Category: Holidays

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Do you Instagram?

For several years, I ignored Instagram (silly me!) and, now that I’ve started to play there, I have a feeling that the real buzz is over.  Typical!  However, many millions of people still visit the site every day, so there is still interesting content out there.

So, what kind of things do I like to see on Instagram?  Well, sometimes it’s nice to follow a real person and see what they’re like in real life.

Happy Valentine’s Day, @MichelleObama. You make every day and every place better.

A post shared by Barack Obama (@barackobama) on

OK, I haven’t followed Barack Obama or Michelle – but, who knows!

Then, of course, there are the cute dog or cat photos (and, believe me there are millions of them!) so I’m always looking to see something different –

I loved watching the Queen walking through her gardens with David Attenborough, talking about the Commonwealth Canopy – what a project!

Travel photos are another rich area to explore – by jove, there are some amazing photographers out there.

Photo by @lochgmarcp #wigwamtravels

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Just wow – the view is spectacular – and some of us won’t have the oomph to find views like this. :O

So, finally, a little bit of self-interest here – there are also products to be found on instagram – and, on some of them, it’s possible to click through to the website and buy then and there!  So, as you would expect, I have been testing this out in the last few days so I include one of my own images, to see what reaction there will be to it – purely in the interest of self-satisfaction, you understand.

Believe me, this selection is just the tip of the iceberg – and some of the photos are things you probably don’t want to see or hear or read about.  But if you don’t tip your toe in the water, you’re never going to learn.  Enjoy!

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Sylt in the off-season

Visit Sylt in the off-season
Windy day on the beach, Sylt

We did it!  Well, I guess it was fairly inevitable that we would go and visit my sister who was staying at the Asklepios Klinik in Sylt for some rehab.  Going off-peak, I think we managed a low-budget weekend break, booking ourselves on budget airlines, using the Trainline to buy train tickets from Hamburg to Sylt, staying in our AirBnB apartment and travelling on the local buses.

So, what would be our tips?

Well, flying from Edinburgh to Hamburg, the Easyjet service was great.  When we arrived, we walked through to the main terminal from the arrivals hall and followed the signs to the S-bahn which took us directly to Hamburg-Altona railway station.  The very helpful gentleman at the DB information office directed us to our train to Westerland.  We had to change at Elmshorn – and that was seamless.  We had a 10-minute wait, staying on the same platform.

The journey continued on to Westerland.  We crossed the Kiel canal, passed by pretty towns, were amazed by the number of windmills generating electricity and saw fields, some with arable crops, a few with livestock and some with solar panels.  The train crosses a causeway to Sylt itself and arrives at Westerland Bahnhof (ZOB).  We got a lift to our apartment in Wenningstedt and then had dinner in a lovely (busy) Italian restaurant.

The local bus service on the island is very good.  In the winter months, the buses run every half hour and that increases to 10-15 minutes in the summer months.  It’s possible to buy individual day-tickets or family tickets as well as 2-day and 3-day passes.  These are valid on all buses on the island.  If you buy ordinary tickets, the bus companies charge by the number of zones you enter.  We bought day-tickets because some days we just wanted to walk.

Because my sister was living in the Klinik, we were allowed to buy meals in the restaurant there so we didn’t do much eating out.  We did, however, walk into Westerland – and found the amazing Cafe Wien – where we couldn’t resist the waffles, Sandy’s topped with Rumtopf and Cream while mine came with cherries and cream.  The best waffles ever!

On our last afternoon we took the bus to List, at the north of the island and loved looking round the shops there.  We watched the Ferry coming in to the harbour and had a coffee in the ice-cream shop.  It was damp and miserable weather, so we were pleased to get in out of the wind.

Signs to catch the train to the Airport

Travelling back to Hamburg went like clockwork.  We caught the No 1 line bus into Westerland and walked onto the platform for our train – direct this time.  We had a smooth journey to Hamburg-Altona and then caught the S-bahn back to the airport.  I loved the consideration given to tourists on the S-bahn platform – the trains to the airport split before you reach the airport and it is essential to be in the first three carriages to make sure you reach your destination.  The thoughtful folk in the station had this well sign-posted in a banner as well as on the edge of the platform!

Such a shame, we had to get a flight home 🙁

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Sylt

Train from Hamburg to Sylt
Windmills on the way to Sylt

Wow, now there’s an idea.  I’ve just been speaking to my sister and she’s booked herself a bit of rehab in a clinic in Sylt.  Sylt is a small island off the coast of Denmark – but it turns out to be part of Germany.  Just having a quick look online, it seems to me as if it’s a long sandbar …. there’s a huge long beach of golden sand which looks amazing.

The island seems to be a holiday resort for the wealthy – exclusive, expensive and stunning.  It would be lovely to have a short break there; it looks as if there are a lot of quality hotels; holiday homes; even hostels.  AirBnB is well represented for those who like to do self-catering.  It is easier to fly to Sylt from Scotland during the summer season.  Off-season, the easiest way to travel from Edinburgh is to fly to Hamburg and then take a train journey to Westerland.  Online booking is straightforward and will probably save you money too.  Having looked through various sites, it seems as if there is also a good local bus service which will let you explore most of the island.  It’s possible to buy a family ticket which seems exceptional value.

Do you feel as if I’m talking my way into booking a break in Sylt??  I’ll let you know if I do 🙂

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Penk, on the banks of the River Naab

Sometimes you come across a lovely little place to eat and you’re happy to spread the news!  Well, we visited one such place in a small hamlet called Penk – not far from Regensburg, on the banks of the River Naab.

Spitzauer in Penk
Gasthof Spitzauer – a great place to eat.

Ok, I’m looking a little distrait, but I had just eaten a lovely mixed salad starter and a lovely piece of rump steak … Sandy had some soup and a Cordon-Bleu Schnitzel.  I’m sure we’d both go back to Gasthof Spitzauer.

 

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Still on holiday?

We’ve just had a couple of breaks away from Scotland;  the first week was spent in Hexham in a self-catering property 4 miles from the town.  As a farmer’s daughter, I really appreciated the smart conversion of one of the farm buildings into a well-designed and comfortable home for three couples.

It was a very peaceful place to live for the week – and there was always some interest in the farm work going on around us.

Self-catering near Hexham
High Dalton Farm Cottage

 



 

A few days after returning from Hexham, we headed overseas to visit Regensburg on the Danube.  We flew from Edinburgh to Munich via Easyjet.

Although it wasn’t quite the golden October that we had hoped for, there were moments during our visit where the sun shone and the atmosphere was brilliant.

Kallmunz on the River Naab
Walking towards the Castle at Kallmunz

The castle is a ruin – and while there is a track from the other side, we chose (?) to climb the steps which were cut into the rockface to get a view out over the river valley and the village.  It was well worth the effort.  Thankfully, though, we didn’t meet anyone on the steps – I don’t think I would have enjoyed it as much in the busier summer months.

ps – although we’re now back home, I am only now switching back on to work!