Preparations well underway

I decided I wanted to spend the winter holiday in Scotland about 3 weeks ago. I started doing some research online but realized that the time difference was going to make booking hotels very difficult. So I switched my research to find a travel agent. I sent email to 5 different travel agents and only 1 responded. She had already done some preliminary work for me, and when we talked just before Thanksgiving Day, we were well on our way to a great working relationship.

It seemed that in no time she had worked with her agents to develop a wonderful itinerary for me based on the specifications I'd given her, which were minimal. So I have flights booked and hotels booked, including Christmas Eve Day and Christmas in the Highlands, which was one of the most important specifications.

So far I'm thrilled with the work Ellen Morse has done for me. I'm looking forward to working through the final details with her the week before I leave.

I've done further research about weather, so I had to do (really, I had to) some online shopping for some clothing. Because I live in the Chicagoland area, all of the clothing makes sense for activities at home in the winter. Even the boots. Really.

I already have a set of converters for electrical outlets, so I'm fine there. I just need to clarify my best options for a phone while I'm the UK. As of this moment I'm not planning to take my laptop with me, but I know there are Internet cafes in the larger cities. I'm guessing I'll have access in a number of areas in the country. I'll ask Ellen what she thinks before making that final decision.

Because I plan to do a lot of sightseeing and walking around, I'm not worried about "dress up" clothes though I've been told people will be dressing for Christmas Eve dinner and Christmas Day luncheon. I'll have to find out yet how formal that is at the place I'm staying so I can plan accordingly. I'm not worried about clothes but the shoe requirements of said clothes. Yep, it's all about the shoes!

I've taken up curling this year and one of the places at which I've been booked has its own curling facility. How fun is that? Okay, for me it's fun. All in all, I'm very excited about this trip. Now back to work so I can take actual vacation the whole time I'm away!