Covering the world visually
The Pint of Plain band plays in the Dome of the Sun Princess. The band is composed of Meabh on violin, Phil on guitar and Fion on woodwinds. They play a variety of Irish music and regularly play in O’Malley’s Pub on the ship.
We took a bit slower day and rode the hop on-hop off bus to see London. It was sunny warm day for London, which made seeing the city so enjoyable.
Wednesday morning we joined a tour to Bath, Lacock and a sunset tour inside the circle at Stonehenge.
Bath is a beautiful quaint town that is famous for the Roman Baths. We wandered through the square before touring the baths. The baths are incredible when you think how the Romans took a small water source and turned it into a spectacular resort. We enjoyed Bath and only wished we had a couple days to explore the surrounding streets and countryside.
From Bath we stopped at George’s Pub in Lacock for dinner. Much of it still looks like it did 200 years ago. The village has been used for filming Downton Abbey, Harry Potter, Wolfman and Pride and Prejudice. Simply an amazing village with friendly people and very dog oriented. They even leave dog treats on their doorsteps.
It was just a short drive to Stonehenge and as we drove up, all the signs said closed. Our tour was one of the very few each year that is allowed inside the circle at sunset. I had stumbled upon the opening while researching our trip and immediately scheduled it.
As we walked to the ruins, the sun was setting behind the clouds. I was slightly disappointed that I wouldn’t be able to get the image I had envisioned. BUT, when we were inside the ring, it was simply awe inspiring how such a ruin was built so many years ago. The guide told us that some of the stone came from as far away as 20 miles!! We were able to walk around the stones for almost half an hour. What a wonder it is!!
We took a little break to rest in the morning after a very fast paced first two days. We then hopped into our Uber to the London Tower. We were able to get in earlier than our scheduled time. The day was beautiful for London, a bit chilly, but no rain and sunny till evening.
The Tower of London is amazing to visit and learn the history of the monarchs. We visited the different towers built by the kings. We began at St. Thomas’s tower and walked the ramparts to the Well Tower. It was the beginning of a day filled with small circular staircases and steps.
Walking the cobblestone roads, we listened as a Beefeater told about the history of the traitors gate, where many who were being punished were sent down the Thames.
On the lawn in front of the White Tower built by William the Conqueror during the early 1080s, is where the Ravens are treated like royalty. The legend is that if they all leave the walls will collapse.
The White Tower holds the 12 Kings and their horses. The White Tower was the castle’s strongest point militarily, provided accommodation for the king and his representatives, and housed a chapel. It also has the chopping block which was used to behead prisoners.
The Crown Jewels exhibit was amazing and at times almost overwhelming with opulence. No photos allowed in the exhibit.
The day exploring the old castles was something I suggest if you’re visiting London.
After a short night, we were up early to join a Changing of the Guard tour. We met in Piccadilly Circus with the electronic billboards making it feel like a small Times Square.
From there we walked towards Trafalgar Square before heading down The Mall to St. James’s Palace on Marlborough Road where the old guard assembles and is led by the band. The music played by the band just prior to assembling is different each time and the song played on Monday was Hallelujah. Our tour guide provided so much historical information and ways to identify which unit was which.
The Old Guard marches to Buckingham Palace where they meet the New Guards coming from Wellington Barracks for an exchange of duty. Following the exchange, the New Guards will return to St. James’s Palace where they will be on duty for up to 48 hours, spending 2 hours on sentry duty and 4 hours off.
After the tour, we walked past St. James’s where I stopped for a quick portrait of two police officers who were in charge of keeping the street closed by the palace. Had lunch at a quaint restaurant.
After we took a short break, we venture on the Tube towards the Leica Store. The gallery featured an exhibit of Elliott Erwitt’s work, which was great to see. From there we walked to Bond Street with the high end stores, before calling it a night.
After our overnight flight from Atlanta to London, we spent our Easter exploring London. We walked from our hotel (Park Plaza Riverbank) to the London Eye along the Thames River. It was still a bit cloudy, but the sun would poke out occasionally lighting up our view of London. The Covid wall was moving and it was interesting to see how people reacted looking at the number of memorials left on the wall.
We took a Thames river cruise seeing the sights and learning about the bridges of London. Just remember that what most people call the London Bridge is actually the Tower Bridge.
The Eye was fantastic and most of the time you don’t realize it’s moving. We shared the experience with an American family from San Francisco, but who had visited Charlotte when worked for BOA.
We finished off our evening at a small pub. Their fish and chips were great and Sharon had fish tacos.
After a long 24 hours of flying and exploring, we hit the bed early to get ready for an early morning tour on Monday.
My wife and I leave on our next trip at the end of March. We’ll be visiting the UK extensively and causing to the Western Medditeranian followed by 10 days from Amsterdam to Lucerne and Paris before returning home.
We’re excited about our travel and want to share it with all our friends and anyone considering taking a longer trip. Since retiring, we have begun doing much longer trips and I hope to share some of the things we see and learn.
We use Wanderlog to plan our trips. It’s a great travel panner and no matter the device we are using, it allows us to update places we want to visit and keep track of our days and expenses.
For almost my entire life, I have loved traveling and taking photos of the places, people and events I’ve witnessed. For most of my career I was a photojournalist and was blessed to witness history and record it with my cameras.
Now I’m retired, but my love of these two things has not waned. In fact, I can now travel with my wife and we can see so many things at the race we want to enjoy.; This site is designed to allow you an insight of our travels and experiences. Being retired has given me the opportunity to plan and find areas we’ve always wished to see.
Additionally, as a retired photo educator, I’ll share some photo tips and equipment reviews as well as travel information we hope you’ll find helpful.
Join us as we explore the world.
World Photo Traveler