TAontour #holiday #paphos

♬ original sound – Sue

The stop on the way home was Paris. The plan was to spend a few hours in the city, and do some tourist things, like we had done in Amsterdam. But, alas, this did not happen to our expectations, mostly due to a run of bad luck with public transport, which concluded with arriving at the airport 30 minutes before gate closure. It was a nightmare. But all ended okay. We did spend a few hours in Paris. Saw the Louvre and Notre-Dame, and had a (late) breakfast at a wee cafe, which gave us free pastries. (Note: I will never say no to free food.) It was a lovely city, and I would really like to go back and explore more.

By the time we landed back in Edinburgh, it was pouring down with rain. And, with how hot it had been on our holiday, I, for one, was very happy to see it. I came home, got a take-away, and relaxed with a movie. But, to be honest, as much as I love going away on holiday, nothing beats getting back in your own bed. That night was the best sleep I had experienced in weeks. The only problem now, is that I feel like I need another holiday already.

Challenge: 5 Photos

Bit bored tonight, so thought I would get a wee bit creative. Well, creative in that I am posting a photo post on a Saturday. Yeah, I’m lazy. So I am going through try and post 5 of my favourite photos from my phone.

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I have so many photos on my phone, I kind of picked more nature and landscape pictures. I love photos, they capture a moment. I think it can be easy to snap away and not look at photos. The days of selecting pictures for a photo album are gone, so no harm in looking back.

Picture Time

 I have been super lazy over Christmas, as usually I go for a long walk around the local area. This year, I have sat at home, watched too much TV and ate my weight in chocolate. In a bid to try and give myself some energy, I thought I’d go for a walk in Dunfermline, and took some pictures. My legs were tired afterwards, but it was a nice day for a walk, and the Park in town was super busy. I like seeing that other people are out and about too. 

 

Town Clock, Dunfermline
  

 

Andrew Carnegie Statue, Pittencrieff Park, Dunfermline
   

  

Plaque on Andrew Carnegie Statue
  
 
Wee saying at the playpark in Pittencrieff Park, Dunfermline. Much of the playpark was burnt down many years ago, so the words are apt.

 
House of Pittencrieff, Pittencrieff Park, Dunfermline

 
Plaque on the House of Pittencrieff
  
 
Dunfermline Abbey, as viewed from Pittencrieff Park, Dunfermline

 
Looking at a very full river, that runs through Pittencrieff Park
  
 
The full river again, with a small bandstand overlooking it
 
 
There are a lot of bridges in Pittencrieff Park, as the different footpaths criss-cross one another.

   
 
The map of Pittencrieff Park, so you dont get lost
 

Picture Post.

I missed yesterday, and feel bad for it. So, to break up the monotony of wordy posts, have some random pictures from my phone. I take a lot of photos, and I like to share. I like the colder part of the year, as everything seems to change. 

   
    
 

Out & About Again (BEDA)

Today I was down the the public park in the town I live. Used to love going down their for a picnic when I was a kid. There is some ‘gates’ which looked like old prison cells, or that’s what we believed when at school. 

   

          

It’s great looking around where you live. I love taking a camera with me. It helps me realise that there are some nice things about living where I do.  

Out and About (BEDA)

Today was a lovely day, so I thought I’d head out for a walk. Heading along the Fife Coastal path and got a little snap happy. Featured is an old shooting point from World War 2 and the new Queensferry Crossing being build across the Forth Estuary. I love the sea air, and have grown up around this area. When you see the gorgeous scenery, I can’t understand how people can say they hate living in Fife.  

               

Out & About

Today I ventured outside with my new camera. The Canon PowerShot SX510 is a digital bridge camera, something that I wanted since I did a photography course at college many years ago. I like taking pictures, although I am not the best at it. But that is the good thing about hobbies, you do not have to be particularly good to do it, you just have to do something that you enjoy.

Anyways, I was to meet a friend today, and because I was in town early, I went for a walk down the main park in Dunfermline, Pittencrieff Park (also known as The Glen). It was a gift by Andrew Carnegie to the people of Dunfermline, the town of his birth, after he made his fortune in America in the steel industry. He also donated a library. gymnasium and concert hall to Dunfermline, and also various projects through the USA, particularly New York’s famous Carnegie Hall. Carnegie believed that one third of life should be spent learning as much as they can, the next third spent making as much money as he could. The last third of one’s life should then be spent giving earnings to worthwhile causes to better society. The Glen is one of my favourite places in my hometown, so I thought it was the perfect first trip out with my new camera.

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And then I ventured up to the Abbey, a building dating from the early 1200s. A beautiful place.

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The one thing that struck me as strange, was the number of squirrels about. I am sure that the squirrels used to hibernate, but the mild winter and constant food from visitors mean that they haven’t done so in years. Visitors are encouraged to bring nuts and seeds to the park to feed the birds over the winter, and the squirrels feed off them. And because they get food of people, they have no fear and can come right close to you.

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Aight!!

Going to go out today to take some photos.

I am working a couple of hours extra today, and would like to do something with my day, other than just work. So, heading to bank as I need to find out information to get my PayPal account verified. So I’ll get that done today, and then I have a few clients that can pay me via PayPal, seeing as they don’t want to deal bank-to-bank.

The headaches of doing things for people and them not wanting to pay. It’s like people expect me do give them free things, just out of the kindness of my heart. I mean, I can give things away to an extent, but not to the organising 40 flashbook pages for a business that is already doing well. Considering all the images had to be cleaned up, some re-sketched, and categorised, it was a lot of work to expected as a freebie. I did say a tattoo would be adequate payment, but they didn’t like that idea. -.-

So, I’m using it as an excuse to head up into town, take some pictures, and buy nothing. Because I am still broke. :S Still, it’s better than sitting around here all day. Doing nothing. Well till 3pm, considering that’s when I start work. I may continue to do nothing at work, but, sssshhhhhh, don’t tell anyone.

As you can tell, I am in a random mood today, possibly made possible, because I can say that I should be seeing GC at the flipside of this weekend. If you don’t know that GC is Good Charlotte, and are my absolute favourite band in the world, then :P. It has to be said that Good Charlotte fans (the GCfam) are awesome and are some of my best friends. I have had a lot of ‘inner problems’ in the last few weeks, mostly over-stress, and they are the best support ever.