Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo 2012, Opening Parade.

Best of Britain Tour, Part II

The previous "Best of Britain" post gave an overview of the luxury coach tour, and I'd like to continue with some highlights from the C.I.E. Best of Britain tour. 

Having arrived at Heathrow Airport midday, C.I.E.'s driver picked us up and loaded our luggage into the shiny black car that took us to our hotel, the Hart and Garter, right across the street from Windsor Castle. Portage was included throughout the trip, so we didn't have to haul our suitcases up a couple of flights of carpeted stairs to our room. We met our tour guide, David, who gave us vouchers to head across the street and visit the castle before dinner. We changed out of our traveling gear and headed out to explore. After dinner with the tour group, we had time for more exploring before nightfall.  We found Windsor to be easily walkable on a warm summer evening.

The next morning, our squeaky clean and comfortable coach awaited after a yummy British breakfast which included the ubiquitous beans and broiled tomato that we would see every morning throughout our trip, no matter the city, along with eggs, juice, pastries and sausage. Our first stop was Cambridge, then on to York. Since my grandmother's surname was York, I asked a young clerk in a shop in the Shambles if there were any residents of York with that name. She looked a bit surprised at the question and her answer was 'no.' Slightly disappointed, I went off to Betty's and bought a handmade Cru Sauvage Dark Chocolate bar and a couple of tins of shortbread biscuits to bring home as gifts. The tins were decorated to commemorate the Queen's diamond jubilee. Full disclosure: I ate the chocolate bar and it was delish!

Onward north on the following day. Next stop: Alnwick (pronounced "Ann-ick") Castle and Gardens. Although it was one of the sites used in the filming of broom-flying lessons of Harry Potter, I was more intriqued with the Poison Garden. Surrounded by a substantial locked gate with large skull-and-crossbone signs reading, "These plants can kill," the Poison Garden can only be toured in small groups with a docent in attendance. Our guarding-guide pointed out the medicinal or evil uses of many different plants  and some gruesome stories to illustrate her point. Horror stories aside, the plants and flowers were beautiful. The grounds also featured a bamboo maze, a sod house for the poison chemist, a rose garden, a trellis garden, a allee' of shade plants, and a mammoth central waterfall-fountain with dancing water. With a wonderful gift shop, cafe, and castle to explore, we also took time to have lunch in a local pub down the lane outside the castle gate.    

In Edinburgh, (pronounced "Edd-in-burr-uh") we picked up a local guide to assist David with the hundreds of years of historical references. We had two days in Edinburgh, so plenty of time to explore on our own and with the guides. Our hotel was situated only 1/2 block off the Royal Mile and the Edinburgh Festival Fringe was in full swing.

A tour dinner was included the first night at a Scottish pub featuring kilted pipers, singers, and dancers. It was a little touristy, but when you're only in the city for a short time, it is still a fun and easy way to see some of the local traditions on display. After dinner and before dessert, the haggis was piped in and addressed with a traditional Robbie Burns poem, "Ode to a Haggis." Served with 'neeps & tatties (a turnips-and-potato mash), the haggis was quite peppery, but I managed to clean my plate.

On the second day, we spent a lovely time at Edinburgh Castle (you must have tea in Mary, Queen of Scots' tea room - order the scrumptious toffee caramel biscuit!) and shopped along the Royal Mile. We found a kilt weaving establishment and toured the massive looms. Afterward, we were dressed in the plaid textiles, handed an assortment of props from bagpipes to swords, and had our portrait made.

One of my long time goals was to see the monument to Greyfriar's Bobby on Candlemakers Row, which was just a short walk from our lodging. We found the monuments to the famous and adorable little dog, and a pub of the same name with excellent shepherd's pie, fish and chips, and beer. Alas, we could not find the geocache hidden in Greyfriar's kirkyard.  Excitement was building, though, because the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo was coming right up.

We walked up the Royal Mile onto the castle esplanade with our special reserve tickets in hand. The evening was definitely a highlight of the "Best of Britain" tour. Although a summer rain threatened, the skies cleared enough for a thrilling night of music, dance, light shows, drumming, piping, pageantry and fireworks. Highland dancers told the story of whisky, whilst the Scottish massed bands passed through medieval Scotland, its agricultural age and mechanical era with music, fire, and dance. Among the many different performances were local children dressed in period costume acting to music written for the Disney-Pixar movie, Brave. From great kilts to modern uniforms, several countries were represented by their marching or performance bands in a variety of musical styles. Our hands-down favorite was Switzerland's Top Secret Drum Corps, whose precision drumming lit their drums in a technical light show of unbelievable thrills. Throughout the night, scenes were projected on the side of the castle to illustrate the theme of each particular performance, and at the end of the evening, the lone piper appeared on the castle ramparts to close the tattoo. It was such a wonderful evening, we pre-ordered the DVD that would be available at the end of the two-week run of the Tattoo.

Tattoo? The story from 1594 goes that it is a derivation of the curfew statement "doe den tap toe" which Dutch for "turn off the tap."  In the Thirty Years War, Scottish, English, German and Swiss mercenary soldiers were commanded by the Dutch States Army. Drummers would be sent out of the garrison into the towns to inform soldiers it was time to return to barracks at 9:30 each evening. Drummers would continue to play until 10:00 p.m. "Tattoo" was earlier called tap-too, with the same meaning as the Dutch "tap toe."

Our last stop in Scotland was Gretna Green where young couples have eloped to be married over the blacksmith's anvil since 1754. There was actually a wedding in progress when we stopped in, and the young lady who sold us our kilt portrait back in Edinburgh told me she was also married there. On site is a cafe, clean restrooms, a souvenir shop serving sample shots of various whiskies, and lots of sheep in the surrounding pastures. All that and a wee bit of history in the old blacksmith's stone shop that serves as a wedding chapel. 

Wedding Planning

Because brides and grooms love to travel on their honeymoons, and many couples prefer to plan destination weddings, there are lots of reasons they should be consulting a good travel consultant/agent. Our purpose is to suggest the best itinerary to match the couple's preferred getaway style, take care of the details for transportation (including flights, cruises, airport transfers, etc.), hotel or resort accommodations, special excursions or entertainment packages, and make sure that they receive the most value for their planned budget. We take the stress out of planning the travel related to guests coming from afar, a wedding at sea or on shore, and/or that very romantic honeymoon.

In the same way a good wedding planner reduces the stress of planning the big day, from designing save-the-date cards to addressing thank you cards and everything in between your Suite Romance Travel travel agent will work side by side to ensure that everything comes together beautifully for that wonderful romantic event of a lifetime. If booking a cruise wedding, many of the last minute details are handled on board by cruise line personnel. Your travel agent makes sure they have taken into account all of your personal wishes for your special day.

The Best of Britain Tour - Part I

If you are like many Americans, you have ancestors who came from England, Scotland, or Wales, and their history is our history. Having just come back from the Best of Britain tour from C.I.E. International, I can say that walking around on that ancient land is a thrill for those of us who are history buffs or genealogists. From the streets of London to the Salisbury Plain where Stonehenge stands, from the Shambles in York to Edinburgh Castle, there so many places to see, do, participate in and absorb on this excellent guided coach tour. The C.I.E. coaches are brand new with the most comfortable seating and giant windows that are cleaned before each new day's destination.  Seating was rotated each day so that everyone would get a chance to sit up front, but there was enough room on our 52-passenger bus that all 25 of us could claim the seats we wanted. 

Rest stops are remarkable in that they feature photo ops, good food, and excellent restroom facilities. Our guides were highly educated professionals who are also personable and responsible for our comfort and welfare. David stayed with us for the entire tour, and had a very good grasp of British history, including the Roman and Viking times, as well as geographic and botanic features of the land. Specialist guides Sheila and Sylvia came on board for extra details on Edinburgh and Beatles/Liverpool. At most venues, our group was able to bypass regular queues for entrance to castles and other attractions. Our tour came with an extra day in London with vouchers for the hop-on/hop-off bus, Tower of London (where you'll see the Crown Jewels for the whole of Britain's history) and a boat cruise on the River Thames. For those interested in more current events, there are tours of the Beatles' Cavern Club in Liverpool and Abbey Road in London, as well as the annual Festival Fringe (in August) with street performers, theaters featuring plays and musicals to rival Broadway (we took in an awesome performance of Wicked), the Proms at the Royal Albert Hall, and much much more. Our hotel in London was located in Kensington, just a block from High Street, a tube station, 3-story Whole Foods store and Hyde Park. We could walk to Notting Hill where an annual festival was taking place, or to the Princess Diana Memorial Park. We also walked to Royal Albert Hall, found a geocache there, and walked on to the Globe Theater where the Bard's plays were in progress. Our Hotel in Windsor, the Hart and Garter,

was one narrow lane across from Windsor Castle which we toured on our first afternoon in England. After dinner, we walked past Eton College to a meadow and found another geocache at dusk, and said a few words to the Queen's swans paddling on the Thames. After a morning in Oxford, where some of our group toured Christchurch (where some of Harry Potter's Hogwarts scenes were filmed) after a visit to the University at Oxford, we went on to York. What an adorable little village with a massive York Minster! Swinegate is the street where the olde pork butchers worked and you can find bas relief pigs of all sorts hidden in the clay bricks of the buildings on the narrow streets. The Shambles, composed of Tudor-style half-timber buildings that hang over the narrow lanes are these days full of quaint shops selling hats, candies, jewels, and such.

Edinburgh Military Tattoo

I found this picture of last year's Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo on Pinterest. I have since experienced the Tattoo myself and it was magnificent! This year was the 62nd anniversary for the Miltary Tattoo, which is an international bagpipe and drum corps competition, and received the "royal" designation in 2010. Held on the esplanade of the Edinburg castle, we saw fantastic light shows projected onto the castle walls and lots of pageantry, music of many genre, and fireworks, followed by the lone piper at the close of the evening. One simply cannot travel to Scotland and ignore the iconic sound of the pipes. Of course, some haggis and at least a wee dram of whisky is in order, as well!

Great Britain's Great Summer

This year is a banner year for Great Britain tourism, and we want you to be a part of it. Queen Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee will be June 2-5, and Prince William's 30th birthday is June 21. The Summer Olympics are taking place between July 27 and August 8, the Edinburgh Military Tattoo will take place between August 3-25, International Beatles Week is happening at The Cavern in Liverpool which is celebrating 50 years of the Beatles between August 22-29. We are currently booking 8- and 9-day tours called The Best of Britain, which include London, Windsor, Oxford, York, Edinburgh, Tintern Abbey, Roman Baths, Stonehenge, several castles, Gretna Green, the Lakes District and Liverpool (along with the Beatles experience). We'll also visit Alnwich Castle(for Harry Potter fans), several gardens, museums, and much more. Starting at $1,968 land only, this great price includes local guides, luxury coach transportation, superior hotels, most meals and more amenities. Call now before this awesome tour is sold out!
  

Disney's Aulani Resort, Ko 'Olina, Oahu, Hawai'i

Here's a first-hand account of the Aulani resort....Calvin and I were delighted to be able to check it out in December. An Aulani vacation starts with the words, "Welcome home" and includes a lei greeting with a cold drink and personal escort from the port cochere to the reception desk along with a tour of the historically- and architecturally-rich lobby. We found it to be Disney magical, squeeky clean, Ohana-friendly, and, of course, tropical. No roller coasters and flying elephants here. The only Disney characters are Mickey, Minnie, Goofy and Stitch who only show up at breakfast and special events like the twice-weekly Starlit Hui. Instead of the typical Disneyana, you will find a beautiful Hawaiian-mythology themed resort with gorgeous architecture, infinity edge spas, pools, waterfalls, a double waterslide that starts from the inside of a Disney Imagineers-designed 'volcano' and a lazy river for floating the day away. There is a safe lagoon for keiki (kids) to snorkel in and a pool where they can feed the rays. All that, before you even get to the beautiful beach on the semi-private lagoon where you can snorkel with wild sea turtles (when they feel like showing up - we found them in the next lagoon over) and paddle-board.

For entertainment, the daily "Ewa" paper lists all the activities for kids and adults, including Hawaiian crafts, dance lessons, star gazing, art tours and the Menehune Adventure Tour. Menehune are mythical (or actual but extinct) little people who populate the resort. We heard there were about 350 of them hiding in the foliage, elevators, under bridges, etc. just waiting to be discovered. The little tricksters can dump water on unsuspecting swimmers, and sometimes you might hear them giggle but you won't be able to see them.   The Menehune Adventure Tour is billed for kids, but we recommend that adults go to Auntie's Beach House and request to play even if you aren't accompanying any keiki. You will be loaned a special iPhone to call Auntie for clues and watch videos as she sends you on 'errands' around the resort. Many of the resorts fun secrets are revealed only by Auntie when you accomplish the task. She sometimes allows you to activate a secret control on the iPhone to create your own Menehune-like trick.

The food is excellent. When we made reservations, we were asked about food allergies. Because my food allergies were noted on our resort hotel reservation, the info showed up on our restaurant reservations. The chef at the Makahiki buffet came out to our table, greeted me, and gave me a tour of the entire buffet to point out the ingredients used in all of the menu items. He told me exactly what was safe to eat, and which items I might be allergic to. This level of service from the Disney Cast Members is what makes any Disney resort special. At 'Ama 'Ama, we had an open-air table right by the 'window' to the sunset. Again, the food and service was excellent, outdone only by the awesome view (you can see the view and our food selections below).