RANDOMOSITIES

Skip the cow, chicken or even sheep. It's a seal I really want. So cute!

British people take their dogs everywhere. Not that I mind, because I'm missing mine.

Crappy coffee is the norm.

On our ferry voyage, we saw puffins, seals and even a porpoise. Real ones, in the wild, sans zoo cage bars.

Trains don't fool around here. The train blurred by the crossing we were stopped at. If anyone had been on or near the tracks, they'd have been toast.

In most places, parking is quite a challenge. Or impossible. Mostly impossible.

Do you know what a bap is? Yeah. I didn't either. It's a bun.

TIMELINE

9:45 a.m. Board the ferry, the very same boat my heroine in UNDERCURRENT, Cassie, falls overboard from and ends up back in the 1st century. Don't worry. I will avoid any gift shops on Holy Island, where she bought the broach that she accidentally dropped over the edge of the boat, hence her tumble.

10:00 a.m. The ferry leaves for Holy Island. Lindesfarne Monastery is the first place Vikings raided in England in 793 BC.

11-1:00 Roam around the priory ruins. Honestly, could've spent at least 3 hours on this island.

2:00 p.m. Eat lunch at a little seaside cafe in Seahouses. The food isn't that great, but the scenery is.

3:00 p.m. Leave for York.

7:00 p.m. Eat at a Nepalese restaurant. Why all the ethnic food? Because I will barf if I eat any more fish & chips.

THOUGHTS

This is probably the biggest event of my entire trip. I have looked forward to this moment ever since I wrote UNDERCURRENT. This is where the story begins, and is it as magical as I expected? Well, the English weather seems to think so. The day began with a traditional mist. And yes, it was worth every penny and as terrific as I'd hoped.

The priory ruins are larger than I had in mind when I penned my story. I am fantastically disappointed, though, that the museum didn't even talk about the Viking raid. What the heck? Those monks were killed here, so it seems to me there ought to be some kind of memorial. Nope. Nada.

I didn't realize how big the island would be. Some people even live on it. There's also a huge castle, which we didn't have time for, that was built around 1200.

This was my first sea voyage. Okay, so the shore remained in sight the whole time, still . . . just sayin. I wondered if I'd get seasick, but nope, not nearly as much as when my crazed husband takes the wheel of the BMW (I've finally figured out half my road anxiety is because of his need for speed). I loved going up and over the swells in the ferry. I now understand the strong pull of the sea vs. land. 

In York, our Air BnB is a block from Micklegate. That's right . . . the Micklegate. As in the one where traitors heads were hung to keep people in line. Walked right under it on our way to dinner. Is that callous or what?