Day 2: Isle of Skye

My favourite day. We had the wackiest guide, and her name is Allison. First she made us play Poohsticks at a bridge that we passed by earlier, then at this little jetty she tried to make us step into the icy cold water. Lo and behold, don't be deceived by the generous amount of sunlight!

Also, because I was wearing skinny jeans, I couldn't roll them up at all. Smart right.

My mom was convinced that I was quite half mad

Guess who were the only two clever people who went into the water?

Allison and me!

And for that little stunt, I earned 300 points! Allison created this game where she would allocate points for things you do, e.g. answer her questions correctly after story telling (100 points if she's pleased, -10 if you're American, haha!), if you shut the van door as the last person to leave (10 points), etc. Later in the evening, she taught us a Scottish folk dance - it's called Gay Gordons (apparently the easiest, but I kept stepping on my partner's foot; not very graceful obviously). Imagine dancing (or at least trying to) at a place surrounded by snow-capped mountains and beautiful lakes. You should try it.

Take dance lessons, or never dance again. Haha! My new friend from Brazil!

If you're planning to book for a Highlands tour, ask for Allison - you won't regret it!

p.s. I'm sending the first photo for a competition entry, it would make me very very grateful if you could go to this link and help me vote! It takes just one simple click, no registration or anything! Thank you so much!

Scottish Tours: Day 1

It snowed heavily again on the day we left for Scotland, which felt as if we were running away from the storm. In Edinburgh, we stayed at Best Western Kings Manor Hotel. It is away from the city centre, but easily accessible by bus. However, I would suggest that you take a taxi first if you're carrying many bags, as we did. I would tell more about Edinburgh in a later post, but here's the highlands part of my Scottish holiday.

Don't wanna get lost here

Yup, my dad went for the front seat since everyone went for the back seats first. Best view!

We went on a 4-days highlands tour with Scottish Tours, and we stayed at Duncraig Villa, Inverness, during our trip. What I did was randomly google Scotland + tour, and easily enough I found a good one. It was £375 per person if you're sharing, and £420 if you're taking a room alone; breakfast and tours included (excluding castle entry tickets and ferry rides because these are optional). Since there were three of us, I booked online for a single and a sharing room. What I would suggest is that you call them up to ask if you could have a family room if you have a situation like mine. Because we ended up having two large family rooms to ourselves, and each room had one king size bed and a single bed (which was really cool, but a slight waste of money).

On the first day, we joined a coach of about 40 people. We were the only ones staying overnight, for nights, so I guess day trips are more popular (although I think it is definitely better to go for a few days, and I will tell you why). Our guide was a happy capable man; I'm not sure how he drives AND speaks at the same time, for the whole journey. And it's not a short journey up.

We passed by so many lochs, and glens (pronounce "loch" with a distinct "h", loc- kuh). I can't even remember those names, unless I type out my itinerary, which I won't, haha! In a few words, Day 1 was all about: beautiful sceneries - one after the other, Scottish music, soup stops, endless fun. 

Looking for a good cuppa tea?

More updates soon!

Easter travels: Reviews and more

Okay folks! It's about time I start sharing the details of my Easter travels, just in case any of you plan to visit the same places, or even if you're not sure where to start when planning for a holiday. 

My parents came to visit at the end of March - and guess what? It snowed in the morning after their arrival! Not a usual exciting event, as spring was not spring yet. That morning was an exception, obviously. Simple equation: Happy mommy = happy Joyce

If you're coming to Nottingham, I would guess that you're either a Malaysian, a Chinese, students, or parents in general. Haha! Not much to see, to be honest, but if you're looking for a decent meal while you're here, here's a couple of places you should go:

1) Sinatra ★★★★☆

It's at the city centre. They serve great British food! I went there twice, and the second time was with mom and dad. More photos here. The ambience is lovely too - very cosy, posh. Their walls are decorated with autographed portraits of artists and celebrities - Jamie Oliver among others. I'm not sure if that meant their presence at the restaurant before, but the quality of the food was definitely worthy enough! Just the food, about £9 - £15 per person?

2) Yod Siam ★★★☆☆
Located opposite Sainsbury's in Beeston town, near Nottingham university. Thai food. I've been here.. 5 times? Or more. They have this set lunch menu, decently priced. £6 - £9 per person? The dishes on the main menu seemed quite expensive, I haven't got the chance to try them yet. On Sundays, they serve a buffet for £10. Not an extensive line, but decent enough for a good meal. Don't ask me about tomyam though, most thai restaurants in the UK that I've been to serve non-spicy white tomyam soup, which I kinda like, because I'm not much of a spicy food fan. But most of my friends dislike that, haha. Their roast duck with rice is nice, so is their crispy pork. Pretty ambience, oriental ornaments here and there. And very nice waitresses, thumbs up for that yay!

These are local Nottingham outlets that don't have branches elsewhere, so do give them a try! Hmm.. I'll think of more and update soon. Stay tuned!

And they've all flown away

Till next time in July. 

The Horse and His Boy

The Voyage of the Dawn Treader

This kind of weather must be some kind of good wizardry

We brought the Sun around as if it were a kite

We found Narnia inside our guest room wardrobe