It’s time once again to see the world, as we start the first of three adventures in 2025. This trip takes us on a cruise from England to Belgium, The Netherlands, Norway, and Iceland. It does not appear that we will need any sunscreen, but having said that it’s a lovely morning here in Southampton. But I’m getting ahead of myself…

Days one and two were long travel days; we left Boise Friday at about 2:30 MDT, changed planes in Minneapolis and left there at 9:30 PM CDT, arriving in Amsterdam on Saturday at 12:30 PM CEST, then one more plane change towards Southampton, arriving there at 5:30 PM BST. All went well, but we were pretty tired when we got here.

Our hotel is the White Star, an old hotel near the waterfront that has been very nicely remodeled. the main floor has a restaurant and pub that were absolutely hopping on a Saturday night. Our room was on the third floor of a building with no elevator, so a little bit of lugging bags up narrow stairs was required. We split an order of fish and chips and Greg had a pint of cask ale; both were very good. Then it was off to bed.

This morning found us feeling much better after a good night’s sleep. Our room included breakfast in the restaurant; we shared an English breakfast and each had a cup of very good coffee. Later we will get over to the cruise terminal to truly start our trip. Tomorrow’s first stop is in Belgium, and will be taking a tour of the city of Bruges. More then…