After completing our last season as managers at the Beaver Island Lodge, we were exactly back where we were 10 years ago when I wrote the story “Wide Open Spaces Ahead of Us”. Our first …
Our transatlantic Princess cruise 2025 intentionally ended in Southampton UK, as it was about a two hour drive from my long awaited dream of visiting Seaton Village in the UK. Caught a taxi to the …
Storms to the north forced us to change the Portuguese Island of Madeira for Santa Cruz de Tenerife for the much farther south Spanish Canary Islands. Santa Cruz de Tenerife was a good choice, especially …
Our first transatlantic cruise in 2022 was mostly the result of a Covid test gone lopsided, which prevented us from flying to Curaçao in the southern Caribbean. It was meant for a two wee trip …
This offseason had to be scheduled a bit different since TJ needed some facial skin procedures as a result of cancerous spots. Since we did not know the length of the recovery process we decided …
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Our Pacific cruise was over and more sick than ever, and ungodly early in the morning, we slouched ourselves to LAX for a flight back to Nashville, where our car was parked with friends Ric …
Port of Call: Papeete, Tahiti The Islands of Tahiti constitute of the 118 islands spread over a surface as big as Europe. The best known 3 islands are Tahiti, Moorea and Bora Bora. These volcanic …
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After completing our last season as managers at the Beaver Island Lodge, we were exactly back where we were 10 years ago when I wrote the story “Wide Open Spaces Ahead of Us”. Our first trip then was also to Nashville, where Han’s oldest friend in the US had moved to. Sadly Ric passed away a couple of years ago, so now we visited Kay his widow in Brentwood TN, a suburb of Nashville, for almost a month in Dec/Jan of 2026. This is also our last trip south in our trusty Nissan Murano which we purchased exactly 10 years ago. And the end of this trip she goes to another dear friend, while we take a transatlantic cruise over to Europe for an extended stay. But first some travel impressions from this last north-south trip.
There are so many amazing restaurants near her home, that we did not have to venture far to experience something new and delicious.
Our transatlantic Princess cruise 2025 intentionally ended in Southampton UK, as it was about a two hour drive from my long awaited dream of visiting Seaton Village in the UK.
Caught a taxi to the airport to pick up our rental car, which I was not on board about but Han really wanted the car. Literally to make a long horrific scary story short, unless you are extremely familiar with driving on the left, dealing with UK traffic, huge roundabouts, teeny tiny country roads or enjoy arguing with your mate…leave the rental car and take any other means of transportation. We visited Seaton for a week and I never got back in, until we had to return the car. It will try the best of relationships.
The staff was very nice and said I was the first “Seaton” that they could remember ever staying there. Close to town, a large grocery store “Tesco” next door, a rocky beach with massive boardwalk was just across the street, unique restaurants within a short walk and charming homes for as far as you could see. The hotel has a restaurant attached, but they were forever running out of multiple menu items.
Totally frowned upon the fact that you have to pay for parking and wifi at the hotel, which was very pricey.
Hotel is nothing fancy, but it met our needs and was fairly quiet. All in all, it was an enjoyable and comfortable stay.
For being off-season there were many stores and restaurants open, but then again the weather was unusually pleasant for the time of year.
We strolled through a few cemeteries because history fascinates me, but I was also hoping to glimpse some Seaton family graves, however we did not locate any. I did purchase my share of “Seaton” tourist goodies however.
The resale stores there are surprisingly easy on the wallet. It has many cute parks for people/dog watching. One feels very at home almost immediately.
Our friends David and Glenda with whom we met in Portugal Jan. of 2020 lived close by. We had a wonderful opportunity to spend more quality time with them. They drove us to neighboring towns of Beer and Sidmouth the day after our arrival. I sat in the back seat and covered my eyes a lot. Just when you think a road cannot get any skinnier, they do.
We had the largest most fantastic breakfast EVER at unassuming Beer Head Bistro. It is located on the Jurassic Coastline and set in a caravan vacation park. We needed nothing else until dinnertime, better yet, we were full.. The inside decor of the restaurant is beyond charming. This was my first experience eating a “full English breakfast” with many more in my future.
Next stop was Sidmouth. I had more energy than the other three, so I set off to do a bit of shopping, beach rock/boardwalk inspections, take photos and revel in the architecture. Sidmouth has a lot of sights to offer and I could have spent at least a week here also. Joined the rest of the crew to have some espresso, people watch and admire all the doggies parading in the sunshine. People in the UK have a lot of dogs and majority of stores welcome them along with their owners.
After a long wait we're almost there...
not much room to play with
Activity overload promised
Seaton - an Ancestry Away?
Glenda in anticipation of English Breakfast
David, English oak at its very best
As you want it interior decorations
Shopping street in town
Walking the waterfront, everyone's favorite pastime
Faulkner Hotel to the left!
Seaton downtown intersection
England's sense of colorful living. You've got to love it.
Seaton has a tramway from the olden days that still runs through the wetlands and stops in some small villages to the north. It was one of the highlights of our stay in Seaton. With it being off season, quite a few places were closed in each village, but still enough open and architecture to enjoy. Had a sweet treat and coffee in a locals restaurant. The vibe was very chill and welcoming, with everyone chatting to each other and a cute dog relaxing underneath one of the tables.
Dogs are also welcome in most restaurants in the UK. They have figured out that dogs are less problematic and cleaner than many humans.
There is so much history and information about the tram, that I suggest youclick on the link to see it all. Wear comfortable walking shoes and use a walking stick or cane if you have trouble traversing hills.
David and Glenda came by again to be our driver and tour guides of beautiful, fascinating Lyme Regis.
So very thankful for their friendship. Also for driving.
Regis, a World Heritage Site, is by far the steepest small town I have experienced. Today on the menu was Swim Restaurant for breakfast. Beautiful location on the water, extremely nice staff, high reviews and so forth, but we were all underwhelmed with the breakfast. I could not help but compare it to my first experience of the English breakfast in Beer (see above picture). Personally it was one and done for me. However, all four of us felt similar about it.
Back to checking out Regis… As Han, David and Glenda decided to relax on the seafront boardwalk having coffee, I had the bright idea of climbing the stairs from the boardwalk to the top of the village. I admit when I am wrong and I was out of my mind wrong about this. I lost count of the stair steps or even how many times I had to catch my breath. At first it is a zig-zag walkable incline, then steps that shoot up into the wild blue yonder. Just when you think you are at the top: nope, you have a very steep zig-zag path to continue the workout. Thanking whoever put random benches to rest before continuing. Once you are at the top, the world feels like it unfurls at your feet and I couldn’t believe I made it without calling for medical assistance. This is no exaggeration either. Then I started my descent to find the rest of the crew. I felt like I had run a marathon by the time I found them relaxing on a bench like smart people.
cemeteries and graveyards; where history becomes heavy
A church hiding among houses
Religeous color schemes
A Typical English Waterfront Look
Some strangely disturbing door ornaments
Any room can serve a great afternoon tea
Spend a day in the book/record store
British humor: tempus fugit amor manet
A scene in Devon on the Water
A great Chinese Restaurant in Seaton Village
All roads lead to Rome?
Life used to be so simple
The horse does not agree with the sign
Life portrays colorful in this part of the world
With the choice to drive back to Southampton on Sunday or Monday, we decided to drive at ease on Sunday, rather than in Monday morning workweek traffic. Why put yourself under pressure? The trip back to Southampton was not as horrifying but we were very glad to turn the car in. Of course that was until they tried to rip us off, and tell us we stole the boot out of the back that covers the luggage area. We were not even aware there was not one originally in the car. They were just trying to find a sucker to blame it on. It didn’t fly and we were not charged. Besides that, we had purchased insurance. Also the car rental airport crew are completely lacking in manners. Not to go into details, but we were not the only ones who the process started off negatively.
Note: Don’t rent from Avis or Budget, they are in same building with same workers.
The Market of our Lady of Africa – Santa Cruz, Tenerife
Storms to the north forced us to change the Portuguese Island of Madeira for Santa Cruz de Tenerife for the much farther south Spanish Canary Islands. Santa Cruz de Tenerife was a good choice, especially since we had visited Madeira a couple of years before and were not totally impressed, as the island definitely breathes resort tourism, which we try to avoid.
Santa Cruz because of its sheer location just off the south of Morocco’s Sahara still inhibits a true African culture mixed with Southern Spanish atmosphere. It’s a lively combination of various historic influences. It is the largest island in the Canary Archipelago, and like its brethren Canaries, Tenerife was formed by fierce volcanic activity. Its landscape remains dotted with volcanic cones and areas of intense geothermal activity. Towering over the island is Mt. Teide, an extinct volcano since 1909 that, at 12,200 feet above sea level, is the highest peak in all of Spain. Santa Cruz de Tenerife is the island’s capital and our port of call. We decided to stick to town with Darcy and Caralee and make it a stressless fun day.
Santa Cruz is located on the northeastern shore of Tenerife has a population of more than 200,000 inhabitants. The island is home to close to a million residents, making it Spain’s most populated island. Its climate is known as the “Island of Eternal Spring” and we definitely enjoyed a token of spring that day.
The famous Wind Sculpture
We walked past the Wind Sculpture located in the center of the square in front of the Auditorio de Tenerife, the Castillo de San Juan and the Parque Marítimo César Manrique.
Walking down the main shore drive we passed a beautiful ‘sunken’ park and after crossing a couple of major la rambla sized pedestrian shopping street, we crossed the bridge and came up to the entrance to the famous Mercado de Nuestra Señora de Africa, locally known as La Recova. And what a pleasure that was. It stands on the site of the former Monastery of San Francisco. Its distinctive architecture, inspired by Moroccan aesthetics, features three courtyards and a clock tower, making it an architectural landmark in its own right. The market was a visionary project designed to centralize the city’s food supply and create a modern, hygienic marketplace for the growing urban population. Today it provides a daily showcase of the island’s agricultural bounty and rich culinary traditions.
Visiting this market offers a direct connection to the local culture and heritage. It’s a perfect way to immerse yourself in the authentic rhythm of the town and its vibrant daily life. You’ll find everything from exotic fresh produce to traditional Canarian specialities here, highlighting the island’s unique offerings and the diversity of its agriculture. The enormous, partly open air market, was inaugurated in 1943 on a neo-colonial architectural base, as a tribute to African Culture and the Island’s Fishing history. The fresh markets give an eye’s delight of color and composition. The people were not rushing, it was a rather slow stroll and moving from stand to stand. The flowers and fresh vegetables and fruits were generous in providing this area with vivid colors. And the smell! The mixture of all possible herbs, flowers and bakery.
Old and new mixes well here in Santa Cruz
Santa Cruz Bridge
Our Lady of Africa Market
Mercado
Fruits and vegetables
Exotic Fruits and Vegetables
Fresh Seafood -Shrimp - Crabs - Lobster
Spices as Presents
Tower Landmark
Quiet, restful, shady siestas
Pedestrian Shopping streets
santa cruz cat message
Decorative Wall Painting
Departing with the pilot boat
It is one of those places where you want to get your wallet out and start buying bags of stuff, and then you realize with certain sadness, you’re on a cruise ship where everything food is included in the ride and the fridge in your stateroom is too small for a cantaloupe. In the end you buy some exotic spices as a gift for friends back home, because you want to leave some of your “wealth” behind for these friendly, smiling, hardworking people.
After almost 2 hours of pure delight we leave and stroll in search of a nice outside café where we can get a drink and maybe a local snack and spend a while doing our favorite thing on vacation: people watching.
Darcy and Han decided that they could live on this island. Han actually has a history with the Canary Island where he helped his friend, architect/developer Peter Riteco, in the late 1970s develop and market a resort, Parques Holandés, on the neighboring island of Fuerteventura. Old memories kept floating the afternoon away, until it was time to return to the ship.
Parques Holandes, Fuerteventura
The Canary Islands as a tourism destination were developed in the early 1960 by Scandinavian, Dutch, ,British and German vacation suppliers. Some of the islands have suffered from over-development, while others followed a more cautious approach. Definitely worth a destination visit of several days to weeks.
Our first transatlantic cruise in 2022 was mostly the result of a Covid test gone lopsided, which prevented us from flying to Curaçao in the southern Caribbean. It was meant for a two wee trip to Barcelona. However before we arrived in Barcelona on that first cruise, the bug already got us and we booked a 2 week extension across the Mediterranean Sea and the Greek Isles. The next year’s cruise was a 28 day Pacific/South Seas trip, which unfortunately turned bad because of illnesses. In 2025 we once again opted for a transatlantic cruise, because the cost pretty much equals almost 2 roundtrip airline tickets and let’s face it, after 6 months of serving hotels guests, it just feels magnificent to be taken care of by a professional hospitality crew for a full two weeks. And last but not least for those who are sensitive to jet lag, the 6 hour time difference is absorbed over a number of days, rather than all at once. If it’s done right, it can’t get any better and we feel that Princess aims high in customer satisfaction.
Platinum’s with the Captain’s Circle
Our ship of choice (well it’s really more of a case of what ship needs to go over to Europe for the summer season) is the Sky Princess, the sister ship of Regal Princess, which we took three years earlier. Also, our routing choice this year was based on TJ’s longtime wish to visit her family ancestry’s origins supposedly in Seaton Village, Devon, not far from our end port of Southampton.
Having learned from our terrible experience during the previous year’s Pacific cruise, we had an extra suitcase filled with every medicine imaginable. We also decided to start the last 4 days prior to boarding with a vitamin elderberry liquid shot, as we have learned how easy it is to get infected with a cold or flu, just standing in line to collect your medallion. More than 3,000 people in relatively close quarters will get you infected easily.
Soon after boarding we headed for the smoking lounge on aft deck 16, since that’s where the cool people usually hang out. Unfortunately this time, the smoking area housed not only the nicest people but also some of the vilest, loudest, ultra right wing individuals one can imagine. One of them actually during the cruise claimed to be a proud right wing nazi. A quick warning to the security officers on board, made this guy shut up for the duration of the crossing. It promised to be an interesting ride ahead of us.
The sea day length was estimated at 8 days and arriving in the Portuguese Resort island of Madeira on day 9. For a schedule like that we always try to reserve a stateroom on the starboard side of the ship as that puts our balcony towards the south with usually lots of sunshine for tanning during the crossing. Yet, as often happens in the early months of the year, storms develop to the north of us, occasionally dipping down.
Our Besties from Vancouver Darcy and Caralee
That exact scenario was the case during most of our cruise, so we were not surprised that the captain had to change course deeper to the south. As a result we diverted from Madeira to Santa Cruz de Tenerife in the Spanish Canary Islands. Since we had already visited Madeira in 2022, we didn’t mind one bit. Our new friends from Vancouver, Canada, Darcy and Caralee (also smokers of course) joined us for the day on land in Santa Cruz and we all had a great time.
After Tenerife we were looking forward to a day in Casablanca, Morocco for a day strolling in the Ancient Medina which turned out magnificent. But our last port of call, supposedly La Coruña in the increasingly popular Galicia area of Spain was the next victim of weather, as we only quickly anchored to let some ship- entertainers off, before steaming northwest through the notorious Gulf of Biscayne to Southampton, England.
This offseason had to be scheduled a bit different since TJ needed some facial skin procedures as a result of cancerous spots. Since we did not know the length of the recovery process we decided to have the procedure done early in November in Petoskey, so that everything could properly heal prior to traveling. Less than a couple of weeks later we started our off season travels.
Our travel down from Beaver Island in northern Lake Michigan is pretty much a given, since the youngest daughter and her adorable family lives in the city of Holland/Michigan. Here is where we usually stay a week or longer before the Christmas Holidays, to spend some fun days and have our car maintained. Our Murano is from 2007 and spend her first ten years short tripping the sunny Florida climate. Since 2016 she has primarily done the long journeys east-west and north-south. This year she is going to get a heavy make-over engine wise and new tires. She’s worth it. If you ever need a great travel car, the Nissan Murano definitely qualifies.
As soon as the car has received dealer approval for the trip south, we get on the road direction Nashville/Brentwood Tennessee for a Christmas visit with Kay who, just a year earlier, had lost her longtime husband Rich had also been Han’s oldest friend in the USA. A week of good food, great restaurants, some fancy nail work and visiting other old friends is on the usual menu, as well as a good amount of Mexican Train games.
After about a week of rest it’s time for our next trip stops bringing us back ‘Home” to Amelia Island/Fernandina Beach, about 30 miles north of Jacksonville, Florida. Here we usually stay a week to ten days with old friends Jack and Sharon, who provide absolute hospitality heaven, one block from the beach. We lived in Fernandina Beach for almost 10 years, operated a B&B on the beach there, had a very popular website and still have tons of friends there. So never a quiet moment when we’re on island.
Early January we say goodbye and leave for two weeks in a Hilton Head condo. Now Hilton Head is chosen because it has a nice swimming pool in the open public area, 4 floors up enveloped by condos. Han is in his element and swims daily between 75 and 100 laps. The hot whirlpool is an extra luxury for his knees. In the weekend son Drew and his wife Jessica, both work for supermarket giant Publix and live in Savannah, come for a visit and we all are having a great time thrift shopping, discovering the town and having dinner in several restaurants.
After the two weeks in Hilton Head we’re on the road again and via well established cities in Georgia such as university town Athens and Atlanta suburb of Marietta we drove back to Tennessee’s eastern mountain range and settled in a wonderful old Airbnb in Allard near Jamestown with a great mom-and-pop grocery store called Burnette’s Suprette less than 500 yards away from the AirBnB. We used the week to cook dinner for TJ’s oldest Maranda, who owns a horse farm on the Cumberland Plateau and we rested that week, reading, eating and sleeping.
When the week was over, we were ready for the “exhaustion” of another transatlantic cruise.
We drove back 2-1/2 hours to Brentwood/Nashville where we left our car with dear friend Kay and flew Delta (yep we get points) to Ft.Lauderdale. (Of course via Atlanta…) An airport taxi later and we checked into a nice Airbnb owned by a fellow Caribbean brother, with whom we had a long and animated conversation about politics and cultural differences. The next morning we took off to the cruise ship port in search of the Sky Princess. which was supposedly going to take us from Ft. Lauderdale transatlantic to Madeira/Tenerife/Casablanca/Santiago de Compostela/La Coruna to Southampton in England.
This time we were ready to explore England and TJ’s ancestry with Southampton as our starting point.
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