Miami to Panama City - March 17, 2024 - Panama City

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Southampton - May 23, 2025

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Our journey began in Southampton, where our guide Derek and driver Mike provided fascinating insights into the port city's rich maritime heritage. Southampton's docks tell a story of evolution - the Eastern Docks operated from the mid-1800s through the 1920s before reaching capacity, leading to the creation of the Western Docks through land reclamation from the River Test. These newer docks gained eternal fame as the departure point for the RMS Titanic in April 1912. The Western Docks continue to serve as a major import hub  particularly for motor vehicles.  but now with containers, they employ hundreds of workers rather than thousands. Our guide noted the recent decline in Tesla imports, reflecting changing attitudes toward electric vehicles in the current market. Traveling north through Hampshire county, the landscape revealed the geological story of southern England. The area is dominated by chalk downs, formed millions of years ago and carved by rivers during the last ice ...
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June 6, 2025 - Potsdam - Berlin Trip - Day 3

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Today's adventure took us to Potsdam by train.  Upon arriving, we walked to Sanssouci Palace Complex, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.  I am going to preface my tour details with some information about Frederick the Great as this will provide context for this complex. Frederick II of Prussia, known as Frederick the Great was born January 24, 1712, the son of the authoritarian King Frederick William I and Sophia Dorothea of Hanover. His childhood was marked by conflict with his father, who despised Frederick's love of French culture, philosophy, and the arts, preferring military discipline.   Frederick's interests in arts and philosophy conflicted with his father's militaristic and authoritarian views. The relationship between father and son became strained and a t 18 years old, Frederick tried to flee Prussia to England with his friend Hans Hermann von Katte.   The escape plot was discovered, and both Frederick and Katte were arrested. Fred...
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Oporto, Portugal - May 14, 2025

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Today we spent a wonderful day touring the northern Portugal area around Oporto (also called Porto). This excursion was courtesy of Virtuoso Travel.  As this cruise has a Virtuoso Host on board, our travel agent Marla was able to sign us up for this special tour. We started with a guided tour leaving from Porto. Our guide provided information about Portuguese history, culture, and wine as we traveled. He was quite personable, sharing details about his own life - he's from northern Portugal, married to someone from the Algarve region, has children, and is studying for a master's degree in management while working as a tour guide. He talked about the  Portuguese wine regions, particularly Vinho Verde (which the he insisted on calling "Fino Verde" to avoid confusion since it's not actually green in color).  He explained the  significance of tiles and traditional building materials in Portuguese architecture including  the use of granite stone in northern Portugal ...
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