Getting to Glasgow, Scotland: it’s Half the Fun

In my world, there’s something wonderful about having a day off when everyone else is having a day off. It’s the Friday before a holiday week, near the start of summer, so I know many people are sneaking out early. They have 1 foot out the door. I took the day off entirely because I just finished a busy week of travel to Washington DC and I’m about to leave on a legitimate adventure.

Glasgow, Scotland is just a stop along the way to the start of a multi-day cycling and camping trip, but “Getting to Glasgow” sounded catchier then “Getting to Oban”, where we picked up our bicycles. From Columbus, Ohio our first stop was Toronto Canada. Spoiler alert: we got Timbits at the airport.

It was a planes, trains, and automobiles kind of day. Family took us to the airport where there was a slight scramble with luggage that was delayed getting back to Columbus from my DC trip. My suitcase and I were ‘ships passing in the night,’ but we were in the same place long enough for me to swap out a couple of important items.

From Columbus, it was only about a one hour flight to Toronto – not long enough for the monitor on the back of the seat in front of me to be functional or show me a new release movie. It was, however, the start of a two week adventure!

So, why do they say “Getting there is half the fun?” Besides the anticipation of packing your gear, making plans, and deciding what you really need to make vacation a true vacation, there are little moments of separation from day-to-day responsibilities.

There’s checking your email one last time to make sure everyone has what they need before you go away. Am I the only one who does that? I am passionate about my work AND getting better every day at delegating and letting go. There’s a small bit of sadness in topping off your pet’s food bowl one last time before shutting the door behind you, but it’s a little easier when you know they are in excellent hands while you are away.

When the plane lands in a place you have never been before, and you have to navigate the rush of hundreds of other people who might also be in a place they have never been before, there’s a buzz of excitement, anticipation, and perhaps some nervousness.

No one wants there to be a flight delay because there were not enough staff to get one last passenger, who needed assistance, off the plane. A small delay like that could cause you to miss a connection that causes you to be entirely rerouted. No one wants to lose a piece of luggage or almost get onto the wrong train, but those are some of the stories you share later. Those uncomfortable moments, in transit, make for good stories.

There are nine cyclists in our party. Eight of us made it to Glasgow train station at around the same time, then took the train to Oban. We were in the same train car, with open seating, but got to sit with a variety of different characters, who openly and enthusiastically shared their stories. Our seat mate had a little bit of brandy mixed in with her chocolate flavored drink. “No one knows what I’m doing!” she said. Until she tells the whole train car. She’s a widowed single mum, with kids and grandkids scattered around the area, and takes that same train several times a year to see the family. “I think they miss me even more than I miss them when I’m away.”

When we got to Oban the group split off in several different directions, each to find their accommodations for the night. I was loaded down with all the gear and clothes I’d need for a five day bike camping trip, along with everything we would need to relax for another five or six days at the end of the trip, in the small fishing town of Dunbar. I had surely overpacked, despite reducing and eliminating items multiple times. As I dragged my suitcase up the hill, then up another hill, then turned a corner and went up yet another hill, I thought maybe the week in Dunbar really didn’t need anything but a coffee mug and my Kindle.

But the view from the top, they say, it’s worth the climb. I agree, wholeheartedly.

When our friend joins us the next day, her stories will be the focus of attention. I’m confident she’ll get here, to this Scottish fishing town where the characters in the pub are just as cantankerous as you would expect them to be. We have a day to explore Oban by bike. At that point we need to be loaded up with gear, for the adventure to continue.