GABIT attendees thread

[ames]

One month til I leave! Gah!
*takes deep breath and rechecks to-do list*

[Cagranosalis]

My friend keeps telling me to get to Blarney Castle in Ireland. I may, but not sure I really want to kiss the stone. Don't think the gift of gab is worth whatever nasties might be living on said stone in the form of people's spit and smeared lipstick...no matter how much antibiotic gel used afterward. P

To be honest, after the conversation I once had with my Irish brother-in-law, it's not the spit an lipstick I'd be worried about.


Quickie question for a newbie to these things. I know there's not be an published agenda for the official events yet but... can any At or cons veterans please give me a fairly rough outline, timescale-wise of the weekend. I need to organise some kind of babysitting/childcare arrangements and need to start thinking about it pretty soon and what I can attend and what I might have to miss. I'm not staying at the Ren, I live way, way, way too close to justify the cost, so will be popping to and fro as need dictates.

[EH-T]

got a little nervous the last few days, the person who stays with my mother and dog when i travel wasn't sure she could do it, but found out today that she will definitely stay with mom + dog. what a relief. don't think i could hold out till at6. AND...she will be staying with them long enough for me to go to wales, scotland and ireland and stay around for the viking festival in york! SO EXCITED!!!! tomorrow i make all reservations. any last minute suggestions of "should not miss castles/abbeys/ruins" in ireland? 34 days till take off. i leave here wed. arrive there thurs. that should make me go into full jet-lag condition just in time for the cocktail party.

Glad everything worked out. I'll have to remember places I visited but Edinburgh is a must (an ancestor of mine designed the floral clock in the Princess Street Gardens ) and there was a beautiful town in Wales we visited called Conway. Lovely in summer, not sure about February though.

To be honest, after the conversation I once had with my Irish brother-in-law, it's not the spit an lipstick I'd be worried about.


Quickie question for a newbie to these things. I know there's not be an published agenda for the official events yet but... can any At or cons veterans please give me a fairly rough outline, timescale-wise of the weekend. I need to organise some kind of babysitting/childcare arrangements and need to start thinking about it pretty soon and what I can attend and what I might have to miss. I'm not staying at the Ren, I live way, way, way too close to justify the cost, so will be popping to and fro as need dictates.

I checked my old e-mails in case I had anything saved (not) but proceedings do start early, 8:30 am I think. There is a Q&A in the morning and one in the afternoon on both days. In and around those they show entertainment in the hall and do autos/photos. The auction (not to be missed) starts at 5:00 on the Saturday I think. The farewell (cryfest) is Sunday early evening. The younger crowd with better memories can help more.

Basically, you will have full days.

[antoa]

The only 'breaks' are during the photo and auto sessions when you are waiting for your row to be called. There is usually vids playing in the hall, but many chose to hang out in the lobby and chat with friends. You can always opt to go later, after your row is called, but don't wait too long or you might miss out.

[Chelle DB]

I was just wondering how much time so you think one needs to see the main attractions in Ireland and Scotland? I'd like to try to sneak up to Scotland for a couple of days next time I'm over in the UK and find out where my hubby's family came from - I suspect it's around Arbroath area - I recall one of the uncles talking about it. I've seen a picture of the headstones of David's great great grandfather - his name was Thomas Smith and his wife was Jemima Reed - we found that out 6 months after our Thomas was born...and the names David and/or Reed had been passed down to each generation, hence my sons middle name being Reed but the Thomas part kinda through us off guard. He got his great great great grandfathers first name and his great great great grandmothers surname and we had no idea. So I thought maybe I could have a look around where the family came from.

[ames]

To be honest, after the conversation I once had with my Irish brother-in-law, it's not the spit an lipstick I'd be worried about.


Quickie question for a newbie to these things. I know there's not be an published agenda for the official events yet but... can any At or cons veterans please give me a fairly rough outline, timescale-wise of the weekend. I need to organise some kind of babysitting/childcare arrangements and need to start thinking about it pretty soon and what I can attend and what I might have to miss. I'm not staying at the Ren, I live way, way, way too close to justify the cost, so will be popping to and fro as need dictates.

As Eh-T and Antoa noted above, they're nicely full days ... and evenings, if you managed to snag a cocktail ticket (Friday) and/or care to join the fun at the Abby Ball (Saturday). I recommend stopping by for that - the costumes are fun, dancing is energetic, and there will be copious amounts of blue jello to be consumed (non-alcoholic, of course)!

I still have my grab bags, complete with itineraries, from AT3 and AT4 kicking about, if you'd want more specific details - just PM me if you do =)

I was just wondering how much time so you think one needs to see the main attractions in Ireland and Scotland? I'd like to try to sneak up to Scotland for a couple of days next time I'm over in the UK and find out where my hubby's family came from - I suspect it's around Arbroath area - I recall one of the uncles talking about it. I've seen a picture of the headstones of David's great great grandfather - his name was Thomas Smith and his wife was Jemima Reed - we found that out 6 months after our Thomas was born...and the names David and/or Reed had been passed down to each generation, hence my sons middle name being Reed but the Thomas part kinda through us off guard. He got his great great great grandfathers first name and his great great great grandmothers surname and we had no idea. So I thought maybe I could have a look around where the family came from.

Funny how stuff like that randomly works out, eh? My parents were trying to be really careful to not name me after any family members (whereas my sis got both of our blood grandmothers' names) ... but when they brought me 'round to the Wismers the first time, it turned out that Grandma Wismer's middle name was Katherine (mine is Catherine) -- she was so chuffed my parents couldn't bear to tell her it was just a happy coincidence

[lame moose (mocha)]

I was just wondering how much time so you think one needs to see the main attractions in Ireland and Scotland? I'd like to try to sneak up to Scotland for a couple of days next time I'm over in the UK and find out where my hubby's family came from - I suspect it's around Arbroath area - I recall one of the uncles talking about it. I've seen a picture of the headstones of David's great great grandfather - his name was Thomas Smith and his wife was Jemima Reed - we found that out 6 months after our Thomas was born...and the names David and/or Reed had been passed down to each generation, hence my sons middle name being Reed but the Thomas part kinda through us off guard. He got his great great great grandfathers first name and his great great great grandmothers surname and we had no idea. So I thought maybe I could have a look around where the family came from.

if you go according to the travel books, you only need 3-4 months to see everything.Seriously! i am only taking a quick 1 day trip just over the border to a town named dumfries. there are a few neat old castles nearby which i will do a cab trip to and then head south back to york for a few days. at least then i can say i've been to scottland. i really wanted to go way north and see the highlands, but just don't have time. but in the books, there are so many beautiful and interesting places described. the best to do is find a good book on scotland(i have a book on ireland called "DK eyewitness travel") it's loaded with photos and descriptions of EVERYTHING and lists of restaurants, hotels, tours, history and just about everything you need to know about traveling in scotland. go thru the book and highlight everything that interests you. then go thru again and locate each thing on a map and plan how long you need at each and eliminate those that are way out of the way from other places that interest you. use a different color highlighter for the "must sees" then plan your route accordingly. that's what i've done for ireland and i think it will work out pretty good. the only limiting things to how much you can see is how you travel. if you drive, you can see a lot more because you're not limited to train or bus schedules. i'd kill myself and many others if i tried driving on the other side of the road, so i'm stuck with the train and taxis. besides, a rental van that has a ramp for my scooter costs at least £150 a day. that's how i'm doing it. hope that as least gives you ideas. the "top 10-scotland" by dk is a pretty good resource book also. would love to be able to explore more of scotland - maybe for at6.

[Chelle DB]

Funny how stuff like that randomly works out, eh? My parents were trying to be really careful to not name me after any family members (whereas my sis got both of our blood grandmothers' names) ... but when they brought me 'round to the Wismers the first time, it turned out that Grandma Wismer's middle name was Katherine (mine is Catherine) -- she was so chuffed my parents couldn't bear to tell her it was just a happy coincidence

I got my mothers name for my middle name but my daughter got my grandmothers name for her middle name - it was something I had always intended long before I had children. Thomas was meant to be Thomas David so he could carry the David name but hubby wanted the name Reed coz that too had been passed down. Our kids names were planned out. We didn't have to wait to see what they looked like to name them.

if you go according to the travel books, you only need 3-4 months to see everything.

I'd be pushing it for more than 3 or 4 days! I don't have that much time - I mean if I didn't have to worry about coming home to a family and job then maybe yeah but not for this little black duck. I'm gonna have to squeeze what I can in just a few days. Not to worry - I'm sure i have plenty of time to plot and plan my trip.

[donamac]

Apparently, my flight is coming in at Terminal 5. The buses listed don't include 111. From where do you "make your way to the buses"? Do I need to get to the Central Bus Station first and then look for this bus?

Also, about the Oyster card...it's good on multiple days, right? You put money on it and it's good til it runs out and you can put more on it? Am I understanding it correctly?

After going through customs there are signs pointing to the bus station where there are guys in yellow jackets who can tell you which number bus to take. My flight (BA) comes in to term 5 as well. I've never had a problem finding my way. The buses are all numbered--there are a lot of them. And it is a long way to the Ren from Terminal 5. Once I ran into someone else going to the con and we shared a cab. Good idea to have some British money in case you need to pay. Last time I got the free bus.

[samcarterrules]

I was just wondering how much time so you think one needs to see the main attractions in Ireland and Scotland? I'd like to try to sneak up to Scotland for a couple of days next time I'm over in the UK and find out where my hubby's family came from - I suspect it's around Arbroath area - I recall one of the uncles talking about it. I've seen a picture of the headstones of David's great great grandfather - his name was Thomas Smith and his wife was Jemima Reed - we found that out 6 months after our Thomas was born...and the names David and/or Reed had been passed down to each generation, hence my sons middle name being Reed but the Thomas part kinda through us off guard. He got his great great great grandfathers first name and his great great great grandmothers surname and we had no idea. So I thought maybe I could have a look around where the family came from.

Hey Chelle, you know I live in Arbroath, right? Hehe! Next time your in the UK you should come visit, I'll show you around.


Julia(samcarterrules)

[Chelle DB]

Hey Chelle, you know I live in Arbroath, right? Hehe! Next time your in the UK you should come visit, I'll show you around.
Julia(samcarterrules)

You're a Smith too right? I'm gonna double check with the MILaw and find out where our Smith family is from - I just remember one of the uncles talking about Arbroath and going there one day - how cool would it be if our family tress are connected.

[Sarai]

Just a quick word of warning to those planning to travel around the country in Feb, especially to Scotland...

Of course it's a month away but I think you probably know we've been experiencing really bad weather in the UK the past couple of months. Scotland and the north of England and Ireland have been particularly hit and to be honest our travel services dont cope well with snow at the best of times!! Make sure you book well in advance and check all your travel plans carefully whilst you are here. Hate for any GWers to get stuck in Scotland because of nasty weather !!

[Jumble]

Sounds like it would be a great betting pool to get together.

I'd have to guess at summer of 2012 for TSE2 (if it happens at all) and perhaps spring of 2014 for AT6.

Why do you say that? Any reason?

[samcarterrules]

You're a Smith too right? I'm gonna double check with the MILaw and find out where our Smith family is from - I just remember one of the uncles talking about Arbroath and going there one day - how cool would it be if our family tress are connected.

Yep, I'm a Smith. And that would be so cool!! Hehe!!


Julia(samcarterrules)

[Skydiver]

this might also be a good trip to pay a little extra for travel insurance. Do your own research please, but it can be a few dollars to buy an insurance policy for the trip...and if you run into northeastern blizzards and 2 week long flight delays, you cna get your airfare back and other things.

Every vacation has some risk of course and stuff happens...but right now with the really bad weather the UK and Northeastern US has gotten, there could be a good chance that something happens. It'd be horrible to have weather keep you from getting there, and then have that same weather literally cost you the vacation and you can't get reimbursed.

If I was doing it, I would also honestly, not plan many 'too far out' trips or have contingency plans for local sight seeing instead of long trips elsewhere.

I know you don't know what the weather is going to be until it happens, but i do think it'll be a factor in your sight seeing and the such this time.