Atlantic Odyssey 2025:: Dublin

On May 30, 2025, the MS Vista sailed into Dublin Bay and dropped its anchor. Ship to shore transfers were to be done by tender that day. Unfortunately, the drop off point for the tenders was at Dun Laoghaire Harbour, nowhere near the Liffey River. One had to get a cab to drive the 10 kilometres to the Temple Bar area where St. Patrick's Cathedral and Dublin Castle are situated. But our adventurers had seen all that stuff before and they just wanted to go ashore and go for walk.

Gym and his dear companion decided to stroll through some of the more chi-chi neighborhoods in the capital. On the way to the Ballsbridge and Donnybrook districts they traveled above Seaport Park where they observed a a few 'polar bears' braving the sub 15C surf.  The air temperature was much warmer than the sea though and there were numerous locals out on the park pathways pushing upscale strollers and pulling posh canine companions. To our hero, the populace appeared to be mostly Millennial and Gen Z but that made sense because he'd passed multiple campuses of Trinity College and Dublin College scattered throughout the area. At one point along the way, Mrs. Gym deftly steered her husband away from a row of watering holes between two campuses. 

They continued on and came to several blocks of beautiful detached stone houses, on generous lots, surrounded by hedges of rose bushes and flanked by ornate wrought-iron gates. They had arrived in the Ballsbridge area. There were a few listings by Saville and Sotheby's. When Gym returned to the ship he checked out the list prices and they did not surprise him. His favourite house was on Ailesbury Road was listed at 8M Euros. 

The dynamic duo dined in a quaint little Irish public house and returned to Loaghaaire Harbour by cab. They had reached their step-count goal for the day and then some.

That night the Vista would cross the Irish Sea to Wales.

Grand Canal near Ballsbridge, Dublin

Pink door/white door duplex

Clayton Hotel in Ballsbridge

Blackrock park

Apperol Spritz on the terrace

Swimmers in Dublin Bay

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A very friendly public house where the Guiness is fresh

Atlantic Odyssey 2025: Belfast and the Giant's Causeway

Hexagonal columns of basalt at Giant's Causeway

Leaving Donegal and the Republic of Ireland behind, the MS Vista sailed back into the North Atlantic and turned right. She rounded the top of the Emerald Isle and in the morning of May 29th sailed into Belfast, the capital of Northern Ireland and a constituent part of the UK. Mrs. Gym put away the Euros for the day and grabbed the sack of British Pounds. 

Belfast and the surrounding area have so much to offer. Our hero and his dear wife had a difficult time choosing where they would spend the few hours that they had in Northern Ireland. They ended up passing on  everything in Belfast city and so they would miss the Titanic Belfast Museum, St. Georges Market, Cave Hill Park and the Black Cab Tours. As usual, they discovered that they needed to return someday and spend a few more days there.  

As Mr. Gym's favourite subject in university was geomorphology, he wanted to see the Giant's Causeway and his lovely sidekick agreed to join him in this endeavour. It was a bit of a drive outside of the city but it was well worth it. And it turned out, there were a few bonus experiences close to the Causeway, that werepart of the itinerary.  

The Giant's Causeway is a must-see venue. The paved pathway down the cliffs to the igneous formations is wide and safe. It is about 1.5 milesl down to sea level and back up again. Beside the pathway is a paved one-lane road for the trolley that runs up and down the grade. The trolley is  for the elderly and the lazy sightseers. The exposed outcrops of the hexagonal-shaped columns of basalt are stunning and really worth seeing. The facilities at the top of the cliffs are clean, modern and comprehensive with spacious and ultra-modern washrooms, a very nice cafeteria and a gift shop. In the summer months, they average several thousand people a day there and although it was crowded, everything flowed pretty well.

Just eight miles down the road from the Causeway, Gym was pleased to be able to drive by the venue for this year's British Open. The 153rd Open is being played at the Royal Portrush Golf Course from July 13-20, 2025. When the bus drove by Gym could see the bleachers going up and the hospitality tents being erected. 

A little farther down the road from the golf course is the ruins of Dunluce Castle. Shots of it appeared in Game of Thrones. Dunluce was the inspiration for the castle of the House of Greyjoy. The bus stopped here for a photo opportunity.

Finally, on the way back to Belfast the bus drove past the town of Bushmills and its famous Irish Whisky Distillery. Gym was saddened that they couldn't stop for a tasting.

All-in-all, it was a great tour.

That night, the Vista would steam south into the Irish Sea. The next stop was Dublin where Euros would again be the currency-du-jur.

the basalt turns black near the water and becomes
treacherous to walk on

the hexagon shape is evident from the top but some 
of the columns are worn by erosion

Another angle

The Bay of the Cow

Mrs, Gym on path down to Causeway

Not too crowded

Royal Portrush Golf Club

Almost ready for the Open

Royal Portrush Clubhouse

Dunluce Castle

Atlantic Odyssey 2025: Donegal, Ireland

 

It had just finished raining when our adventurers
first sighted the Emerald Isle and a rainbow
 appeared over the port bow of the ship. 

On the morning of May 28th, 2025, the MS Vista cruised into Killybegs, Donegal and tied up to the pier. Killybegs is a very picturesque town in a deepwater fjord on the south coast of the county. Killybegs was mainly about fishing in the old days. Today though, the economy has become more diverse, especially since the infrastructure was given a boost by the European Union. Ireland joined the EU in 1973. EU grants helped to improve the port and build new highways. These investments allowed tourism to become an important part of the economy. 

The dynamic duo decided to go on a scenic hike that day. They would be driven to a very special place in the foothills of the Bluestack Mountains. They lucked out with the local fellow that led the group that day. Keith Corcoran, the author of several books on Irish folklore, would be the guide.

About 30 kilometres outside of Killybegs, the small group piled out of a mini-bus in a parking lot next to a rural soccer field. The hike involved a 2.2-mile loop that climbed up and back down the side of the impossibly green foothills. 

At the halfway point of the hike they came to the Disert Graveyard of Donegal. This is a site where pagan Druids and later Christians gathered to worship in a beautiful outdoor setting between the mountains and the sea. Massive stones were used to build a tomb and erect an alter at the site. A nearby well  provided water for baptisms. It is said in the literature that most of these constructions date from the times of St. Colmcille in the 6th century.  Keith did an excellent job of  passing on the lore and keeping everyone entertained. Then, everyone hiked back down to the mini-bus. There were no casualties.

Keith's Corcoran's latest book is titled; "Finding Fairy Mysteries in Donegal; Close Encounters with the Wee Folk". Find him at https://www.irelandguidedtravel.com/

A point near the Rotten Island Lighthouse

A nice place overlooking the harbour

A stream running through the valley in the
foothills of the Bluestaack Mountains

Author and guide Keith Corcoran

Alter 

Iconic scene from the Emerald Isle

Gym hiked by this lovely farmyard 

 

Atlantic Odyssey. 2025: Outer Hebrides

 

Hebrides Bagpiper

Stornoway is the capital of the Island of Lewis and Harris. Weird name, or what? Well it turns out that Lewis and Harris are rival subgroups of the MacLeod clan. These sub-clans lived on different parts of the island. Gym thought to himself that maybe MacLeod would have been a more appropriate name for the island but he remained quiet about this throughout the day, so neither clan was offended.

Stornoway is another place in Scotland with an excellent deep water harbour. The MS Vista tied up there on the morning of May 27, 2025. Mr. Gym and his fair companion made another smooth transition from ship to tour bus and there they met their guide. He was a physicist with a PhD and had until recently been toiling away at what he referred to as the "uni in Glasgow". He moved home to the Hebrides so his son could be born there and not in the big city. From this, Gym deduced that there must be something to this place and was eager to see the sights.

The tour did not disappoint. Richard was any excellent guide. Notwithstanding the fact that he usually lectured on Physics, he was knowledgeable on many subjects related to his homeland and his passion was sincere. The highlights of the tour are set out below: 

1, From the Stornoway docks the tour drove east to the Calanais Standing Stones. Just like in the Orkney Islands these henges are older than Stonehenge. They are 5000 years old dating back to Neolithic times; 

Calanais Standing Stones

2. Continuing on to the north, the tour stopped at Dun Carloway Broch. This fortress dates from the First Century AD and is one of the best preserved such strongholds in Scotland. Unfortunately in 1861, the MacAuley's busted the place up a bit when the Morrisons of Ness hid out there, with some stolen MacAuley cattle. It hasn't been the same since. Gym sent his sidekick into the old stronghold to examine the structure from inside;

Dun Carloway Broch

Looking at the damage the MacAuley's did

3. Next the bus stopped at the Gearrannan Blackhouse Village. Here there are nine restored thatched 'blackhouse' buildings in a heritage village. Gym and his fair companion were able to get a feel for what it must have been like to live in these homes that were inhabited and still heating with peet in the 1970s. Blackhouse comes from the fact that there was no chimney in these buildings. The smoke just escaped through the thatched roof but not before it turned everything black. They were burning peet in one of the houses when Gym was there. Gym thought that a peet fire is somewhat smokey like a wood fire but it also has a sweet and earthy undertone making it less harsh on the nostrils; and,

The Gearrannan Blackhouse village

Note the thatched roof

4. On the way back to the ship, Richard passed around his tweed vest. And yes, Harris Tweed is from Harris! Did you know there is a Harris Tweed Authority that can only sanction products meeting specific standards as Harris Tweeds? It's true!

That evening the Vista would sail south to Killybegs, Ireland.

Stay tuned!

A Scottish Highland cow

Hand-cut peet drying and a peet cart

The northern coast

Atlantic Odyssey 2025: The North Sea and Kirkwall, Scotland

On May 23, 2025, after leaving the massive port of Southampton, the MS Vista sailed east through the Solent Strait, between the south coast the England and the Isle of Wight. The next port was to be Edinburgh, Scotland, a 36-hour voyage to the north. Unfortunately, when the ship arrived there in the Firth of Forth, on the morning of May 25th, there was a 2-meter swell and a 30 MPH wind. They were supposed to go ashore by tender and with those sea conditions, it was impossible to do so. As a result, they scrubbed Edinburgh off the itinerary, turned around and headed back out to sea. This was very unfortunate but the decision was made for the right reason, namely the safety of Mrs. Gym and the other fair ladies aboard.

When they nixed the Edinburgh visit, that gave the Vista more time to make the next stop in the Orkney Islands. The Vista could therefore throttle back the engines and give everyone a more comfortable ride in the windy conditions. In the fullness of time, on May 26, the ship tied up to the dock in Kirkwall, The capital of the Orkney Islands. The Vista had thus completed a trip up the entire eastern seaboard of the UK in less than 3 days.

Gym and his lovely companion got off the ship shortly after the gangplank was in place. They were going to check out several of the highlights of Mainland, Orkney, as follows:

1. The Orkneys are an Archeologists dream. Neolithic and Pictish sights have been discovered there and there are stone circles older than Stonehenge on the island. Gym and his fair bride checked these out;

2. Mary Queen of Scots' brother, Robert Stewart, the Earl of Orkney, built a castle on the island and although today, it is in need of renovation, it looked like it was once an upscale crib. Gym and Mrs. Gym saw this;

3. The dynamic duo split an egg salad sandwich in the town of Stromness. This seaside village has tons of character and the locals go out of their way to accommodate you;

4. Highland Park Scotch Whiskey is distilled here but Gym did not have time for a tasting; and,

4. The coolest thing that Gym enjoyed experiencing was seeing Scapa Flow. During both World Wars, this was where the Royal Navy set up shop. It is a natural, deep water harbour in the middle of the Orkney Islands that provided sheltered berthing for the Allied Atlantic fleet. There were two tragic events that happened there though. In 1919, almost a year after WW1 ended, the German caretaker crews scuttled the German High Seas Fleet in the harbour. Today, this is a popular diving spot to check out these ships. Then in 1939, a German U-Boat found its way into the harbour and sunk the battleship, Royal Oak with the loss of  hundreds of young British sailors. Divers are prohibited from diving near this wreck because it is a war grave.

The guide on that day was Allison, a native Orcadian that was very proud of her heritage. Her great-grandfather left the islands to work in Canada for the Hudson's Bay Company. He made a fortune in the fur trade and returned to buy a farm near Kirkwall that the tour bus drove past. Today, her brother runs the farm which is just outside the Arcadian capital.

That night the ship sailed southeast towards the Hebrides.

Stay tuned!

The quaint little Stromness Hotel on
Ferry Street in Stromness on Mainland Island

Colourful fishing boats in Stromness harbour

Tide is low 

Scape Flow is the resting place of dozens of WW1
German Navy vessels that were scuttled a year after 
the fighting stopped and the tragic wreck of the
Royal Oak that was sunk in WW2 with the loss of 800 young
British sailors

Stoned of Stenness, a henge on Mainland Island Colourful
That predates Stonehenge 

Castle ruins of Robert Stewart, Earl of Orkney

Some very unattractive but happy sheep

Atlantic Odyessy 2025: Paris, France

Early on the morning of May 23, 2025, the MS Vista left the English Channel and steered into the Seine Estuary. Then just after dawn, the ship docked at a pier adjacent to the quaint little port of Honfleur, France. Located near the mouth of the Seine, Honfleur was a very important port for centuries.  Today the massive port of La Havre on the other side of the estuary gets much more traffic. As a starting point for the drive into Paris though, Honfleur is better situated.

Later that morning, our hero and his fetching bride stepped off the ship and into a nice, new touring bus. It would be a long drive into the capital along the southern edge of the Seine river valley. As they started up to the top of the escarpment, towards the A13, it was difficult to ignore the lush, green forests featuring beech, oak and pine trees. Further up on the plateau, there were dairy farms where the red and white Normande cattle are raised. This breed produces milk that is transformed into Camembert cheese. Halfway to the capital cereal crops appear in the fields near  the historic city of Rouen.  

Only once did the bus stop and it did so at a fantastic roadside truck stop that rivalled anything in North America. The facility was clean, well-laid out and spacious. The bathrooms are immaculate. While there, Gym observed that the French truckers were on the whole slimmer than their American counterparts, they drank espresso instead of energy drinks and ate more croissants than they did donuts. In general, Gym was very impressed with the high standard of French highways and the related infrastructure (he had the same experience in southern France in 2023). 

In spite of a taxi strike that blocked one of the two main roads into the 'City of Lights' the bus driver soon had the tour through to the centre of Paris via the underground tunnels that link the suburbs to the old city. The driver that day was named Antoine and he was excellent. Not only did he really know his way around Paris, he also was feeding the tour guide with interesting information the whole day. 

Antoine didn't break a sweat as he emerged from a tunnel and did a couple of loops around L'Arc de Triomphe to show us what a talented road warrior he was. As we came out on the Champs-Elysees our guide pointed out all the flagship stores that lined that famous avenue. Near Place de la Concorde the bus was parked next to the Petit Palais and everyone was given 2.5 hours to explore on their own with strict instructions not to get lost.

Gym and Mrs. Gym wandered out across Place de la Concorde and then crossed over to explore the Tuileries Garden as far as the Louvre Pyramid. That Louvre Palace is massive. From there they backtracked to eat lunch in a nice spot off the Champs-Elysees. They then briefly explored some of the beautiful artwork in the Petit Palace before returning to the bus at the appointed time. To their amazement no one got lost and the bus left on time. Before the bus got back on the highway it stopped at the Eiffel Tower for 15 minutes and then toured the 7th Arrondissement, the most upscale part of the city, before returning to Honfleur.

That night the ship crossed the English Channel and tied up to the docks in Southhampton.  Here Vista would swap out some more passengers, take on more provisions and top up the fuel tanks. Gym and his dear wife also had the opportunity to get off the ship and have lunch with their friends the Andersons from Suffolk who hosted a wonderful meal at a greek restaurant nearby. 

That evening the dynamic duo would continue on the fourth quarter of the Atlantic Odyssey 2025 when the Vista would begin a loop around the United Kingdom and Ireland before landing back in Southampton again on June 3, 2025.

Stay tuned!

pics to follow

Dawn breaking over the Seine estuary

The pretty port of Honfleur, France

First glimpse of L'Arc de Tiomphe

A striking Parisian 

Place de la Concorde

Jardin des Tuileries

Garden dedicated to the people of
Kyiv, Ukraine

A look inside the Petit Palais

The iconic Eiffel Tower

Another good shot of L'Arc de. Triomphe