Author Archives: Jmalde

I opened my eyes at 3.30am thinking it was 6.30am…I tried to sleep but woke up again at 4.30am…then 5.30am…6.30am and finally decided to get up at 7.30am. Nisha on the other hand was fast asleep and just about managed to get up at 7.30am!!! There was no rush to breakfast so we had a lazy shower and eventually went out to get breakfast from Costa Coffee…guess what…I chose porridge with honey while Nisha ordered an egg and spinach roll. Both had a large, and I mean so large that the mugs have handles on each side!! Oat milk decaf latte!!!

I’ve never had porridge from Costa before!! The consistency seemed to be good, the first few mouthfuls tasted nice but then the after taste reminded me of cardboard!!!. Nisha was enjoying her breakfast and the coffee was actually nice!!. I would give breakfast a rating of 6 / 10. The porridge was actually made by M&S!!!

After breakfast we headed back to The Ritz and relaxed while we waited for Kris, Vikki, J and O…

Kris and Vikki had planned a jaunt and lunch at Foxton Lakes for us all. Our first stop as we left was to Cheaney Shoes. This time, it was Nisha and not me who bought a pair of shoes!!! The sun was out as we arrived and parked up. The kids ran to the locks as the adults sauntered behind them. Even a family of swans graced our arrival…

Soon enough, Graham and Ann arrived and all of us made our way to the local pub and their outdoor seating area. Hunger struck as our drinks were finishing so we made our way indoors, just as well because the wind was picking up!!! A fish cake here, ploughman’s and scampi there, and not forgetting chicken nuggets, we enjoyed our lunch and the perfect time to catch up!!

Our next stop was to nana Monica who lives in a quaint little village…this young lady is about to reach the age of 90!!! Nana Monica is so full of beans and so independent, she puts most of us all to shame!!! Her secret is to have a shot of brandy with her tea everyday!!!

Our final stop was back to The Ritz to unwind and relax before meeting everyone for drinks and dinner. Our chosen cuisine was Italian for the kids (pizza) and Turkish for the adults, with our order ranging from wraps to kebabs!!!

A perfect ending to a couple of days spent with our family!!!

When compared to the last few weeks, today has actually been a slow relaxing day. It’s been fantastic to catch-up with everyone and we can’t wait till we see you all again!!!

Tomorrow morning we start the final leg of our honeymoon and head home.

We have loved every second of our time away, we’ve experienced highs and lows which we never thought possible, learnt and seen so much.

A huge thank you everyone we’ve met on our journey. ❤️

Oh what a beautiful morning!!! The sun is shining!!! Nisha had a good nights sleep…her first words…’Good morning…we need to exercise the same amount everyday like we did yesterday!!!…I’ll cycle to the gym…’ then reality set in…’but I won’t cycle when it’s raining, or when it’s windy…’ well, the thought was good while it lasted…as the kettle was bubbling away, Nisha took out her pre breakfast plate of pastries…the plate she nabbed from Inverness 🤣🤣🤣..ate a quick chocolate pastry before anything else!!! After showering and packing our bags, breakfast was needed…I’m not sure who needed it more…Nisha or myself 🤣🤣🤣

Porridge for me, followed by fresh fruit (3 types of melon and pineapple) and plain yoghurt, yep, the same as yesterday. The consistency was a tad better but nothing to write home about. Nisha decided to be healthy and had scrambled eggs, potato scone and mushrooms, followed by fresh pineapple and strawberry flavoured yoghurt. Usual decaf coffee for me and tea for Nisha.

I would give breakfast a rating of 6 / 10. Yep, same as yesterday!!!

There was no time for table tennis or even badminton…to be healthy, we walked up to our room to collect our luggage. Now, do we walk down to reception or take the lift…well, out of nowhere Nisha says ‘let’s take the lift down to -1 which will give us easy access to the car’. I think Nisha needs to eat more chocolate pastries in the morning 🤣🤣🤣. So we took the lift down to the car, rammed everything in the boot and then waked up to reception to check out. It was only about 9.30am now so we took a wander to Peebles town centre. It’s not big but was absolutely heaving. It’s Saturday so not surprising. After about 30 minutes, we were already heading back to the car. All in all, Peebles is a lovely town and the hotel was lovely. Thoroughly recommend it and we will visit again soon!!!

Over breakfast, we had a discussion about where we wanted to go next…guess what…we had two options 🤣🤣🤣…option 1, we go to Leeds and visit Nisha’s friend Mina and her family (I just want to know what Mina said to her daughter about not being able to come to our wedding 😜), from there we would head to Nottingham for a night….option 2, drive down to The Lakes, stay the night there, visit Mina on Sunday and then head to Desborough on Sunday afternoon. Both of our votes went to option 2. If there’s ever a split result, the car has the deciding vote 😜🤣😜🤣😜.

The sat nav was programmed for Keswick, journey time of just over 2 hours.

The journey was fantastic, once again, the roads were a drivers paradise, and the views were spectacular!!!

30 minutes into the journey and down a single track country road, we went round a corner and I slammed on the breaks!!! I was stuck, the car couldn’t move. There could be the potential of the car getting damaged!!! What shall we do??? There was no chance of Nisha getting out of the car (we all know about Nisha and cows….moo 🤣🤣🤣🤣)!!!

They wouldn’t move!!! They kept looking at us with a totally perplexed expression and just continued munching on grass!!!

We waited….

And waited…

And then there was slow lazy movement…ah ha…there was a gap for me to squeeze through….but if that cow lifted her tail them we’re done for…more so Nisha than me…🤣🤣🤣…either the cow felt safe with us or she’d already spent a penny…we got away unscathed!!!

On we went…before long, there was a fork in the road….the sat nav said go straight, the highlighted image on the sat nav showed left…we went straight (right), don’t forget this was a single track road…we’re gong the wrong way…luckily, these single track roads have passing points…I was about to discover that these passing points aren’t big enough to do a three point turn…it was more like a 5 pint turn, and with each turn, either the back or the front of the car had a meeting with the shrubbery!!! Ok…so…now back to the junction where we should have gone left…there was no chance we could make this now right turn in one go…this time it was a 3 pint turn, with close dealings with the edge of the road…I thought I heard a scrape…a look in the wing mirror didn’t show any bits of my car on the road…on we went…the road changed from single track to double track and with hardly any traffic, we flew!!! While I was driving and enjoying the views, Nisha was trying to book a hotel and eventually booked a room at Hundith Hill Hotel. The receptionist had asked Nisha if we were part of the wedding party…yeah right…But maybe we could gatecrash??🤣🤣🤣. Nisha also booked seats for a play at The Theatre By The Lake to see a play called Beryl. Nisha said that the story reminds her of my story.

Keswick arrived soon enough and we parked up, in search of a light lunch.

The town has a Saturday market going on, and it was very busy. We had a mooch around the stalls, then along the street to the various shops. We bought a few bits and pieces…Our parking permit allowed us an hour and there was only 20 minutes left for us to find lunch, eat it and get back to the car. Nothing really peaked our interest but eventually we came across a small cafe, the menu looked ok so we ventured inside. The menu on the wall had more variety. I settled for mozzarella, sun dried tomatoes and lettuce on a seeded brown roll, Nisha opted for a humus, falafel and chutney also on a seeded brown roll. Both also had large decaf OAT MILK lattes!! The food was lovely, it didn’t last long as both of us were hungry. We took the coffees back to the car and arrived with a minute to spare. We know how to get value for money 🤣🤣🤣.

From there we set off for the hotel. Soon, we pulled into the entrance, the wedding party are enjoying drinks on the lawn…there were enough empty car park spaces so no panic. After check in, and our luggage unloaded, the bar beckoned!!! Guinness for me and a large white wine for Nisha. The lawn was busy so our drinks were taken in the bar area. Before long, the wedding party went inside for dinner allowing us to enjoy the garden with our next drink of slim line tonic waters with lemon!!! We know how to live 🤣🤣🤣

The views from the lawn…

Dinner will be at 6pm tonight in the hotel restaurant, what will we have??? Perfect time to stay in the garden and have a drink…

The bride and groom were sitting on the table next to us and as always, I congratulated them and we started having a conversation with them. They’re local and told us to go for a walk around the lake next to the theatre. They seem like a nice mellow couple.

For dinner, no starters, main and dessert today!!! I ordered fillet of salmon with root veg, mash and hollandaise sauce, Nisha ordered vegetarian Lasagne with garlic bread. The food arrived, both dishes looked delicious!!! My fish and vegetables were cooked to perfection. Nisha took a bite and straight away realised that she was eating a meat lasagne. The sides came a little later, my mash was smooth with a lovely taste. Nisha’s side had changed from garlic bread to chips. We explained the two mistakes to waitress who went back to the kitchen to check our order. She returned with an embarrassed look on her face and was profusely apologetic and was prepared to take the dishes back and rectify their mistake. Time wasn’t on our side because we had to get to the theatre. Through greeted teeth, Nisha forced down the lasagne…yeah right…Nisha gobbled up the lasagne with a huge smile on her face!!! The garlic bread did eventually turn up. All in all, the main courses were actually very good.

Desserts were ordered, a homemade sticky toffee pudding for Nisha and a rhubarb fool for me. Both were delicious!!!

Overall rating for my food is 9 / 10, Nisha gives 8 / 10.

As we finished our dessert, a couple from the wedding party came sit at our table, probably because the sun was still shining on us, or maybe because there were a couple of empty seats 🤣🤣🤣. Again we got talking to them. We were both civil and soon left the table to make our way to the theatre.

The wedding DJ was setting up as we left. Just how many guests are coming to the wedding reception? I just hope we get parking on our return!!!

Our journey to the theatre took 20 minutes. There was a huge car park next to the theatre. £1 allowed us to park there until 7am.

The time was 7.15pm, the play was to start at 7.30pm which gave us a few minutes to go and look at the huge lake. There appeared to be several water sports available. Mental note to come back and go for a swim or even paddle board.

We joined to quick moving queue going into the theatre.

The play was very good and enlightening!!! You may have heard of the lead character, her name is Beryl Burton. Google her!!!

The play finished at about 9.30pm, and as we were leaving, we noticed in the far distance that the sun was setting. Such a beautiful sight…

There was no traffic on our way back to the hotel. As we pulled into the entrance, everything seemed peaceful, no loud banging music, no rowdy guests…not many cars…at least we got a parking space.

Car locked, we made our way to the room, no dram this evening!!! Coming in the opposite direction were the bride and groom with other family members. There were quick greetings as we went by but then the bride looked back and asked ‘how was the play?’ Both of us were gobsmacked!!! She remembered and even asked us if we went to see the lake!!! Such humble people!!!

I’m finishing the blog, Nisha is pretending to watch tv. I know she’s not watching because when she falls asleep, she has a tendency to make sounds like she agreeing to something.

Breakfast will be at 8am in the pub come dining room area.

We wish you good night and I hope the cockerel and peasants don’t get up too early!!!

Your early morning wake up alarm usually means you either hit the snooze button or you turn it off…not Nisha…oh no…she’s so deep in sleep that the alarm is buzzing for a couple of minutes before there’s any sign of life from her!!!

Good morning all 🤣🤣🤣. We were up at 6.30am, kettle was boiling by 6.35am, tv was on at 6.40am. Once we were wide awake, we showered, dressed for our bike ride and made our way down to The Grill Room for breakfast. As we entered, a smiling young waitress took our name and room number, checked we were on her list and once approved, she led us to our table. It was the same table we were seated at for dinner. Breakfast is buffet style with hot drinks brought to us by the waiter, and a small bottle of fresh orange juice on our table.

We sauntered over to the buffet, eagle eye Nisha had already spotted the hot cauldron housing the porridge. Nisha opened the lid and started stirring the porridge. Hasn’t anyone else had any? There was quite a lot in there. Eventually after we were happy that the mixture was properly mixed, I filled two bowls while Nisha grabbed two sachets of honey. As we sat down another waiter came to us asking which hot drinks we would like. Tea for Nisha, decaf coffee for me. Honey was gently poured and mixed into our porridge. Still piping hot, Nisha just began eating it, all the time saying ‘it’s piping, just the way I like it!!!’ Me on the other hand had to cool every spoonful by blowing on it. I’m going to give the porridge a rating of 6 / 10, the thing was just too watery, and even though adding salt improved the taste, it was like soup.

Next course for me was a bowl of fruit and a carton of plain yoghurt.

Nisha had ventured to the cooked breakfast buffet and came back with…

Nisha (I’m a pescatarian 😜😜) had selected scrambled eggs, haggis, vegan sausage, black pudding, potato scones and mushrooms. I still don’t know how she keeps a straight face every time we walk past sheep 🤣🤣🤣.

Next course for Nisha was a bowl full of pineapple.

Breakfast rating 7 / 10.

With breakfast all finished, we headed up to our room to freshen up and grab our backpack, and put on our windproof jackets.

By now, it was raining so we headed to the table tennis room to wait for the rain to pass. Two games were played and I lost those two games, scores were 21/18 and 21/19. I didn’t get battered!!! We then moved onto the makeshift badminton court, a court without Any markings. Nisha isn’t as good at badminton as she is at table tennis. We could have played a game which I would have easily won but no, we just had a practice session.

Dip, when are you going to arrange a game of badminton for us all??

By now, the sun was beginning to appear through the frosted glass ceiling and it was time to get to the Bike Zone, this is part of the hotel where they hire out bikes. It’s a large room in the basement!!! Luckily they have 2 bikes in our sizes. Two helmets, a lock and after signing their waiver that said they don’t take any responsibility for anything that may happen to us, we set off, or so I thought. Nisha was struggling with the gears but eventually sorted it out. Our route meant heading for the exit and taking a left and first right and the trail starts there. Five minutes into our ride and navigator Nisha pipes up ‘Jes, we’re on the wrong route, we want to go to Glentress which is in the opposite direction’. She stopped, took out the maps given to us at the Bike Zone and worked out how to get on the right route. We turned around, back tracked and got to the road. As the Highway Code states, look left and look right, when it’s clear you may go. When the road was clear we started pedalling…and pedalling…we pedalled for a mile and eventually turned left into Glentress which is a large forest with bike treks, camping facilities and lovely views. First port of call was their cafe which had info about which treks were available, they ranged from green which is the easier to black which is the hardest. After green was blue then red. If I had been cycling regularly, I would probably have gone for the black trek. Even though Nisha was getting more confident with her bike, we opted for the green trek. Green is meant to be easy, you wouldn’t have thought that as you have to cycle up a steep hill before things level off. The way down was through the forest and quite fun and easy, even Nisha was smiling on her way down. The whole trek is about 2 miles but on completion, it felt more like one mile. From there we followed another route which went along side River Tweed, through a golf course (every golf course I’ve seen in Scotland has been immaculate!!!). This route is also known as The Tweed Valley Railway Path which runs from Peebles to Innerleithen.

We joined the path from Glentress, cycled to Innerleithen, had a snack at the end of the line (get the pun?). The wind was picking up so rather than venture to the town we turned around and headed back. This time, we bypassed Glentress and headed for our hotel. Our intention was to cycle to Peebles but we were exhausted. The wind was very strong and against us, we couldn’t free wheel as the wind just stopped us dead. We had no choice but to keep pedalling all the way. The stats for our ride are…

I was now running on empty. The lack of exercise since my shoulder injury was really evident!!! Nisha was also beginning to suffer but most of all, both of our butts were suffering…if only we’d remembered to bring our padded cycling shorts!!!

The route ended and a right turn was taken which led us into the hotel grounds. A major problem here, the right turn is on flat ground whereas the hotel is on top of a steep hill. Both of us rapidly changed gears to the easiest setting and slowly made our way up. Neither of us stopped!!! We both made it to the top and onwards to the Bike Zone without needing a rest. UPDATE AND CONFESSION FROM NISHA…she walked up the steep hill and only got on the bike at the top to give the impression she had cycled all the way up!!! I’m totally devastated!!!! At the door, we both gingerly got off the bikes… neither had any feelings in our butts and both needed some refreshments.

From the basement, we slowly walked up the stairs to our room. The windproof jackets are a god send….they kept our core warm which was such a bonus!!!

After a quick shower, we went in search for lunch. The conservatory was reserved for a private function. The waiter presented us with two options. Option one…sit on a sofa next to a wood fire…option two…sit in a makeshift conservatory. Option two please…In this conservatory, there are two long tables, one is already occupied so we make ourselves at home on the other one.

I ordered an oat milk decaf latte while Nisha doesn’t feel thirsty. The waiter leaves us with the menus while he gets my drink. Both of us order Scottish smoked salmon sandwiches which come with crisps and a small salad. Carbs…yep…all about the carbs and protein after such a long ride!!!

During our lunch, I’m working and eating. Kris has been doing so much of the leg work re our fathers probate and I’m doing all of the bits and pieces I can from up here. Nisha is reading her book and such a huge support at such times. It can’t be nice when your unintentionally being ignored. Sorry Nish ❤️. A huge thank you to Kris and Dip for doing so much re the probate ❤️.

Anyway…lunch has been eaten, Nisha orders an oat milk decaf latte…(I’m going to make sure I write this every time we have a coffee 🤣🤣🤣🤣), I’ve ordered a Guinness. It didn’t last long!!!

Nisha has gone swimming while I update this blog. There’s so many check ins today, and from chit chat I’m hearing, there’s a wedding happening this weekend!!!

I’m now gasping for another drink…should I get another Guinness or wait for Nisha and get a bottle of wine. I think I’ll do both…

This seems to be a regular thing with us guys…Kris and his beer, Sal and his beer, Graham and his beer and Vijay and his beer and wine!!!

As for the girls…well…Nisha and Dipti with their ‘it’s on a special so let’s get two bottles philosophy’, Vikki and Ann with their gin…more gin than tonic 🤣🤣🤣, Ria, Piia and Maya drinking god knows what!!! and finally Ranjana ‘I don’t drink but I’ll have a glass…of wine or Prosecco or even champagne’. 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣.

Nisha returned from her swimming session, I think she’s done too much exercise today 😜. A cocktail is required…A whisky sour from Not A Cocktail Bar was needed…and ordered…and drank…

It wasn’t long before hunger reared it’s head and today we fancied a meal in the Miller Lounge…

The mains look enticing so we decided against a starter. Both of us ordered Smoked Haddock, Salmon and spring onion Fishcakes with sides of skinny fries for me and cheesy garlic bread for Nisha. Sorry, no photos…we forgot and we were very hungry!!! No wine today, just another Guinness.

For dessert, we’ve chosen Vegan Chocolate and Coconut Tart, and two decaf americano coffees with OAT MILK ON THE SIDE 🤣🤣🤣.

I tried to take a photo of our dessert but I just couldn’t hold Nisha back long enough 🤣🤣🤣🤣

For a nightcap, I’m having a dram of bunnahabhain 12yr and another whisky sour for Nisha (I don’t fancy an alcoholic drink tonight) 🤣🤣🤣🤣.

That’s all for tonight folks…we check out tomorrow morning…the world is our lobster 🤣🤣🤣

Good morning from a sunny Inverness!!! Alarm was set for 7am but body clock alarm went off at 6.30am!! I’m still trying to find out how to adjust my body clock alarm!!!

Breakfast in our room this morning, scheduled for 8.30am but hungry Nisha was straight on the phone to inform them that they can deliver asap!!! A knock on the door at 7.45am, I was greeted by a cheerful waiter with a large tray. He informs me that the ordered grapefruit juice is not available but he’s replaced it with glasses of both apple and orange juice. Porridge for both of us, followed by fresh fruit and yoghurt for me while Nisha had cheese and toast with her usual cup of tea.

The rating for this breakfast is a generous 7 / 10.

Showered, bags packed and loaded, we set off…no final destination apart from ending up near Edinburgh. Our chosen route is called the Snow Road which much like yesterday took us through a few villages. Our car needed food so Tesco was our first stop for diesel. Belly filled, sat nav programmed for Tomintoul, we set off…

Along the way, a little village called Carrbridge displayed the following sign just above below its name ‘World Porridge Making Championships’…we laughed…you couldn’t make this up even if you tried!!! We’re coming back in October 🤣🤣🤣…Journey time was only approx 1.5 hours but again the driving was so much fun, and easier as mostly all roads were double track with the odd single track. On approaching the village, I stopped near a coffee shop. An intake of liquid was not needed, rather an output was required. Eagle eye me saw a sign for toilets, conveniently located next to a car park. Deed done, we had elevenses in the car. A quick bite of a cheese sarnie. Sat nav was programmed for our next village stop named Ballater. I swear all these villages were named after several drams of single malt!!! Journey time was approx 1 hour. The roads were again similar but with more blind summits and sharp bends. On straight stretches of road, over taking was simple. Roadkill were our constant companion and eventually we gave up trying to workout what animal we passed.

Ballater came and went, just a few basic shops with a filling station. Only reason we stopped was to program the sat nav with the name of our next village Braemer. This journey time was about 50 minutes with lovely views and lovely driving roads. One sad thing we did notice was that most bars and tea shops along the route were closed, probably due to lack of staff!!!

Arriving at Braemer, I pulled into a parking spot on the high street. with our jackets on, and a look up and down the small high street, I saw a shop with chocolate and handmade in its sign. Yep, that’s our first stop. Inside the shop I saw a huge map of Scotland with a few landmarks highlighted to show where specific whiskies came from. On display was a dark chocolate with added Talisker whisky. No way were we going to ignore that. Nisha’s stomach must have been rumbling as she asked for a taster of said chocolate….and yep, the shop assistant duly obliged. A lovely tasteful chocolate with a fabulous aftertaste. 6 pieces please…order placed along with a small pack of different strength plain dark chocolate ranging from 75% to 95%, sadly 100% wasn’t available. We also got a piece of dark chocolate with passion fruit and heather honey and a piece of dark chocolate with smoked hazelnut trifle (smoked on pine nuts). See, us London people is getting posh 🤣🤣🤣🤣. The shop assistant even tied a bow around our box!!!

Nisha packed the chocolates safely in the car and then off to the coffee shop we strode.

Nisha went to order two decaf oat milk lattes and a gluten free coconut bounty slice for us while I sat at our chosen table and waited. Now, not for the first time but what is it with middle England white people? Have they never seen a brown person before? They just stare…I just stare back!!! Energy levels replenished, we went back to the car and I programmed the sat nav to take us to Blairgowrie.

The roads were bendy, steep, and I mean very steep, descents which were nearly vertical!!! We even passed a couple of ski resorts…they were closed but looked like huge operations when the season starts.

When we left Braemer both of us noticed a guy holding up a sign saying Rally 1000 and he was talking to a driver in an old sports car from Europe. We thought nothing of it but as we went further along our journey, old classic cars zoomed past us, a Fiat, a MG, a Jaguar, a Mercedes, and a few we didn’t recognise…further on, what looked like a Mazda MX 5 club went past us, then a few classic Mercedes SL cars…I was in rally mode, I was about to do a handbrake turn and join in with rally 1000 crowd!!!

Kris, we need to do the Snow Road route in our SLK’s!!!

Blairgowrie came and went. Nothing much to see or do there. On to Edinburgh!!!

During the journey, Nisha and I discussed what and where we wanted to go…a nice hotel outside of Edinburgh as we’ve already been there…navigator Nisha was on the case…she got her phone out, made a call…’hello, I’m enquiring about bike hire…’. Hold on, we just had a discussion and bike hire was not mentioned 🤣🤣🤣. I’m always ready for a bike ride!!!

Nisha’s persistence paid off as she found a hydro (posh name for a spa) hotel and bike hire place in Peebles which is about an hour south of Edinburgh. That’s one of our many adventures for tomorrow.

The hotel has many activities, one being table tennis, some of you know it as ping pong. I saw a glimpse of the table during our walk about and knew we would be having a match as soon as we finished roaming.

The match started…the equipment had a lot to be desired but we’re hardened professionals and never blame the tools!!! Not many of you will know this fact but Nisha used to be a county youth champion!!! Yep, I got battered 21 / 16. Rematch is scheduled for tomorrow after breakfast!!!

I’ve started writing this blog while Nisha has gone for a swim. I wanted to go as well but I swam yesterday and don’t really want to aggravate my shoulder injury…I want to play golf!!!

I’m now showered, Nisha’s arrived from her swim, after her quick shower, we’re now in the ‘Not The Cocktail Bar’ where we’re having pre dinner drinks of two whisky sour’s made without egg white!! I do think these were authentic cocktails!!! For dinner, we’ve booked a table in the hotel’s Grill restaurant for 7.15pm.

Dinner menu for tonight…

For starters, I had the spiced butternut squash soup and Nisha opted for Cullen Skink. (I was tempted but the calorie count of double cream put me off 😜). No alcohol with dinner tonight!!!

Both of us opted for the Grilled Scottish Salmon Fillet with a side of mixed seasonal side salad and herb roasted root veg.

No dessert as there was no room…instead we both had a liqueur Scottish coffee, yes, it was decaf!!!

Overall rating of 8 / 10

We’re now back in our room. The view outside is fantastic and this evening, we were presented with a rainbow!!!

Tiredness has now come to the fore. It’s been a long day with about 5 hours of driving.

We bid you good night and will be back in the morning…breakfast is at 8am…

My eyes opened at about 6.30am. Even before I had time to take my first blink, Nisha says ‘I’ve got an idea to run past you’…how was I to respond?? Just turn over and snooze? Pretend I didn’t hear anything? Rush to the loo? Oh no, me being me took a blink and said ‘fire away’!!! To put the next section in context, last night before bed, we had spent an hour or so trying to decide what we were going to do today as the weather forecast showed rain all day. Do we stay and have a lazy day and move on the next day or do we leave Durness today and work our way back to Inverness and stop at a few villages en route. I had already settled for the latter but Nisha had to sleep on the matter. She sure did sleep on the matter and her idea was to drive back to Inverness and stop at a few villages en route. Don’t you just love it when a plan comes together!!! 👍🏽🤣🤣

Eventually after much listening to Nisha and nodding in agreement from me (I swear I was agreeing to what I suggested last night 🤣🤣😜😜), we showered, packed our bags and made our way to the kitchen for breakfast. Nisha explained to Rhona that we had changed our plans and would be leaving today to make our way to Inverness. True to form, both Rhona and Ray were fine with our decision and even suggested what route we should take so we could see more sights. All good, now for some food!!! Both had opted for orange juice, a starter of porridge, a main of smoked haddock on toast, all washed down with a cup of tea for Nisha and a cafetière of fresh coffee for me.

Rating for today was an easy 10 / 10, I will so miss the porridge!!!

Breakfast finished, and I mean finished, no waste at all!!! I put on my vast backpack, bag of dirty washing in my hand, Nisha grappled with her hold-all and our bag of food…I still have no idea what’s in this bag bar a carton of decaf coffee and chocolate corn cakes. As we’re going to different villages, all the luggage is stored safely in the boot (yeah ok, it’s rammed in the boot where we can find space, I’ll post a photo soon 😜🤣😜🤣). Luggage stored, we head back to pay our bill. Cash only!!! Nah bother!! (Graham, George, Mandy and Ann, I’m learning the lingo!!! 🤣🤣🤣)

Ok, before I’m allowed to continue, Nisha has made sure I’ve necked a pint of Guinness and started a large glass of Rioja!!!

So, I’m now continuing after drinking 2/3 of the bottle…these Geordie’s struggle to drink anything other than water 🤣🤣🤣

B&B paid, now back in the car and our adventure starts…first stop is Scourie. The rain hasn’t stopped since we packed the car. Every now and then we get teased with a flash of sunshine and then a hammering of rain and wind…where’s the snow??? 😜

The road to Scourie was uneventful as all the mountain tops were covered in clouds and the rain kept coming down hard…as soon as we arrived at Scourie, I got out and took a photo, got back in the car and onwards to the next village…Unapool. This time, the stop was literally 2 minutes to allows me to take a photo, turn the car around and leave…

Next village was Kylescu. By this time, I was overtaking cars left right and centre, for some reason, people cannot drive in rain!!!

Kylescu does look like a lovely village, I parked up and took a photo. This photo took about a minute and in that minute it looked like I had a shower!!!

Now the fun started. This bit is for all you drivers out there. The road from Kylescu to Drumbeg is a drivers delight. Forget a manual clutch driver car, forget an easy changing automatic gearbox, just switch to manual paddle shift mode!!! The next 23 miles were the best roads I’ve ever driven. All single track, with bends, some sharp, blind turnings and blind summits!!! I was so alive and full concentration on the road. I hardly went past 3rd gear, usually opting for 2nd to go round the corners and to accelerate away from corners and go uphill. I’ve never felt so in charge of a car and learnt so much about the cars capability!!!

Eventually Drumbeg arrived and didn’t disappoint!! As we parked up, a Jaguar sports car departed.

After taking the above photo we were back on the road, again the road was single track and I was back in full concentration mode.

I manoeuvred the car left, then right…even caught up with the Jag and eventually they had to pull over and let me pass…on we went….all of a sudden….’Jes…you just went past the turning to a beach where they wild swim’…that was Navigator Nisha telling me 50 metres after the turning. I take a sharp left into someone’s driveway, reverse back and make our way to the beach, known as Achmelvich beach. This was about 15 minutes one way off our route. Again, a single track road. Luckily only one car was coming in the opposite direction. The car park was full of large puddles of water but all were shallow to allow us to park without any damage to the car.

With jackets and wind heaters on, we followed the well trodden path to the beach. If the weather was warmer, I can guarantee you that both is us would have changed into our wetsuits and gone for a swim!!!

The water was calm but when I put my hands in the water….it was cold, I mean very cold!!! Both is us made a mental note to come back to this magnificent beach!!!

Lochiver was our next destination. Another single track road, again full concentration mode and just a joyful drive. There wasn’t much to stop for at Lochiver so we did a drive past and continued to Ullapool. Another fantastic single track road, and with more rain, I just loved the challenge. This road has more turns than we had experienced.

Ullapool arrived, and after a quick drive around the high street, we found parking on a side street. Once again we put on our jackets and wind cheaters and set off in search of a toilet and lunch, yep, in that order. A toilet was found in a nearby hotel in which we also drank a lovely coffee. From there we found a lovely sea food shack. It is called The Seafood Shack. Operated by 4 women, we both decided to get smoked trout salads.

Nisha had already started munching away while I was on a telephone call. As she was finishing her portion, I started mine. Each mouthful was tasty and it was filling a gap. Nisha had finished and got up to get some napkins. It was during this time when the wind really picked up and whoosh…my salad got blown away. Did someone think I needed to go on a diet??? About a third was blown onto the floor. I was gutted but I overcame the trauma of not finishing my food. It’s not always about filling your belly!!! I’m not mentioning any names 🤣🤣🤣🤣.

Back in the car and on to Inverness. Or so I thought…navigator Nisha had another stop she wanted to visit. ‘Jes, it’s on the way, it’s called Rogie Falls, it’s a waterfall and literally a 5 minute walk from the car park’. For those who know about Nisha’s 5 minutes know that 5 usually means an hour!!! Firstly, Rogie Falls was on our route, secondly, the waterfall was 5 minutes from the car park and thirdly it actually was an ok waterfall. (We’ve seen better!!!)

The rain did drench us to and from the waterfall!!! Next call was Inverness. Back to dual carriageways!!!

We had completed the North Coast 500!!! The latter part of our adventure being very emotional but also joyful.

While I was on the phone at the Seafood Shack, navigator Nisha has booked a hotel in Inverness. All I knew was that the hotel has a swimming pool and is near the Tesco which had run out of diesel when we had visited it before.

The rain was getting heavy as we pulled into the car park. I had driven for over 5 hours!!! Nisha checked the weather forecast. Rain should stop at 4pm. The time was 3.40pm. What a dilemma, do we trust the Met Office weather forecast or just make a run for reception and get out luggage later. We ran…checked in, and our room was around the back of the hotel. The receptionist said that there is parking available near our room. Thank god for the rain and our lack of trust in the Met Office!!!

Around the corner and towards the back I drove. I parked near our room and we unloaded our luggage and swim bag.

We have an external luxury terraced chalet. The shower would be described as a tropical rainforest experience. Luggage dumped, we head to the pool. It’s only a 10 metre pool with a jacuzzi and steam room. The pool was sufficient for a few laps and under water competitions. A quick visit to the jacuzzi and our time was done. Showered and back in our room, we decided to go to the Whisky Lounge for a drink. The drink ended up being a Guinness, a bottle of Rioja, a main course of pan fried hake for me, roasted monkfish for Nisha and a shared cheese board to share for dessert.

With the food all consumed, we slowly drank the remaining the wine, so slowly that we didn’t have time for a single malt!!!

Back at our room, Nisha decided to have her daily 30 minute kip while I continued with this blog. To my astonishment, 30 minutes was 10 minutes!!! The need to fill out the breakfast in our room card and a hot chocolate appeared to have overcome her 30 minute kip!!!

You’ll have to wait until tomorrow to see what we’ve ordered for breakfast!!! Could it be porridge??? Could it be a vegan fry up???yes yes, I can hear you all shout…‘you’re too predictable when it comes to breakfast!!!’ As for Nisha…even I don’t know what she’s ticked 😜😜😜🤣🤣🤣.

Silence…that’s what greeted us this morning. Not a sound from anywhere, even the main road was empty!! We woke up at 6.30am, showered, dressed and ready for breakfast. Were we hungry…yes…were we ready for breakfast…hell yes!!! I had authentic Scottish porridge followed by authentic smoked salmon on toast with coffee and orange juice…Nisha had scrambled egg with smoked salmon on toast, with tea and orange juice…only have a photo of the porridge…we were too hungry to take a photo and then eat!!! (Secret to porridge making…add half teaspoon of salt to the soaked porridge when making it!!! Rating for breakfast was an easy 9.5 / 10

Breakfast completed, both of us put on our layers…thermal base layer, polo shirt, fleece, wind blocker and finally a rain jacket, not forgetting a woolly hat!!! car loaded, sat nav programmed, our destination was Sandwood Bay. Travel time would be approx 45 minutes along bendy roads, a majority single track with passing areas. Our depart time was approx 9.15am with the expectation that the roads would be busy. The roads were nearly empty and the drive was a joy!!! The educated camper van driver usually indicated left at a passing point and slowed down which meant I could overtake. On the other hand, the odd Aston Martin driver had to absorb the rear view mirror image before they indicated left at a passing point!!! Eventually we pulled into the car park. Only two other cars and a camper van. Walking boots on, we followed the sign for Sandwood Bay. According to another sign, the distance was approx 4.5 miles, which translated to approx 2 hours along rocky, uneven and wet terrain, with a few stepping stones along the way. We’ve covered this distance before…no problem for us!!! Let’s go…!!! From the moment we set off…the views were fab!!!

As we gingerly made our way over the stepping stones, our audience of two cows were watching to see who would step into the water. It was as if they were about to give us a stepping score!!!

Our score would have been 10 / 10 🤣🤣🤣

On we continued and after a few minutes I turned around to see Sherpa Nisha…

I always thought a Sherpa shows you to route!!! 😜😜😜

As mile 4 approached, the distant skyline was changing…

We kept walking…down a sand dune and boom…what a beach!!!

A look left…pure white sand…a look right…pure white sand…are we really in Scotland??? Totally gobsmacked, we just stared straight ahead, totally mesmerised by the turquoise coloured sea and white sand!!!

Shades were needed, it was sunny and getting warm!!!

According to our temperature sensitive fingers, the sea temperature was approx 5c-7c. If it wasn’t for the dangerous undercurrent, Nisha and myself would have ran into the sea!!! Instead, we climbed the nearby rocks to find a comfy seat to eat some lunch. In our bag, we had packed thepla and our favourite, chocolate corn cakes!!! With each bite, we looked out to sea and contemplated life and how lucky we were with the sunny weather (thanks dad!!).

Lunch finished, Nisha decided to venture across the rocks to look at the water pools and water life. A barnacle here, a sea urchin there, she was in her element, although not totally convinced that the urchin was an urchin 🤣🤣🤣.

Slowly we made our way to the edge where rhe waves were crashing up against the rocks…such a lovely feeling and noise!!!

Quick break…while I’m writing this blog, I’m listening to a cuckoo!!!

Budding water biologist Nisha had completed her investigations and it was time for a walk to the end of the beach…still not many people…!!

Towards the end of the beach, we noticed that a small Loch was flowing into the sea…this is where my my inner biologist came to the fore…was the flow from a fresh water Loch???

My conclusions were that it wasn’t fresh water, my assistant Nisha informed me, after spitting out a drop of water, that there was salt in it!!! 🤣🤣🤣

Faced with a two hour trek back to our car, we slowly retraced our steps up and down the sand dunes until we reached the grass, boggy path. I swear the way back was harder!!! Slowly but surely we made our way back, achieving another 10 / 10 over the stepping stones, but on this occasion we stopped!!! After walking for about 9 miles, we came across a photo opportunity. Vikki, you owe us a few single malts!!!

As we rounded the last corner, the landscape looked exquisite…

Back at the car park, which was now totally full with cars also parked on the grass verges, while sheep and baby lambs freely roamed around us, we made our way to our car, our boots were replaced with comfy shoes and we melted into our seats. After 5 minutes we made our way to the exit. Do we turn right to go back to our B&B or left to Droman Pier. Left it was, just waiting for the sheep to let us through. Now this was a winding single track road!!! The pier is small but beautiful!!!

It was now time to head back and feed ourselves. Only one, or rather 9 problems…

Eventually they cleared a path for us to continue. The time was about 3.40pm and the hotel we wanted to visit for a drink and meal was closed, again due to lack of staff. Food wouldn’t be available until after 5.30pm with no guarantee of reserving a table. We decided to head back to Smoo Cave Hotel…

On arrival to the car park, there were only 2 other cars there so I pulled onto the same parking spot as last night. We retraced our footsteps from the night before and entered the bar. Ordered the same drinks and wangled the same table (reserved only for locals). Nisha fancied a veg lasagne but it was still cooking and wouldn’t be ready for at least another hour so we both opted for haddock and chips. No starter today as we fancied dessert. For Nisha, dessert was homemade apple crumble with custard, while I opted for Orkney Fudge Cheesecake. As you can see, both dishes were lovely 🤣🤣🤣

Food eaten, we returned to our room to now unwind, Nisha is as usual having a ‘quick kip’ while I’m writing this blog with intermittent contributions from the cuckoo.

A good Scottish morning to you all!!! For the first time in ages, I managed to sleep and have get up at 8am rather than the usual 6am. Nisha on the other can sleep for ages and ages!!!

We didn’t have much hope of getting breakfast at the Premier Inn so I had the add hot water pot porridge which fell into our bag from yesterday’s breakfast at Holiday Inn, along with the small honey sachet. Nisha decided to have a banana, only one problem, that’s the banana I had yesterday evening. Nobody told me!!! Undeterred, Nisha had her usual mug of tea and showered. By the time I was showered, Nisha was packed and ready to go. The hotel did impress, but is that because it’s new???

Car packed and ready to go, I turn the key and I get the message that it needs a drink of coolant. Diesel was also needed so we find the nearest filling station. Now cast your mind back to the old style filling station where there are only two pumps which are accessible from either side. I expected someone to rush out and ask what we wanted 🤣🤣🤣. I filled up, went to pay and seek out some coolant, I even asked the cashier for some red coolant, he just looked at me with a totally blank expression…don’t worry I said, just point me where I can get some water…there’s a tap over near the yellow sign he said…I said thanks but have you got anything I could use?? That’s when he smiled, rushed to the back and came back with a yellow watering jug…yep, I wasn’t the first one to ask for water 🤣🤣🤣. Leave it near the tap when you’ve finished was his last remark. Now that the cars thirst was fulfilled, off we set to Durness. Only 2.5 hours away!!!

The journey are a drivers delight!!! Straight roads, single trek roads, bendy roads…you name it, I experienced it!!! The road went left…a spectacular view!!! The road went right…another spectacular view…the road went up a steep hill…it was like the road was going to drop off a cliff!!!..nope, just a spectacular view at the peak!!!.

An over take here, an over take there, even an over take at a bend…all safe as you could see miles of the road ahead!!! Overtaking was a doddle!!! Only issue was whether to look at the spectacular view to the side or keep my eyes on the road 🤣🤣🤣

Our journey took us past Dounreay Power Station…homage to Vijay!!!

We had no idea what to expect from our booked B&B (The Bungalow) but as we approached, the location looked to be perfect. Initially we have driven past but a quick turnaround and the car pulled into their drive. The house looked empty. Nisha knocked on the door. No answer but then I saw a silhouette…it’s a man but Nisha had been speaking to Rhona. Nisha introduced us and found out they Ray is Rhona’s partner. We’re invited inside and that’s when Rhona appears. A quick introduction and chitchat and we’re shown our room. It’s comfy with a lovely view…

We dump our luggage, freshen up and off we set. Hunger has reared its head…not many options…because of Brexit, local places can’t find staff and therefore have stopped serving lunch…so….a burger van (Nisha’s thinking dirty burger 🤣🤣🤣). Other option is The Toasty Boys van. Yep, a van that sells toasted sandwiches!!! We chose the latter. 3 cheese option for Nisha and I chose garlic cheese. I don’t think we’ll be having lunch here again anytime soon!! It filled a gap when needed but it’s the after effects 🤣🤣🤣. Luckily, our parking spot allowed us to stay for 2 hours. Navigator Nisha had found a nearby tourist attraction, Smoo Cave. Before we set off, I had to put on my walking trousers. With the door open, I got seated on the back seat and changed. Navigator Nisha guarded the door, stifling a giggle. Changed and ready to go, Nisha produced a few chocolates!!! A couple of bites and off we walked. The attraction is literally 5 minutes from where the car is parked. We arrive and wow…what a view!!!

Down the steps we tentatively walk, and another wow!!!

The trek slowly led us to the cave. Sadly the sign said that the third cave it closed because of the wet and windy weather. The first cave is open so we venture inside. Wow!! (Because we know you love our photos, we got soaked while taking the following…

On our exit, a lovely Robin posed for us…

Before our ascent, one last photo was taken…

Now, back at the car, we identified a major problem!!! Not enough water was being drunk!!! Navigator Nisha and her favourite companion Google found a local Spar. A wel stocked minimart it is!!! 2 bottles of water, a bottle of Red for Rhona and Roy and a dark chocolate and salted caramel bar later, we set off to find our next destination, Balnakeil Beach. Will it look like Brighton Beach, or Margate, maybe Southend beach, possibly even like Newquay beach??? What we saw leaves all mentioned beaches in the shade!!!

Like a few others, we walked along the beach to the far end where we could see large rocks. Beyond the rocks is a road. Keep going is our motto so carefully up the rocks and on the road we go…round one bend, and then another…either side of the road are fields, these ones were full of black cows and their calves. We’re slowly approaching a gate but that’s where the cows have decided to rest. They stare at us as we approach. I can’t make out if their mean stare is at the pescatarian or the pescatarian who eats meat. Has to be the latter!!! A quick rush through the gate and we’re safe!!! There’s sand on the road and there’s more and more of it. Where’s it all coming from??? Sand dunes…yep that’s right, to the left of us there’s sand dunes, same to the right and the sand is so fine to the touch. Another 50 metres of walking and we see…

The beach was deserted. Our aim was to get down there but how??? We’re quite high up and don’t really want to jump or even slide down a steep sandy bank. Eventually Navigator Nisha finds a small track with footprints. Yep, that’ll do…down we go, a sharp turn right and then left, a sharp decline and we’re there!!!! The whole beach is empty!!!

Absolutely fantastic!!! We test the water and it’s not even that cold!!! Probably about 7c, and yes, we’d love to get in there and have a swim but safety first, even though the surface looked so calm, it’s the under currents which are dangerous!!! We decide to just soak in the views.

A moo…yep…a moo…we look at each other…another moo…Nisha looks up and on the cliff is a black cow. She’s not admiring the view, no way, she’s striding along with authority, knowing exactly where she wants to go…she disappears…she’s gone…has she fallen off the edge?? Is she following the road?? Moo…she’s on the beach…yep, she’s made it to the beach…well, she is a local 🤣🤣🤣

The beach is empty yet she still walks our way!!! Unbeknown to me, Nisha doesn’t like cows being too close and heads straight for a route back up to the cliff…’relax’ I say…no chance of that happening 🤣🤣🤣. ‘Follow the cow hoof marks in the sand’. Nisha doesn’t slow down, she’s quickened her pace. I’m laughing, the cow is far enough away from us but Nisha really hates this cow 🤣🤣🤣. We’ve climbed a couple of dunes and end up in a flat area surrounded by more dunes!!! It’s not the Sahara so I know we won’t see camels or mirages 🤣🤣🤣

We’re still following the hoof marks and eventually the sand turns into road. We’ve survived!!! 🤣🤣🤣. Now, do we turn right and head back?? Or continue our adventure and go left…I said left, Nisha said right…left won as there was a bend about 50 metres ahead which led to to who knows where!!!

The bend arrived, the road ended and was replaced with sand…sand everywhere!!! Only thing to do was continue. Another 50 metres and another decision to make. Straight or right. Nisha was relaxed now. Must have been the lack of any moo’s 🤣🤣🤣. The right turn was the correct decision…look what we saw…

You should know by now that we couldn’t just take a photo and leave!!! A closer look was required!!! Following the footprints lead is closer to this view…

This photo doesn’t really show you how high we actually are. Sadly there wasn’t a route down to the sea otherwise we’d have gone straight down, of course we would have checked to make sure there wasn’t a cow there already 🤣🤣🤣

Now, I don’t know if it was the sea air, or even seeing the cow and trying to work out how it made it to the beach but Nisha wanted to run up a dune, she was so sure she could reach the top without any problems…ready…set….go….

I’ve stopped laughing…honest!!! 🤣🤣🤣

It was time to head back now and rather than go the long way, we took a little known shortcut…little known because no one knew about it…including us…on the way we spotted holes in the sand covered cliff edges which are homes to birds. Not sure which type of bird but we saw them swoop straight into their homes…

The shortcut led us to the beach…Nisha looked left, then right…no cow…she relaxed…the clouds were now getting grey and looked full of rain…we walked on and found the point that had led us to the beach. Another trek upwards and eventually to the top. Moo….yep…the cow…not to worry, she was on her merry way in the distant field going who knows where…well…she definitely knew her destination!!!

The walk back was nice and relaxed. Back in the car and after a swig of water…it was time for an early dinner. Only option is a place called Swoo Cave Hotel. Don’t need a sat nav for this one, only passed it a few times already 🤣🤣🤣

Only two cars in the car park…ours makes three. Parked up, we enter the bar/restaurant. It sounds lively…there’s a space at the bar…red wine for Nisha and a pint of Guinness for me. Not many empty tables but the barman says we can have a ‘reserved for locals’ table as we’ll be done by 7pm…it’s only 5.30pm.

From the menu, our shared starter is scallops with black pudding.

No I didn’t have any black pudding!!! Scallops were lovely.

Main course…both decide to have haddock with crunchy chips…

A choice of dessert. Hot chocolate cake or rocky road cheesecake. Such decisions are difficult to make!!! Rocky road with two Caol Ila please…😜😜😜

Yum and all finished!!!!

We’re back at our B&B. Nisha is having a ‘quick kip’…(nothing quick about this kip 🤣🤣🤣. I’m just finishing this.

There are two options for tomorrow’s activities. I’ll find out after Navigator Nisha wakes up. Homemade porridge for breakfast!!!

Good morning everyone!!! We’re back!!! It’s been such an emotional few weeks!!

We left home yesterday afternoon with my niece Piia, she was on her way to meet friends in Leicester Square. At King’s Cross station we said our farewells and made for the exit to have an early dinner…something light was needed, but only one restaurant we found served a salad….ok, backup plan was put into action (any food will do 🤣🤣🤣)…checked Code and found Happy Face Pizza!!!! Lovely food!!! The pizza base was nice and light. We had a half and half (yep Vikki, they did a half half 🤣🤣🤣 waiter thought I meant we’re paying Dutch 🤣🤣🤣) 50% marinara and 50% margherita, bottle of white and a tiramisu to share. They actually honoured the code discount even though it’s only valid for their Victoria branch!!! Stuffed and ready to walk back to St Pancras to board a train to Luton Airport!! St Pancras is truly cosmopolitan, we felt like tourists with our backpacks!!!

We weaved through the throngs of locals tourists to the National Rail ticket office, 2 tickets to Luton Airport Parkway please…are you sure it’s Parkway and not Luton Aiport asked the lady…Nisha was puzzled, I just said yep, that’s where the shuttle passes (well, I hope it does 🤣🤣🤣)…8 minutes till the train departs….DAMN…no time to get a coffee…yep…decaf with oat milk 😜😜. Platform 1 here we come!!! Up the escalator and there’s the platform. We’re on, and even found a couple of seats. No delays!!! That’s a bonus…we’re on our way!!! First stop is Luton Airport Parkway…RESULT!!! We could have stayed onboard to Kettering or even Corby (yes Vikki, we know your a Coby lass 🤣🤣🤣) but Kris is in London, Vikki in Turkey…we’ll stick to our original plan 🤣🤣🤣

20 minutes and we’ve reached Luton Airport Parkway, we rush out and board the shuttle bus, the driver says we should get off at the first stop!!! Journey time is 5 minutes..RESULT!!! 5 minutes walk time from the bus stop to the hotel…RESULT!!! Check in…5 minutes…(I think you know the drill 🤣🤣🤣🤣)…A quick check of the room, an order for an additional bath towel, phone cal to our parents and down we go for a drink…we’re parched, we’ve had a long journey…we’ve ventured out of London 🤣🤣🤣

Holiday Inm has no Guinness!!! That’s a huge NO NO…barmaid said to try the other hotels…nudge nudge wink wink 🤣🤣🤣. We head for the exit, inform the barmaid we’re off hunting for a Guinness!! Ibis is next door…we trek through the bushes and we stop….in front of us we see the Ibis…the long trek of 2 minutes has left us gasping for a drink…I think I’ll have a Guinness 😜, no oat milk so a soya latte for Nisha…she’s still hanging from the wine 🤣🤣🤣

I wouldn’t order another Ibis Guinness!!! So a trek back to Holiday Inn…are we hungry…no….thirsty….water will do…what’s on the box…BGT…early night it is then 🤣

Good night all…sweetest of dreams!! Oh, by the way, we have breakfast included…will we be eating breakfast at the hotel??? Read on to find out!!!

Breakfast was at the hotel, just add water pot porridge for me, with fresh fruit, coffee was better left in the packet!!! Nisha had fried egg on toast with a hash brown and mushrooms, the hot water should have stayed in the machine!!! Generous rating of 5 / 10. Sorry breakfast was not worthy of photos…😜

We’ve been back to London and now we’re at Luton airport to board a flight to Inverness, yep, we walked from Holiday Inn…online checkin so onto departures and security…which queue isn’t going to ask me to remove my belt and boots….I think I’ll choose that one…not may in this queue…belt off, shoes on!! Nisha got stopped, searched and even her bag got a once over, looks like she forgot to separate her liquids 🤣🤣🤣 my bag contained a full water bottle which went through the scanner 🤣🤣🤣.

Looks like the flight is full, we’ve been allocated seats slap bang in the middle of the plane. We’re seated and all I can hear is a balling kid…don’t have my headphones 🤣🤣🤣

Touchdown!!! Welcome to Inverness where the weather is cloudy and temperature is 14c. Blah blah blah and we hope you choose EasyJet again.

The car started!!! Looks filthy but all is safe and well. After getting our overnight clothes sorted, the hunt to find petrol was next…Tesco had run out of diesel, not to worry, navigator Nisha found a Morrison a mile up the road…they’ve got diesel but only 4p more expensive!!! Needs must…the tank is filled up to the brim…let’s get started on the NC500 route!!! Soooo many caravans and slow drivers…well, it is a Sunday and everyone has nowhere to get to!!!

Such beautiful views on the route, and before long we see a sign for the Glenmorangie distillery. We drove through the gate but something didn’t feel right, it was so quiet, not a sole in sight…except a sign…Distillery Closed. Of course, it’s a Sunday (sorry Kris, no distillery edition). Back on the A9 and on to Wick. As per usual, Nisha had a stop planned, an hour and a bit later we took a sharp right onto a narrow and short road, cars and motor homes took up the 10 parking spaces but there were two empty at the far end. While Nisha put her warm layers on, I just put on my walking boots and windproof jacket. Off we set to follow signs for ‘steps’. Yep steps, named Whaligoe Steps…we walked down the steep steps and were met with breathtaking views…

Now the walk back up the stairs was more like a workout but we somehow managed…huffing and puffing our way to the car.

Next stop was Wick and to find somewhere serving lunch. Navigator Nisha found a hotel which stated it does the best fish and chips in Wick…the sat nav said the hotel was only 10 minutes away. We found the hotel and even found parking outside the entrance. Not many cars today, not many people today. The reception was unmanned so we waited and eventually housekeeping found someone. Bear in mind that rhe time now was 2.30pm, we asked the approaching receptionist if lunch was still being served. She looked at us and said the restaurant is now closed and reopens at 5.30pm…oh yeah, it’s Sunday. We leave, get back into the car and set off. Where can we get food??? We have a fresh batch of thepla, that’s an option, the local Wetherspoons didn’t look inviting. Navigator Nisha found a place…go left at the junction, 2nd left, then after 100 metres take a sharp right…oops, sorry Jes, wrong turning…(that’s the Navigator Nisha I know 🤣🤣🤣). By now we’re on a country road , fields and farms on both sides, we even passed a huge derelict school…by now I’m concerned, are we going to some farm where we don’t get to leave?? (Too many horror movies)…eventually we pull into a rather lovely looking farm…

We drive in, it looks small but we turn a corner and wow, there’s a newly built shop and restaurant. We park up and venture inside. Nisha rings a call bell and all of a sudden, a waitress and the owner appear. Table for two please….we’re led upstairs and to our table. This place is so clean and busy with customers.

Nisha and I both order Cullen skink soup and a Brie and cranberry sandwich to share. Oat milk decaf latte for drinks. When the food arrives, it’s piping hot!!! We tuck in, it’s not bad, the soup could do with more fish and less potato, the sandwich is nice as is the latte. Dessert was a vegan and gluten free orange chocolate tart…very sticky…Rating 8 / 10.

Next stop is our boat ride in Wick!!!

The water was calm, but it was still cold, lucky we had layered up and had on our woolly hats!! Our motto…ALWAYS BE PREPARED!!! The water was choppy, ride totally exhilarating and the views were fantastic, views which can only be seen from the sea…

Back at the harbour, and with the captain’s permission, we disembarked, headed to their hut to return their life jackets and water proof macs. At the car, we took our layers off and programmed the sat nav to take us to Duncansby Stacks!!! 30 minutes later we pulled into a near empty car park, was this the place?? There was a lighthouse and exquisite views but no stacks. Yes yes, you want me to tell you what stacks are…well, let me show you…

Couldn’t stay her for long as the time was 7.30pm and we had two places to get too…

Next was John o’Groats, literally 8 minutes from where we were. A quick drive and we were there…not much to do here apart from take a photo at the sign, yep, just like everyone else!!!

It was raining now, the light was fading and the clouds descending so off to our hotel in Thurso. Only a 30 minute drive. The rain was getting heavy and luckily hardly any vehicles on the road. The journey was straight forward. The hotel, a Premier Inn is new and the rooms look new. Check in was on a self service terminal, very quick and straight forward. We’re exhausted tonight, so an early night…but hold on…Spurs qualified for Champions League football today so will be watching MOTD!!!

We’re heading to Durness tomorrow…

On Saturday 7th May 2022, PJ passed away. He had so many titles, husband, dad, brother, dada, nana, the list goes on and on. I’m going to call him PJ, the title everyone knows him by.

Now, I could start by telling you all what happened on Saturday but nope, I want this page to be about our memories with and about PJ.

My memories will always be about golf.

Let me tell you about a typical round of golf with PJ. Picture the setting, a warm weekday morning, tee time booked for 10am. We’d usually play in a four ball (to you non golfers, this means 4 golfers play together). 3 of us would usually be there about an hour early to warm up, get out clubs and trolley ready and put our golf shoes on. A final putt on the practice green and it was time to walk to the 1st tee. Time now was about 9.35am, and still no sign of PJ. The journey time from home to the golf club is usually 5 minutes. As time passes, we’re all beginning to stress and keep checking out watches. Golfers with tee times after us are having their final practice putts or in the pro shop. The time is now 9.50am and all of a sudden a silver Mercedes roars into the car park, it’s PJ and his usual parking spot is near the entrance to the car park. He gets out of the car, cool as you like ‘hello boys, lovely day!!’ Within 5 minutes, he’s unloaded his trolley, attached his bag to the trolley and locks his car as he makes his way to the 1st tee saying hello to near enough everyone there. Every time PJ was at the course, there’s always a ‘hello PJ’ being heard. What about his golf shoes you all ask…well, when PJ was playing golf, he never left home without putting on his golf shoes. It’s 9.55am, he selects his clubs, comes to the tee greets everyone, a couple of stretches and he’s ready. Teams are picked and off we go. I’ve gone left, PJ has gone straight and just cleared the rough and ended up on the fairway. Reliable Trev is in the middle of the fairway and Angelos, another leftie like PJ is just to the right. Banter started, we make our way down the fairway. On the way down the hill, PJ dashes into the cloakroom to leave his shoes to change into after the round. We’re lucky, we’ve all found our balls!! (BEHAVE!!!).

PJ is first to go. Usual dilemma for him is whether to take on the brook and try and get it over or, play short. Usually depends on his mood (has he had a good nights sleep? Has he had a good breakfast?). He’s laying up. Angelos next, he goes for the green, and plays a good shot. Reliable Trev, hits his shot, straight as ever and on the green. Puff on his cigarette, club back in his bag and off he goes. I’m next, I’m in the rough, I need to hit a right to left shot. I’m ready and guess what…it’s a good shot but could have been better. PJ walks up to his ball. Now, PJ has a tendency to go for gold but miss hit the ball and it trickles into the brook. Whoosh, he hits the ball, it’s airborne, it looks good, he bounces just before the green, is it hard enough…it’s rolling, going up and down the contours. It’s stopped. It looks like 6 foot from the flag!! Where’s PJ…oh he’s at the brook looking for golf balls!!! Golf ball retriever in hand, he walks up and down the brook…he’s stopped, he’s extending the retriever, he’s stopped a homeless golf ball is about to be given a home!!!as we walk over the bridge, I look back and see he’s not got one, but fished out 3 golf balls!!! I shout to him to hurry up!! PJ has more golf balls than he needs!!! As he walks up to the green, we’ve played our shots and just wait for him to finish up. He walks to his ball, marks it and runs it clean. His putter is now in the air acting like a plumb line to figure out the contours. Has he figured it out?? The marker is replaced with the ball and he steadies himself to hit his putt. Putter goes back and gently hits the ball…it’s rolling, did he read the contours correctly??? The ball nears the hole, as it gets closer, PJ lifts a leg ready to celebrate…the ball veers slightly to the left, along the edge of the hole…leg down but the word we’ve heard hundreds of times before are omitted from PJ’s mouth…’bastard’!!!!. 2 pars and 2 bogeys. Nope, not going to explain!!! On to the next tee…

PJ is smiling, either it’s the par or the fact he found the golf balls. We all select our clubs and walk up. Now, we should be playing golf here but what’s PJ doing??? Fencing with his golf club Angelos is his victim. Usual comment to Trev is ‘you smoke too much!!!’ Trev smiles and puffs away 🤣🤣. We always had fun, PJ always distributed mar bars at the 10th tee. His swing was unique, his body so supple and flexible that teenagers would look in awe at him!!!

I could go on and on, so many lovely memories…like the one where PJ turns up in shorts, a sight you’re never ever going to see again!!, or the time he got a hole in one (he has a total of 3), or the time where he chatted up the lady captain, or the time he won those competitions, or the time….yep, they go on and on!!!

That’s my memory…

This is from my brother Kris…

What a weird 2 weeks it’s been. Exactly 2 weeks ago, to this day, our father passed away. We all thought we had more time with him but clearly God had other plans for him. Although we feel deep sadness that he isn’t with us any longer and won’t be able to share his wisdom and knowledge any more, we know that everything he has instilled in us will be with us forever and see us through the good and tough times that we will undoubtedly experience. The most striking thing that has come from my fathers death is that he has brought our family closer to each other. Never have I known a time when my sister, my brother and myself have been so close. We all have partners and my sister and I have kids and every single person has stepped up and shown how loving, caring, strong and supportive they can be. It’s been amazing and I know that our relationship will get stronger as each day passes. I am so lucky to have such a wonderful family. We are also all here for my mother and we know that although she has experienced a great loss, with our support and love she will come to terms with her new life and learn to accept and enjoy the years ahead, whilst still having memories of father.
So as we have said goodbye to dad, we have also celebrated his life and recounted many fond memories. We have seen many funny videos and pictures and also remembered the tough times that he faced in his early years and how he overcame them to achieve what he did during his 78 years on this earth. Five more weeks and it would have been 79 years! It’s been an emotional two weeks but it’s also been 14 days where we have all come together as a family and that is what dad would have wanted. We love and miss you dad and we know that whatever we do, you will be guiding us, looking out for us and probably having a go at us when we get things wrong. We know you will still be there for us ❤️.

This is from my sister-in-law Vikki…

I first met PJ back in 2015 as a member of his staff at the venue in Desborough. When Kris used to say to Gillian and I that PJ was on his way, we’d always do a quick whip round to make sure everything was in shape as he would be the first to pass comment if something was out of place or if a mirror had a slight mark on it. My first personal memory of PJ was when I helped arrange the golden wedding anniversary party for Hansa & PJ at the venue. I remember working 12 hour days leading up to the event to make sure everything was perfect for them and their guests. Every knife and fork was shining and every glass was glistening. I arrived at the venue around 3pm that day with PJ waiting to greet me at the top of the steps. He opened up his arms to me and gave me my first official Indian hug. He thanked me for my efforts and told me the place looked wonderful. I knew then and from that day forward I would always continue to support the Malde family and I am so fortunate and happy that my relationships with the family have gone from strength to strength. Although not always in London, my thoughts are never far from you all.

This is from my niece Piia…

I don’t think I ever told my nana any of the ways I really thought about him. He was my best friend in so many ways, he was my grandad, he took care of me, and he spoiled me, he was my dad to ground me and give me advice and help, and he was my friend to talk to me and debate with me and take me to do all the things I wanted to do and to share our interests. And it’s hard to find that many things in one person, but in him I did. Its lucky for someone to find that in their grandad let alone in anyone. It could seem like I’mromanticising it because we did argue, but we talked about it,and we knew who we were and took each other for exactly who we were. He was truly someone so special to me, to a point I didn’t really comprehend. 

I told him so much, more than what I think most of you would think appropriate to tell your grandad. I told him when I was about to smoke weed, what the experience was like, my first boyfriend, my friendship drama, my near car accidents- I felt comfortable telling him and getting a new reaction every time- I’m pretty sure I caused his heart to raise at an unhealthily high level.  

He believed in me to a point it felt like I could do anything and be anything, that when we started something as soon as I put some work in, he knew where I would end up. When I first started drawing, he told me he loved each and every picture, and when he went shopping, he made sure to buy me a sketchbook, pencils and a how to draw book. When I started golf, he took me to the golf club, as soon as I showed signs of a good grip and a decent swing, he got me a membership, showing me YouTube videos of how to swing, bringing me golf books to read for inspiration, and buying me my own set of clubs and shoes, and making sure to pack me the same golf snack he took when we went out to practice, water and a bar of chocolate. And most recently, when I was stressed and upset about trying to find a job, he phoned all the people he knew who could help me, he tried to think of ways for me to get better, to get where I wanted, and he told me its ok it will take time, and I will find the perfect job that valued me, because he knew what I was capable of. My grandad not only believed in me, but he taught and developed me. He shaped and will continue to shape the person I have become and will become because of ever day I spent with him. Whatever I do, whatever I achieve and who I am will all be in the essence of him.

Nana taught me to have a simple but complex mind. To be simple in love, in kindness and honesty and loyalty. But be complex in thought, passion, skill and learning. And to never be cunning, to never be dishonest and never live life on any terms but your own, to never live life if it isn’t lead and followed by your own pure intentions no matter what anyone else does. To be the person he shaped me to be.

And I don’t care how people say I have had 22 years with him, and I was so lucky. If I’m being honest, it wasn’t enough. I thought I had eternity with him, he was untouchable in my eyes. It’s a short time to me, and that’s all. You can never have enough time or be ok with the time when the person is as important as he is to me. I appreciate and love the time we had but it will never be enough for me because he was everything to me. It’s hard to come to terms with and life is a little cold because it’s missing one of the best things- you. I really miss you. And I honestly love you so much it hurts a little bit.

My nana was and are one of the only men in my life. I never knew much of the love of a dad, or the nice happy bits that go with it. But my time with him, and his role in my life, that was enough to show me what that was like. He was and I will always say it, he was the father I never had, and the best grandad I could ever ask for. Him and my Nani, they are blessings brought down on each and every one of our lives.

This is from my niece Maya…

I’m just going to share a short and sweet memory of my grandad that will always stay with me and always keeps me happy.
Whenever I would go to Nani house after school, dinner would be ready and Nani would call us to the table to eat. Nana would never hear Nani calling him (because he turns the TV up volume 40 watching Indian news). We always had to go and get him. He’d walk to the dinner table and before he sat down he would do a little dance and sing ‘yummy yummy yummy I got love in my tummy, hey ho, Malde house in the family’. I have no idea where he got this from but he continued doing it and I will always remember it.
Well then…..when we then started eating our dinner, he would have his specific seat at the table with his newspaper and glasses laid out perfectly (this soon evolved to a iPad and a light up magnifying glass). Nani would serve him food and he would eat so slowly because he would keep being distracted. I remember all of the times nana was so invested in the newspapers he would always spill his chaas all over the table. Then he would get angry.
He then told us we weren’t allowed newspapers; iPads and phones at the table…but of course he couldn’t resist.
My nana was a humorous man filled with love. This is only one memory but I can think of so many more. These memories will always stay with me and make me smile.
I know he’s always going to be here for me, watching down on me and I am going to make him proud.

This is from my wife Nisha…

I first met PJ five years ago. I can’t remember the exact details of when I first met him, (forgive my old age brain!) but I distinctly remember my parents being so happy that I had met someone with such a loving, caring and welcoming family and from that day forward, throughout the time I have spent with PJ, I have felt warmth and love. It is so clear the hole he’ll leave in the family. He is a father figure to not only his children but his 3 grandchildren , nieces, and nephews. He is a mentor, an advisor, a businessman, a spiritual guide , a comedian😂, and a debater, but above all I’ll remember him by the huge love his family showed him and the love and pride he showed in his family. Whenever we visited, he would talk with such happiness about the achievements of his three grandkids. He would talk so fondly of their independence, confidence, and abilities. He would also tell me so many stories about how spoilt he was by his wife Hansa, how he totally appreciated her in every way imaginable but overall, how he adored her cooking.

At the funeral, several people said to me that it is going to be difficult for me now and that it is my responsibility now to take care of Jesang and the family But, in truth this is not how I see it. Since PJ’s passing, Jesang, Kris, Dipti, Vikki, Sal, Ria, Piia and Maya have become so close and I see it as a privilege to be part of this close family and I am honoured to be able to support and help them through this difficult time. After all the love they have given me , I will always be thankful and blessed to be part of this family which has been cemented together by PJ. His legacy and family values will always remain strong and alive x❤️

This is from my sister Dipti…

It’s been a very hard 2 weeks with lots or different emotions. My dad was a spiritual and deep thinking man. I miss dad so much but in a weird way when we’re sitting at my parents house it feels like my dad is still with us I still feel his presence.. A positive, it’s brought my immediate family so much closer and so much open with each other. My dad will be looking down at us feeling proud of each of us. We’re a close family but have always been busy with our own lives, hopefully this is the nudge we needed to think about everyone close around us and bring us closer together. I have lots of memories of dad, happy and sad. But what I want to share with you is what Nisha and I witnessed 2 days after my dad left us. I was at my parents house washing up and I saw what looked like a butterfly whirling down behind my dads banana tree in his garden. I called Nisha to witness what I was seeing and she said it was a feather. I climbed down my parents patio and picked up the white feather. That feather meant the world to me it showed me that dad is at peace and he’s in a happy place. I miss you dad xxx

This is from my brother-in-law Sal…

I have known PJ for a relatively short period of time.
My first meeting was when I was invited for a traditional Malde Christmas dinner in 2017, receiving a warm welcome with lots of lovely food followed by fun and games taking me back many years. It was lovely to experience and to see everyone making a big effort to keep family traditions going, something which has been lost over time in many families.

Within a short period of time his true character came to the forefront, always showing kindness, generosity, loving and protection of all family members, a man of honour, a true leader, role model and someone to admire.

My first experience of seeing PJ in all his glory was at his 50th Wedding Anniversary celebration. In his element showed real character, given this was my first time meeting the wider family, quite an overwhelming occasion. Throughout the course of the afternoon and evening PJ took the time to talk if he saw I was alone, making sure I was well fed and watered and to make sure I was enjoying the celebration, something I appreciated very much.

It has been a strange couple of weeks, days have felt long but at the same time the period has passed quickly. One thing I can say for sure is that PJ will be looking over the family feeling extremely proud of the unity, strength and courage each and everyone has shown during this tough period, his memory and spirit will be with us all forever.
It is a privilege and an honour to be part of the family.

Please add your memories below…

Late Prabhulal Jesang Virpar Malde (my father)

9th June 1943 – 7th May 2022

It is with great sadness that we announce the untimely passing of Mr Prabhulal Jesang Virpar Malde of London, UK, formerly of Nairobi, Kenya.

He was a much respected golfing and fencing champion. Meditation played a great part in his life and he would often sit and meditate for hours on end, he seemed so at peace with himself and the world.

He was a father figure to generations, a man of love, passion, knowledge, and wisdom. He will never be forgotten as he lives on in all of us.

Son of the late Jesang Virpar Malde & the late PanibenJesang Virpar Malde.

Son in law of the late Liladhar Kara Karania & the late Parratiben Liladhar Karania.

Prabhulalbhai was the husband of Hansaben Malde.

Father & father in law of Krishna & Vikki, Jesang & Nisha, Dipti & Sal.

Dada & Nana to Ria, Piia & Maya.

Brother & brother in law to Dhiru & Nita, Saku, Chiman & Pushpa, (late) Satish (Cie), Hansa & (late) Ashok, Bhartiya & Dilip, (late) Dinesh & Ranjan, (late) Chandu & Mina, Sushi & Narendra, Nimu & Pariyant, Anju & Dhiru.

May his soul rest in eternal peace

Om Shanti, Om Shanti, Om Shanti

Saadri/Shraddhanjali & funeral arrangements to be confirmed