My daughter Natalie accompanied me on a business trip to England in September 2001. I was there to attend Offshore Europe, an oil show in Aberdeen, Scotland. I used a week of vacation time so she and I could drive around England, Wales and Scotland to sightsee. On a map the UK looks small, but driving from London to Scotland takes some time! 

There are major roadways, but if you want to look around, you have to drive on small roads. These small roads are off the beaten path and usually have slower posted speeds. Needless to say, it took us a couple days to get to Scotland. But I think those days were well spent.

We spent one day in London, traveling the tube (subway) checking out the sights. We saw the London Bridge, Buckingham Palace...you know, all the tourist stuff. Check out the pictures to see a bit of our trip. 

The Myrick family originated from Wales, and we weren't going to visit the UK without checking out our heritage! Both of my daughters are fair skinned with blonde hair, and I could see those traits in the majority of the Welsh women I saw. It is a mountainous country, with spectacular scenery. The majority of farmers raise sheep, with a few having cattle. The Welsh people were cautious when talking to us at first, but when they realized our ancestors originated there, they opened up and were very friendly. 

We only had time to visit one castle in Wales; one was built by an Englishman! There are pictures of it in the UK album. There is a castle that a Myrick had lived in, located on an island in the Northwest corner of Wales. Unfortunately, we didn't have the time to visit it.

Throughout Wales, you have to drive over pads situated across the roads. These pads were saturated with a disinfectant that kills Foot and Mouth disease. When entering the castle in Wales, we were required to walk over the same type of pad. Funny thing is, we never saw these pads in England and Scotland. Upon our return to the States, we were asked if we visited any farms or rural areas during out trip. They were checking to make sure we weren't bringing anything into the States that might contain the virus. 

Natalie told me if she had the chance, she would move to Wales to live. I agree with her wholeheartedly. 

Scotland was a pleasure. My mom's family (Walker) is from Scotland. It was cool to visit the motherland for my maternal side of the family. The people are very outgoing and friendly. They drive the same in Scotland as we do in Texas, so I didn't have any problems with that. The towns are neat and clean. The restaurants are good, as well as the hotels. The roads are well paved and the castles are spectacular! We visited 4 castles in Scotland, 3 were Scottish and one was English. Check out the pictures to see some of them.

The Scots are a proud people. They are fiercely independent of their culture, even though they live under English rule. In the Highlands of Scotland, they even speak their own language, Gaelic. I heard someone speak Gaelic in Aberdeen and was dumbfounded. In comparison, some people in the States will tell you that we Texans speak our own language! Here's a site with a bit of Scottish music to listen to.

Natalie and I stayed in a Bed and Breakfast (B&B) outside of Aberdeen. It was a two story house with 4 guest rooms. The owner and his wife were very hospitable and the food was great. I recommend staying at B&B's every chance you get.

On our way back to London, we drove through the Scottish Highlands. Most of the journey was on a rutted, single lane road winding through some very harsh terrain. The only animals you could see were sheep. These hairy fellows thought they owned the road, and proved it to us by standing in the middle of it! We drove through four of the five ski resorts in Scotland; The Lecht, Cairngorm, Nevis Range and Glencoe. I never really associated Scotland with skiing, but they have some really good slopes.