June 26, 2026
- Beverly Clyde
- Jun 28
- 4 min read
On The Road Again
For the past five months, I’ve been living at Atria at Canyon Creek, an independent living community in Plano, Texas. I truly enjoyed my time there. Believe it or not, this “athletic mess” even fell in love with Chair Volleyball. We sat in chairs and batted a beach ball over a net, laughing ourselves silly. It was the best fun — and laughter is essential, especially as we get older. I met so many wonderful people and was genuinely enjoying life at “the home,” but eventually my feet got itchy. I wanted to travel again.
I had already agreed to go on a mission trip to Hungary, so I decided to add a long adventure through the British Isles to the journey. After Hungary, I’ll head to Scotland for three months. A trip to the Edinburgh Military Tattoo (not the inking-your-skin kind!) is already planned. The Highland Games and a tour of the Highlands — including a glimpse of Balmoral — are in the works. I’ll be living in Aberdeen but traveling throughout Scotland.
After Scotland, I’ll spend about two weeks in Yorkshire, England. Not much is planned yet, but I’m sure something lovely will unfold. Finally, I’ll finish my travels by visiting friends in Ireland. I’m so looking forward to being back there. And for a grand finale, I may slip over to Paris and London to see the Christmas lights before returning home around mid‑December.
The plans are wonderful — but the start has been rough.
My flight from London (LHR) to Budapest (BUD) was cancelled, and the replacement left me with a seven‑hour layover at Heathrow. Not exactly the best way to arrive fresh and ready. I was flying on an American Airlines ticket but switched to a British Airways flight in London. After wrestling with online systems, AI, and even real people at both airlines, I finally managed to reduce the layover to four hours by leaving Dallas later. All the earlier flights to Budapest were full. Because of extenuating circumstances, I sat at the gate at DFW for three hours before takeoff. The three hours I shaved off my London layover were spent at DFW. They used to say getting there was half the fun — not true anymore.
Trying to be smart, I shipped one suitcase ahead to Budapest. Now I’m spending part of each day filling out forms, trying to get it through Hungarian customs. Everyone seems convinced I’m a company trying to import mountains of Texas barbecue or vats of ranch dressing to sell. If they would just open the suitcase, they’d see it’s full of old‑lady clothes no one wants but me. At this point, I’m not sure I’ll ever see that suitcase again. I used a company called Ship My Bag, and they’ve done nothing to help me deal with Hungarian customs or DHL. I’m very disappointed in their service.
I’m now in Budapest — and realized I left my nightgown in Dallas. So, Friday morning’s
mission was to find a new one. It’s hot here, and getting to the stores involved a lot of walking. I must be getting soft, because on the way back to the hotel, in the heat, I hailed a cab. A very good decision.
On Saturday we left Budapest for Baja, our home for the next week. Baja sits near the Serbian border in southern Hungary, a quiet town with a strong agricultural heartbeat. So far I’ve only seen the church, the house where I’m staying, and the scenery along the way, but it’s already clear how lovely this area is — wide fields, soft hills, and that unhurried rural calm.
I’m staying with a family who has four children, three boys and one girl, all under the age of eight. It’s an energetic household to say the least. Thankfully, I have an air-conditioned bedroom — a true blessing in this heat. Each day reaches about 100 degrees, and the forecast says we won’t get relief until Thursday.
My classroom is in an un air-conditioned part of the church, but classes finish at noon, which helps. The challenge comes afterward: we walk to the restaurant for lunch, right in the thick of the heat, and I’m told skippingMy classroom is in an un air-conditioned part of the church, but classes finish at noon, which helps. The challenge comes afterward: we walk to the restaurant for lunch, right in the thick of the heat, and I’m told skipping lunch simply isn’t an option. It should make for an interesting week. I keep reminding myself that I survived Atlanta summers for years without air conditioning, so surely, I can manage this.
Even with these bumps in the road, I’m still excited about the adventure ahead, and I hope you’ll join me.
Keep us in your prayers.
Weather in Baja, Hungary
High 99 F(37 C) low 70 F (21 C)
Sunrise: 5:09 Sunset: 9:53 PM (21:53)
Hours of Daylight: 15 hours and 47 minutes
PS: If you know anyone who might want to follow my blog they can on Facebook. Just search for travelswithbj. This is usually, the easiest way.
If they don’t have or want a Facebook account, they can still follow me at www.travelswithbeverly.com. Once you get to Travels with Beverly, click on the menu, then blog. To see the whole blog, double clip on the blog.
Hope you enjoy reading my blog as much as I enjoy writing it.
Comments