Edinburgh > Liverpool > Bath 0 Miles (Drove 449 miles)

July 12, 2014

Edinburgh > Liverpool > Bath 0 Miles (Drove 449 miles)

Hello. Good evening. And goodnight. Two days post in one. Done and done. If only it were that simple.

As this is my first post, I am having trouble figuring out where to begin. Clayton has done such a great job writing these posts so I have large shoes to fill so bear with me.

I am in awe at the people we have met—specifically the people who have hosted us. Our days are long. We often meet these people right after I have reached my tipping point. I am exhausted and their smiling faces, open homes, soft beds and warm showers rejuvenate me to want to continue this crazy journey. Warm shower really has a whole new meaning. That is the time when I reflect on the day and think positively of things to come. Right now we are at Emma and Simon’s in Bath. We just left Andy and Olivia’s in Edinburgh. Fantastic people!

The last two days have been jam-packed. We scoured Edinburgh. Attempted to visit the Surgeon’s Hall Museum but to Clayton’s dismay and my secret joy—it was closed for renovation. (So glad to not see pickled limbs in jars from previous centuries of surgery.) Leisured on the Britannia, HMY the Queen’s retired yacht. (Her Majesty's Yacht. Retired in the Edinburgh harbor.) Swapped commuting vehicles by stuffing our tandem in a Compact B rental car. More to come on this. Gave an arm and a leg to the Dubh Prais—pronounced “doo prah", meaning the black pot—for haggis. (Yep, I tried haggis and even liked it.) Marked Scotland as a been there and done that (not quite. The Highlands are in our future). Snuck onto Hadrian’s wall and one of the Roman forts by moonlight. Slept next to our rental car in the Cumberland. Drove almost the entire length of Great Britain on the bicycle-forbidden blue motorways. Set foot on Penny Lane. Peaked into the gardens of Strawberry Fields. Navigated us in the wrong direction only twice. Only cried with frustration once. Raced through the Cotswolds. Arrived in Bath with three minutes to spare to return the rental car before they close for the weekend. And now currently staying with friends we made at the Tour de France just one week ago. Things happen quickly around here.

We changed our original route after Leeds to head up to Edinburgh with the caveat that we needed to get to Bath by July 12th so we could then catch our previously booked ferry to France on July 14th. Clayton did some quick research to find out the cheapest options. Online the cheapest option we found was renting a car so we went for it. Little did we realize the issue of gasoline in this country.

Gasoline is sold by the pence not the pound and by the liter not the gallon. Previously cycling passed fuel stations, gasoline seemed reasonable but actually costs about… $9/gallon. (Can you believe it?! $9/gallon!) Probably won’t be renting a car again if we can help it. As we signed our lives away at the rental car counter, Clayton and I smiled at each other as we both thought of George driving an Renault Trafic through Paris on a family trip a few years ago. Paris is a tough city to navigate and park regardless of having an 8-passenger van. Needless to say, our rental car looked a little better than the van did on return, but lucky enough no one ever noticed the few marks that were left behind from use on the van in Paris. Regardless, we got the extra coverage for a few pounds more. We are driving on the "wrong" side of the road after all. Who knows what could have happened.