Wednesday, January 4, 1989

'Yanks Shoot Down Gaddaffi Warplanes' ...

Arose to the sounds of Genesis' "The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway" at a little past 9 a.m. Got ourselves up and soon made the chilling discovery that no only was there no heat in the apartment, but there was no hot water as well. So no showers today!

We caught what was pretty much the furthest thing from a direct route into Manchester, finally arriving at about noon and began our search for the Manchester Evening News building. Today was the day we had scheduled a tour of the building with the editor and Dr. Morrison's friend, Mike Unger (pictured).

I bought a copy of the newspaper to get the address, and when we finally found the road it was located upon, we began the search. It wasn't too long before we found ourselves in front of the building, an hour before we were expected. So we walked around town for a bit, into a bookshop where I bought 2 more Bond books ("For Your Eyes Only" and "The Man with the Golden Gun"), then we walked around to the concert hall. While there we passed by a bank where we saw the police running in, but we never exactly found out why. Stopped into a model shop, and by then the time for our tour was drawing near, so we left and headed back to the Manchester Evening News.

When we arrived, we ended up having to wait about 15 minutes, but for a very good reason... because of a late breaking story that just hit moments before we arrived. The United States had just shot down two Libyan MiG fighter jets in the Mediterranean Sea. Needless to say, I was thrilled to have an opportunity to be there when the news hit and experience the process of pulling together a news story at a large metropolitan newspaper (it has a daily circulation of about 350,000.)

It was an amazing operation... they put out six editions every day! (Compare that to my college newspaper The Snapper, which cranks out one a week.) Got to visit the Features Department, Sports and News departments at work, saw the giant presses and watched them remove the old edition and replace it with the new one that featured a story on the late-breaking news of the melee in the Mediterranean.

Mike was very gracious to give us some of his time to show us the newsroom in action... especially considering our visit coincided with heightened activity. We also had some pretty interesting discussions about journalism. One thing we talked about was the Lockerbie air disaster. He made the decision to declare the plane crash a terrorist bombing before it had been officially declared as such. He said the evidence up to that point, particularly the way the plane crashed, made it clear to them that this was definitely a terrorist bombing. I questioned his decision suggesting that it was too soon to make that call when the possibility still existed that it was caused by some other malfunction on the plane. He said his gut told him that this could not have been anything other than a bombing. "What would you have done if it wasn't?" I asked.

"But we were right," was all he responded to this and my other questions, unflinching and smiling. I soon realized that it was the only answer I was going to get. He was so confident that his gut was correct that he never even entertained the possibility that he might have been wrong. And you know what? He was right.

Mike gave us a few souvenir copies of the newspaper, and satisfied with what we had learned, we were on our way to scour Manchester and see what else it had to offer.

We went into a library that had some very old books, but we were not permitted access to see much of anything, so we didn't stay very long.

Walked around town a bit more and went into an art gallery that had a wealth of pottery and silverware, as well as extensive paintings. We then ventured next door to a Falklands War exhibition, which was also very interesting, and educational. I knew a little bit about the war beforehand, but this gave me a deeper perspective on it.

When we left we headed to a little chippy shop where we got a very good meal for under £2 each. Wondering what to do next, J.P. and I decided to take in the cinema, and went to a theatre where they were showing the movie "Willow." It was the second time I'd seen it, but definitely a fun and entertaining movie. Val Kilmer is one of my favorite actors right now.

Following the film, J.P.'s foot started hurting and we decided to make our way to the bus station, though we got a bit misguided along the way, prolonging J.P.'s agony. We finally managed to make it to the station, and after a bit of a wait and my own excursion for some chips n gravy and a cola, we caught the bus back to Ashton. We walked back to the flat, talked a bit, then went to bed around midnight.

Tuesday, January 3, 1989

An Unrivaled View of the Lake District ...

Woke up for an 8.30 a.m. breakfast (a good, hearty English one!), paid our £10 bill to the kind folks at the Lynwood Bed and Breakfast, then J.P. and I were off. Money is getting scarce, and a cashpoint machine was nowhere to be found in the Lake District, which could prove troublesome.

So after buying a deck of "Lake District" playing cards as a souvenir and scurrying around town, J.P. was able to get £10 out of a Barclay's cashpoint machine... although it cost him a ridiculous £1.50 to do so. Then we were finally off for some sightseeing.

We first followed a footpath that, according to the sign at the start, promised us an "unrivaled view of the Lake District." Well if it's unrivaled, then it's the view we want.

Indeed, it did provide us with quite a picturesque image of the Lake District. There was a light fog that misted through the valley and provided us with an interesting atmosphere to enhance our "unrivaled view." (For awhile, J.P. and I used "unrivaled" to describe nearly everything we encountered.) Good pictures here.

We continued to explore for awhile, looking at sheep and pretty landscapes (waterfalls, sheep, trees, more sheep). (Photo left is of sheep doing sheep things.)

We also had a most interesting encounter with a mule, and when we strayed from the trail for a minute, I caught a glimpse of what I thought was a deer. Turns out it was actually 3 deer. Unfortunately, they ran off before I could snap a photo of them. It still made my day.

We walked back to Windermere where we grabbed some pub grub, then made an unsuccessful attempt to visit Grasmere, where William Wordsworth lived and where my class trip visited the previous year. When that didn't work out, we walked around some more, saw more sheep, then found something labeled a "Public Trail."

But was it? All we found was mud, horse manure (or some kind of manure, anyway), and a fence enclosing a private farm. So we snuck out with manure on our shoes and snapped a picture of the "trail of no return."

At this point, it was time for us to depart and prepare for the next leg of our journey. So we headed to the train station, unloaded our luggage from the locker, and caught the train to Oxenholme, satisfied with our journey to the Lake District. Our next stop, Manchester, where we were planning to stay with Liz Ortega.

But our plan hit a snag when I called Liz from the Oxenholme train station. It seems she was having a bit of a row with her parents, and she didn't think that we'd be able to stay at her place. That could definitely pose a problem for us.

Well we caught the next train to Preston, where we sat in the "cattle car" once again, and then from Preston caught our last train that took us to Manchester. Once we got to the station, I called Liz again, and she had some good news for us. She said we were allowed to stay in her brother's apartment, since he was in Holland at the moment. Good break!

So we hopped onto a very crowded bus and made our way to Ashton-Under-Tyne, where Liz met us at the bus station, after which we all went to McDonald's for some dinner. Then we caught another bus that took us to her brother's flat, then unloaded our gear when we arrived. Since the heat had been shut off, the flat was rather chilly inside.

The three of us sat inside and talked for a bit, during which time we opened up one of our bottles of wine. When Liz left, J.P. and I played some cards... "Blackjack," of course (not the "21" variety most commonly attributed to this name; the British version.) It's a game we played a lot back at The Grange Halls.

We played for awhile in a bit of a giggly mood (partially because of the cold room, partially because of the wine), and midway through we decided to mix it up a bit and play some Gin Rummy instead of Blackjack. However, after the cards were dealt, we both apparently forgot and just started playing Blackjack again. We both had a good laugh when we realized what we had done.

Finally went to sleep around midnight.

Monday, January 2, 1989

On to the Lake District ...

It's another day of traveling today... this time from St. Andrews to the famed Lake District of western England. After gathering our gear and saying our farewells to the Pruntys for their generosity, Mr. Prunty drove J.P. and me to the train station, where we caught the train.

It was crowded, but we still managed to waggle ourselves two seats, which were free but were reserved for other passengers once we arrived at Edinburgh. Well, when we gave up those seats, we were fortunate enough to find two seats that were only reserved from Carlisle.

But once we arrived in Carlisle, our luck ran out. The train by now was completely packed, and at this point we had no choice but to stand in the "cattle car" for the bulk of our trip.

During our trip south through Scotland we passed by the Lockerbie train station, site of the Pan Am Flight 103 crash 12 days ago. We didn't pass by the crash site (picture #2 is of the Lockerbie crash site from the newspaper), but that's just as well.

Well it was a relief when we were finally able to depart that train and climb aboard the train that would take us to Oxenholme, and from there we caught another train to Windermere, the small town right in the heart of the Lake District, perhaps best known as the home of famed British poet William Wordsworth. (Picture #3 is me acting like a nerd at the sign welcoming us to Windermere. Yes, I said "acting." Shut up.)

J.P. and I first found ourselves a Bed & Breakfast room, then walked around Windermere for a bit. We found a trail to hike, which was very scenic and followed a stream (photo #4, below).

We soon happened upon the tiny hamlet of Bowness and began our search for a place to eat. Our search failed miserably, so we returned to Windermere, where we met with no more success. After resting in our room for about an hour, we returned to Bowness at about 6 p.m., and this time we found an open restaurant, Gibby's, where we could dine. Whew! We were starting to think that all of the restaurants were closed for the season.

We had a 15-minute wait, but that was nothing considering how long it took us just to find a place that was open. And it was worth the wait. J.P. had haddock while I opted for the turkey dinner. I paid for it with my Access card.

After eating, J.P. and I walked back to the room, watched "Desperately Seeking Susan" on TV, followed by a Woodie Guthrie special, and then went to sleep. We plan on checking out more of the scenery here tomorrow.

Sunday, January 1, 1989

Hogmanay Through the Night ...

1... 2... 3... Well, we then did the traditional Scottish thing and visited other people throughout the brisk New Year's night. You are supposed to take a lump of coal to the guest's house for good luck (maybe all the ones you got on Christmas for being naughty), but we forgot. Actually, Kenny forgot... we didn't know until he told us along the way.

Our first stop was at Kenny's friend Mike's house, but he wasn't in. Which makes sense, because if you are supposed to go out visiting people on New Year's Day, it stands to reason that a lot of people will be out and about. Nevertheless, Mike's parents were home, so we had drinks with them until some other kids came to the house.

One funny moment while at Mike's. J.P and I were sitting talking to each other when a man in a suit walked right between us and stopped, as if we weren't there. I looked on both sides of the man, pushing his coat in my face as I moved. When he left, J.P. and I were in hysterics. I guess it falls under the "had-to-be-there" category.

Another good moment came when Mike's Dad was asked if I wanted another beer. I said that I was fine, that even though I had finished my first beer, I had nicked another that was on the table because the statute of limitations ran out on it, so I grabbed it. The adults there fell into hysterics, called me a true Scotsman and then asked again if I wanted another beer. This time, I said, "Sure!"

Before long, all of the kids were kicked out of the house, and we were left roaming the dark streets of St. Andrews looking for a party to crash. By this point, we had quite a gathering... probably one of the reasons we couldn't find a party... everyone was with us.

Soon, J.P. and I noticed that we were leading the pack. Yes, a bunch of Scottish locals were following two Americans around... the only two people here who had absolutely no idea where they were going or what they were doing. Curious to see how many people were just blindly following the two Americans, we turned into a driveway where the lights were out, got to the end of it and turned around to see how many would follow us in. Most of the pack followed us and took a few seconds to realized what had happened. We giggled profusely.

Well, we continued to wander, getting nowhere. It was a very clear, starry night, and we got a nice view of the Milky Way in the sky.) However, soon it became clear that everyone wanted to congregate at Kenny's house. Everyone, that is, except Kenny. The mob was insistent, but Kenny didn't like that idea. So when the rest of the gang wasn't looking, Kenny, J.P. and I broke loose and high-tailed it through back alleys, ducking the group and making it back to Kenny's.

When we arrived we kicked back with a few beers and watched "Blazing Saddles" on TV, finally getting to bed at about 4 a.m. It looks like the start of a good new year.

Kenny's 2: The Next Day

Woke up at about 1 p.m. and lazily made my way downstairs to eat some breakfast (breakfast?) Afterward, we went on a car ride around the area, which included a stop at an injured oil platform (not the Piper Alpha, which was destroyed in an explosion that killed 167 men last July, the world's worst offshore oil disaster... the other one.)

It was a good trip, even though I was pretty quiet throughout (still recovering from the previous night), but it was enjoyable and relaxing to see the sites this way.

When we came back, we went over to the College, where J.P. found a baby grand and played some piano. Then we borrowed two guitars and took them back to Kenny's house, where J.P. and I played for awhile.

Ate some dinner, then toyed around with Kenny's keyboard, creating our own brand of "Acid" music (it's really quite easy with the right equipment.) Then we watched "Amadeus." I had never seen it before, and it was an excellent movie, although a rather long one. When it was over, I watched a bit of "Billion Dollar Brain," but got bored with it. So I went upstairs to read for awhile, then fell asleep around 1 a.m.

(Pictures: #1 is a structure at the University that is basically located in Kenny's garden. #2 is a view of the old stone bridge on the famed 17th green of St. Andrews' Old Course, where the British Open is held about every 4-6 years.)

***

• Number One Song in Britain This Week: "Mistletoe & Wine" - Cliff Richard (again??!!! This turned out to be the biggest selling single in Britain in 1988. I'm not sure I even recall ever hearing it.)
  
• Number One Song in America This Week: "Every Rose Has Its Thorn" - Poison (When Poison finally hit over in Britain, I told several people I'm from the same area as Poison lead singer Bret Michaels... who I would actually meet in December 1991 at the Gingerbread Man in Mechanicsburg)
  

Saturday, December 31, 1988

Hogmanay in Scotland (and the bringing of the haggis) ...

I arose bright and early for some breakfast with J.P., Kenny and his family, and then we went outside to take a walking tour of St. Andrews. We walked through the ruins of St. Andrews Cathedral and St. Rules Tower (picture #1), along the cliffs of the coast, past the ruins of St. Andrews Castle along the coastline (We didn't feel like paying to get in, though. Guess we've reached a saturation point for ruined castles.) (picture #2)

Then we took a stroll along one of the 4 1/2 golf courses for which St. Andrew's is most famous. It happened to be the renowned Old Course, the oldest course in the world, where the British Open is played every 4-6 years. We took a look at the 17th green, which is notoriously impossible. I learned that Tom Watson once shot 10 over par on that hole alone.

Afterward we started to make our way back to Kenny's house (located right on the St. Andrews University campus), and during the walk we stopped at a second-hand book store, where I found 2 more James Bond paperbacks that I needed.

We sat around Kenny's house for awhile, until the haggis was brought out. Now I had never had haggis before, but I was well aware of what it was... a mixed bag of meats, oatmeal, spices and onions, cooked and served in a sheep's bladder. I had a taste, but decided after that to pass... not because it was cooked in a sheep's bladder, but because of the onions. J.P. loved it, though (or he was just very, very hungry). I had some delicious sausage instead.

Well it was no accident that J.P. and I happened to be spending New Year's in Scotland. We thought that would be the perfect place to ring in the new year, and with Kenny as our guide, we figured we'd get as close to an authentic Scottish hogmanay celebration as possible.

Things started off quietly as we headed down to Ma Bell's, a very nice local pub not too far from Kenny's home. We enjoyed a few drinks with some of Kenny's friends here. Had some brilliant moments here that we won't soon forget, but more is still to come. Kenny (pictured, but who was definitely NOT drinking soda that evening!) decided it was time to head somewhere else, so we attempted to get into the Rugby Club. Unfortunately, we were unsuccessful.

So we headed back to Kenny's house and watched some TV with his parents for awhile. Well so far I wasn't seeing too much in the way of anything out of the ordinary when it comes to a Scottish New Year's celebration, but Kenny assured us that the true celebration doesn't commence until after midnight.

I guess we'll soon see as it's 3... 2... 1... Happy New Year, 1989!!!

Friday, December 30, 1988

Loch Ness Expedition ...

J.P and I got our wake-up call at 7.45 a.m. and were downstairs by 8 for our breakfast. It was a delicious collection of bacon, sausage and egg (salmonella-free ... which is fortunate considering the recent outbreak here in Britain), breads, tea and cereal. We left the table feeling full and satisfied, well-aware that we had received more than our money's worth at Mrs. MacTaggart's bed and breakfast.

We each took a bath, and then packed our bags and bid our farewell to Mrs. MacTaggart at a little past 10 a.m. We walked around Inverness for a little bit before catching the bus that took us down the road to Urquhart Castle on Loch Ness. (All three pictures are of Urquhart Castle, #2 including me and J.P. on the hill overlooking the castle. The photo on the banner for this blog was also taken at Urquhart Castle.)

The weather was overcast, but surprisingly warm, dry, and wind-free. We arrived at the castle at noon, and then spend an hour and a half exploring it. It was actually the ruins of an old stone castle, which made it all the more interesting, and nestled in lush green landscape and set right along the famed Loch Ness. Very picturesque... easily the most gorgeous place I have visited here in Britain.

We climbed around every place we were permitted, snapping a number of photos and thinking about all of the people who would be jealous of where we were at the moment. No, sorry, no signs of the legendary Loch Ness Monster.

After seeing all that we could, we caught a 1.30 p.m. bus back to downtown Inverness, and then ate a late lunch at a place called Charlie's Diner. J.P. also purchased a pipe, and seems to be enjoying that as much as the lighter he purchased a little while back. He's becoming a regular sophisticate.

We then casually made our way over to Inverness Castle, which as it turns out, is nothing more than a municipal building, but a scant 150 years old! Still rather nice for a government building, and it was on the site of a former castle. We walked around town for a bit longer, then headed to the train station, where we sat for awhile, writing postcards until we could catch the train to Glasgow (though we were only taking it as far as Perth.) I finished writing my cards on the train, and did some other writing as well, and then did a bit of reading.

Then the trip ventured into the bizarre.

We arrived at the town of Perth, where we were to change trains to Dundee, and then St. Andrews, where we were planning on spending a few days with our friend Kenny Prunty. But we soon found out we had an hour and 15 minute wait here. So while we were waiting in the very quiet train station, we decided to check out the adjoining coffee shop. However, we couldn't get any food because there wasn't a cook, just a red-haired guy who was more interested in playing the pound machines than serving his customer's interests. J.P. ordered a gin and tonic, while I had a coffee in a dirty mug.

While we were here we took note of a vagrant that we named "Froggy" (because of a voice resembling the "Little Rascals" character), and his gang. They provided us with some very interesting entertainment, a little show with our beverages, you could say. When J.P. ventured out into town to find some food (a failed mission), Froggy put on another fabulous show, although I couldn't understand most of it.

At one point, he came up to me and asked what book I was reading, and I showed him my James Bond paperback. He looked at the title, laughed, and then grabbed my head for a second in satisfaction, then left. We finally left the Twilight Zone for Dundee, where we had another hour long wait for the next train we needed to catch. This time we went into town and we had a more successful food sortie.

We finally got to the train station in Leukers, where we then took a taxi to St. Andrews. Finally got to Kenny's house, told him of our evening's misadventures on the train, then watched some TV, read a bit, then finally went to bed.

Thursday, December 29, 1988

On to Inverness ...

Woke up early and took a bath in preparation for our biggest "adventure" yet. J.P. and I gave the Grantham family a gift of appreciation (chocolate ginger) for letting two American college students invade their lovely home for two nights, then headed for Kingsknowe. There we caught the 10.55 a.m. train to Edinburgh, and there we caught the 11.35 train bound for Inverness (picture #1), the furthest north I've ever been.

It was a beautiful journey through the Scottish highlands. When we arrived in the town of Inverness a little past 4 p.m., J.P. and I made our way through town. We stowed our gear in a locker at the train station, and then began our search for a reasonably priced bed and breakfast. We came across a tourist center, where we were able to make a reservation at a place just 10 minutes walk away.

So we gathered our gear, crossed the Suspended Walking Bridge (picture #2) across the Swift River Ness, and eventually arrived at the home of Mrs. E. Mactaggart (picture #3 is her business card). It was a comfortable place, and we got a room with coffee, tea and biscuits in the morning for only £8.50 each.

We unloaded and rested, then went into town for some dinner. We found a Pizzaland restaurant, where we had a ham and pepperoni pizza (forgetting that here, "pepperoni" is actually "peppers"), which was good. We then walked around town a bit, but there wasn't much to see because it had long since been dark in town. The one thing we could see was the castle in town (picture #4, on the hill in the background), which was beautifully lit.

With nothing much to do, we returned to our room in the bed and breakfast and sat talking and reading for awhile, drinking a bottle of wine that J.P. had purchased. At 9 p.m. we went downstairs to watch TV. We opted to watch "Gremlins" over "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" because J.P. had never seen it. During the movie we started playing a partial game of Monopoly, but stopped midway through because J.P. just wanted to watch the movie. So we did until 11.45, when we went back up to the room. I read a chapter, then went to sleep.