“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go” Joshua 1:9

July 15, 2019

Day Two: Trip from England, through Wales, to Ireland

I was exhausted from the endless driving. I thought to myself - I will just have a wee rest while we don't have to keep moving in the ferry. And I slept for an hour ;) 

We woke up in the beautiful airbnb and were provided with a hearty breakfast while patting the host's cats and dogs. Unfortunately, we ended up staying longer than planned, and discovered when we started driving that we had a 6 minute buffer for our 5 hour drive down to the ferry docks in Pembroke, Wales before the ferry would close the gates for checking in - Whoops!!

Driving into Wales
We discovered that in Wales they take good care of Ross'! 
We got to the dock 15 minutes from departure!! This is us heading onto the boat
Our lovely boat
Us on board
When we got on board we were very tired, not to mention hungry, because we hadn't had time to stop for many breaks for food (other than tea, ice creams and toilet breaks). So we went straight to the restaurant and ate a hearty roast. After that we went to sleep for a bit.

Driving out of the boat in Rosslare, Ireland

When we got out in Rosslare in Ireland we needed to drive to near Cloyne in County Cork, which was a 2 hour drive. The first thing we noticed was the stalls on new potatoes and strawberries beside the roads - the land of the potato famine. 

The beautiful Irish countryside!!
We got to our airbnb, and after having a lovely tea and chat with our host, we slept like a log. The plan for tomorrow is to go to Danielle's house for a kitchen tea at 9am and then rehearsal at the church. 

Till next time,

Laura xx

Start of the holiday

The past two months have been a whirlwind of honeymoon, moving house, starting a full-time job, all while trying to finish the thank you cards for the wedding!! And just to let you know, it is almost three months since my wedding and finishing my uni degree, so let's just say I am suffering side effects of overworking myself and needing extra sleep. How have I survived you ask? Well, I really don't know. God has given me the strength to just keep moving forward!

To give you some background, I have started working for the Edinburgh Children's Hospital Charity as a Bucket Trail Assistant (which means I assist with fulfilling their bucket list - jokes). My job role includes talking to visitors about the first national art trail of the Scottish cartoon character Oor Wullie. I will then encourage visitors to buy merchandise from our shop in St. Andrews Square. 
My new house is a lovely cottage in the mining village of Cockenzie. And we are just getting all the rooms sorted, and have been finding more storage furniture to be able to organise everything. 

So, needless to say, I was very much looking forward to a holiday (a paid holiday!!). The plan was to go to Ireland to my friend's (Danielle's) wedding on the 12th July, in which I was so honoured to be a bridesmaid. I was going to be graduating on Tuesday the 9th, and realised that we would have to leave from Scotland that night to drive down to England to an airbnb, to be able to make it to Pembroke in Wales the next day, to make it to Cork, Ireland via a ferry with our car in time for a kitchen tea and rehearsal the day before the wedding (on the Friday). 

So let the holiday begin!! 

Tuesday came, and we began packing and dressing for my graduation (my parents, Graeme and I). Oh, and I should mention my parents came over from Finland for my graduation and to stay for a few weeks for my mum to volunteer at my work!! I was so happy :D

Usher Hall in Edinburgh, where my graduation ceremony was held
This was in the top level, where my parents and Graeme were sitting
This is possibly an illegal photo - as it was taken during the ceremony of Iulia when my hands were getting tired of clapping ;) 
Graduated!! 
I finally met with Iulia's family!
So happy with my best friend :) 
The four musketeers - Graeme, Iulia, her sister Lexi and me at the swan pond at QMU
After this we had to quickly go back home, shower and pack, get into the car and drive to Caton, Lancaster for our airbnb. Not before getting a fish supper for a quick dinner ;)

Late night driving
Finally getting to our airbnb!!
I was so excited to have started my holiday!! The plan for tomorrow is to start driving down to the ferry docks in Wales (5 hours) and then from the dock in Ireland to our accommodation (2 hours), so 7 hours driving in total!! 

Till next time,

Laura xx