We're starting to get ready for another trip. As we're fond of cruising, much of this trip will be on a small ship. The ship will embark on a transatlantic voyage that will bring us from the US to Canada, Iceland, Scotland, southeastern United Kingdom (UK), up to several northern Norwegian ports and back to the UK. Once we finally reach solid land at the end of the cruise, we'll embark on a driving trip through the eastern area of the UK.Since most of the trip will be on via a ship, at least we don't have to pack and unpack every few days. The downside of a cruise itinerary is that we only have one day in a particular port to take advantage of local sites. We've been researching our port stops and have arranged a number of scenic and historic tours.
One of our biggest challenges is packing. With a self-imposed limit of one duffel each, this means that we're not bringing along many changes of clothes. Due to the weather extremes we'll likely experience, we also need to pack for both cold and wet weather. We have access to washers and dryers and this will help reduce our clothing needs. Though past experience tells me that we'll be pretty tired of our clothes selections at the end of the trip.
What are some of the highlights we anticipate viewing on this trip? Below is a sample of the activities on our list.
- A visit to "David Bowie Is," an exhibit at the Brooklyn Museum. This exhibit is at the end of its five year international tour. The exhibit is said to permit visitors to immerse themselves in Bowie's music, clothes and observe how he was influenced by science, fashion, people, art, events and sexuality. Over 1.8 million visitors have seen this exhibit as it traveled from the Victoria and Albert Museum to Chicago, Paris, Berlin, Toronto, São Paolo and Melbourne. If you're a fan of David Bowie, this is a must-see exhibit.
- With our first-time visit to Iceland, we hope to visit several national parks to view volcanoes, hot springs, geothermal lakes, lava fields and geysers.
- A return visit to Scotland that will provide opportunities for castle, palace, garden and distillery visits.
- A first-time visit to ports along the coast of Norway, as far as up to Tromso. If the weather and seas cooperate, we should be able to make a return visit to Longyearbyen, Svalbard. Some of these port visits will be focusing on museums and local attractions, others will provide an opportunity to stretch our legs on a hike. For example, in Flaam, we'll take a scenic rail trip up to the high mountains at Myrdal and then ride mountain bikes about ten miles back to town.
- A stay on the grounds of Canterbury Cathedral, Mother Church of the Anglican Communion and seat of the Archbishop of Canterbury. This will be our home base for UK day trips by car. Each day, we'll return to the welcoming cathedral grounds perhaps not unlike those previous weary travelers on a medieval pilgrimage. With some spousal urging, I changed my original car reservation for a manual transmission vehicle. I suppose there's no need to add to the confusion of driving on the left side of the road with the need to shift with my left hand.
Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks and Heart Mountain
In the fall, we scheduled a first-time visit to two National Parks. Through a fund-raising auction, I purchased a three day hotel stay at Jackson Lake Lodge, in Grand Teton National Park. Given our proximity to Yellowstone National Park, it only made sense to add a three day visit to this park as part of the trip. We hope to arrange a few hikes and even a rafting trip down the Snake River.
There aren't many airports that serve this part of the United States. With this in mind, we decided to fly back out of Billings, Montana. Along the drive to this airport, we'll make a detour to visit the Heart Mountain Internment Camp, in Wyoming. Along with 14,000 Japanese Americans, my mother and her family were relocated to Heart Mountain. The family entered the camp in September 10, 1942 after a temporary relocation from the San Francisco bay area to the Santa Anita Racetrack, near Los Angeles. At Santa Anita, the family and other Japanese Americans were required to live in horse stalls. Arriving at Heart Mountain Internment Camp, the seven family members moved to barrack 24-12-E and departed Heart Mountain between February 1943 and June 1945. This is an important historical event that needs to be remembered and lessons gleaned from what was essentially forced incarceration.
In the fall, we scheduled a first-time visit to two National Parks. Through a fund-raising auction, I purchased a three day hotel stay at Jackson Lake Lodge, in Grand Teton National Park. Given our proximity to Yellowstone National Park, it only made sense to add a three day visit to this park as part of the trip. We hope to arrange a few hikes and even a rafting trip down the Snake River.
There aren't many airports that serve this part of the United States. With this in mind, we decided to fly back out of Billings, Montana. Along the drive to this airport, we'll make a detour to visit the Heart Mountain Internment Camp, in Wyoming. Along with 14,000 Japanese Americans, my mother and her family were relocated to Heart Mountain. The family entered the camp in September 10, 1942 after a temporary relocation from the San Francisco bay area to the Santa Anita Racetrack, near Los Angeles. At Santa Anita, the family and other Japanese Americans were required to live in horse stalls. Arriving at Heart Mountain Internment Camp, the seven family members moved to barrack 24-12-E and departed Heart Mountain between February 1943 and June 1945. This is an important historical event that needs to be remembered and lessons gleaned from what was essentially forced incarceration.
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