Oxford and Stratford-upon-Avon September 22, 2026

Today our actual bus tour started. We met our guide, Oshan, who seems like he will be very good! That's definitely a plus.

Our first stop was Oxford where the famous university is located, first established in 1096. It actually consists of 39 colleges where students get a very individualized education.  The buildings are all very old and impressive. Parts of the Harry Potter movies were filmed in some of them. Many famous people have gone to school here including kings, prime ministers, Stephen Hawking, Dr. Seuss and Bill Clinton.

Trinity College, founded in 1555

Reading rooms

The Bodleian Libraries, a group of 23 libraries, were founded in 1602 and are one  of the oldest libraries in Europe with over 13 million printed items. 

Main library 

More old buildings. 

Christ Church is another one of the colleges as well as a cathedral. 

The Martyrs' Memorial in Oxford honors three protestant leaders who were burned at the stake in 1555. 

We got to visit the Ashmolean Museum, one of the oldest museums in Europe with millions of artifacts. 

Stradivari violin 1600s

The tapestries were also 1600s and covered the entire wall, wow!

J.R.R Tolkien and C.S. Lewis were both professors at Oxford. They met weekly from 1940 into the 1960s at a local pub. Their books are now for sale at the Oxford book store.

Our second stop of the day was Stratford-upon-Avon to see where William Shakespeare was born and lived most of his life. It's a very quaint village. 

Much of the area we drove through today was in the Cotswolds, a beautiful part of England with rolling hills, farms, meadows, grazing sheep, quaint villages and cute houses.

Shakespeare birth house

The house in the picture above was Anne Hathaway's (not the actress) family home. Shakespeare married her when he was 18 and she was 26 because she was pregnant. They had 3 children. Notice the thatched roof. Some houses still have them for historical authenticity. They are expensive to maintain. 

Jester statue with Shakespeare quotes

Shakespeare statue 

Royal Shakespeare theater 

Tonight we are staying at a very nice Holiday Inn in Coventry, England. Coventry was completely annihilated by bombs during WWII, so the entire city was rebuilt in the 1960s and 70s. No history to see here, so tomorrow we continue on to York.

London September 21, 2026

We left Yuma on September 19th at noon. After three flights with stops in Phoenix and Charlotte, we arrived in London at noon on the 20th with an eight hour time difference. I managed to get a few hours sleep on the overnight flight. Travel went well, so that's always a very good thing!!

After sleeping eleven hours, we were refreshed and ready for our tour of Westminster Abbey. We took the tube to Westminster. As we came out, we saw Big Ben right in front of us. How cool is that!!

Notice the London Eye ferris wheel on the left. We rode on it on our visit in 2007

We booked our tour through Viator which we have used in the past. There was some confusion on where to enter and how to get our tickets, but we figured it out. This was an audio guide tour.  The audio wasn't all that interesting.  I would definitely recommend a guided tour instead. 

The Abbey has been on this site for over a thousand years.  It has been the coronation church for the royals since 1066 with 40 monarchs having been crowned there. Around 3,300 people are buried there!

There are numerous chapels and naves inside. The stonework and artistry is magnificent. This ceiling carved from stone is so intricate and beautiful as are the many stained glass windows!

One section called Poets Corner is dedicated to British poets and authors. Some of the more famous buried there include Charles Dickens, Robert Browning, and Rudyard Kipling. There is a memorial to William Shakespeare. 

The Coronation Chair was commissioned by King Edward I in 1296 to enclose the Stone of Scone, also known as the Stone of Destiny, a symbol of Scottish sovereignty that Edward brought to England. The chair is carved of oak, and has been used in every coronation since 1308. The stone was returned to Scotland in 1996, but is brought back for any coronation. It doesn't look like much, but certainly has a great deal of historical significance and tradition.

The mosaic floor in front of the high alter was built in the 13th century using marble, glass and tile. It is incredible!!

I've seen a number of these flower kiosks along the side of roads. How lovely!!

After Westminster, we walked to Buckingham Palace. The guards were just wearing dark blue uniforms, not the big hats. I wonder why??

Queen Victoria Memorial 

In the evening, we did a Historical Pub walking tour. We visited four historic pubs, heard the stories about them, and sampled some local beers and ciders. Our guide was a very personable young man who is a model, actor and film producer. 

Our first stop was the oldest on the tour called Ye Olde Mitre built in the 16th century by a bishop. Legend has it Queen Elizabeth I danced around a tree in it's gardens.

Next stop was The Old Bank of England built in an actual former bank. They had a bus in the courtyard that had to be brought in by a crane. There was also a room with barber chairs as Sweeney Todd was said to have done his killing on Fleet Street nearby. If you don't know the story, look it up. It's quite gruesome! Johnny Depp starred in a movie about Sweeney. 

Stop number three was Ye Olde Chesire Cheese, rebuilt in 1667 after it burned down in the great London fire the year before. These old buildings are like a maze inside with very narrow, steep stairs. 

We stopped at the statue of John Wilkes. He was a journalist who wrote a negative article about the king and was arrested. He took it to court and won. He is revered as a champion of English freedom, and was instrumental in free speech laws.

Our last pub was The Black Friars built on the site of a former monastery. The interior design was very well done. As we headed back, there was a beautiful moon in the London night sky. 

Day one was a success. Both tours were interesting. The pub tour was great fun!

Cruise from Los Angeles to Vancouver May 5-10, 2026, Part 2

Our cruise ended in Vancouver. The ship sailed into port early in the morning on a beautiful day.

Vancouver skyline

Sailing under the Lion's Head Bridge

We booked an excursion that took us to some of the highlights of the city. We spent the night in a hotel in Vancouver and then flew a direct flight back to Los Angeles the following morning where we picked up our car and drove back to Yuma.

The first part of our tour was by bus through the city of Vancouver. One of the stops was at the Gastown Steam Clock built in 1977 to cover a steam grate from the city's underground heating system. It uses the steam to power its whistles, which chime every 15 minutes and play a tune on the hour. It has become quite a tourist attraction.

My video wouldn't play, so I borrowed the one below from YouTube.

Our next stop was the Capilano Suspension Bridge Park. What an amazing place!!  The bridge was originally built in 1889 by Scottish engineer, George Grant Mackay as a simple crossing made of hemp and cedar planks over the Capilano River. Its a little shaky going across now. I can't imagine what it must have been like crossing that first bridge. The bridge was upgraded several times along with other additions to this park in the rain forest. Today, it has become one of Vancouver's most famous attractions.

We were there on a Sunday, so it was quite busy. The bridge is 450 feet across and 230 feet above the river. Although it is shaky going across, it can withhold the equivalent weight of a fully loaded 747 jet.

Lots of people crossing the bridge, making it sway quite a bit

View of the river from bridge

An attraction added in 2004 is the Treetops Adventure, a canopy walk which reaches 110 feet above the ground. It was built with reclaimed wood and uses a non-invasive collar system that does not harm the trees it is attached to. 

Grandma Capilano Tree, oldest and tallest Douglas Fir in the park, 800 years old, 250 feet tall

This 4.5 foot tall chainsaw carved squirrel was hanging between the trees

In 2011, the Cliffwalk was added. This 700 foot walkway is literally built right into the side of a cliff, 30 storys above the river. 

This tree was growing out of the cliff along the walk. Amazing how nature finds a way to survive!

In addition to the above attractions, the park also includes a restaurant, snack bar, pavilion, totem poles, a history walk and gift shop. We decided to try some poutine and local beers. We have heard about this dish from our Canadian friends. It was French fries and cheese curds smothered in brown gravy. We give it a thumbs up!

Don’t wish upon a star – Reach for one!