Ok, so there are no sails involved but I am on the sea. We are on a ferry going from Holyhead, Wales to Dublin, Ireland. Last night we stayed at a hotel that supposedly had WiFi in the rooms but none of our devices could even detect it much less connect. We were able to connect in the little dinning area they had, so I did my next-day-planning out there and then went back to the room and didn't post.
Yesterday we basically saw Stonehenge and the Magna Carta at the Salisbury Cathedral and rode the train up to Liverpool. Today we went on the walking tour of Liverpool then walked over to see the Liverpool Cathedral which is one of the largest in Europe. Then more train time going to Holyhead where we ate dinner and boarded the ship at 8:30pm. We arrive in Dublin at 11:45pm.
Monday, June 29, 2015
Saturday, June 27, 2015
Crowds and crowds and more crowds
This morning we took the train out to Windsor Castle - we were absolutely packed shoulder to shoulder, standing room only on the way there. Then the line to get in was huge but fortunately I had bought a London Pass and not only was the Castle free but we got to skip most of the line (we still had to go through the security part). We toured the castle and watched the changing of the guards (which was crowded) then had a nice non-crowded ride back to London. Then we took the subway (which was packed) to the British Museum (which is free and therefore also crowded).
Then we waited for one of the hop-on/hop-off buses but it never came so we decided to walk to Trafalgar Square (big mistake). I knew it was Gay Pride Day and I had just assumed parades would be in the morning and things would have settled down by mid-afternoon. But instead we ended up walking right into the middle of a huge crowd around Trafalgar Square and were essentially trapped there because we needed to continue going south and it just happened that the parade was coming and the sidewalks were all blocked by barricades. We end up in an absolute crush of people - half of us trying to walk south and the other half trying to go north. On top of that in that area there are no side roads, so we couldn't do anything else but push on through. The parade caught up with us and passed us and eventually we came to the end of the barricades.
At this point we gave up on getting the hop-on/hop-off bus because it was probably stuck somewhere also. So we took the subway out to see the Royal Albert Hall and the Albert Memorial then took the subway back home. The subway was crowded in both directions so I think it's fair to say that I've had my fill of people for today!
Then we waited for one of the hop-on/hop-off buses but it never came so we decided to walk to Trafalgar Square (big mistake). I knew it was Gay Pride Day and I had just assumed parades would be in the morning and things would have settled down by mid-afternoon. But instead we ended up walking right into the middle of a huge crowd around Trafalgar Square and were essentially trapped there because we needed to continue going south and it just happened that the parade was coming and the sidewalks were all blocked by barricades. We end up in an absolute crush of people - half of us trying to walk south and the other half trying to go north. On top of that in that area there are no side roads, so we couldn't do anything else but push on through. The parade caught up with us and passed us and eventually we came to the end of the barricades.
At this point we gave up on getting the hop-on/hop-off bus because it was probably stuck somewhere also. So we took the subway out to see the Royal Albert Hall and the Albert Memorial then took the subway back home. The subway was crowded in both directions so I think it's fair to say that I've had my fill of people for today!
Having a Lovely Time in London
It always happens, the start of a trip I have all these clever titles and post regularly and keep up with posting the pics and putting captions on them...then as the trip goes on, I slowly start to slip on keeping up with all that! I did get all the picts up to leaving Portugal posted but we took a lot of pictures of London yesterday and I havn't even looked at them yet and we have another busy day today.
We decided to do the same thing in London that we did in Paris - take the Hop-on/Hop-off bus tour instead of the walking tour. There is just so much to see and so little time. Along with general riding the bus around and seeing all kinds of sights, we also took the river tour that came with it and visited Tower Bridge (went up the towers and walked across the upper walkway), toured the Tower of London and saw the Crown jewels, went up in Wellington Arch, and down to Churchills War Rooms.
We decided to do the same thing in London that we did in Paris - take the Hop-on/Hop-off bus tour instead of the walking tour. There is just so much to see and so little time. Along with general riding the bus around and seeing all kinds of sights, we also took the river tour that came with it and visited Tower Bridge (went up the towers and walked across the upper walkway), toured the Tower of London and saw the Crown jewels, went up in Wellington Arch, and down to Churchills War Rooms.
Thursday, June 25, 2015
Wow! I can understand everything I read and hear again!
So nice to be back in a country that speaks English! We actually had a very lazy day today. I woke at 6:30 but had a migraine (my first on this trip) and I was so sour from walking up and down hills in Lisbon yesterday that I just didn't feel up to going to Sintra as planned. So I went back to sleep and we all got up around 10:30, took our time getting our things together and then headed to the airport for our 3pm flight. We flew into Stansted instead of Heathrow and it took us 2 hours to get from there to where we are staying. We are staying at our last airbnb place and its rooms above a Bar/Brazilian Restaurant. There are half a dozen rooms plus 2 bathrooms, a living room and a kitchen. We ate dinner downstairs and I the national dish of Brazil (black beans & pork in a stew with rice, flour, greens and orange slices) - it was really good.
From the beginning I've said, I wish we had another day in London because there is so much to see and we only have the next two days, then we leave for Liverpool via Stonehenge. Less then a week left - in some ways it flew by but in others ways, I'm really looking forward to going home.
As my knees have been bothering me, I've really become aware of how little access there is for people with disabilities. In Museums, on subways, even at the airports, there are stairs everywhere. Some times there are escalators or elevators or maybe a ramp but many, many times there aren't. And then we are staying in these old buildings and so many of them have the worst stairs - very steep and often very narrow. My feet aren't that large but only about half my foot fits on the step! And the tripping hazards are everywhere. They just don't seem to have the heavy emphasis on safety that we do.
Well, like I said, busy couple of days ahead, best get to sleep now.
From the beginning I've said, I wish we had another day in London because there is so much to see and we only have the next two days, then we leave for Liverpool via Stonehenge. Less then a week left - in some ways it flew by but in others ways, I'm really looking forward to going home.
As my knees have been bothering me, I've really become aware of how little access there is for people with disabilities. In Museums, on subways, even at the airports, there are stairs everywhere. Some times there are escalators or elevators or maybe a ramp but many, many times there aren't. And then we are staying in these old buildings and so many of them have the worst stairs - very steep and often very narrow. My feet aren't that large but only about half my foot fits on the step! And the tripping hazards are everywhere. They just don't seem to have the heavy emphasis on safety that we do.
Well, like I said, busy couple of days ahead, best get to sleep now.
Wednesday, June 24, 2015
Getting some ZZZZZs on the Choo Choooooo
Yesterday we took a quick trip down to Seville then came back via Madrid to get on the night train to Lisbon. I paid the extra so we could have a 4 bed room to ourselves rather then sleep sitting up all night.
Then today we had a busy day in Lisbon and tomorrow we are going to Sintra then back to Lisbon to catch the plane to London. It's almost 10pm here and I still have some planning for tomorrow plus about 500 picts from the last two days that I need to go through so I'll make this a short post.
Then today we had a busy day in Lisbon and tomorrow we are going to Sintra then back to Lisbon to catch the plane to London. It's almost 10pm here and I still have some planning for tomorrow plus about 500 picts from the last two days that I need to go through so I'll make this a short post.
Monday, June 22, 2015
No one expects the Spanish Inquisition
Colin wanted to go on the Spanish Inquisition Tour with Sandeman tours (the group we always do the walking tour with) but it isn't until 7pm and we are always so exhausted by then. We had a nice day in Madrid - first we went on the walking tour and then we did some more walking around looking at architecture. Duncan went back to the apartment at that time and Colin and I continued on. They have a really large park here with a small lake and all kinds of different trees plus various monuments and buildings. Then we went to the Prado Museum before heading home. I would say that Madrid is an OK town - but nothing special about it. We didn't even go into the Palace - for one, it was based on Versailles and for another we've seen so many Palaces with similar styles by this time (and let's face it, it's hard to beat Versailles). There are no really old structures here nor any iconic structures. Barcelona on the other hand has such a mix of old and new, parts of the old city walls and remains from the Romans, the iconic Sagrada Familia and (most importantly to Duncan) the Barcelona Football (soccer) team.
It's funny, my parents mentioned that there are a lot of pickpockets in Spain, because I forgot to mention a little run in I had. We had just arrived in Spain (Barcelona) stepped off the train and as we got onto the Subway, this woman was crowding me. If you've been on subways you know that at times you are packed shoulder to shoulder but this train wasn't very full. So it just bothered me that she was invading my personal space and I just automatically moved my purse so that it was more in front of me rather then the side. Apparently I did that at the moment she was going to try and get something because she said "oh, excuse me" and then hurried off down the train. It was only on reflection that I realized 1) I had indicated for her to get on first but she waited for me 2) it was a hot day and she was carrying a puffy coat 3) her arm was under that coat in an odd way and 4) I had seen her hand coming out towards my purse right before she apologized. I was wearing my purse such that the side pocket which just has a flat was facing out and I keep the camera in there - she probably thought it was a phone. At any rate, she didn't get anything and we haven't had any issues since (that we know of anyway).
Tomorrow we spend the day in Seville and then come back through Madrid to take a night train (not the bus from Seville as my map indicates) to Lisbon. So unless the trains have WiFi, there won't be a post tomorrow.
It's funny, my parents mentioned that there are a lot of pickpockets in Spain, because I forgot to mention a little run in I had. We had just arrived in Spain (Barcelona) stepped off the train and as we got onto the Subway, this woman was crowding me. If you've been on subways you know that at times you are packed shoulder to shoulder but this train wasn't very full. So it just bothered me that she was invading my personal space and I just automatically moved my purse so that it was more in front of me rather then the side. Apparently I did that at the moment she was going to try and get something because she said "oh, excuse me" and then hurried off down the train. It was only on reflection that I realized 1) I had indicated for her to get on first but she waited for me 2) it was a hot day and she was carrying a puffy coat 3) her arm was under that coat in an odd way and 4) I had seen her hand coming out towards my purse right before she apologized. I was wearing my purse such that the side pocket which just has a flat was facing out and I keep the camera in there - she probably thought it was a phone. At any rate, she didn't get anything and we haven't had any issues since (that we know of anyway).
Tomorrow we spend the day in Seville and then come back through Madrid to take a night train (not the bus from Seville as my map indicates) to Lisbon. So unless the trains have WiFi, there won't be a post tomorrow.
Sunday, June 21, 2015
These truths we hold to be self evident..
Some general observations:
American TV, Movies and Music dominate Europe. Whenever there is music playing in a public place, it is always English-language even though a lot of the people don't speak English. There are ads for American movies in all the subways (Spy, Jurassic World). The train station in Madrid had each set of huge windows covered in ads for American (and a few British) tv shows - Breaking Bad, Orange is the New Black, etc.
Except for Spain and Turkey, in the homes and the public restroom, they've had dual-flush toilets.
Every place we've stayed has had a hand held shower head not an attached shower head. But the really odd thing is that the hot and cold water pipes come out of the wall and join with a handled knob that sticks several inched out from the wall. And they are extremely sensitive - i.e. the different between too hot and too cold is about a fourth of an inch. On top of this, they have their hot water set REALLY hot. AND for many of these, the shower is very small (2 1/2 feet square) AND the handle is mounted between elbow and shoulder height. So your in this tiny shower and you lift your arm to wash your hair and it bumps this very sensitive handle..well you get the picture.
No one uses measuring cups (even the homes that are actuallly lived in, not just rented out, didn't have measuring cups).
No one drinks directly from a bottle (yes, I'm a barbarian because I drink directly from my water bottle).
Very few people own clothes dryers (just washing machines).
And lastly:
IKEA rules: everywhere we go and stay, has some IKEA items. The most popular is the round, silver, utensil holder (that we also own).
American TV, Movies and Music dominate Europe. Whenever there is music playing in a public place, it is always English-language even though a lot of the people don't speak English. There are ads for American movies in all the subways (Spy, Jurassic World). The train station in Madrid had each set of huge windows covered in ads for American (and a few British) tv shows - Breaking Bad, Orange is the New Black, etc.
Except for Spain and Turkey, in the homes and the public restroom, they've had dual-flush toilets.
Every place we've stayed has had a hand held shower head not an attached shower head. But the really odd thing is that the hot and cold water pipes come out of the wall and join with a handled knob that sticks several inched out from the wall. And they are extremely sensitive - i.e. the different between too hot and too cold is about a fourth of an inch. On top of this, they have their hot water set REALLY hot. AND for many of these, the shower is very small (2 1/2 feet square) AND the handle is mounted between elbow and shoulder height. So your in this tiny shower and you lift your arm to wash your hair and it bumps this very sensitive handle..well you get the picture.
No one uses measuring cups (even the homes that are actuallly lived in, not just rented out, didn't have measuring cups).
No one drinks directly from a bottle (yes, I'm a barbarian because I drink directly from my water bottle).
Very few people own clothes dryers (just washing machines).
And lastly:
IKEA rules: everywhere we go and stay, has some IKEA items. The most popular is the round, silver, utensil holder (that we also own).
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