This is possible thanks to O.K. who has kindly lent me his MacBook. It does not only mean that we can stay in touch easier (and not depend on text messages which can run up a substantial mobile phone bill from one country to the other), it also allows me to keep up with your blogs, look up timetables for buses and trains or opening times of places of interest, and of course I can blog, too.
I won't do much of the latter, as I do not have the equipment here to transfer pictures from my camera to the MacBook, but every now and then my sister takes a photo with her mobile phone, and I am allowed to use these.
The account of our journey from Ludwigsburg to Ripon is long... as was the journey! So brace yourself for more detail than you probably care to know, or simply skip the next few paragraphs.
We set off at around 1:20 pm from home and arrived at the cottage in Ripon around 9:00 pm. Add one hour for the different time zone, and the trip took nearly 9 hours. Only a small portion of that was spent in the air; the flight from Stuttgart to Manchester takes well under 2 hours.
But we had to take two different trains from Ludwigsburg to the airport. Our flight was delayed; it had not yet arrived from Manchester at the time it was actually supposed to be already in the air again with us on board.
While we were being processed for boarding, we saw the plane landing and people getting off. Then it was our turn. The 40 minute delay was cut short to 25 minutes thanks to favourable winds.
In Manchester, waiting for our luggage took some time, too. We then made our way to the train station as quickly as possible, but it was a rather long walk all across the airport. One train took us into Manchester itself. The next train - the Transpennine Express to Leeds - was already at the platform, and left exactly at the time it was supposed to leave.
In Leeds, it was the same story - our connecting (local) train to Harrogate was already there. It left even 3 seconds before its scheduled departure! In Harrogate, we walked out of the train station and over to the bus station, when the bus to Ripon was just pulling up. So, apart from the plane's delay, everything went really smoothly. We were so lucky!
The only "problem" about never having any waiting time between one leg of the journey and the next was that we did not have a chance to buy anything to eat or drink. Lunch had been little and early, and there had been nothing to eat or drink on the plane (flying with a cheap airline means they expect you to fork out an inordinate amount of money even for a small bottle of water). The plan had been to get sandwiches and drinks at some stage while waiting - but we never had to wait!
On the Transpennine Express, a friendly man with a trolley sold us a bottle of water, tea and a packet of crisps. That was all we had until we arrived at the cottage, where a most welcome surprise was waiting for us:
My sister-in-law had kindly left a bag for us, with bread, milk, orange juice, cheese, butter, eggs, jam, tea, coffee, biscuits and even a bottle of white wine! How kind and thoughtful that was!
Slices of bread with butter and cheese have never been so tasty :-)
You won't be surprised to hear that we slept like logs.
The next day, Wednesday (yesterday), was beautiful - warm, sunny, blue skies. We spent all afternoon in our garden, with my sister-in-law and my niece joining us for tea and cakes, and catching up with each other. It was a wonderful day, the first of our two weeks here in Ripon at "our" Matchbox Cottage.
(The pictures are from around lunch time, not in the garden but taken right in front of the house. The cat is our new little friend; we think she belongs to our landlord's daughter and have not yet had occasion to ask her name.)
It's amazing how a small journey can turn into such a long day. I always feel that wherever you are travelling, you can write the first day off.
ReplyDeleteHow lovely to have a nice spread for your arrival though, the last thing you want to do upon setting your bags down is to shop.
The cottage looks lovely as does your furry little new friend.
The weather has turned a little here but I hope it will improve for the rest of your fortnight here in England Meike. Last week we saw temperatures of 30C so although it's rare, it does happen! :)
It would have been impossible to do any shopping ourselves - everything was closed by the time we arrived!
DeleteOur landlord & lady had put some basics into our fridge, too, so we would not have had to starve. But my sister-in-law's package was most welcome, giving us more choice and of course it was the kindness of that gesture that counted the most!
A few years ago I was in Ripon on my own for a week, and not a drop of rain, with temps reaching 29C - the hottest I've ever experienced in Yorkshire :-)
I often find that travelling is worse in prospect than in reality. I always feel tired days before a trip at the very idea of it, but there is something exhilarating in actually travelling. And it is awfully nice to arrive! You look very happy and I hope the weather stays fair for you.
ReplyDeleteFor me, the hanging around at the airport, waiting for things to happen, is the worst part of travelling - you're not really moving towards your destination yet, but you're not home anymore, either.
DeleteMy holiday starts once I have my luggage and am on my way to the Transpennine Express!
Two more or less rainy days yesterday and today, but the forecast for the weekend is good.
I'm so glad that you are now in your temporary home, fed, watered and refreshed with sleep. I have to admit that I no longer enjoy air travel. In fact overall travel is no longer the joy that it once was.
ReplyDeleteAir travel is just so much hassle. I understand the security process is necessary (although the bad guys who want to do bad things always succeed in spite of all that security) but it makes the time spent on the ground longer than the actual flight!
DeleteHow wonderful to have that food waiting for you after a long journey with no food!
ReplyDeleteAnd I remember your photos of the cottage in Ripon, if it is the same one, it is so pretty! And your family in Yorkshire, I bet they are very tickled to have you back with them for a nice visit!!
It is the same cottage, Kay - we don't want any other, this one is perfect for us! Everything is within walking distance (we have no car here), 5 minutes to the market square, and yet our road is quiet enough to ensure good sleep :-)
DeleteIt was lovely to see my mother-in-law, sister-in-law and niece again, and I'll get to see more family members soon.
What an efficiently timed journey that was! I am in a ferry approaching g Vancouver Island and home. I started out by car from the Fraser Valley at 1530 and it is now 1935. I will arrive home at close to 2030 and will only have travelled on the edge of our province! Wishing you a lovely holiday!
ReplyDeleteThank you! The dimensions of Canada and the US (and most other places on the planet apart from our tiny little European countries) are so different! We reach another country within a few hours' drive or flight and still "complain" about long travelling times :-)
DeleteGlad you arrived safely and the awaiting food and drink was a wonderful thing that your sister-in-law thought to do!
ReplyDeleteThe cottage looks cute and the kitty sweet - know you will have a fabulous holiday.
Mary, the cottage has been pictured here on my blog last year and in 2014, too; if you like, you can see all the rooms and our lovely garden if you type "Matchbox Cottage" into the search box at the top left corner of my blog.
DeleteMy Yorkshire holiday is always fabulous, and I have no doubt that this year will be "more of the same" :-)
Thank heavens you made the travel connections. Any more delay and you wouldn't have reached Matchbox Cottage until midnight.
ReplyDeleteThat is entirely possible! I don't know when the last bus from Harrogate to Ripon goes, but we could have asked my sister-in-law to pick us up if nothing else had worked.
DeleteA long and tiring journey, but what a lovely surprise when you arrived, tired and hungry, to find the food your sister-in-law had left at the cottage. And a good night's rest. Enjoy your two weeks in the UK! I am sure you will.
ReplyDeleteYou are right, Kristi, we are enjoying it already :-)
DeleteOh I would have such difficulties nowadays to handle delays like that... One reason among others why I don't really travel any more! Glad you caught the train and the bus, though. And how nice of your s-i-l to have thought of providing you with some food on your arrival. I wish you a really good holiday!
ReplyDeleteDelays are inevitable, it seems - and once they happen, there is nothing you can do but bear it and hope for the best. And our connecting trains and the bus were actually better (with no waiting time in between one means of transport and the other) than if the plane had been on time! But it was a long day, and we were glad to finally arrive.
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