My first trip abroad
I was only 16 years old when I traveled internationally for the first time with my church youth group to the UK. It is funny looking back how different my travels have become. It was a very planned and structured trip with a lot of rules and agendas to follow. The best and worst part of the trip was having to fly into Edinburgh since Heathrow was too foggy (go figure). It was the best part because that was the only time during our trip that the "agenda" was broken & it gave me the opportunity to just briefly see my Scottish roots. On the other hand, it was the worst because we had to sit on the plane in the terminal at Edinburgh for 3 hours until they made us deboard, sit in a bus terminal for another hour or so, and then take the 5 hour train trip from Edinburgh to our final destination in England.
During the days, our group traveled through Norwich, Liverpool, York, and Conwy (Wales) mostly visiting historic cathedrals and churches, castles, and some time for shopping. My favorite purchase at the time was a hideous pair of green, Doc Martin boots, which I later got to sport with my school uniform back in the State (my teachers hated me for that). At night, most of us would congregate in someone's room to try not to get caught drinking by any of the clergy or chaperones. The first time I ever got drunk was in a hotel room in York after several Heinekins (classy, I know!). You could always decipher who the rebellious kids were vs. the good kids every morning on the bus to our next destination based on who was passed out drooling and who was leisuring enjoying the scenery after a good night's sleep.
Some other memories that I have of my first trip to the UK are shopping for fruit in a local market in Norwich, going on a ghost tour through York (I think), of course going to the Beatles Museum in Liverpool, and running around in the Conwy Castle. I also discovered the hand carved, wooden love spoons in Conwy, which later became a common wedding gift for whoever was getting married at the time. I also remember our priest making us take communion in the airport on the way there...that was definately a first and a last for me.
And that was the start of many more travels to come....
