And I'm...

Staying.

After a lot of thought and a lot of advice seeking and prayer, I've decided to stay the course and wait it out here in the big islands. I was ready to transfer funds from my bank here to my bank at home to pay for my tickets home and back and almost did two nights ago but couldn't because it wasn't within the time restraints. I didn't sleep. I awoke after maybe an hour of sleep and headed off to open the hotel. Opening the hotel isn't fun simply for the fact that I have to be awake at 6 in the morning, however once I'm up it's like any other time I'm up early in the morning, I'm happy. I opened the hotel and had some strong coffee and cheese and needed to get a newspaper for a customer from the tuck shop. As I was walking to get the paper I realized that my entire life that I can really remember has been spent under the thumb of employment. I've never not had a job. I came here to relax and haven't been able to at all because I know that I will just end up back at work. So I decided I needed at least one week on a beach by myself; no job, no places to go, no pre-plans, no phone, no contact with home... Just me, maybe a couple books, and the sand. What would it be like to wake up in the morning, walk to get breakfast under a bright sun, lay under it until lunch, go eat, walk around the down for awhile and find something to do that night with no strings attached. It would be at least relaxing and peaceful one would hope. That's what I hope to gain from my week on a beach. However, before that week, I had two other weeks to deal with before I could work on my tan.

Then I remembered special tours run by a group called Radical Travel . They have set tours throughout Scotland and Ireland where you can pick from a single day trip to up to eight days on a guided tour through the Highlands or throughout the entire loop that is the coast of Ireland. I had watched a video about them during my orientation when I first got into London back in October. It seemed fun and so I looked them up. Here's what I found and here's what I'll be doing for two weeks in April before meeting up with my ol' friend Jon.

After a day in Dublin and a day in Belfast, I'll start, on April 7th, a tour through Ireland called The Shamrocker Irish Adventures 5-day Celtic Rocker

After ending up in Dublin after the Irish adventures, I'll fly to Glasgow for a day looking up old family histories and do a day in Edinburgh climbing Arthur's Seat before leaving on the 14th for The Haggis Adventures 5-day Compass Buster

Here's an idea of what that trip could be like: (This is the aforementioned video I saw in orientation)


I have that and the flights to get me to these tours all booked and paid for so you can be sure I'm not going to change my mind. What I'm not clear on is where I'll spend my beach week, although Gibraltar is leading the pack for the cheapest flight and the coolest features; wouldn't YOU like to walk around a town where monkeys are as free to do what they please as you are?

So there you have it my friends, my mind is made up. I hope you all enjoy the little video and I'll be keeping you posted whenever possible with the latest adventure. I've got a few days off now, so it looks like Cambridge and Cheltenham could be in the works this week. I miss you all, but I'll be home sooner than you think. Thank you for the prayers and advice. Cheers!

Oh, and in case you're wondering, heck yeah I'm trying the haggis!!