The Queen's Royal Yacht--Britannia

The Royal Yacht Britannia was Queen Elizabeth's personal ship, carrying the royal family in luxury all around the world for state visits and vacations.  Elizabeth and her family loved the boat because it was an intimate, private, and cozy retreat from state life.  They were quite emotional when it was decommissioned, but now we commoners get to catch a glimpse of royal marine life.  Take a tour with us, and make sure to watch in HD:

Highlands and Islands

Our Scottish friends Andy and Emma took us on a lovely road trip last weekend.  We took in a massive slice of Scotland that was sorely needed before we head home in two months. 

Our ultimate goal was the Isle of Skye to the northwest of Scotland, but before that we took a ride on one of the last working steam-trains in the world.  The Jacobite Steam train runs from Fort William to Mallaig on the coast, and the railway was featured in the Harry Potter films.  We had a fun ride--a steam train experience is much different than a more modern one.  The sounds of the chugging engine and the steam whistle combined with the verdant landscape rolling by outside made for a great journey,

When we reached Skye, we snagged some fish and chips to eat beside the sea and then drove over to the town of Plockton on the mainland.  Plockton is famous for its palm trees, which are of course quite unusual here in Scotland.

The next day we drove along the coastline of the island, through heavy mist hanging low on the tops of the mountains, to see the Old Man of Storr (invisible, unfortunately, through the fog) and the waterfall at Kilt Rock.  On the way back we stopped by the Talisker whisky distillery and sampled some fine highland draught.

On our way back we stopped at the battlefield of Culloden, outside of Inverness on the mainland.  Culloden was the site of the last battle on British soil, fought between the king's troops and the highland supporters of the rebel claimant Bonnie Prince Charlie.  The highlanders were slaughtered and Charles fled, never to regain his supporters.

Make sure to watch our video below in HD! All of our videos are filmed in HD, so take advantage.

 

Jousting Tournament at Linlithgow Palace

Linlithgow Palace was the residence of the kings and queens of Scotland during the 15th and 16th Centuries, and the birthplace of Mary, Queen of Scots.  While the Palace is a sight in its own right, we made the journey for a different reason--jousting!

For those who don't know, jousting was a popular martial sport played by knights on horseback with lance and shield.  Points were awarded based on whether the rider touched his opponent's shield with his lance, shattered his opponent's lance, or unseated him from his horse.  We had a lot of fun, the costumes and armor were fantastic, and I left wishing jousting were still a sport. 

Versailles

The palace of Versailles was the site of the court of Louis XIV, the most famous and powerful of the kings of France.  Louis' extravagant tastes ensured that Versailles would be the model for many subsequent royal palaces throughout the rest of the world.  The Treaty of Versailles, ending World War I, was signed here, and it boasts a garden that stretches for almost 2000 acres.  We got in for free again since we were under 26, so we chose not to pay to enter the (rather boring) French gardens and opted instead for the public areas of the park, especially the "Hameau de la Reine," also called the Queen's hamlet. 

This is a model farm built by Marie Antoinette as a way of participating in the idealized peasant life held in esteem by French culture at the time.  While some may see the desire to live the peasant life undermined somewhat by the fact that you ordered a perfectly idealized farm to be built on your garden estate, to Marie it was more of an escape from the court life at Versailles and a more pleasant and intimate setting for meetings and conversations.

Paris, Part II

Intense foot pain may be Mandi's most lasting memory from our next section of the trip, but I had a great time!  We saw the Arc du Triomphe erected by Napoleon and then walked down the famous Champs Elysees to the Louvre.  The walk took much longer than expected, especially since we had been walking all day already.  

It was quite windy.

Gateway of the Petit Palais, an exhibition hall built for the World's Fair in 1889.

The Place de la Concorde, where Marie Antoinette and Louis XVI were beheaded.  The palace is in the background.

3500 year old Egyptian obelisk from Luxor

The Louvre

We finally made it to the Louvre, and it was so worth it.  We got in free since we were under 26 and since we came in the evening the lines were minimal.  We had the place almost to ourselves for the most part.  We saw lots of famous pieces and got lost in the Egyptian wing.  We both wished we would have had more time, as the museum was truly amazing.

Entrance to the Louvre

Great thinkers from left to right: Freeman, Plato, Aristotle, Socrates

The Venus de Milo

The Mona Lisa had intense security.

The Raft of the Medusa

Liberty Leading the People

Coronation of Napoleon

Egyptian hieroglyphics

Ancient Akkadian

Babylonian statues

Ancient Babylonian

The Code of Hammurabi, one of the most ancient law codes in the world.  You would not believe the trouble we had trying to find this thing.  Mandi was so tired I had to leave her at the front and go find it myself before the museum closed.

Inscriptions on the Code of Hamurabi

 The Eiffel Tower

The next morning, before heading off to Versailles, we finally got around to seeing the Eiffel Tower.  Originally constructed for the World's Fair in 1889, the Tower is of course the icon of Paris.  But the people hated it when it was first built--they thought it was hideous.  Nowadays, one can't picture Paris without it, but it's funny to think that it's only 123 years old.  What did people think of when they thought of Paris before that, I wonder?