Sunday, July 31, 2011

The Wellcome Collection London (mobile)

A few exhibits at the Wellcome Collection - Dirty & Medicine Man.

Didn't really care for Dirty at all. Wacky artists and their visions of the dirty mess us humans have & will make. Just some nutty stuff in my view.

While the Medicine Man was quite interesting & I wish we had spent more time there. Some very interesting historic medical and cultural pieces.

We cut the visit short to try to make it to the National Gallery, but by the time we had made it over there on the Underground mom & dad were pretty pooped & the museums were closing in about an hour. So we just headed back to the hotel to get some packing done & rest before our final family dinner before heading back to the states.

If you get a chance, see the Medicine Man exhibit. Quite interesting.
Tomorrow AM it is back to the states.
Been a great vacation and hate to see it draw to an end.

Friday, July 29, 2011

Room with a View - London (mobile)

Well, we survived getting off the ship & getting into London. A bit of a feat with 11 travelers and a ton of luggage.
A few mix-ups with the rooms, but we are dealing with it.

Not too exciting of a view, but better than many. Not sure yet if this is an active church or a historic place yet. If I recall correctly from our last visit it is historic.

Our hotel is right behind the one we stayed at last time, so we have a good idea where things are, including an Underground station just across the street. Very handy.

Wednesday, July 27, 2011

St. Coleman's Cathedral (mobile)

St. Coleman's Cathedral is a 19th century Gothic revival cathedral & home to the largest Carillon (49 bells) in the UK.

The cathedral overlooks the colorful seaport town of Cobh (pronounced Cove). Cobh is known for being the last port of call for the Titanic, and also as the home of the first immigrant to disembark at Ellis Island, Annie Moore.

Saturday, July 23, 2011

Giant's Causeway Ireland (mobile)

This is one interesting place.
Ever been to Devil's Postpile in California? This is a lot bigger and right on the northern Ireland coast.

The coast is very rough - and very beautiful. Water is awfully cold, you won't catch me taking a dip.

If you visit northern Ireland I would recommend a stop here.

Thursday, July 21, 2011

View of Geiranger Fjord, Norway (mobile)

Here's a view from our stateroom. Included the full size bus in the bottom corner to give you some idea of the size of the Fjord walls. Can't even see the top of most because of the clouds.

It's like an extra lush Yosemite valley - at least that's how Jen explains it.

Right now there are three cruise ships at Geiranger which is at the terminus of the Fjord.

Geiranger Norway (mobile)

Great fjords on the way into Geiranger.

Lots of waterfalls down the steep cliffs. Simply beautiful.

Nessie Found! (mobile)

Don't know why people say searching Loch Ness for Nessie is so hard. We drove right up and saw her in this pond just off the loch...

I have to say, she wasn't as impressive as I expected.

Pub Lunch - Edinbrough (mobile)

Our guide recommended this pub for lunch. I had the beef pie and a pint of Tennets lager. It was really good.

Jen's brother had haggus - we each tried a small bite... Not disgusting, but I don't see myself ordering it anytime soon.

Didn't know they can't serve drinks till 12:30 in the afternoon. Good thing we sat down at 12:25 - beat the rush too!

Craigmillar Castle, Edinbrough, Scotland (mobile)

First Day in Scotland, first castle.

Lots of rooms and interesting areas to investigate.