August 7, 2026

August 7, 2026

We got up late today because this is another travel day. We snagged a last minute cruise spot a month ago. London is a port city but only small ships can make it this far up the Thames River. So we need to get to the large seaport of Southampton on the southern coast. After checking out of our London hotel we take the Tube to the Waterloo train station. There we catch the Southwestern train. Ninety minutes later we arrive in Southampton. It should be a short walk to our ship but we have to work our way around the fenced off car park.

Since we are carrying on, we can go right on our ship, Liberty of the Seas, after passing through security and getting our ship pass. We also have to check in with our muster station for a safety briefing. Then it is on to find our berth. Despite having an inside cabin, it is larger than expected. We spend the first half hour unpacking.

Aimee is hungry so we head to the cafeteria. Neither one of us make it past the Indian dishes. They were excellent. I finished it off with three desserts. Good thing this is only a nine-day cruise. After that we explored the ship. It is huge carrying some 4500 passengers.

Our ship left port in the early evening. We walked the deck as we sailed down the long channel to the open sea. We passed the huge Esso Refinery in Fawley where my old employer had an office and plant. Then we skirted the Isle of Wight passing Portsmouth and its iconic Spinnaker Tower. Portsmouth has the historic British Navy yard. I had the opportunity to tour it on the tail end of a business trip many years ago.

Since we signed up late for this cruise we could only get late seating for the dining room. Instead we ate supper back in the cafeteria. It is very nice with loads of choices. This is not going to be a problem for us. I had Crab Cakes and mashed potatoes (and more dessert). Then it was early to bed for us.