We have had a relaxed final day in Istanbul. All of us have been a bit too tird to tour the city much but we enjoyed a bit of quite shopping an early dinner and in bed well before 10 pm! This morning is very relaxed also as mum leaves the hotel at 9:30 am and. Teagie and I leave mid afternoon.
As for vlogs...li have updated/extended my previous one to include our travel up to Sofia. Enjoy!
Budapest to Istanbul from Kirsty Merriman on Vimeo.
As this section of our journey is quite long, I am posting an unfinished vlog....it I finishes suddenly mid-music in Belgrade. As I get more opportunities I will update it and repost.....
Jessie, there is a little message for you from Teagan as she hasn't been able to send you any postcards! Watch out for it after her Budapest zoo visit!
Budapest to Istanbul from Kirsty Merriman on Vimeo.
The trip from Belgium to Hungary was a near Breeze. All connections were faultless and trains more than comfortable. For us, the journey was really reasonably priced as I booked on-line the day bookings opened...and within an hour of opening at that! I did note that the deluxe sleepers were only available on some days from Cologne and did not cost much more that the regular couchettes if booked well in advance.
I think I will repeat the journey sometime as the view of the castles over the Rhine was unbelievably good - a fairytale!
Right at this point in time we are still in bed after a long long slow train to Serbia. We have one full day here, catch up on some laundry and do a city tour methinks.
Iepers to Budapest from Kirsty Merriman on Vimeo.
Rather surprisingly we made it to Budapest via one long interconnected set of train journeys....one of which was a comfortable 13 hours! I must say, there were a couple of points once we had arrived into Budapest when it did look like the custard was being made: (1) Teagan decides that the fact that she doesn't want to stand up is my problem because I decided on the trip (got me there kid) and (2) when one confident young traveller and hotel explorer gets caught out not knowing the symbol for the lobby/ground floor...nothing more shall ever be mentioned!
Our time in Iepers/Ypres was fabulous....the 100 year anniversary of WW1 and a key focus of our Europe trip. Here is my video of that section.
Across the North Sea and down to Belgium from Kirsty Merriman on Vimeo.
As I have been sitting contemplating the next leg of our journey (Ypres to Brussels to Cologne to Vienna to Budapest in one set of train rides), I have finished a short iMovie of our time mostly in London.....hopefully, I shall get plenty of time to put together a movie covering our sobering time in Ypres and visiting Flanders Fields.
Southampton to London to Hull from Kirsty Merriman on Vimeo.
As we leave London enroute to Belgium (via overnight ferry), I thought I would load our New York Video Log.
New York, New York from Kirsty Merriman on Vimeo.
Supping on my coffee in bed at 8 am I am too aware of this being our last day aboard the QM2. What a way to cross the Atlantic (and cheaper than flying too).
This sector of our Journey has been rather better than expected. Many reviews from previous passengers ran down the liner, claimed it was less than they thought it would be; for our group that has not been the case. Yes, QM2 is its now 11th year of service and as any liner would have, does have its were and tear but she is a great ship and she is very well groomed. It is all about the little things: the service has been exemplary, the Kids Zone staff fantastic, the food superb, and the ship itself, so large that you need to leave your stateroom with seven minutes to spare in order to arrive at the Britannia Restaurant three decks below and aft (we are forward - just under the fog horn!).
Would we recommend a crossing? You betcha! All inclusive with three people in a stateroom, the price has been less that our one way flight from Doha to Prince Edward Island and that is all inclusive. That said, I did book through my US travel agent and I do know that some people aboard booking last minute in the UK had excellent prices including one-way return flights....they were free to accept and thoroughly enjoyed their short notice 70th birthday celebrations. Thanks QM2 for a wonderful crossing, it exceeded my expectations. Where tie is on my side, I shall be sailing the Atlantic rather than flying in future.
Tomorrow it is off into London with an evening West End show - Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.
Photo: the Captain leading us in our Sunday Service
Wow! Maybe those that cross the Atlantic or cruise Queen Mary 2 may not enjoy the entertainment as much as have have but for new viewers it was fantastic.
We have had fantastic speakers: Phil Bye from ITN talking about his experiences with the Middle East crisis, Croatia, and reporting on Queen Elizabeth II and her travels; George Takei from Startrek speaking on his life and career plus many other interesting presenters. Our mornings have been flying past us as we move from one lecture to another by choice.
Evenings have been taken up by concerts, dancing and singing. Even Teagan ripped herself out of the children's activities to join me in the Royal Court Theatre for a condensed production of Arabian Nights. One night Mum and I attended the theatre to see the Cubard Singers, we along with most of the theatre were captivated by the performances of the four singers and the orchestra and then last night we went to hear Ben Makisi (a New Zealand tenor)... He was so good the theatre stood for him!
And the food? Most would say they over eat but not me. Personally, I have found the food excellent with good portion sizes. In our assigned restaurant I have been able to nearly eat three courses for each meal! Of course if that hadn't been enough, I could have gone up to the buffet and eaten again...not for me though as there has been just too much to do to be bothered with perpetual food.
Our crossing is rapidly closing in on England. Only two more dinners here, one formal and one informal ... maybe today I should try and get some more photos and footage for an iMovie .... Hmmm ... But first things first, it is off to church for 11 am.
And for a photo - here is a photo of our purchased portrait photo so there is a record that I was actually on board.
Wow! Maybe those that cross the Atlantic or cruise Queen Mary 2 may not enjoy the entertainment as much as have have but for new viewers it was fantastic.
We have had fantastic speakers: Phil Bye from ITN talking about his experiences with the Middle East crisis, Croatia, and reporting on Queen Elizabeth II and her travels; George Takei from Startrek speaking on his life and career plus many other interesting presenters. Our mornings have been flying past us as we move from one lecture to another by choice.
Evenings have been taken up by concerts, dancing and singing. Even Teagan ripped herself out of the children's activities to join me in the Royal Court Theatre for a condensed production of Arabian Nights. One night Mum and I attended the theatre to see the Cubard Singers, we along with most of the theatre were captivated by the performances of the four singers and the orchestra and then last night we went to hear Ben Makisi (a New Zealand tenor)... He was so good the theatre stood for him!
And the food? Most would say they over eat but not me. Personally, I have found the food excellent with good portion sizes. In our assigned restaurant I have been able to nearly eat three courses for each meal! Of course if that hadn't been enough, I could have gone up to the buffet and eaten again...not for me though as there has been just too much to do to be bothered with perpetual food.
Our crossing is rapidly closing in on England. Only two more dinners here, one formal and one informal ... maybe today I should try and get some more photos and footage for an iMovie .... Hmmm ... But first things first, it is off to church for 11 am.
And for a photo - here is a photo of our purchased portrait photo so there is a record that I was actually on board.
This morning I was preparing to write a blog post about our Crossing. Sadly, this morning we learned that our beloved Tiny (Teagan's 2 year old ratbag of a darling cat) had died suddenly. Tiny was an expressway rescue, a tough little bundle of non-fluff found at the tender age of three or four weeks old. We picked early on that he had a congenital chest problem as his gait was lopsided and his chest caved inwards. None of that made any difference to him and ensured that he continued to live with his "mother" (Teagan). He was passionate about chewing sheep's wool and licking Teagan to show his cat adoration.
This morning as Ross was to collect him from the Cattery he collapsed and died without warning. Following an X-Ray it was clear that his heart was of an irregular shape and quite enlarged.
Teagan was "worse than sad" and has quietly taken herself off to Kids Zone to sit in the corner and just sit and think on her own with others playing around her. I am allowed to come and check on her at 11:00 am which is about now and I am itching to see her!
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