Congratulations to your daughter... and her parents! :-)
I'm sure Piers and others will chime in with all sorts of suggestions
but my wife and I along with another couple (of Scottish descent) toured
some of Scotland in early July. We went first to London where we stayed
with the son of our friends who is on assignment there.
To tour Scotland we took the Virgin train from London to Glasgow.
Due to fortunate timimg we got a good price break and took first class
which was excellent. The first class lounge while waiting for the train
was especially welcome since it was very hot that day and the lounge was
air conditioned. It was also serving wine, strawberries and cream and
other delightful snacks. On board we were served wine, whisky and an
excellent meal with seconds.
In Glasgow as well as Edinburgh we stayed at the "Hot-el Apartments"
<http://www.hot-el-apartments.com/> which we greatly enjoyed. Good
price, good accommodations... 2 bedrooms, 2 baths, kitchen and
living/eating areas. In Glasgow the apartments are only a short walk
from the train station. In Edingburgh they are on the waterfront, a
beautiful spot.
On arrival in Glasgow we rented a car from Hertz which is within walking
distance of the apartments. We kept the car in the apartment's garage.
We toured Glasgow and the River Clyde on foot and then used the car to
tour the country side generally toward the north. Places of note: Loch
Lomond, Inveraray/Loch Fyne (where I took my "fynest" photo), Oben and
its waterfront and distillery :-)
After several days of that we took the car from Glasgow to our other
apartment in Edinburgh. We spent several days touring Edinburgh by car,
bus and foot. Places we especially enjoyed other than the city itself
are the Royal Botanical Gardens (plan at least a full day) and a tour of
the ship Britannia. By car we toured to the north again seeing the
Falkirk Wheel (a must for mechanical engineers) Stirling Castle,
Dunfermline (the abbey, nave and palace) and St. Andrews. Once again
the Hot-el Apartments proved to be a good base. Aside from the
beautiful water front and modern building they have plenty of parking
for the car, good bus service a short walk away and grocery and other
shops a short ride by bus or car.
We returned to London via train from the Edingburgh station. The driver
dropped the rest of us and our luggage at the station while he returned
the car to Hertz which is not very far from the station. But plan a cab
ride for that one if you're in a hurry. The train ride back was not on
Virgin Trains and was not first class since first class on that line was
very expensive. Nevertheless we had a comfortable ride and a decent
meal. IIRC, the train ride between London and Glasgow or Edinburgh is
about 6 hours. Maybe the train would be better if you have a lot of
photo gear.
I had hoped to meet up with Piers in Scotland but our schedules didn't
match up. But he did come to visit me in London and we had a good time
in the British Museum and a busy pub. :-)
Once again, congratulations to your daughter.
Chuck Norcutt
On 1/12/2012 6:46 AM, Michael Wong wrote:
> My daughter has confirmed to admit Queen's College in Taunton, Somerset in
> next school year. We are planning to visit Scotland before my daughter
> reports to school. Preliminary idea is 26 Aug (HKT) night flght to Heathrow
> and will arrive on 27 Aug morning (GMT). I appreciate to transfer to
> Scotland at Heathrow on same day. Where is the airport in Scotland?
> Edinburgh? I wish to visit Scottish Highlands, Edinburgh and take some
> shots of lake scenes. An then to York before go to Somerset. I have to
> arrive Somerset on 1 Sept& my daughter will report to school on 2 Sept.
>
> Any suggestion to me?
>
> Thanks. ^^
>
>
>
> ---
> Michael
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