On hiatus while we're traveling

We're traveling to New England, Olde Englande, and Wales. This blog is on hiatus until we get back. I've posted this before, but here's our itinerary.

August 29th: Fly from Seattle (leaving at 5:30AM - I'm not looking forward to that!) to Denver to Boston to visit Carrie's sister Michelle and her husband Joe. I've never met Joe, but everyone tells me that he's a hoot. I'm looking forward to meeting him! We're spending the night before we leave in a hotel near Sea-Tac.

August 30: Visiting Joe and Michelle. There's a slim possibility that Carrie & I will be going to Rhode Island to see a very old house that was owned by my ancestors.

August 31: Visiting Joe & Michelle. The Boston Red Sox are out of town this day, so we might be able to tour historic Fenway Park - I've always wanted to see (and touch) the Green Monster.

September 1: Visiting Joe & Michelle. We'll need to hit the sack early, because we have a 9AM flight the next morning. Joe & Michelle have told us that they'll take us to the airport, even though it's a long drive (each way!) for them. Bless 'em for that.

September 2: Fly from Boston to London. Leave Boston at 9AM. Due to a 5-hour time difference, arrive at Heathrow airport at 8:45PM. We're staying at the Park Inn Russell Square, recommended to us by some good friends. It's near the British Museum, and just a few blocks from two different tube stops.

September 3: The plan is to take it a little easy this day, to recover from jet lag. Carrie found a rubber stamp store a few block from our hotel, so we might go there. There are several walking tours in the area, and I think we may do one of those this evening, if we're up to it. We also want to see the location of the great book "84 Charing Cross Road". If you have any good suggestions for recovering from jet lag, let me know.

September 4: Hampton Court Palace. Carrie is setting the agenda for our stay in London, and this is high up on her list. Since Hampton Court is quite a way west of London, I think we'll take a train to get there, and take a three hour river tour to get back. A three-hour tour?

September 5: The Portobello Road Saturday market. This sounds really cool. Antiques, flea market. A massive shopping opportunity for Carrie! Saturday evening, we'd like to go see a play (Carrie is leaning towards a comedic version of Hitchock's "The 39 Steps". Sounds good to me!

September 6: Take the 8:15 AM train from London (Euston Station, about 10 blocks from our hotel) to Llandudno, in northern Wales. Llandudno (pronounced "Smith") is a Victorian seaside resort town on the north coast of Wales. It's a good base for exploring the area. We should arrive about noon, and spend the rest of the afternoon checking into our hotel and exploring the town.

September 7: Pick up a rental car (already reserved) at Llandudno Junction (a suburb of Llandudno, if there is such a thing), and head south to Portmerion, a small Italianate village where that great 60's TV show "The Prisoner" was filmed, and Harlech Castle.

September 8: More castles: This time Caernarfon and Conwy. We love castles!

September 9: Do laundry. Find a small pub, sit there and talk to the locals. We'll also try to ride a narrow-gauge railway.

September 10: Check out of the hotel, turn in the rental car, and take the train from Llandudno to Bath, in England. Carrie loves Jane Austen, so this is a natural. Arrive in Bath mid-afternoon. Check into the B&B and then go look at the famous Roman baths and the abbey.

September 11: All day bus tour to Stonehenge, Avebury, Lacock village (which was the Hogwarts village Hogsmeade in the Harry Potter movies), and Castle Combe village in the Cotswolds. Should be a good way to see a number of sites. The tour company ("Mad Max Tours") has been highly recommended to us.

September 12: Touring Bath. Start off with the Roman ruins and the abbey. There are also some great Georgian buildings, and a Jane Austen museum to see, as well as a highly-recommended costume museum.

September 13: Take the train to Salisbury to see the cathedral.

September 14: A day of rest and packing, followed by an evening train to London. We'll spend the night at the Sheraton Skyline, near Heathrow.

September 15: We fly from Heathrow to Boston, from Boston to Chicago, and from Chicago to Seattle. Then from the airport to home, after more than 20 hours traveling.

September 16: A day off to recuperate. We'll need it!