We had a lot of full sea days at the end of the cruise, but that worked out pretty well for us since Nathan and I were both battling a cold. We got to rest and soak in the hot tub. We really got attached to some of the delightful staff on the Emerald Princess who took care of us every day and it was a treat to get to know them. We also became acquainted with an older Filipino couple from San Francisco and we enjoyed our dinner conversations with them.
Our last stop on the cruise was Greenock, Scotland, which is the port for Glasgow. When we visited Scotland in 2019, we took a day trip to Glasgow from Edinburgh and really enjoyed it. We also stopped in Greenock on a previous cruise, but we were on an excursion that took us up into the highlands. This time, we decided to stay in town, so after stocking up on cold medicine and snacks at the grocery store, we did a long hike into the hills above the port. It was a real treat as it was a beautiful day and that area turned out to have a cool historic site called the Greenock Cut. There is a system of reservoirs for storing water and the cut was an aqueduct built to provide clean water for the town and create energy for the many factories and mills that were in the town in the 1820s. It was a good day.
We returned to England via Southampton, where we picked up a car and started another journey. We started in Portsmouth, where we strolled around the historic dockyard. We saw Admiral Nelson’s ship, the HMS Victory, as well as several other ships. We then went to our accommodation near the village of Pensford.
We spent a delightful day in Bath, where we took the city’s free walking tour. We also visited the Roman Bath museum, which was very well done. At the end, you get to drink some of the mineral-rich water, just like people have been doing there for thousands of years. Maybe that’s why we’re feeling better? Anyway, it’s a gorgeous town and it’s easy to see why the rich and famous wanted to visit and why it inspired authors and artists.
We popped down to the city of Wells to visit their beautiful cathedral. We had a tour from a sweet lady volunteer. She really knew her history of the church and the building, so we learned a lot. Then we spent the rest of the day in Bristol, walking around the town sites and strolling the harbor. We saw lots of ships and the adorable bright rows of houses on the hill. Our seafood dinner was delicious and we saw some good comedy.
We had a bit of a drive today, but we broke it up by stopping at the stone circle in Avebury. It’s bigger and older than Stonehenge and the town is built in and around the stones. It’s a cool plae. Unlike Stonehenge, you can get right up next to the stones and it’s not nearly as crowded. We also stopped in at a pub in Ascot for lunch. Now we are in the city of Hastings with a sliver of a sea view from our Airbnb. There’s a piano here, so Nathan is having a good time! We’ll be exploring this corner of England this week before returning to London. Have a good one!
Mountains and More
Another fun week in Utah with family and friends doing some of our favorite things!
Utah!
I missed doing a post last week because we were en route to Utah from St. Louis. We really enjoyed our last week with Alex, Hanna, and the boys. We had a great time playing outside with the kids, going to the library and the St. Louis Science Center.
This week we have been in Centerville staying with Margaret (who is such a kind and accommodating host) and having a good mix of family time, outdoor fun, and working on sorting through Nathan’s dad’s office/studio. Our daughter, Lauren, flew in from West Virginia yesterday to ski with her dad. We are enjoying the beautiful, snowy mountains and the relaxed visits with family and friends. We will be here for three more weeks, so if you want to meet up, send me a message!
Missouri
We have had a great week here in Missouri. I’ll give you a short update, but I would also like to make a request. We have shared recommendations for podcasts, books, musicm and the like in the past. Now, we would love to hear from you! What have you been reading? What music or podcasts are you liking lately? Have you seen a good movie? Please comment on this post or reply to my email. We love hearing from our friends and family! Now for what we’ve been up to…
It all looks so beautiful!! You may not feel well, but you both look great. 😊
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