Normandy

    Remains of the floating dock built for unloading supplies at Caen.  A  was created...amazing engineering under duress.

  German bunker at :Pointe du Hoc   Hawkes Rangers finally captured this key location of big guns

  Thousands of graves..and only a portion of those who perished

 Omaha beach looking west

  a Multi room bunker

A day in Portugal

After two days at sea we arrived in Lisbon and docked right at the foot of the city.  It was a beautiful sight to see the broad Tagus River, long bridges spanning the water and many beautiful buildings in front of us.  Because the city was devastated by a huge earthquake in the 1700s much of the construction is “new” and of a similar style of Gothic Revival.

 

I had arranged a tour through a group called “We Hate Tourism” and had a young tour guide called Marcos.  We sat in the front seat and had a wild ride through Lisbon and a very old district called the Alfama Quarter, the oldest section of Lisbon.  We went to a high point and enjoyed the beautiful view of the city overlooking the river below.

On to Sintra from there and a visit to the village for a quick walk then up to Monserrat.  This was a castle built by a count who then created beautiful gardens around it with a huge variety of plants brought from all over the world by sea captains.  The cobblestone walks were slippery but worth the hike.  Inside the castle was amazing Moorish decoration covering every surface.  It was all white and so beautiful.  Even some walls of marble had the surface roughed so it was white with only faint coloration.

Lunch was at a small family restaurant on a winding street of Sintra.  Only this tour group goes there so we were spared the bus loads of tourists…we hate them of course!!    Food served was a series of small plates of local favorites.  Little pockets of shrimp, or beef; chorizo sausage, tuna and beans, tomatoes, bread, a sausage made of meet and bread were very good to taste.  We drank local red and green wine, green because it is new…like white Beaujolais I would guess.  That was my favorite.

 

On to the farthest point west in Europe.  The view was amazing!!!  Marcos said most of the tours do not come here…but many did!

Driving on to Cacais we passed many porches, jaguars, and other posh cars on the road to this luxurious seaside town.  This is the playground of the rich here in Portugal. Estates were vast and beautiful with lush grounds and expansive views of the sea.  While walking the streets we enjoyed a wonderful ice cream cone from Santini’s.  I bought a bottle of Port to enjoy on the trip across the Atlantic and a tile to add to my collection.

Now we sail for six days to Bermuda relaxing aboard ship.  Today the Hand and Foot players will meet for the first time.  We’ll play in the afternoons.  The pickleball players met for the third time and George is happy to have some good players.  He played for three hours, part of it singles, the other day and was pretty sore yesterday…..but he loves it!   I walk the track to do my bit.  This one has a staircase at the bow end to add another dimension to the exercise.

Hope all is well in the US and no more hurricanes are in sight!!!!

  Cacais Beach

 Overlooking Lisbon

 Sintra street

  A Portugese lunch

  Monserrat interior

  At lands end

Stateroom

 

We haven’t had an inside stateroom since our first cruise!!   It is ok though…lots of mirrors and actually the useful space is the same.  Haven’t missed the balcony since the weather is chilly.

Brueges

Photos from our day in Bruges, Belgium

The journey begins..

Once again we flew off to a new destination .  This time, London, to travel on to Southampton and board the Caribbean Princess for a 15 day cruise back to Fort Lauderdale.  We were offered a terrific price for the cruise and couldn’t pass up the opportunity to experience a few new ports and a different ship. 

 

The trip started with that grueling overnight flight which is only alleviated by the expectation of the trip ahead of us.  We were exhausted by the time we finally arrived for debarkation.  Along the way we met new friends in the airport, in the waiting area and as we boarded the ship.  My cruise critic contacts had set up a dinner time for the first night as well.  After a nap we joined them at the dining room for a meal.  It was fun to meet still more travelers who we would join in the morning for the taxi ride into Bruges.  It was an early night  as all of us were so tired and wanted to get a good night’s sleep.

 

OOPs!!  We were so tired that we just moved the chocolate and note off our pillows and dropped into bed.  It was not until a chat with another cruiser at breakfast that we learned we were an hour late from missing the clock change to an hour ahead.  Yikes!  We still had to wait in line for Belgium customs to stamp our passports!!  It all turned out fine and we were only a few minutes late for the meeting point.  Luckily..that is so not us!!!

 

The day in Bruges was spent walking around the city center, visiting the cathedral to see the Madonna and Child by Michelangelo , sailing on the canal to enjoy the  Flemish architecture, Belgium waffles for lunch, tasting some local beer and of course visiting the local chocolate shops for some chocolates.  Ethan will be happy to have some of his own to taste!!

 

 

Normandy..

My birthday!!  Balloons, a card from the ship and dining at the Crown Grill tonight made it special.  Time was tight as we forgot when making the reservations that a long tour day was planned for today. 

 

I felt it was important to take the time to visit this most important historical site today.  We’ve seen movies and heard stories of the D-day invasion  but to see the beach and the craters left by the bombs, to  walk in the German bunkers was moving.  The story of the Mayberry brake walls and docks installed for the invasion was fascinating and something we didn’t know about.  Called Arromanches here in Normandy, the museum about the project was so interesting to visit that I am surprised we don’t hear more about it in history class.  What an engineering masterpiece!

 

We visited Pointe du Hoc, where the German bunkers were stout and difficult to destroy.  The team was led by a Ranger Hawke which finally captured this key point.  There is a monument to their bravery and the name lives on.

 

Omaha beach was vast and open with monuments to the landing of US troops there and the many casualties.  From there we visited the cemetery filled with white crosses  of those who were buried here in France.  It represented only about 40% of the dead from the battles but looked overwhelming to see…thousands of graves.  We honor their service.

 

On an otherwise somber day, we had a lovely lunch at a French “farm”  more like3 a country estate with beautiful stone buildings and manicured grounds.  The antique filled dining room was set for our arrival with glasses of kir, bottles of wine and we proceeded to have a lovely lunch.  It was enjoyable with more new friends from Oregon on a long journey of their own. 

 

Arriving back at the ship we flew to freshen up and get to the restaurant for dinner.  My favorite steak!!   And they brought a lovely chocolate dessert cake which we tasted then had sent to our stateroom.       Pooped, we went for pjs and an early bedtime.   Not exactly party people are we!!

 

Now two relaxing sea days.  We have spent this one just doing what we want when we want.  Played some cards, ate and are now sitting in the piazza listing to violins and cellos drinking wine.  Lovely!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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one Leg down!

Waiting here at Metro for London flight. A very long day!!!!

We're off again...

Tomorrow we fly to London and board for a cruise back across the Atlantic. Princess offered a crazy price just to fill the ship ....We couldn't pass it up!

Belgium is the first stop on Saturday and we will visit Brugges for day.

We'll still be watching the weather with all these crazy hurricanes around. Jose has Bermuda in its path and that is one of our ports.

This week I've been staying with Mitchell and Ethan while mom and dad were taking classes in Vegas. In between making meals and letting the dogs in and out, I managed to pack it all.

Almost ready...

Now that we know the house has power and won't mold up we can sail happily!!!

A new exhibit....

Some Kalamazoo Paper Guild members are exhibiting their work at the Vicksburg Cultural Arts Center.  It is a small but nice display along with the gallery members works.  Dale and I each took two pieces to display and attended the reception last night with husbands.  Interestingly our work is all varied in style and use of mediums. 

 

  A critique!!

 

  Dale with her lamp.  She made the tree form and used handmade paper to form the shades.  So beautiful!!

 

 

  Patient husbands Dennis and George

 

  Me and a new piece…Into the Light

 

We finished the evening by driving to Kalamazoo for their Art Hop.  It  was a nice night and many were enjoying the downtown area.  A glass of wine at the Union, sitting outside, was perfect!!