October 13, 2026 There was a beautiful sunrise before we docked in Sydney today. We began our tour of Cape Breton in Sydney. The Cape Breton coat of arms incorporates the unicorn in honor of the Scottish heritage of Nova Scotia (New Scotland). The Membertou school, Maupeltuewey Kina'matno'kuom, is just one of the many successes of Chief Terry Paul who was instrumental in implementing policies that raised the community from one of the poorest to one of the most prosperous comm

October 12, 2026 We enjoyed the fall colors as the ship made its way to the port in Halifax. After we boarded the small group bus, we made our way to Lunenburg where we enjoyed a delicious lunch of fried haddock with assorted veggies. After lunch, we explored the fisheries museum and the town. We made a special detour through Mahone Bay to see their straw people for the Scarecrow Festival. At the end we stopped for a photo stop of the community and their Three Churches. After

October 11, 2026 We arrived in Portland early in the morning. We began our tour with a city tour of Portland. We passed by Fort Allen Park. Fort Allen had played a vital defensive role in the War of 1812. We then headed out of the city to see the Portland Head Lighthouse in Cape Elizabeth. We enjoyed a scenic drive on the way to Kennebunkport. Kennebunk/Kennebunkport was a fun area to explore. We tried out a whoopie pie! It was like a round Suzie Q. On our way out, we passed

October 10, 2026 We started our St. Lawrence Seaway cruise on Holland America's Zuiderdam in Boston. We went directly from the airport to the ship so sadly had no time to explore Boston on this trip, but did enjoy the views of the port and the city as we prepared to leave the harbor. The cranes at Paul W. Conley Container Terminal are specially designed to made room for the low-flying planes getting ready to land at the nearby Logan Internatinal Airport. The red, white and bl

July 11, 2026 We were extremely lucky to have a beautiful day with calm waters for our visit to St. Kilda. Reaching the island can often be treacherous when the sea is rough and landings to the island are often canceled. We began the day with a morning zodiac ride to go bird watching. The remote islands in the archipelago of St. Kilda are famous worldwide for its sanctuary for over 250,000 pairs of breeding sea birds of many species. The Isle of Dun hosts Great Britain's larg

July 10, 2026 We toured the Isle of Louis where we visited the Calanais Standing Stones, the Iron Age broch of Dun Carloway, and the Gearrannon Blackhouse Village. On the way, we passed by Loch Meavaig with a carpet of wildflowers. The Calanais Standing Stones are a prehistoric stone circle that predates the standing stones of Stonehenge. Erected 5,000 years ago, the stones are made of gneiss from the Isle of Lewis and arranged in unique cross pattern. Archaeologists theorize

July 9, 2026 After the Isle of Mull, we traveled to the Isle of Eigg in the afternoon. "Eigg" in Gaelic means "notched island" because of its unusual shape. The ship anchored off shore and we took a zodiac in. and enjoyed a nice walk near the shore. An oyster flew with a snack it caught and brought it to it's young. We enjoyed watching a common eider and its ducklings. On the way back, we saw a hooded crow.

July 9, 2026 Thanks to Brent's early booking of excursions we and four others were able to go on a wildlife tour of the island in search of red deer, white-tailed sea eagles, and otters. We were lucky and saw all three! The white-tailed sea eagle was the first we found. There were two in the trees. The Isle of Mull is nicknamed the Eagle Island because it has a high population of both the white-tailed eagle and the golden eagle. The white-tailed sea eagle is the largest bir

July 8, 2026 We visited the Isle of Bute today. We took the zodiacs in to the town of Rothesay. We then met our guide for a walking tour around town. We first visited the Rothesay Victorian Toilets. These well-preserved toilets are probably the most complete Victorian toilets in Great Briain. They remain open to the public both as a tourist attraction and a public toilet. We then explored the town. The Winter Gardens (Bute Discovery Center) Rothesay's Coat of Arms Rothesay Fo

July 7, 2026 In the afternoon, we visited the Isle of Man. Although located near the Scottish Isles, the Isle of Man is not actually a part of Scotland or even the United Kingdom. It is a self-governing island that was granted its independence by the English monarch who is the "Lord of Mann," a largely symbolic title. We did a panoramic bus tour of the island. King William's College Castle Rushen is one of the best-preserved medieval castles. Milner's Tower atop Brada Head Po

July 7, 2026 On July 6, we sailed away from Dublin on the Seabourne Venture and headed back to Scotland. The adventures started early in the morning the next day when we explored the Isle of Calf by Zodiac. Our photography group went out first and got to stay out a bit longer - a great perk of joining the Image Masters. The Drinking Dragon Chicken Rock Lighthouse The Puffin Project - these plastic puffins combined with speakers broadcasting puffin calls are meant to attract p

July 5, 2026 As our companions on the Gate 1 Tour returned home, we were on our own for a day in Dublin. We had booked a tour of The Book of Kells at Trinity College, so we purchased a Big Bus pass to make our way there and see more of Dublin. We began with a morning trip around the Big Bus Route. It was a live narration by the bus driver instead of the recorded track that we often hear on Hop On Hop Off Buses. Rosie Hackett Bridge The Kennedy's Bar, once Conway's, was a popu

July 4, 2026 We did a city tour of Dublin with Gate 1, visited the Epic Museum and then gathered for a farewell dinner for the Gate 1 group. We first stopped at the St. Patrick's Cathedral, the national cathedral of Ireland. It was founded in 1191, but mostly built in 1220. It has the tallest steeple in Ireland at 101 feet. It was built next to the well where St. Patrick is said to have baptized many Irish converts to Christianity in the 5th century. We were able to spend ti

August 19, 2026 Although I grew up in the San Juan Islands, I never went whale watching or saw an orca there. In fact, until this July as we were approaching Heimaey, Iceland I had never seen an orca in the wild. My best friend from high school, Ranatta, had never been whale watching and it was on her bucket list, so we got together finally went! We booked with Island Adventures and had an amazing experience. The boat was the best I had been on for whale watching. (I had been

July 3, 2026 We left Killarney in the morning, passing by the Franciscan Friary on our way out. Then we enjoyed a beautiful drive to County Cork. We stopped for a 2 to 3 hours at Blarney Castle. The highlight of Blarney Castle is to kiss the Blarney Stone which involves over 100 steps on a narrow winding staircase and then bending backwards to kiss the stone with help from supportive attendants (at least you no longer need to be hung by your feet). Brent and I already done it

July 2, 2026 From Killarney, we went around the Ring of Kerry. In Killorgin, they celebrate the Puck Fair, one of Ireland's oldest festivals. In this unique festival, they capture a wild mountain goat. The goat is then crowned king and reigns over the 3-day festival. This statue honors "King Puck". We stopped at the Red Fox Inn for some Irish Creme Coffee (I had hot chocolate.) This artisan with his donkey and little dog are a common site on this scenic spot. He makes St. Bri

July 1st, 2026 Today we left Galway and drove along the Wild Atlantic Way to Killarney. As we started out in Galway County, we saw a glimpse of Dunguaire Castle. The castle was originally built in the 1520 by the O'Hyne clan on the same strategic site as a 7th century fort. In 1924 it was restored by Senator Gogarty who used it as a meeting up for the great literary forces in the Celtic Revival. W.B. Yeats often visited, as well as other famous authors such as Lady Gregory a

June 30, 2026 We drove through the Connemara National Park on a day trip out of Galway to Kylemore Abbey. As we drove out of Galway, we crossed over the 200-year old Salmon Weir Bridge, giving us a good view of the newly-buily Salmon Weir Pedestrian and Cycle Bridge. We also passed by the Galway Cathedral with its distinctive copper dome. About half an hour outside of Galway, we visited the historic Ross Railroad Station, now a private home restored by the Joyce family who ma

June 29, 2026 We departed Northern Ireland today and made our way to Galway in Ireland. On the way, we stopped at Donegal Town, Sligo, and Knock. As we approached Donegal Town, we passed by St. Agatha's Church built from 1869 to 1871. Like many churches in Scotland and Ireland, there was a graveyard on the grounds so that people could be buried on holy ground. Donegal Town was our first stop for a weaving demonstration. Prominently displayed on the Diamond, the Four Masters m

June 28, 2026 We left Belfast and headed to Derry today. The limestone cliffs along the Causeway Coastal Route were stunning. This one reminded me of a turtle. We stopped briefly at the Magheracross Viewpoint so we could get a better view that from the bus window. We were even able to see the ruins of Dunluce Castle in the distance from the view point. Stories of Dunluce Castle include that of the "Falling Kitchen". It is claimed that during a violent storm in 1639, the kitch