The car has been safely returned and we are on the tube! First LJ, Bianca, Matt and I were off to Spitalfields Market where there are lots of cafes and loads of cheap Asian made clothes but not a lot else. After we wandered around Shoreditch, had coffee and parted ways. We have now had a quick shop and checked into our hotel which is clean and cosy and we will head out to dinner. Tomorrow we might hit up Westfield and a couple of tourist sites.

On the roads big time today... The A1, M18, M1... In the Chevvie (care of Hertz) bound for LJs place just outside London. So not much to report on other than the lovely sckoones (not scones), jam and clotted cream. Long drive, I've caught Matt's sniffles as he is getting better, and a lot of farming land and sheep have been spotted. Onto the big smoke tomorrow!

Time is ticking away, our brief stay in Edinburgh is almost over as we jump in a car tomorrow. We spent most of today on another walking tour listening to tales of Edinburgh's bloody past. Not that it's my cup of tea but the Scottish are certainly a superstitious lot - there are loads of ghost tours that run at night that you can do and the cemeteries here are quite prominent. We also wandered down to see Lizzie but she wasn't staying in her Scottish residence ...

We have arrived for our brief stay in Scotland as we head down to London. So far, it's wet. Tomorrow we are expecting the same! Nothing to report yet, we managed to get our heavy bags on another flight and we are on the airport bus. Off the bus now and tucked into a restaurant out of the rain. We are planning a walking tour tomorrow after our big Scottish breakfast at our B&B. I wonder if it will have haggis?

Up early and onto a bus for a day trip to Galway and the Cliffs of Moher. The Irish countryside definitely holds up to stereotypes - it's very green and there are a lot of sheep and cows. The cliffs are very sheer and the ocean crashes into the base of them and you could watch all day if it weren't so windy that you felt you would blow away! It's nice to see more of the rural and natural side of Ireland, it's quite the contrast to Dublin. Off again tomorrow on ...