This weekend we drove to WI and back (30+ hours round trip), family wedding and Brewers game. Excluded from the list, all the great things about seeing all of my family (congrats to the newlyweds, niece Kiana and Nick) … Top 10 things I learned, re-learn or realized this weekend … 10. WI lakes are beautiful lakes 9. WI drivers 😂😂 … go, you go, no you go, after you, go ahead…

Following Rotterdam we had a sea day then back to England. Day 11 we got off the boat and got a driver to take us by Stonehenge before returning to London. Stonehenge was very nice, lots of tourists, but it did not feel crowded. We took a short shuttle to the rocks and grabbed some pictures. It is definitely one of those places, while not glamorous is a must see.

Day 9 took us to Rotterdam, Netherlands. Rotterdam was the one stop we shelled out for a private driver, we intended to visit Kinderdijk (windmills) then to a small town, either Gouda (cheese) or Delft (blue-and-white pottery). As it goes sometimes cruising, things did not go as planned, we had lost an engine, and the boat could not go as fast as usual, so we were late, very late.

In the middle of telling you about summer vacation I went on a trip to Chicago. FTR, I was in Chicago for National Hot Dog Day. HOLY. GRAIL. Anyway, back to business. After Copenhagen we had a sea day, then on to Hamburg Germany. Not to get too far of on a tangent, but between ours and the boat scheduling, this trip worked out very nice.

After Oslo, the next stop was Copenhagen. We have been to Copenhagen before and it remains on of my favorite European cities. It was the first place we experienced the “eat outside in any temperature” idea. A seat outside, a blanket, a beer, European table service, can’t beat it. The air feels clean and more people ride bikes than cars. Yes, there is something about bikes.

Day 3 we left London and headed to South Hampton to jump on a boat. The drive should have been 2 hours but beach traffic made it 3. Check-in and boarding was smooth, we found a spot on the deck and a cold drink rather quickly. Rooms opened up, lunch was served and we were off. wandered around the boat, played some cards and cribbage, read a book.

As I walked around London, I kept expecting The Clash to come out from around the corner and start singing ‘London Calling’. Not really, but kind of. Summer vacation started in London, after an overnight flight, the first half day was a bit foggy, but once I got a Red Bull and a snack things cleared up. We walked a bunch on the first day, Big Ben, Parliament, Westminster Abbey, Buckingham Palace, Piccadilly Circus, we stayed at Leicester Square, great location and a nice spot for an evening IPA in the park.