Traveling Fool

 Oops, looks like I never posted these photos from my UK trip last fall. These were a couple of days out with my friend at Hampton Court Palace and then Windsor Castle. I had never been to Hampton Court before, and neither had my friend. It was a beautiful day, and the grounds are spectacular. Hampton Court is in Surrey and it was the home of Henry VIII and later William and Mary. You can easily spend several hours walking through the Palace, the grounds and along the river in Molesey, maybe grab an ice cream. I do love stained glass windows. My friend and I went to Windsor Castle and we had another beautiful fall day. We did go through the castle, but due to COVID precautions, we could not get in to see Queen Mary's dollhouse, which is really something to see (I saw it way back in 2000); hopefully it's open now. We also went into St. George's Chapel, but photography isn't allowed there. It is very quiet and peaceful and worth a visit; you can attend services as well (

 It had been over twenty-five years since I was last in Niagara Falls, and I can honestly say I don't remember very much. Not because it's not glorious and amazing, but it was just so long ago, and my how the place has changed. This was our 'off' day from the baseball tour, and because I didn't really know how much time we were spending here, so I didn't plan anything. This was a really spur of the moment day, and I'm surprised I didn't break into hives. The coach parked and we all disembarked and scattered to the four winds, well to the visitor center anyway. I just started walking around, taking massive amounts of photos of the Falls, which really are amazing. It was so flaming hot, and the path by the Falls is not covered, so I wore my cap and had a bottle of water. It was the weekend of Canada Day, and that may have accounted for the huge crowds, or just that it was a beautiful summer day. After walking around for a while, maybe an hour, I made a ver

  Rogers Centre, Toronto - Photo by Zac B. (our cruise director) Over the years I have visited quite a few baseball stadiums and a couple of years ago I made it a goal to visit them all. I am now three stadiums closer to making that goal. I signed up for a tour with Diamond Baseball Tours and let them do all the planning - if you're a frequent reader, then you know that's not how I usually do things, but it's good to try new things.  We met in Detroit and then headed for Canada and the Toronto Blue Jays. It just so happened that we were there on Canada Day and a jersey giveaway, so to say it was crowded is an understatement. It felt like forever until I got in. I bought a program to keep score and found some lunch. I always want to love ballpark food, I mean if you pay $15 for a chicken sandwich, it should be the best chicken sandwich, right? Meh. Actually, most of the ballpark food was meh. I have to say Rogers Centre was not my favorite stadium, structurally speaking. It

 I guess the day had to come, but I was kind of dreading it. And knowing what I know now, that I would return to cold and wet and snow, I would have stayed longer. Monteverde Lodge and Gardens was full of beautiful flowers, birds and a couple furry friends.  The picture looks like I'm really close, but I was a safe distance away. I believe this is a coati, and I saw a couple of them during my stay. It took several distant encounters before I got these photos and video. El Jardin, the restaurant at the lodge, has a wonderful downstairs seating area that is full of orchids. They were all different varieties, and pardon my ignorance, but I had no idea there were so many varieties and shades of pinks and purples. There is an orchid garden in town, but after I saw all of these, and could enjoy them whenever I wanted, I didn't feel the need. If you're a real afficionado, then you might want to visit there as well. All of the following photos were taken while I was waiting for the