Scotland Vacations

Recently my husband and I took a vacation and travelled through the Highlands of Scotland. What beautiful countryside there is to be enjoyed there. We saw castles, mountains, lakes, the Glenfinnan Viaduct (filmed in the Harry Potter movie), many monuments to "the clearings" of Glencoe, a restaurant owned by a distant relative of my husbands whose great, great, great grandfather originally opened, views that definitely fit the saying of "taking your breath away".

If any of you make plans for traveling through the Highlands we would like to recommend two hotels in particular that we received the best customer service of all the places we have stayed since moving to England two years ago.

The George Hotel, Inveraray, Argyll PA32 8TT. The room was awesome, the customer service even more so and the food was delicious. Check out their website at www.thegeorgeotel.co.uk. You won't be dissappointed.

Killiecrankie House, Pitlochry, Perthshire PH16 5LG. A country home/bed and breakfast, again with excellent customer service, nice rooms and excellent food. They also offer special golf weekends with connections they have to local courses. Website: www.killiecrankiehotel.co.uk.

No we didn't see the Loch Ness Monster, but we did hike to and picnic on our "mini estate" at Locherby Highlands Estates where we own 200 square foot of land in a beautiful wooded estate on the side of a fell that is protected and can never be built on. What a fun gift this was for my husband and owning land in Scotland gives us the titles of Laird and Lady MacVean . . . a fun bonus for more of our great memories of our time living here in the U.K.

We learned a great deal about the history of Scotland while there as well. For instance, did you know that the Highlands were "cleared" of the clans (so the property owners could raise sheep) many centuries ago and that the clan McDonald (located in Glencoe) was all but eliminated by the Campbells with orders from King William because they were unable to get to the right location on time to swear fealty to the King? The history of this area especially interests me because it's the area of Scotland that my husbands' family originates from and those ancestors were some of the one's "cleared" so they moved to America.

There is also a song called Loch Lomond, which we were all taught in music class in grade school. A line you will probably remember is "For me and my true love will never meet again on the bonnie bonnie banks of Loch Lomond". I always interpreted it to mean that he and his true love had broken up or one had died, but in truth it is referring to "the clearings" and that they would have to leave Scotland and would never be able to go to Loch Lomond again. How interesting all the history I have learned here that I didn't learn in school.

I continue to be fascinated with this ancient culture and hope to have many more adventures to share.

Please share your experiences and any enlightened historical knowledge that you have learned because of living here.

CHOOSING A PLACE TO LIVE

Article contributed by Diane of our Expat Spouse Group

My husband has lived here for almost three years. We have lived in two different locations and I have some suggestions for choosing successful housing.

• Find out what your employer's allotment is for housing. Decide if you want to add your money to lease a more expensive house. Look at prices including listings that are slightly more expensive. Many times agents can persuade people to take a lower monthly price. Housing paid for by a company is seen as an ideal renter. They know they can rely on payments in a timely fashion.
• Decide on how long a commute the person who does the commuting would find acceptable. On a fine sunny day 20 minutes extra seems OK but that actually adds up to one week a year. Remember in Cumbria we get lots of rain, fog, ice and even snow in the higher elevations. Also the commuter will be driving to work and home when it's dark many months of the year. Also thousands of commuters drive to and from Sellafield AT THE SAME TIME. This will add time to the commute. Our roads are not Interstates. The speed limit may be 60 but at shift change that's only theoretical!
• You need to look at things much differently than when buying a home stateside. This is temporary housing. Yes a new place is always nice but not if it's too far away or next to a pig farm and you're a city person! Do you like neighbors or not? When looking at the housing remember this isn't forever. Things are never 100% perfect. Figure out what you can live with. Personally I would have liked another full bath but instead I went for the killer views and never regretted it.
• Keep a good feel for the person who is trying to rent the house. One of our people had to move after about 6 months because the owner went into bankruptcy. Other people have had to move because owners who said two years was fine, changed their mind at the end of the first year. Still others moved after one year because they realized their commute was too long after a stressful day at work and wanted to live closer to the site. Finding a home isn't easy, repeating the process is frustrating. Remember the estate agent, however pleasant, wants to close the deal. Just ask lots of questions. Who is renting, why and how long has it been on the market? Great rentals go quickly. If something has been on the market forever there's a reason. If 15 other people assigned here passed it by, you've got to wonder why?
• What is important for your lifestyle? Do you enjoy being in a rural area or do you want to be closer to town. You can have either. There are apartments (flats), duplex type barn conversions (semi-detached house) and single dwellings (detached house). The problem is there are not many at one time. Some poeple get lucky quickly for others it takes a while, don't get discouraged. Will you be driving? If not, you need to check out bus routes, train stations or stay in town.
• Once you choose your housing, it's time for utilities. Things move more slowly here. BE PATIENT. It can take a few weeks or more to get everything in place Check to see what internet service is like in your area. Some areas are very poor, others are great, and occasionally people have resorted to mobile broadband. Services are provided in steps. First your satellite receiver, then you get your service appointment scheduled, then the card to put in the receiver is mailed to you, and then you're ready to go. Oh, except you can't get satellite TV until you have your phone service! Also you need to have your phone service up and going before you can schedule your internet. I would advise that you have all your services up and going before you move in, not just your electricity.
• Make sure you know who is responsible for your garden (i.e., yard care)
• Check out the appliances that are provided. Refrigerators are smaller than in the States. Icemakers are only a dream. (Actually I do know of only one) If you want to purchase an American Style Refrigerator make sure you have the space for one. Dishwashers and microwaves are similar to the States except microwaves lack the popcorn button. Popcorn is just not as popular here. Washers and dryers are important. Usually they are smaller than in the states. Some houses only have the washer. Hanging out clothes is popular here although I don't understand that whole idea. So make sure there is a dryer if you want one. DO NOT FALL for the all-in-one washer/dryer. Several of us had them and everyone found them inefficient and frustrating. Imagine a bed sheet washed and dried to resemble an ornate origami the size of a soccer ball.
  
• Check for water pressure and ask questions about heating. There are beautiful old homes that may be difficult to heat or drafty. Is that a deal breaker or are portable electric heaters OK? It very rarely gets very hot so air contitioning is not prevalent even in restaurants or hotels.

We were lucky enough to find a house I absolutely love. Completely different from our Stateside home but pretty perfect for here and only 20 minutes from the Sellafield site! If you have questions e-mail me directly at: mellordm@yahoo.com or use the site's blog to post your question/comment.

Happy home hunting.
Diane

New Groups for Socializing

Our group has grown dramatically in the past few months and we now have the wonderful problem of too many people for the one activity of a Mah Jongg Club that we have games and sizeable houses available for hosting.

It has been put to the group as a whole to think of other clubs they might like to see and who might like to offer to Chair any new group. Suggestions have been a Book Club, Photography Club, Hiking Club, GeoCaching Club, Scrabble Club, Couples Game Night Club, Out To Lunch Bunch, Craft Club and more. However, only the Photography Club idea has a person who has offered to Chair.

Please step forward and help our group of Expats to have a social network here in Cumbria by offering whatever interests/talents you have to host and create a new Club to give everyone more opportunities to gather and enjoy each others' company.

Feel free to post your suggestions and offer of helping on this Blog so that others can make comments and learn what is being offered.

Moving to the U.K.

Moving is a challenge no matter what the reason or how far you have to move. It is a difficult and stressful time in your life. You need to look for and accept as much help along the way as is available. To that end, having moved to the U.K. a little over a year ago and having gone through all that stress and trying to keep my sanity (fortunately successfully), I came to the conclusion that I wanted to help other spouses moving here to make it easier for them if I could.
I created the web site www.expatspouseguide.com. The site is packed full of information on what to pack, what not to pack, how to ship pets, how to settle children into school, how to locate housing, how to shop, American English and English English and so much more.
Whether it's because of your work, your spouses work, furthering your education or some other reason moving to the U.K. will be an experience you will remember. It will be a challenge there is no doubt about that. American's have a wonderful country with many things that we take for granted, but that in actuality are luxuries in other countries.
Example? Most refrigerators in England would be equal to a dorm size fridge in the U.S. Doesn't sound like much of a problem does it? Small, virtually no freezer, doesn't stay as cold as we're used to . . . so . . . shopping has to be minimal (not much room), forget the ice cream or ice cubes and you'll need to go shopping every couple of days because of how little it holds and how quickly food spoils.
I would appreciate hearing others' experience in moving to and living in the U.K. Sharing suggestions on how to make the experience easier for other readers and contributors to this site would be welcome.