Just When I Thought I Didn't Travel Much Anymore...

... well, I still don't travel much, compared to my 20s, when I traveled so much for work I stopped getting jet lag. And not only that, but I never quite knew where I was when I woke up each morning.

No, now I get jet lag without even leaving the city limits. Sad, sad, sad.

But my mom is picking up my slack, and, having just returned from Buenos Aires, is now planning a trip to London and Dundee, Scotland, and has invited me along (just for the record, she invited me to go to Buenos Aires too, but it wasn't the right time, so maybe next year, because she has the travel bug, bad, and I sure hope she has signed up for frequent flier miles, and by the way, did I mention that she just got her passport? Bravo, Mom!).

Photo courtesy of PDPhoto.org

Anyway, back to your chief mapmaker's next expedition. It's a trip that actually revolves around an event for a friend of my mother's; the event will be in Dundee, but we will start out for two days in London, then take the train up to Dundee, then wrap up the trip, most likely, with jaunts to Loch Ness and Edinburgh.

I have been to these places before, except for Dundee, but only briefly, so I've seen the super-touristy things, but not much else, and Mom has not even seen those, so we'll probably go see them again.

Photo courtesy of PDPhoto.org

But even though we probably won't be left with much extra time, we're still looking for must-see recommendations, especially places that are easy to get to, but still off the beaten path.

We both like bookstores, live music, and yummy food. We're not big into shopping, unless it's for unusual, offbeat things. And I, obviously, am crazy about maps and historical sites and museums and mythology and things-that-might-or-might-not-exist and most definitely castles, although I am not so much into dungeons.

We would welcome suggestions, and offer our gratitude in advance.

Map from 1653 edition of John Norden's 'Speculum Britainiae'