United Kingdom
Southampton

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    • Day 6–7

      Southhampton

      May 2 in England ⋅ ☁️ 13 °C

      Took the train from London to Southampton today. It took around 1.5 hours and was lovely to see some of the countryside. Hotel is above our expectations and is gorgeous. Porter collected our bags from taxi and brought them up to our room, all very fancy. Then we were off to the Westquay shopping complex, you could get lost in there! We needed another suitcase but decided to do two carry-on cases and see how we go. Then we brought our very tired feet back to the hotel, so a nap before our dinner reservations. The couple next to us in the dinning room were having trouble with their phone when I spotted the cruise app... conversation was started and we had a lovely meal while finding out all about cruising from our new American acquaintances. She is 70 in July and honestly doesn't look a day over 50 - must be due to the 21 cruises they have done, maybe the new fountain of youth 🤷‍♀️ Tomorrow, we embark on our 12 night cruise of the British Isles.Read more

    • Day 11

      Southampton / London

      May 18 in England ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C

      Der Tag fing mit einem imposanten Bild im Hafen an. Fünf Kreuzfahrer waren in Southampton (die Aurora und die Iona von P&O Cruises, die Norvegian Star von NCL, die MSC Virtuosa von MSC und die Mein Schiff 3 von TUI Cruises).
      Für uns ging es auf einen 10-Stunden-Ausflug nach London (3 Stunden hin - 4 Stunden Aufenthalt - 3 Stunden zurück). Durch wenig Verkehr und einem zügig fahrenden Fahrer hatten wir bei 2,5 Stunden Hin- und Rückfahrt tatsächlich 5 Stunden Aufenthalt - toll!
      Es wurde auch ein sehr guter Bus bereitgestellt mit viel Beinfreiheit (auch für uns großen Menschen!) und sehr bequemen Sitzen.
      London ist schon begeisternd. Wir wurden am London Eye rausgelassen und sind dann die Runde über den Big Ben, den Trafalgar Square, den Buckingham Palace, den Hyde Park, zurück auf der Rückseite des Buckingham Palace und durch das "moderne" London über die Westminster Abbey zurück zum London Eye und somit zum Bus.
      London war überall tierisch voll, die Straße zum Buckingham Palace für alle Fahrzeuge gesperrt, sodass wir mitten auf der Straße zum Palast schlendern konnten.
      Wie angekündigt war es wettertechnisch bis zum Nachmittag bedeckt bei angenehmen Temperaturen, nachmittags kam dann die Sonne raus. Also perfektes Ausflugswetter!
      Zum Schluss hatten wir noch ein wenig Zeit und haben noch Fish & Chips gegessen - der Abschluss eines perfekten Tages in der britischen Hauptstadt!
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    • Day 3

      Queen Mary 2 Setting Sail!

      June 23 in England ⋅ ☁️ 22 °C

      This afternoon I headed off to the boat to New York! It took almost an hour from the time I got there till I got to my room, which considering how many people there were was not bad. I thought it was going to take a lot longer than that. They obviously know what they are doing, and I was wearing my mask the whole time as I do when I am inside and ready to take it off if someone needed to see my face to verify it is me and all. Well, I had a hat on as well and the lady at check-in was looking like she was trying to figure out if it was me or not against my photo and I started to say "oh, do you need me to take off my mask," but I didn't get that far cause I took off my hat as I was talking and she said "oh, there's your hair" and that was good enough. It made me laugh.

      I got to my room and it is pretty nice. The balcony is huge! I did a few laps on the upper deck you can walk around on (and it has lots of comfy looking lounge chairs to sit on!) and found the pool (which looks bigger in the photo - it is pretty small), and some spare propeller parts at the front of the ship. We started sailing and it is so flat I cannot even tell we are moving unless I see the water. It is also silent - I can only hear the water and people on deck and stuff. I have never been on a ship this quiet and Raymond was looking up info about it and said it was just retrofitted last year with a fancy new engine in a soundproof room which is really nice. Also all the freshwater is supplied by three seawater desalination plants! Crazy! So fancy!

      I was reading in my room when it got loud all of a sudden so I went to my balcony to spy and this little boat came up right under my balcony and picked someone up! I was like what in the world?? And I told Raymond and he was just like that was probably the harbor pilot. I guess big boats don't drive themselves in and out of the harbor - there are special people in each harbor that do it instead because they know the currents and depths and all of that. I learned so much today! I never knew that was a thing!

      I didn't explore that much, I kept going up to the buffet area to get water and tea (which is where you get to the outside deck from) and ended up doing a lap outside every time cause I would go spy and well once you start walking around you have to spy on all sides right? I did so many laps I didn't explore much else, but that will be for tomorrow. There is a sign on deck that said 3 laps is 1.1 miles, 2 laps is 1.1 km so I did at least 3.3 km (I can't remember how many times I walked around out there, but at least 6! But that and all the walking around town this morning was a lot of walking).

      Sunset was pretty nice - I am on the wrong side of the boat for it, but I looked out and the sky was pretty so up I went for another walk around the deck! The sunset reflecting on the propeller parts was fun. And when I was coming back in I thought I would spy on the buffet again and found a banana chocolate mousse cake thing that I could eat - and it was super tasty! So far the food has been pretty good (though they had a different chocolate mousse cake thing earlier that was...not great. And I was too hungry when dinner got here to remember to take a photo of that - I ordered room service as the buffet wasn't what I wanted, but I am happy with all the vegan options they have!).

      The weather tomorrow is supposed to stay good so hopefully it does! If it is like this the whole time that would be perfect, but I don't really expect it will be. We shall see! It is a fun adventure!
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    • Day 23

      Embarking Celebrity Silhouette

      October 20, 2022 in England ⋅ ⛅ 61 °F

      As beautiful as the weather was yesterday, it was that crummy today … at least until late afternoon.

      We woke up to decidedly chilly temps and rain, which continued on and off throughout the day. At times it was just a barely noticeable drizzle. At other times it was a downpour … usually short in duration. Keeping fingers crossed that we’d catch a break when it was time to embark Celebrity Silhouette, we went down to the dining room for our morning meal.

      In fact, we did luck out a couple of times with the weather.

      First, there was a break in the rain when we set off to drop off our checked bags with the longshoremen at the City Cruise Terminal. To double our luck, we found an old IKEA cart at the entrance to the port … which made managing our bags on the sidewalk that was in less than good condition much easier.

      We had no desire to board the ship … it was only 10:30a and we planned to walk into town for some gelato before embarking Silhouette. But we wondered if we might be able to check-in while the terminal was still quiet. So we headed there next.

      No problem … even though our check-in slot was between 1:00-1:30p. No one blinked an eye. They just directed us inside with instructions to have our passports and express passes handy. No lines anywhere … just a few passengers lallygagging here and there. Formalities took maybe 5 minutes and we were done. We would realize later just how lucky we were to have managed check-in so quickly.

      Leaving the terminal, we walked out into ever-increasing rain. No can do on the walk into town for gelato. We had arranged for a late check out at noon at the Holiday Inn and left our carry-on bags there, so we returned to relax in our room for a while. A smart move, as it turns out. No sooner were we under cover that the rain really started to come down … the downpour lasting about an hour this time.

      Another lucky break in the rain just as we decided to return to the terminal to embark the ship shortly after noon allowed us to walk to the City Cruise Terminal without getting wet. In fact, the clouds seemed to be moving out … the sun breaking through with patches of blue in the sky. Excellent!

      Seeing the lines snaking around the waiting area inside the terminal — passengers queued up at least four deep, waiting their turn to check-in — made us appreciate our quick check-in this morning all the more. Since we’d completed the formalities already, we were allowed to skip the line with just a quick scan of our express passes and continue straight to the gangway.

      The rest of our embarkation day story will be in the next footprint …
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    • Day 19

      Airplane Museum

      September 29 in England ⋅ ☁️ 15 °C

      1,2 Is a double deck water plane that flew from England to Australia making many stops along the way.
      3. Is a fighter plane cockpit with to many buttons.
      4. A Spitfire plane.
      5. Early jet engines were based on a turbo design. Some of the fighter plans during World War II had turbos for piston engines so they could fly at higher altitudes. Then the engineers greatly increased the size of a turbo to make the first jet engines.Read more

    • Day 21

      We’re Negative!

      October 18, 2022 in England ⋅ ☁️ 57 °F

      To embark the ship on Thursday, we need to not only have proof of our COVID-19 vaccines in hand, but also PCR or antigen test results showing that we are in good health.

      Once we were settled into the room, we took out the e-Med testing kits we had purchased earlier this year. Using the free wi-fi provided by the hotel, we connected with testing proctors who gave us step by step instructions and watched as we followed through. Fifteen minutes later, we had what we wanted … a “single pink line” negative result for each of us!

      We’re now all set for embarkation day. But first … a bit of relaxing tonight … and a bit of sightseeing tomorrow.
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    • Day 11

      A day out in Southampton UK

      May 12 in England ⋅ ⛅ 21 °C

      We decided to get off the ship in Southampton for a few hours. We checked out a historic Tudor home/museum/garden, walked thru the old village a bit, popped into a bookstore (because we can’t resist one) and we had a great fish and chip lunch. And we got in a nice walk on a very beautiful day.Read more

    • Day 45

      Southampton

      August 4 in England ⋅ ☁️ 19 °C

      I am so tired right now, but it was a great day wandering Southampton!

      I got woken up before 7 to someone trying to get into my room (one of the cleaning people or whatever, which I don't know why as I had my do not disturb sign up!!) so that was fun. It was loud and my lock was on so they couldn't open the door, but they were trying. Then I couldn't get back to sleep so I had a relaxed morning as I was so sleepy and then headed out about 10 to spy on what I could spy on.

      The weather was gorgeous! Sun with some clouds and a light breeze. Perfect temp for a wander. We were docked farther west than we left from and I was surprised by how close it was to the train station! I was walking into town, was going to go to a grocery store as I was looking for some sweets, and the train station was right there! They also had all of these lighthouses up around the city and there was a map of their locations and such. I saw so many groups of people, families, rushing around trying to see all of them and I am not sure why. Maybe they had limited time or something. I did enjoy wandering and spying them as most were really pretty.

      I went to the grocery store looking for Parma Violets as I wanted to try them and forgot last time I was here. They either had to make something with them or someone made something that tasted like them on the British Bakeoff and they sounded interesting (delicately perfumed violet sweets). At first I found them oddly sweet and not as perfumy as I would have expected, but they grew on me. I like them!

      Then I wandered to find something for lunch. I ended up walking by this sourdough pizza place that had a special roasted eggplant pizza so I had to try that and it was so good! The dough was delicious and the toppings as well. It was so much better than my disappointing pizza when I was first in Southampton!

      I found that north and east of the train station were much nicer than the area of town where I had wandered before. There were lots of big parks and I sat and read for a while after lunch and it was really nice. On my way back to the boat I stopped to get a milkshake...that ended up being chocolate milk So disappointing!!

      Got back on the ship and I am on the perfect side! Mainland Europe will be out my window and I am now on the sunset side of the boat also! One more day and then I will be in Hamburg!!

      I went down to spy on the show tonight, a 60's band, to see what they were like. They are going to be playing the dance venue tomorrow night so I wanted to see what they were like....and they were awful. I was like well, I guess no dancing for me! Oh well, I am still having fun :)
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    • Day 22

      A-Wander in Southampton

      October 19, 2022 in England ⋅ 🌬 63 °F

      Admittedly, Southampton itself doesn’t offer all that much … sightseeing-wise … especially if you’ve been there before as we have.

      Of course, we could have stayed in London … but a big city wasn’t what we wanted since we had just one day prior to embarking our cruise in Southampton. Of course, we could have taken the ferry to the Isle of Wight … or done a tour that would have taken us to some of the charming towns and castles nearby. But, we just wanted an easy day to rest up after a long travel day. Southampton gave us just that today.

      A tasty and filling breakfast at the Holiday Inn — included in our room rate — started off our day. Despite a light breeze, the temperature was comfortable. The early morning overcast gave way to sunshine and patchy blue skies by mid-morning. Perfect for a wander around town.

      Our meander took us to old city walls … where we walked in the footsteps of yore and wondered what life was like when these same walls stood tall and strong to protect the residents. Along narrow, cobblestone streets we walked … where colorful blooms and interesting architecture charmed us. To two museums we went … the Seacity Museum offering a peek into history and the city’s connection to the ill-fated Titanic; the City Art Museum giving us a glimpse of some colorful and interesting art.

      Our quest for a midday meal took us to the Duke of Wellington, an inn/pub built over the foundations of a house dating back to the 12th century … and housed in a building that dates back to around 1490. Damaged by enemy action during WWII, the inn was restored in the 1960s but has the charm of much earlier times … delicious fish & chips and an exceptional brownie served with vanilla ice cream for dessert. Yummy! Yummy!

      We returned to the hotel mid-afternoon, happy and satisfied with our day of exploring Southampton … and ready to put our feet up after an 11,100-step day.
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    • Day 25

      Day 23 Southampton - London

      August 24, 2019 in England ⋅ ⛅ 24 °C

      Off the ship for the final time this morning about 8 am. We arranged to get a cab to the rail station with a couple of friends we made on the ship and disembarking was so easy we were off the ship and at the station within 25 minutes which meant over an hour’s wait for our 9.30 train to Waterloo station in London.

      That all went smoothly enough and we arrived about 11.15 and picked up a black taxi to our hotel/apartment in South Kensington. You know how Londons cabbies used to do “the knowledge” (which was a test that meant they had to memorise every street and the quickest direction to it in central London)? Our cabbie was obviously a complete failure at the knowledge as after 40 minutes in his taxi we were further away from where we wanted to be than when we started.

      We had done this trip a few times before so I knew he was completely lost and following a few increasingly heated exchanges we parted ways, settling on a ten pound (out of the 45 on the meter) as fair exchange for his uselessness. I imagine he can still hear the very colourful language I used as I left the cab and hopefully my parting advice to him about choosing a different career path comes to fruition.

      Anyway ten minutes and one driver who did actually know his way around later, we were at the Collingham apartments. We have stayed here about 4 times previously and they really look after us. We have been given a split level balcony apartment and there was a bottle of wine and chocolates awaiting us on arrival.

      London has a reputation for cool cloudy weather, well not today! Almost 30 degrees with more just like it forecast for the next few days. It was a very hot and sweaty journey by tube out to Camden Town Markets for the afternoon where we were met by every other person in London who also wanted to be there on a Saturday afternoon - jeez it was packed!

      Made a few purchases and made our way back to Kensington about 4 pm. After a quick stop at one of the local pubs and a bit of supermarket shopping we decided to call a halt to the day about 6 pm.

      I had intended to get to a local football match (probably QPR) but the time it took to get to our apartment and the crowds at Camden Town put paid to that. A quiet night in cooking for ourselves in preparation for another day in the London heat tomorrow.

      Photos show... The Collingham Apartments; several shots of the inside and balcony of room 122...
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    You might also know this place by the following names:

    Southampton, STH, ساوثهامبتون, Sauthempton, Горад Саўтгемптан, Саутхамптън, Σαουθάμπτον, ساوت‌همپتون, סאותהמפטון, साउथहैंपटन, Սաութգեմփթոն, サウサンプトン, Саутгемптон, 사우샘프턴, Hantonia, Sautamptonas, Sauthemptona, साउथहँप्टन, ဆောက်သမ္ပတန်မြို့, Hantonne, ਸਾਊਥਹੈਂਪਟਨ, ساؤتھمپٹن, Саутхемптон, เซาแทมป์ตัน, 修咸頓, 南安普敦

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