4th of November 2026 - Salamanca

Salamanca is dubbed as Spain’s golden city due to its glimmering sandstone.  The city has been Spain’s academic core for the prodigious Salamanca University founded by Alfonso IX of León in 1218 and is a UNESCO World Heritage city.  It was also bestowed the title of a European capital of culture in 2002.  Salamanca is situated in the Castilla y León region.

 

In Salamanca there are two connected cathedrals.  The old cathedral was built between 1140 and 1150 in Romanesque style.  Then in 1513 construction began on the much larger new cathedral in gothic style construction and it was finished in the 18th century.  The place where both cathedrals come together is known as Patio Chico and it is one of the loveliest sites in Salamanca.

 

We had lunch at the Salamanca Casino which was founded in 1858.  The Salamanca Casino is not a gambling casino in the modern sense and is better described as an historic social and cultural club.  During lunch we were treated to a flamenco show.

3rd of November 2026 - Castelo Rodrigo

Perched dramatically on a rocky hilltop overlooking the Spanish border, Castelo Rodrigo is one of Portugal's most beautiful historic villages.  The village is encircled by ancient stone walls and its narrow‑cobbled streets wind past medieval houses.  Castelo Rodrigo offers sweeping views across the surrounding countryside.

 

The Chapel of São João de Deus stands within Castelo Rodrigo’s walls stands reflecting the village’s deep religious heritage.

 

I climbed up to the ruins of the former palace built by the Portuguese nobleman Cristóvão de Moura which stands as a reminder of one of Castelo Rodrigo's most turbulent periods.  Cristóvão de Moura supported Spanish rule.  The palace was later attacked and partially destroyed by local residents after Portugal regained its independence in 1640.

2nd of November 2026 - Sailing the Douro and our first port tasting

Today was very leisurely sailing up the Douro valley and ending with a port tasting at Quinta de São Luiz.

One item of note was passing through the Carrapatelo Dam (Portuguese: Barragem do Carrapatelo), a concrete gravity dam on the Douro where the river forms the borderline between the districts of Porto and Viseu.  Construction of the dam began in 1964 and the dam was completed in 1972.

The clearance going through the dam walls was miniscule.  The sundeck roof had to be lowered so that our ship could exit the dam.  We were sitting up on the sundeck and were told to be seated.

Our afternoon ended with a visit to Quinta de São Luiz which is located on the left bank of the Douro River between Régua and Pinhão.  We were given a short description of the port winemaking process followed by a tasting of white and late bottled vintage ports.

1st of November 2026 - Arrival at Oporto

Today I flew into Oporto from Birmingham arriving to great views of Oporto from the air.

I managed to catch a photo of the Arrábida Bridge which is an arch bridge over the Douro River.  Tomorrow our ship starts our cruise of the Douro River.

12th of August 2026 - Stockholm

Stockholm stretched across fourteen islands where Lake Mälaren meets the Baltic Sea with very much a waterfront character.  We started our day with a walk along the waterfront to the Vasa Museum.

 

The Vasa Museum houses the Vasa, a 17th‑century warship that sank on her maiden voyage in 1628 in the waters of Stockholm.  The Vasa was recovered, very much preserved, more than 300 years later.  It was impressive to see the Vasa's towering masts and ornate carvings.

Outside the city to the east, and along the coast, is the island chain of the Stockholm archipelago.  We took a short boat trip past some of Stockholm's islands to the edge of the archipelago.

We then walked back to Gamla Stan, Stockholm’s medieval Old Town, past the Royal Palace.

In the evening we went to the cocktail bar on the top floor for some last views of Stockholm.  This is my last entry for our visit to the Baltic countries.  The biggest surprise I had on this holiday was seeing a road sign for St Petersburg in Tallinn.  We were roughly 95–100 miles (about 150–160 km) from Russia.  Russia’s past impact on the Baltic states was shaped by decades of domination, first through the Russian Empire and later under Soviet rule.  Even after regaining independence in 1991, the legacy of occupation influenced everything from citizenship laws to security policy.  Recently the Baltic states have pursued rapid integration with NATO and the EU as a safeguard against renewed Russian pressure.