Abu Dhabi - Amazing Food, Expatriates & Staying Fresh in the U.A.E.

Lebanese Mill (Garlic cream
on the top right)

          Just recently I crossed the seven month threshold of living in Abu Dhabi.  I find it interesting to look back on my previous entries and how I have evolved over time.  Experience, increased comfort and extended knowledge has given me new clarity when it comes to what I see when I look at the exact same city I saw six months ago.  The new normal: a phrase I like to use when talking about adjusting to life's many curve-balls dealt to each individual over the course of their lives.  Abu Dhabi is definitely becoming my "new normal" but I have not fully given in to accepting this new city as my home.  I first noticed this when I was returning with Sarah back from our holiday in Scotland.  We spent two weeks touring around Scotland and when we returned to Abu Dhabi after it all, it seems strange to us that we were back.  It was almost like we should have been returning somewhere else after our holiday was over.  That feeling did not last very long before I settled back in again, but I found it to be an interesting status indicator of where I am at in my adjustment here in Abu Dhabi and the U.A.E.  Basically that this city is slowly becoming my home, but it may be some time before it really sinks in.  

           The U.A.E. is unique in the fact that there really is no other place on the planet at the moment where people from all over the world are consistently migrating over for work opportunities.  The U.S. has been referred to as a cultural melting pot and there are certainly many pockets of diverse culture, but there is a different type of flavor here in the U.A.E.  In my opinion the U.S. almost absorbs other cultures to create an "American" culture.  However in the U.A.E. I get the sense of authentic cultural experiences wherever I go.  Because many expats are here on semi short term stays, it seems that cultural heritage, habit and practice are retained in more concentration.  And it is for this reason that anyone coming to work here receives a front row seat to the majority of the worlds cultures.  It is a remarkably rewarding experience to have this type of cultural exposure on a regular basis.  Any challenges that are associated with these scenarios are worth it a thousand times over compared to the value these experience add to your life.  When you think about where you live and where your home is, you are in your own little world with its own intricacies that make it home to you.  Now if you assume everyone around the world has home just like that, there are an infinite number of little universes out there to explore and learn about.  For me personally to be able to go into another persons world and be able to learn and grow in that place is such a gift.  I think if everyone took the opportunity to explore and learn about someone with a background and history different from their own, the world would be a much more tolerant and peaceful place.  I find it is much harder for people to judge something or someone if you have made a personal connection to what you are looking at.      

Shawarma Time (the real people
who serve me!)

            In the interest of keeping the diversity theme I will mention a collection of restaurants that I have frequented during the last seven months here.  On my very first day in Abu Dhabi, my first lunch was at a place my work buddy Clay brought Sarah and I to called the Lebanese Mill.  This was the place I had mentioned in one of my earlier blogs where I kept getting lamb instead of the shish taouk that I kept trying to order when Clay had brought me there.  The shish tauok is my favorite meal there which basically consists of fries (chips), chicken, pickles and garlic cream.  The garlic cream is the kicker of the meal, I have never experienced this before Abu Dhabi, suffice it to say I am still very much addicted to the substance.  If you have not tried garlic cream, please look up the recipe and make some up, if you like garlic, you will not be disappointed.  Although even hours after consumption, Sarah can tell that it was a "garlic cream" day, so be wary of its affects on others after you dine.    

Hanoi (Sun Tower)

          Another restaurant I am visiting more often recently is Shawarma Time, this joint serves chicken or beef shawarma (sometimes turkey).  Shawarma is basically a choice of meat placed on a spit and then roasted for as long as a day, then it is shaved off in small pieces and put into a sandwich or dish.  My favorite is the chicken saj shawarma with you guessed it, garlic sauce and pickles.  
          Pinoy Big Brother is a Filipino restaurant where I was introduced to a meal called Sigsig (see crackling video example above) which is basically all of these peppers with chicken or beef, and a raw egg placed on a steaming hot skillet which is brought out to you as the egg is cooking.  I have yet to identify the oil that is used to cook everything but it tastes amazing (which probably means its bad for you).  You can order this at three varying levels of spiciness.     

Arabic Coffee

          A restaurant Sarah and I frequent in our building is called Hanoi which is a Vietnamese cuisine.  We consistently order a dish called the chicken bun ga, which is basically this compilation of rice noodles, greens (including mint) and chicken with brown sauce and peppers to add on the side.  We usually eat this meal about once a week and now we are greeted by the hosts at Hanoi with the immediate response "same thing?", as we have never departed from our chicken "bun ga" choice order.  
          During my orientation tour I was brought to a restaurant called Cafe Arabia, which up to this point is still the best place to order Arabic food fusions that taste incredible.  My favorite local drinks would have to be Arabic coffee (which has so many spices it tastes more like tea) which is the only time I have considered coffee to taste good and cardamom tea (also called "Karak" tea) which is this mildly spiced tea with hot milk.

Sarah at The One
Restaurant

           My latest favorite restaurant hang out is a place called The One which is near Emirates palace.  I found this little gem on Zomato about a month ago and took some time finding it.  It turns out The One is also a total home experience store which is basically like Pottery Barn on steroids.  The restaurant is in the far back of the home decor store on the second floor.  You have to navigate to the back to find a table, most items at your table including chairs, light fixtures and utensils are for sale in the store.  The unique placement of the restaurant in the store surrounded by various decor scenes gives you a sort of "Night at The Muesum" vibe which makes for an enjoyable time.  Oh, and the food is quite good too.        
           Sarah and I are currently taking another step to express our desire for a semi permanent stay in Abu Dhabi by looking at condominiums to purchase.  Buying property here is rather different than the U.S. and since we are non-Emiratis we also can only purchase property in designated areas.  We are currently close to closing on a property on Reem Island which is where we currently live.  We wanted to buy a unit in our current building, but prices are too inflated at the moment, so we bought down the road from our tower in hopes that new development over the years will also raise the price of our newly purchased unit.  We currently live in Sun tower and are going to be moving to Amaya Towers in the next month or so.  Our new two bedroom unit has a beautiful view of the Gulf as well as Saadiyat Island.  The unit also has a long deck stretching with patio doors in both the living room and master bedroom.      

Amaya Towers (Our new home)

           At this current juncture of my time in Abu Dhabi I think it is important to call out that it really is a privilege to live and work in the United Arab Emirates.  I sense that there is a constant battle to not become spoiled by all of the wonderful amenities that we could only dream of having back in our home country (or at least pay a premium for).  My goal is to continue to appreciate this amazing opportunity we have along with the benefits it gives us both towards our future and our quality of life now.  It is easy to see how one can become accustomed to all of these benefits and make rash decisions when minor issues arise.  I want to make sure not fall into that same mindset and keep our lifestyle in check realizing what we have and why we are here.  Ultimately we are here to serve the Emirati people, to sustain life here in all sectors, to train in areas of need and bring the same quality that is expected anywhere else in the modern world.  In pursuit of completing these goals, we have the privilege to live here, experience rich diverse culture in an extremely safe and tolerant country.  In the world today I cannot think of a better scenario for those open and willing to explore the mystery of the unknown.  So here I am at seven months, my goal is to continue to try and stay "fresh" in Abu Dhabi remembering what we have and what a true privilege it is to be here.  By fresh I mean keeping the same open mind I had when I first came to the U.A.E., holding on to that curiosity that makes this place so amazing to be a part of and remembering to maintain that energy going forward.  This is one of the main reasons I have been recording all of these experiences since I arrived, to consider where I am going (in terms of attitude and state of mind) but most importantly remembering where I came from.  
                             


 

Oman - Border Runs!, Getting Lost & Chai Lattes

Mountains in Oman

Fort Near Muttrah Souk

          For the second Eid and also our first wedding anniversary we decided to drive to Oman from Abu Dhabi.  We saw from Google maps that the drive itself would take about five and a half hours.  We set out on Friday around eleven which put us at the border at about one o clock.  I realized when we approached the border that we were middle east border "newbies" when I saw we had to feed our cars into this narrow fenced in area with buildings on both sides.  From my border crossing experiences in the U.S. and Europe I expected to drive up to a booth where I could just hand over my passport, get a stamp and be on our way.  However in this case we had to find a parking space within the fenced area and proceed to one of the buildings for processing.  The line (or queue as is more commonly said in the U.A.E.) was rather large given the holiday.  We walked up to the first of two queues and began to question the

Omani Traditional Dress

Shangri La Resort

other members waiting if this was indeed where we needed to be to stamp our passports.  Unfortunately no one was aware of why they were waiting in line, instead they were just hoping at the end they would be cleared to enter Oman.  After baking outside in the sun for about an hour (the line stretched outside the building) we made it to the slightly air conditioned part of the line.  We proceeded to wait there for about thirty minutes at which point an officer came in and kicked us all out of the building for some reason.  After that there were hints that a riot might ensue after the line was scrambled and others who had clearly been waiting longer lost their positions.  It was at this point that the officer made his handcuffs visible which calmed everyone down.  After a slight bout of confusion out in the sun again, the officers changed shifts and the new office promptly offered to let women inside out of the sun.  Following that chivalrous gesture, my wife was able to secure our transfer to Oman, two and a half hours (the border can also get crowded because people do what they call "border runs" because they are on a thirty day temporary U.A.E. visa, so they go to the border, leave and turn right back around to get another thirty day stamp on their passports) after our initial arrival.

Darcy's Kitchen Cafe

Beach Restaurant

          Now that we were back on the road again we had one more parking checkpoint for the Oman part of customs and then we were back on track to Muscat, Oman.  We had reservations at the

Ramada in Muscat which we arrived to after about eight hours of travel between the border and driving.  We both quickly noticed some stark difference between Oman and the U.A.E., the traditional dress is slightly different, there far less taxis in Oman, and the vast array of amenities offered in the U.A.E. are not as readily available in Oman.  Oman has a beautiful landscape that transforms as you drive from the rolling sand dunes in the deserts of the U.A.E. to Oman that contains its staggered mountains streaked with colors of brown, white and red.  The locals in Oman also do not wear the Kandura or Agal with their robes, but either a pill box type

Al-Ameen Mosque

cap or turban.  The first thing I noticed while driving in into the night atmosphere of Muscat was the Al Ameen mosque which was towering over the city.  The most eye catching aspect of this structure is the architects chose to cast light on the mosque in the evening.  From afar and even close up the Al-Ameen mosque does not appear to have lights illuminating it, but instead the mosque appears to emit a blueish and yellow glow off the stone, a truly beautiful sight.  After checking in to our resort we set out for food, but ended up getting lost for about thirty minutes driving back  out towards the border and then making a sharp left turn that drove us through a mountain road with no turn around points.  Sadly, this experience of getting lost in Oman would not be the last.  When we finally found our way we had a meal at a nice little outdoor restaurant called Darcy's Kitchen where Sarah found a Chai Latte that she fell in love with and I enjoyed the fact that they served breakfast all day (we came back for another later in the trip).

Beach Restaurant

          The next day we decided to make it a beach day at the Shangri La

Ritz Lobby

hotel resort which is a series of three hotels.  We bought a day pass for the beach which included a buffet pass as well.  The weather on the beach was the best we have had in months with a temperature of around 23 degrees
Celsius (about 75 degrees Fahrenheit).  We spent around six hours on the beach that day and enjoyed the nice buffet.  We laid around and went swimming and snorkeling (I snorkeled for hours, shame I forgot to bring my underwater camera).  In the evening we decided to celebrate our anniversary by eating at the Beach Pavilion restaurant at the Ritz Carton (the lobby inside the Ritz is breathtaking).  It is a fine dining restaurant with tables set out on the beach sand right along the water.  It was a very nice dinner and the service was great.

Ritz Carlton Lobby

Muttrah Souk

Muttrah Souk

          On our final day before driving back we decided to pay a visit to the Muttrah Souk (a Souk is a traditional Arab market place) and see how different they were from the Souks of Abu Dhabi and Dubai.  They were very similar with some slight differences.  I bought an old map of the middle east after about an hour of bargaining (which I love to do) which I plan to frame here in the U.A.E. eventually (framing services like so many other services are very cheap in the U.A.E.).  After a walk through the Souk, we got back to the car to make our way back to the border.  One of the most memorable details about the trip was on our way back when we mistakenly arrived to the border designated for U.A.E. nationals only (which had the drive up booths I had expected to see coming in to Oman...go figure) where our attendant asked us if we knew Arabic.  Sadly we did not know enough to converse so he tried to explain that we needed to go to a different border, in his best and kindest effort he said in English "this border for brown people only", Sarah and I could not stop laughing, we know he meant no offense, but we could not help enjoying the satire after a long drive to the border.  Thankfully after getting to the right border the return did not take as long as the drive in.
          Oman was a great place to visit.  It is amazing that a place so close to our home in the U.A.E has such different geography, styles, customs and practices.  We would love to go back someday with any friends and family who visit (hint hint) in the future, but if we do I think next time we will place our bets on flying versus driving.  

Beach Outside Muscat

       

Scotland - Hagrid, Scotch, Skyfall & The Holy Grail

     

Edgar with us on Arthur's Seat

      After experiencing the month of Ramadan in the U.A.E for the first

Scott Monument

time, we took advantage of the Eid holiday following the month long fast and I was able to take my second ever two week vacation.  Our first stop from Abu Dhabi was Edinburgh where we had planned to meet up with Sarah's friend Edgar who was once involved in an exchange program where he came to stay with her family in high school.  Edgar had been living in Edinburgh for about a year already so we had the luxury of having him as our tour guide throughout the town.  He was spending him time in Scotland studying at the University of Edinburgh for his PhD in counseling studies.  He also was so kind to let us stay in his old dormitory (which he was moving out of) for a couple nights saving us money on our lodging.

            On our first day we took right to the town where I made my first stop at trying some legit scotch whiskey.  We found a place that had been around for ages that claimed to sell excellent blends of whiskey from all the various regions of Scotland.  Since I have a particular taste for a right peaty whiskey I chose the Islay malt whiskey blend  which comes from the Isle of Islay.

Top of the Scott Monument

               After that we made our way up a large plateau  called Arthur's Seat which overlooks the city, this climb is quite the work out so be prepared and bring water.  During our first day we started with trip off with beautiful weather, which in Scotland you apparently should always be grateful for that.  Following the climb up the plateau we went down the other side of Arthur's Seat to a small village pub called The Sheep Heid Inn.  This pub is the oldest surviving watering hole in all of Edinburgh, its a very cozy place with lots of character.  After we got back we took a nap and had a nice dinner at an outdoor rooftop restaurant called Tower restaurant above the Edinburgh national museum.  It was a delightful way to end our first day in Scotland.

Edinburgh Castle

Edinburgh Castle from Arthur's Seat

            When we woke up from our first night in the dorms (which was a blast to go back to the dorms and sleep, totally takes you back to college days) we started off with breakfast in the place where Harry Potter was born (sort of).  We had breakfast in a place called The Elephant House where J.K. Rowling wrote most of The Sorcerer's Stone.  It was a nice place with a good view of Edinburgh Castle in the back windows.  While Sarah used the bathroom she found many tributes to the great works of Harry Potter graffiti'd on the walls and also found the phrase "I'd get sleazy for a Weasley", my personal favorite.

Leith

Dome Restaurant

            Following breakfast we started walking to the the center of town by Edinburgh Castle.  We walked up to the castle but did not go in as we had planned to tour many castles on our journey all over Scotland.  We then came to the Scott Monument which we decided to climb (for a nominal fee of course) for a nice view of the city.  Apparently it is the largest monument in the world to be dedicated to a writer (Sir Walter Scott).  I invite you to look at the monument and ponder how you climb to the top because I did the same thing before going up the first set of stairs.  Its somewhat claustrophobic as the stairs get more and more narrow the higher you get and as you also squeeze by people in the tiny spiral staircases.  It was a great view and fun to be at the top, but the way down was rather interesting, negotiating our decent with other ascending tourists.

Dome Restaurant

Edinburgh at night

            Following the Scott Monument we made our way to the area in Edinburgh known as Leith which is an old royal town of Scotland.  We started outside while eating lunch, but then got our first taste of standard Scotland weather (lots of rain) and were motivated to move inside.  The pub itself was quite cozy so enjoying the indoors was not a problem (I love a good euro pub that has a good amount of history to it, and thankfully in Scotland, they were not in short supply).    It has the waters of Leith running through it with lovely pubs and bridges that make it a great place to stop for lunch and people watch.  I was determined to find the ideal picture of the setting described when I googled Leith and after Edgar and I did some surveying of the area, we found it.  After we located the picturesque Lieth location, we decided to have a bite to eat at a local pub called The King's Wark.  After Leith we went back to downtown Edinburgh to walk around before drinks and dinner.  First we had drinks a place called the Dome bar and grille which had this really cool red light that created a very unique ambiance.  After finishing drinks we walked to old town Edinburgh for a late Italian dinner at a place called Gennaro.  The street this restaurant was at the site where a gallows used to be set to hang traitors, witches and the like (there was a pub near our restaurant called The Last Drop).

Downtown Inverness

Loch Ness Boat Tour

Loch Ness

             Our third day marked the end of our stay in the city of Edinburgh.  In the morning we had to say goodbye to our wonderful host Edgar, the dorms, and the big city.  After a decent amount of coercion, Sarah convinced me it would be a good idea to rent a car vs rely on public transportation.  Of course the entire time I was just thinking about driving on the opposite side of the road.  But I have to say looking back on it, renting a car was a very good idea.  I did get a few honks on my way out of the city, but after that I started to get the hang of it.  From Edinburgh, our next stop was Inverness which was far north Scotland (where the majority of distilleries are housed) and also near the famous body of water known as Loch Ness.  Almost four hours of driving we finally arrived to the town of Inverness.  Our first B&B pick was the Ach Aluinn where we were hosted by a very kind and accommodating older couple who literally gave us everything we needed to explore the city and surrounding areas.  While in Inverness we ate at a nice restaurant called the Mustard Seed and also did a nice boat tour of Loch Ness (no we did not see Nessy our underwater ally) which ended by an old castle ruin.  Following the boat tour we drove to one of my favorite distilleries called Dalmore (introduced to me by my good friend Jason Gillikin), our first distillery stop of the trip.  

Portree, Isle of Skye

Skye

Old Man Storr

At the Summit of
Old Man Storr

 After a short visit in Inverness we made our way to the Isle of Skye, one of the most picturesque locations in Scotland.  The Isle of Skye is full of rolling hills, green everywhere, and bodies of water wrapping around all of the landscape.  Our second B&B of the trip was the Gables, a very nice place overlooking the Broadford Bay.  We had a host who took great care of us and also found our next stay on the island as well.    While on the Isle of Skye we decided to hike up to Old Man Storr this huge rock spire that towers over the rolling green hills on the island.  During our hike the weather took a turn for the worst and we were pretty much drenched by the end of our hike.  The view of the area was very much worth it though.  Before our hike we had a nice lunch at a place in Portree, Skye called Cafe Arriba which I have to say was one of the best restaurants we dined at in Scotland.  It was at this place where I found a fantastic beer called Innis and Gunn (see picture, the beer actually has a rum finish and it tasted amazing) which I asked for at any restaurant we went to going forward.  In the evening we ate at the oldest pub and inn on the island called the Stein Inn.  The entire area was very nice to look at and was full of flavor and history, it was at the Stein Inn where I sampled a good amount of whiskey from the surrounding areas (I tried a whiskey called Talisker which is the only distillery on the Isle of Skye).

On the way to Talisker

Talisker Distillery

            We stayed one more night on the Isle of Skye and in the morning on our way out we made our way to the Talisker distillery to do our first tour of a Scotland distillery.  It was very educational to learn about each step of the process to making a good whiskey.  The Talisker whiskey was very peaty which of course I enjoy so I bought some to take back to the U.A.E. to enjoy later.  Following the tour we had lunch at the Old Inn, yet another historic pub to enjoy and reflect on.  On the way out of Skye ( while driving to Glencoe) we also stopped by another castle by the name of Eilean Donan set in a very beautiful area.

Eilean Donan Castle

Eilean Donan Castle

            Leaving Skye behind we set course for Glencoe, which was to be the first of many movie sites we were to visit while in Scotland.  Glencoe is where the James Bond movie Skyfall was filmed and also the site where Hagrid's Hut (from Harry Potter) was built and filmed.  I have to say without a doubt that Glencoe was the most beautiful natural locations that I have ever seen.  I am of course always waiting to be trumped by another location, but Glencoe is just unbelievably beautiful all around.  Normally I would say pictures do not do the real site justice, but the below panoramic is a pretty decent sample of what it was like (I took that with my iPhone...I was impressed with the outcome).  After hours of driving looking for movie sites, we had a bite to eat near Hagrid's Hut site at a pub called the Clachaig Inn  (I really can't stress enough how awesome all these pub type places are they we kept finding on our journey).

Castle Arrggghhhh (Stalker)
 The Holy Grail Movie Scene

Castle Stalker

   After leaving Glencoe in the morning we made our way to the town of Oban where we planned to catch a ferry to take us out to a geological phenomenon more commonly referred to as Fingal's Cave.  On the way to the ferry we passed the castle Stalker (another great movie site) or in the movie Monty Python and the Holy Grail, the castle arrrggghhh which is featured at the end of the movie (click the links for the funny scenes).  This island castle can only be toured by private arrangement (it is privately owned) to get transport to the castle itself.

Glencoe, Scotland

             When we arrived in the town of Oban (also the name of a popular whisky made here) we boarded a bus that took us out to the ferry dock for our trip to Fingal's Cave.  The tour also included a visit to a neighboring island filled with puffins (these cool penguin like birds who continually nest on this spot) among other fun creatures to observe.  We had an hour or so on this island before we made our journey over to Fingal's Cave.  This formations on this cave / island showcase an endless series of hexagonal jointed volcanic basalt columns at different heights that are unlike any rock formation I have ever seen before.  The rock

Puffin

Puffin with fish

formations on this island almost look like they have to be man made, but are actually a natural formation that comes from continual volcanic heating and cooling through ice formations and fresh lava flows.  There are similar formations in Northern Ireland which is very close to the island.  We had another hour or so on the island of Fingal's Cave before heading back to the mainland.
               When we got back on the mainland we had dinner in Oban and then made our way to the port city of of Tarbert.  We stayed at a place called the Anchor Hotel  which was about five minutes from the port that was to take us to the Isle of Islay in the morning.

Fingal's Cave

Fingal's Cave Island

               We woke up early to head out to our ferry down the road to take us to Islay.  We loaded our car into the ship and found a nice couch to chill on during our two hour ride to Islay.  The boat docked on Islay around noon and we drove off to head towards our Bed & Breakfast by the name of the Glenedgedale House.  After arriving we almost immediately decided to stay an extra night. The house is run by a nice young family that will accommodate your every need.  I have to say I have stayed in some nice hotels in my day, this place rivals many of them.  The breakfast is superb which is accented further by many home made items that are also offered as take away snack items.  I was even offered a night cap "dram" of whiskey before I went to bed while I was reading on the couch.  If you know me I am overly critical of customer service whenever I am paying for an item or service, needless to say this establishment exceeded my expectations.

Fingal's Cave

Glenedgedale House

               While on Islay we toured three of the main distilleries that lined the coast of Port Ellen, including my favorite distillery: Laphroaig.  For
those of you who do not know about this particular brand of whiskey, its one of those "hate it or love it" types of life experiences.  Laphroaig is made in part by roasting barley by burning peat moss, a special kind native to many parts of Scotland and Ireland.  This peat roasting gives the whiskey a very strong "camp fiery" taste.  Lahproaig is readily available in most quality bars around the world and if you are going to give it a swirl, I recommend slowly sipping it, also the second sip is much better than the first, do not ask me why.  Lahproaig is also the favorite distillery of Prince Charles, who makes frequent visits and even had a special blend made in his name to be sold for a charity.  I did a special private tasting of some rare Laphroiag whiskeys after the

Bunnahabhain Distillery

distillery tour where they offer tastes of whiskey which they remove from the Laphroaig whiskey vaults.  I did the tasting with a local Scottish gentleman who I later learned was one of the four police officers assigned to the Isle of Islay.  We also toured the Ardbeg distillery and had lunch at the cafe there along Port Ellen.

Laphroaig Distillery

                On the evening of our first night we ate at the Port Charlotte Hotel Restaurant which offers many great plates along with great service.  We enjoyed it so much that we had dinner there on our second night as well.  Our second day on the island fell upon bad weather so we enjoyed our Bed & Breakfast a while and then stated driving towards our port city that would take us back to the mainland.  On the way we stopped at another distillery called the Bunnahabhain Distillery which was a much more lax distillery tour that allowed us to take pictures where many others would not.  It was a nice ending to our trip on Islay, after our tour our plan was to head to the town of Stirling in search of more movie destinations.  I have to say before ending this trip story, Islay was probably one of my most favorite parts of the trip, although it may be a slight battle between Islay and Skye as both were great places to visit.

Inside Bunnahabhain

Doune Castle

                When the ship brought us back to the mainland we started driving to Stirling, we planned to see Stirling Castle in the city and also the short drive out to Doune Castle where a large portion of Monty Python and the Holy Grail was filmed.  For those who know the movie well, you can see in many of the pictures of the castle where the various scenes of the movie was filmed, but I have also included scenes for those who need a refresher.  In Stirling we stayed at a very nice establishment called Castlecroft Bed & Breakfast, the rooms were wonderful, it was my favorite bed of the trip and the host was very kind and accommodating.  We did not do too much in Stirling besides grab a bite to eat and then head to bed.  In the morning we went to Doune Castle before going back to Edinburgh for a Davinci Code movie site stop.  Doune Castle was a great highlight for me, seeing all of those places close up where they filmed the Holy Grail was really cool.  Doune Castle was a cool castle in general as it was one of the few that still looked like a legit castle (many castles we saw just looked like houses on the inside vs having that old medieval "castley" look).

Inside Doune

Doune Castle in Monty Python
& the Holy Grail

                After leaving Doune Castle we went to the town of Rosslyn which is just outside Edinburgh.  Rosslyn chapel is featured in one of the last scenes of the Tom Hanks movie the Davinci Code.  As an expert of the movie I knew the scene had to be in a basement portion of the chapel.  As Sarah and I entered the Chapel I feared the basement was a made up part of the movie, but alas as we walked further we found the famous scene from the movie.  The chapel itself was absolutely beautiful, the entire chapel is a giant carving of art and design fearing various scenes from the Bible.  The annual visitors rose from around thirty thousand to closer to one hundred seventy thousand annually after the book and movie were released.   The Rosslyn Chapel also continues to be a working church.  After the tour we ate at a local pub called the Rosslyn Inn Hotel , another standard well establish pub.

Rosslyn Chapel Crypt
(Davinci Code Scene)

Rosslyn Chapel

                We had a short stop in Rosslyn in anticipation of making our way down to London with only three days left before our flight back to Abu Dhabi.  We soon realized that a drive from Edinburgh to London was not something that could ideally by done in a day so we arranged to make a stop in the city of York (Old York!).  Our Bed & Breakfast went by the name of Elliotts, apparently the old B&B used to be the town brothel.  It was hard to tell as our rooms and stay were nothing resembling a brothel.  York itself was a beautiful town which was definitely worth the stop before London.  We walked the historic city as well as the largely intact wall that still surrounds the city dating back to the Roman times.  Sarah had a goal to walk the wall around the entire city (which we did).  It was a lot of fun as the various turrets over the roads usually had some type of shop or cafe inside them.  We also walked down the historical road inside York called the Shambles which is a small road that is supposed to be representative of a previous time dating back to the fourteenth century.  We also toured the York Brewery which is the only legal brewery that is allowed to operate within the city walls.  In the evening we paid a visit to the Blue Bell, a hundred year old bar that had stayed in the same family for almost the entire time.  After our day in York we started on the other half of our journey to London.

York City walls

Shambles Street

                 When we arrived in London we started towards the town of Greenwich, we had made arrangements to stay at The Mitre, which is where we stayed last time we were in London.  We made arrangements to stay there for the last two nights of the trip.  Greenwich is a nice place to stay just outside the business of the city while being only a short subway ride or boat ferry on the Thames back into London.      
                  We rode the ferry and the underground, but I had a new annoying tourist mental note to jot down whilst on the ferry.  A while back Budweiser beer used to do these commercials called "Real Men of Genius" where they would salute someone for their ridiculous acts or occupation.  Well today I salute you mister awkward tourist picture taker.  If you are in a crowed space, it doesn't matter if you have to rest your

Tower of London

The Blue Bell

camera on a complete strangers shoulder without asking, you'll get that sub par picture of the London Bridge.  It doesn't matter if you have to push people over to get a tilted off kilter shot with someones finger in it, you'll move them over with no shame.  So crack open an ice cold bud light mister awkward tourist picture taker, and know that when it comes to pictures you'll probably delete when you get home, you wont miss a single opportunity to piss people off for that fateful snapshot.

York Minster Abbey

221 Baker Street

                  Since we were back in London again I made a point this time to tour the Tower of London which we did not do last time and also visit 221 Baker street, the fictional residence of Sherlock Holmes.  I had been on a recent Sherlock kick after going through the BBC series Sherlock set in modern times (a series which I highly recommend watching).  The tower was alright, but it was very crowded and one of those scenarios where you feel like cattle at times, but it was cool to see the crown jewels.  We also learned a superstition about the ravens on the grounds.  Apparently there was a saying one time that if the ravens leave the tower that the kingdom would fall.  So for that reason there is a guard in charge of the ravens (they have their wings clipped so they can't leave) that feeds them raw beef, eggs and bird feed.  The Sherlock location was also a cool thing to see, but again because of the recent Sherlock series being out, it was also very crowded.  After we got those items out of the way we went shopping on Oxford street for a while picking up all the non Abu Dhabi store items we needed to bring back with us.  We also walked by Buckingham Palace which I guess you could call a movie site (The Kings Speech), but if you do not arrange to go in, you just kind of stare at the gate.  Despite my not so cheery review of some of our visits, I really do love London.  It is a nice place to visit and if you do not live there I would say it is an enjoyable place to go for a short trip.  The weather this time of year was perfect for London and in Scotland for that matter.

Buckingham Palace

Tower Ravens

Tower of London

                 Our second visit to the United Kingdom (mostly Scotland) was a blast.  Ireland was one of my most favorite locations for scenery and great people, but Scotland may also be on the same ranking scale for those two items.  I loved Scotland, our trip was full of great food, whiskey and scenery.  To kick the trip off Sarah was reunited with Edgar after sixteen years who was a wonderful host and great to get to know.  I saw more movie sites that ever before on a trip (Harry Potter, James Bond, Davinci Code, Braveheart, The Holy Grail & the King's Speech) and I was able to visit my favorite whiskey distillery (Laphroaig).  Scotland is a truly wonderful place each area brings its own unique flavor of culture and history, but all locations come with the kind hospitality of Scottish folk.  We were treated extremely well by all of our hosts and anyone else we met with along the way through our travels, those interactions and experiences are what make you want to come back to a place and I hope we get back to Scotland sometime soon.