Road trip day 3
I had an early breakfast at the hotel before setting off for the final day of my road trip. Once I finished breakfast, I drove around the corner to Barter Books, which is a second-hand bookshop in a converted old railway station. I was very excited to visit because the venue sounded intriguing. When I entered I instantly felt like I had stepped into heaven! There were so many books and there was an old model train driving along the top of the bookshelves - it was so quirky! I wandered through the book stands looking at the different genres of books, from travel to philosophy. There was also an old station cafe where you could have tea. I would have loved to stop for tea, but I’d just had my breakfast, and was eager to press on with the day. However, as I was leaving I couldn’t resist buying a Barter Books souvenir t-shirt and mug!
After leaving Barter books I drove a short distance to the coast of Northumberland to a seaside village called Craster. It was so misty and windy when I arrived, with a very ‘British’ seaside feel. There were only a few cars in the carpark and we had to hover around the visitor centre (which was closed) to connect to their Wifi in order to pay for our parking. Once the parking was sorted I embarked on a walk along the coast to Dunstanburgh Castle. As I walked I saw lots of crows swooping and floating on the wind currents. It was so misty that I could barely see the castle in the distance.
I really enjoyed the walk and found my mind wondering to stories I could write. It was such an inspiring walk and I could let my imagination come to life along the way. When I arrived at the castle it was a ruin, so there wasn’t much to see. I walked around the walls of the castle and was surprised to find hundreds of snails on the stones. Who knew that the castle was now home to hundreds of snails!
The walk back to the car was bracing and when I arrived I was surprised to find the car park full! I must have missed the rush hour and was lucky to get a prime parking spot. A small van had arrived which was selling hot drinks and sandwiches. I ordered their famous Craster kipper in a bun. There is a well-known smokehouse in Craster, which sells kippers, which I had walked past on the way back to the car. It was soo tasty and just what I needed after my walk along the coast.
After I finished my kipper in a bun, I set off driving to Berwick upon Tweed. The only issue was that there was no service, so I couldn’t put the location into my Google maps. I was a little nervous but tried to re-trace my drive back to Alnwick. I must have gone wrong at some point because I ended up on narrow rural roads which were very unrecognisable! I had no choice but to keep driving until I got service. After about ten minutes of being lost on the outskirts of the village, I seem to arrive at the junction of a road and pick up signal. I was able to put Berwick upon Tweed into my maps and set off driving!
I was excited to visit Berwick upon Tweed because a friend had left London five years ago with the dream of running her own shop. Her shop is in Berwick upon Tweed and I have been dreaming of visiting it for years! I didn’t tell her I was visiting, my plan was to drop by and surprise her. When I arrived in Berwick upon Tweed it was bustling with people - it has a very busy city centre. I looked up the shop and made my way there. I was delighted to see my friend Abbi and her little dog Shakira, and her newborn baby. I had a nosey around the shop and bought a couple of gifts. We had coffee across the road from the shop and a big catchup. It was so lovely to see how well she was doing and that the shop was thriving! I left feeling inspired by her entrepreneurial mind and the life she has created in Berwick.
I now had the final part of my drive which was to Edinburgh. It was just over an hour from Berwick upon Tweed to Edinburgh, so not far at all. As I drove into Edinburgh I felt a great sense of achievement at completing my road trip on my own and having such an adventure along the way!