Currently traveling

Our European Adventure 2018

A 6 month trip on a shoestring Read more

Follow Insights Calendar Share

Footprints
Photos

Our European Adventure 2018 Traveler
Show trip
Add to bucket listRemove from bucket list
Share
Day 57
Wednesday, June 27, 2018 at 1:49 PM
☀️ 75 °F
Altitude: 59 ft
England Grantchester 52.182187, 0.09847152°10’56” N 0°5’54” E
Grantchester village
June 27, 2018 in England ⋅ ☀️ 75 °F
One day we drove to Grantchester, a village on the river Cam, just south of Cambridge. It is a place where students and others often go to walk in the meadows along the river, picnic, and swim. The Orchard Tea Garden is a beautiful spot, and there are charming pubs too. A lot of poets, writers, and other artistic types hung out there.Read more
TravelerI just love all the buildings!
7/1/18Reply
TravelerMe too!
7/1/18Reply
TravelerThese houses are so quaint! Love those thatched roofs.
7/2/18Reply
3 likes
Our European Adventure 2018 Traveler
Show trip
Add to bucket listRemove from bucket list
Share
Day 55
Monday, June 25, 2018 at 10:00 AM
☀️ 72 °F
Altitude: 30 ft
England Saint Ives 52.332144, -0.0760552°19’56” N 0°4’34” W
St Ives: Market Town
June 25, 2018 in England ⋅ ☀️ 72 °F
St Ives is a cute little river town that used to have a sheep market on the main street square. Now it is used for a street market selling food, crafts, household items, etc. The architecture has a Dutch influence. We ate a typical British lunch in the local church on the square. Fish pie is very filling, and nothing to write home about, but it is an active church and we wanted to support them.Read more
1 like
Our European Adventure 2018 Traveler
Show trip
Add to bucket listRemove from bucket list
Share
Day 54
Sunday, June 24, 2018 at 3:49 PM
☀️ 73 °F
Altitude: 46 ft
England Cambridge University 52.205337, 0.12181752°12’19” N 0°7’19” E
The Round Church, etc.
June 24, 2018 in England ⋅ ☀️ 73 °F
More landmarks in Cambridge
Graduation robes
King's College meadows, right in town!
0 likes
Our European Adventure 2018 Traveler
Show trip
Add to bucket listRemove from bucket list
Share
Day 54
Sunday, June 24, 2018 at 2:49 PM
☀️ 73 °F
Altitude: 46 ft
England Cambridge University 52.205337, 0.12181752°12’19” N 0°7’19” E
Eagle Pub, Cambridge
June 24, 2018 in England ⋅ ☀️ 73 °F
The Eagle Pub has an interesting history. The back bar is where British and US Air Force chaps hung out and wrote graffiti on the ceiling using candles, lighters, and lipstick. It felt like we were in their presence.

This is also where Crick and Watson lunched, worked out the structure of DNA, and announced it to the patrons.Read more
1 like
Our European Adventure 2018 Traveler
Show trip
Add to bucket listRemove from bucket list
Share
Day 54
Sunday, June 24, 2018 at 11:00 AM
☀️ 66 °F
Altitude: 46 ft
England Cambridge University 52.205337, 0.12181752°12’19” N 0°7’19” E
Colleges of Cambridge University
June 24, 2018 in England ⋅ ☀️ 66 °F
Here is King's College, where we went to an Evensong to hear the choir. It is composed of boys from about age 8 through college age, and they sing beautifully!

Queen's College is next--and the Mathematical Bridge that connects the college's two banks. The boats going along the river are called punts. Punting is a favorite pastime in Cambridge.

And some more colleges in the next photos.Read more
1 like
Our European Adventure 2018 Traveler
Show trip
Add to bucket listRemove from bucket list
Share
Day 54
Sunday, June 24, 2018 at 10:00 AM
☀️ 64 °F
Altitude: 46 ft
England Cambridge University 52.205337, 0.12181752°12’19” N 0°7’19” E
Cambridge
June 24, 2018 in England ⋅ ☀️ 64 °F
Cambridge is home to the 4th oldest university in the world, and includes 31 colleges. It is a very walkable town, and most of the colleges are right in the center. We took a Hop-On-Hop-Off tour to get an overview, and then walked around to see more buildings up close. Here are some views of the city from the top of Great St. Mary's Church tower, including a street market, and a photo of the tower itself.Read more
TravelerWhere were you when you were taking those photos? You look like you are way up in the air
7/2/18Reply
TravelerAt the top of Great St Mary's Church bell tower
7/2/18Reply
1 like
Our European Adventure 2018 Traveler
Show trip
Add to bucket listRemove from bucket list
Share
Day 51
Thursday, June 21, 2018 at 12:27 PM
⛅ 61 °F
Altitude: 20 ft
England Swavesey 52.300727, -0.00396952°18’3” N 0°0’14” W
Housesitting in Swavesey
June 21, 2018 in England ⋅ ⛅ 61 °F
We are companions to Charlie the cat, and Buzz the Degu for the next 10 days. It’s great to be setting up temporary housekeeping. I made soup which really tasted good after so many days of eating sandwiches or prepared foods from the grocery stores. We don’t eat out very much—too expensive when we are traveling this long.

We are both getting over a cold, so it's great to just relax and watch a movie!Read more
TravelerWe re so glad you ve. Had this wonderful experience. We leave next week with our 3 grandaughters on a tour of national parks and monuments. The kids are very excited! We will cover south western states. Del and nancy. We look forward to seeing your picture
6/26/18Reply
TravelerHave a great time with your granddaughters!
6/26/18Reply
TravelerIsn't a degu like a mouse or rat? No something you can pet or play with.
6/30/18Reply
TravelerIt's related to a chinchilla. Buzz is pretty social--he likes to be scratched under the chin. Charlie the cat is timid but we won her over and now she lets us pet her a lot!
6/30/18Reply
2 likes
Our European Adventure 2018 Traveler
Show trip
Add to bucket listRemove from bucket list
Share
Day 50
Wednesday, June 20, 2018 at 12:27 PM
⛅ 63 °F
Altitude: 79 ft
England Dover Ferry Terminal 51.12562, 1.31694351°7’32” N 1°19’1” E
1
Ferry Crossing: Calais to Dover
June 20, 2018 in England ⋅ ⛅ 63 °F
The ferry had lots of trucks and a few cars on it at 9:40 a.m. We expected more travelers. We had the lounge and restaurant mostly to ourselves. Arrived in Great Britain in rain and fog, and drove (on the left side, we have to keep reminding ourselves) to Cambourne, near Cambridge. We had dinner with the couple in Swavesey, where will be housesitting starting tomorrow.Read more
Traveler That is exactly the way the crossing is pictured in my mind..... and that’s from 1976
6/25/18Reply
TravelerPretty foggy a lot of the time, I'm sure!
6/25/18Reply
1 like
Our European Adventure 2018 Traveler
Show trip
Add to bucket listRemove from bucket list
Share
Day 49
Tuesday, June 19, 2018 at 12:27 PM
⛅ 64 °F
Altitude: 49 ft
France Canal de Calais à Saint-Omer 50.951131, 1.85719950°57’4” N 1°51’26” E
1
Calais Sights
June 19, 2018 in France ⋅ ⛅ 64 °F
Here are several sights in Calais. Included is also an old Watch Tower that has been through an earthquake and two world war worth of bombings. It is still standing due to all the repairs.
Traveler The Burghers of Calais, by Auguste Rodin, showing their anguish at the acts of the English King.
6/24/18Reply
1 like
Our European Adventure 2018 Traveler
Show trip
Add to bucket listRemove from bucket list
Share
Day 49
Tuesday, June 19, 2018 at 11:27 AM
⛅ 64 °F
Altitude: 49 ft
France Canal de Calais à Saint-Omer 50.951131, 1.85719950°57’4” N 1°51’26” E
Calais: Waiting for the Ferry
June 19, 2018 in France ⋅ ⛅ 64 °F
We spent two nights in Calais before taking the ferry to England. We found out that buying our ferry tickets a day in advance saved us 52 Euros! We walked around the town and enjoyed seeing the Town Hall, done in Flemish Renaissance architecture. Much of the interior is stucco, but looks like other materials, such as stone or wood.

Shown are the beautiful stained glass window depicting the return of Calais from England to France, the upstairs hallway, the city council chamber, and the wedding chamber.Read more
TravelerLove the stained glass
6/25/18Reply
TravelerBeautiful
6/30/18Reply
1 like
Our European Adventure 2018 Traveler
Show trip
Add to bucket listRemove from bucket list
Share
Day 47
Sunday, June 17, 2018 at 11:27 AM
⛅ 61 °F
Altitude: 207 ft
France Mont Saint-Michel 48.636063, -1.51145748°38’10” N 1°30’41” W
1
Le Mont-Saint-Michel tour
June 17, 2018 in France ⋅ ⛅ 61 °F
Our admission included a tour, which gave lots of information and showed us things we might not have found on our own. With all the tour groups, it was hard to hear her at times, but we still learned a lot. She said they get a lot of Japanese tour groups, and we certainly saw that. We are thankful that this monument was not damaged in the war, and that the French government is preserving it.

We also saw a performance of medieval music and dance in a courtyard.Read more
Traveler Monks ate their meals while listening to readings from the Bible. No talking of course.
6/24/18Reply
0 likes
Our European Adventure 2018 Traveler
Show trip
Add to bucket listRemove from bucket list
Share
Day 47
Sunday, June 17, 2018 at 11:27 AM
⛅ 61 °F
Altitude: 207 ft
France Mont Saint-Michel 48.636063, -1.51145748°38’10” N 1°30’41” W
1
The Abbey
June 17, 2018 in France ⋅ ⛅ 61 °F
Mont-Saint-Michel was converted into a prison during the Revolution, so many artifacts have been lost. But it is still magnificent. We heard a group of seven college students singing acapella in one of the chapels off the sanctuary. They faced the concave surface of the chapel and their voices resonated throughout the cathedral. It was beautiful, and so refreshing to see young people with a spiritual connection, since we don’t see a lot of that in Europe. A lot of people were listening and making videos.Read more
Traveler Our lunch spot.
6/24/18Reply
TravelerI can only imagine how wonderful and soothing there singing was ........ (the way things are going here USA they would be arrested) 😞
6/25/18Reply
1 like
Our European Adventure 2018 Traveler
Show trip
Add to bucket listRemove from bucket list
Share
Day 47
Sunday, June 17, 2018 at 10:27 AM
⛅ 59 °F
Altitude: 207 ft
France Mont Saint-Michel 48.636063, -1.51145748°38’10” N 1°30’41” W
1
Le Mont-Saint-Michel
June 17, 2018 in France ⋅ ⛅ 59 °F
The highlight, of course, is the Abbey at the top of the mountain. It is amazing to look at the sheer size of it and to think of how they built it. They hauled the rock from the archipelago quarries by barge at high tide. They winched the stones up the mountain using 6 men walking on a “gerbil wheel”, then cut the stones precisely and laid them on a pointed mountain. First they had to make a base around the point, and build it up from there. It was built in the 11th-13th centuries, and then in the 14th century it was fortified for the 100 years war. Because it resisted all English assaults, it is France’s symbol of National identity.Read more
Traveler The 6-man winch used to haul rock to the mountain top.
6/24/18Reply
0 likes
Our European Adventure 2018 Traveler
Show trip
Add to bucket listRemove from bucket list
Share
Day 47
Sunday, June 17, 2018 at 9:27 AM
⛅ 57 °F
Altitude: 207 ft
France Mont Saint-Michel 48.636063, -1.51145748°38’10” N 1°30’41” W
Mont-Saint-Michel: An Island Abbey
June 17, 2018 in France ⋅ ⛅ 57 °F
This Benedictine Abbey is dedicated to St Michael, the archangel. It is an island, connected to the land when the tide is out. It was a Sunday, so lots international bus tours and other people were visiting the area. They get many more during the middle of the tourist season. We used the Park & Ride system and the shuttle dropped us off pretty close. We walked up through the village of hotels, restaurants, and souvenir shops that have been there since pilgrims started coming. About 26 people live on the island, running the businesses. Great views from on high.Read more
TravelerOf all the dumb things that go through my mind, when I saw this I thought of ..... Renaissance Festival Minnesota 😂😂😂 how’s that for dumb?
6/25/18Reply
TravelerIt reminded us of that too.
6/25/18Reply
TravelerIt does remind one of the Renaissance period!
6/27/18Reply
1 like
Our European Adventure 2018 Traveler
Show trip
Add to bucket listRemove from bucket list
Share
Day 46
Saturday, June 16, 2018 at 1:00 PM
☁️ 61 °F
Altitude: 203 ft
France Plage de Trestraou 48.809461, -3.45873748°48’34” N 3°27’31” W
1
Low Tide in Perros-Guirec
June 16, 2018 in France ⋅ ☁️ 61 °F
The tide was out, and it was a weekend, so people were on the beaches, making sand art pictures. Of course, they will only last until the tide comes in! It was mesmerizing watching them work, and probably a meditation for them to do it.Read more
Traveler WOW. just GREAT. 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻
6/21/18Reply
TravelerQuite an art to do the sand painting! Too bad it gets washed away so soon!
6/21/18Reply
1 like
Our European Adventure 2018 Traveler
Show trip
Add to bucket listRemove from bucket list
Share
Day 46
Saturday, June 16, 2018 at 12:00 PM
☁️ 59 °F
Altitude: 203 ft
France Plage de Trestraou 48.809461, -3.45873748°48’34” N 3°27’31” W
Perros-Guirec, Brittany
June 16, 2018 in France ⋅ ☁️ 59 °F
This lovely town is on the Northwest coast of Brittany, called the Pink Granite Coast. Along the way we saw rocky inlets from the sea. A lot of condos are in progress, with great sea views, and old homes are being restored.Read more
2 likes
Our European Adventure 2018 Traveler
Show trip
Add to bucket listRemove from bucket list
Share
Day 46
Saturday, June 16, 2018 at 11:00 AM
☁️ 61 °F
Altitude: 325 ft
France Langueux 48.494183, -2.71444948°29’39” N 2°42’52” W
Langueux, Brittany: Great B&B Hosts
June 16, 2018 in France ⋅ ☁️ 61 °F
We drove to our next B&B, and met our hosts Alexandra and Julien, a 28 year old couple who are very sweet. We were their first guests in the little house they have just finished renovating out of a garage or storage building. It is very well designed and well-constructed, and they are rightly proud of it, since they did it all by themselves!

They also welcomed us with cider that her sister makes and sells, and some local crepes. The unit isn’t quite ready (no internet or TV yet) but they were so nice, we didn’t mind. We found out that Brittany has its own language, based on its Celtic history. Of course, mostly the elderly use it, but it shows up in alternative spellings for place names.Read more
1 like
Our European Adventure 2018 Traveler
Show trip
Add to bucket listRemove from bucket list
Share
Day 45
Friday, June 15, 2018
⛅ 52 °F
Altitude: 282 ft
France Le Mesnil-Amey 49.104857, -1.21310749°6’17” N 1°12’47” W
A Day Off in Le Mesnil-Amey
June 15, 2018 in France ⋅ ⛅ 52 °F
Our first pet-sitting was cancelled, so we had to make alternative arrangements for the next few days. We were fortunate to be able to stay an extra day at the studio we were in. I had caught a cold and needed to rest anyway. We washed clothes, hung out, and found another B&B available in Brittany.Read more
1 like
Our European Adventure 2018 Traveler
Show trip
Add to bucket listRemove from bucket list
Share
Day 44
Thursday, June 14, 2018 at 3:09 PM
☁️ 63 °F
Altitude: 154 ft
France Omaha Beach 49.360212, -0.85726249°21’37” N 0°51’26” W
Normandy: "Flowers of Memory"
June 14, 2018 in France ⋅ ☁️ 63 °F
We were lucky to see a Flowers of Memory ceremony in which French children were putting flowers on the specific graves of servicemen they’d “adopted”. Our national anthem was played on bells—we’d never heard it that way before and it was very moving! The atrocities the French suffered are still remembered, as well as their gratitude to the Allies for their freedom.

The children also visited a site where the cemetery overlooks a D-Day Landing area at the base of the hill.Read more
TravelerMust have been very moving!
6/21/18Reply
TravelerIt was!
6/22/18Reply
TravelerNow that’s something I wish I could have experienced Wonderful glad you were there for it
6/25/18Reply
TravelerWe had actually read about this kind of thing way before our trip, and we felt fortunate to see it for ourselves!
6/27/18Reply
1 like
Our European Adventure 2018 Traveler
Show trip
Add to bucket listRemove from bucket list
Share
Day 44
Thursday, June 14, 2018 at 2:09 PM
⛅ 63 °F
Altitude: 154 ft
France Omaha Beach 49.360212, -0.85726249°21’37” N 0°51’26” W
1
Normandy American Cemetery
June 14, 2018 in France ⋅ ⛅ 63 °F
What a beautiful memorial! Excellent sculptures and a circular chapel with a mosaic ceiling. They didn’t start the landscaping until 1956, when all of the soldiers were moved that families wanted in the States instead of here.Read more
Traveler "Quote inside: Think not only upon their passing. Remember the glory of their spirit."
6/21/18Reply
TravelerBeautiful!
6/21/18Reply
1 like
Our European Adventure 2018 Traveler
Show trip
Add to bucket listRemove from bucket list
Share
Day 44
Thursday, June 14, 2018 at 12:09 PM
⛅ 61 °F
Altitude: 16 ft
France Omaha Beach 49.369682, -0.87108449°22’11” N 0°52’16” W
Omaha Beach, Normandy
June 14, 2018 in France ⋅ ⛅ 61 °F
“No mission too difficult. No sacrifice too great. Duty first.” (Quoted from the stone monument on the beach.) This D-Day Landing site is also commemorated by the metal sculpture, “The Braves”. We imagined the hardships the servicemen had landing and making it up the hill behind the beach. Overwhelming how so many lost their lives in the first 24 hours!

We stopped in the little town, Vierville-sur-Mer, and bought apple cider and calvados, which the business owner makes himself. There were some WWII pictures on the outside walls of the shop. One was of nurses who were shipped in to care for the wounded children, something we don’t usually think about.Read more
TravelerSo many lost their lives here. It must have been amazing to see. SC
6/21/18Reply
2 likes
Our European Adventure 2018 Traveler
Show trip
Add to bucket listRemove from bucket list
Share
Day 44
Thursday, June 14, 2018 at 9:00 AM
☁️ 57 °F
Altitude: 200 ft
France Saint-Germain-la-Blanche-Herbe 49.197343, -0.3839849°11’50” N 0°23’2” W
1 1
Battle of Normandy: Memorial to Caen
June 14, 2018 in France ⋅ ☁️ 57 °F
Driving through Normandy is beautiful. Hard to believe this was all torn up in the war.

The Memorial to Caen is the most comprehensive museum about WWII. It includes events leading up to the war, during the war, and post war (cold war). There was also an old German bunker to visit and a movie, "Battle of Normandy: 100 Days that Changed the World". Most of Caen was destroyed during the battle. The museum had a lot of information, and we ran out of energy to see the cold war exhibits. It was all well done and very sobering.Read more
Traveler Country road with hedgerows.
6/20/18Reply
Traveler Fiat Topolino, which means Little Mouse in Italian--forerunner of the Volkswagen.
6/20/18Reply
1 like
Our European Adventure 2018 Traveler
Show trip
Add to bucket listRemove from bucket list
Share
Day 43
Wednesday, June 13, 2018 at 2:30 PM
⛅ 66 °F
Altitude: 315 ft
France Saint-James 48.522992, -1.31795348°31’23” N 1°19’5” W
Saint-James
June 13, 2018 in France ⋅ ⛅ 66 °F
Saint-James is a darling little town, with international flags hanging across the main street. We stopped at an old 1920s hotel to have coffee.

As you can see, Mc Donald's is everywhere! It's a good place to get WiFi, after 10 am when they open.Read more
1 like
Our European Adventure 2018 Traveler
Show trip
Add to bucket listRemove from bucket list
Share
Day 43
Wednesday, June 13, 2018 at 2:00 PM
⛅ 64 °F
Altitude: 325 ft
France Saint-James 48.52316, -1.32319248°31’23” N 1°19’23” W
Brittany American Cemetery, St. James
June 13, 2018 in France ⋅ ⛅ 64 °F
Driving North, we happened to see a sign for an American Cemetery and Memorial, so we stopped to visit it. It was beautifully landscaped, and had a lovely chapel, with maps of the battle lines inside in both French and English. It was very moving.Read more
2 likes
Our European Adventure 2018 Traveler
Show trip
Add to bucket listRemove from bucket list
Share
Day 42
Tuesday, June 12, 2018 at 2:30 PM
⛅ 68 °F
Altitude: 62 ft
France Bordeaux 44.837789, -0.5791844°50’16” N 0°34’45” W
Bordeaux: Cité du Vin
June 12, 2018 in France ⋅ ⛅ 68 °F
We had to visit the Cité du Vin (City of Wine), the International Wine Museum. We enjoyed tasting some wines from around the world. We were given a chip card, which we inserted into the slot, then we picked which wine we wanted to taste and it was dispensed automatically. At the end the chip card is totaled up. Each of our tastes was about 1€50 (about $1.75). There were more expensive ones, of course. So many choices, but Dean still had to drive, so we limited ourselves.Read more
TravelerYou look pretty 😃. Did you test ALL the vino? 🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷
6/19/18Reply
TravelerDean was pretending!
6/20/18Reply
TravelerLooks like a neat place. I think Sun Valley should install one of those to make money so we wouldn't have to pay to have our trees trimmed.
6/20/18Reply
TravelerSounds like a plan!
6/20/18Reply
1 like