Staying Safe, Staying Sane in Weathersfield Vermont and Visiting the World


As we all stay home and save lives, I'll be treating us to some photos of some pretty special places that I've had the pleasure of visiting over the years.

Like the Cliffs Of Moher in Ireland (above.)

I'll be posting photos and giving a brief explanation about each location. Think of it as a Social Studies and Geography and Travel Adventure all rolled into one.

I started posting these photos on my social platforms: Facebook, Twitter and Instagram  back on St. Patrick's Day when I was lamenting not being able to visit Ireland this Spring.
Happy St. Patrick's Day. We won't be going to Ireland as planned but we have visited a couple times before. I'll be posting a whole week of photos from Ireland, see below.

And we've also visited many cool places around the globe. Join me virtually on some adventures: https://photosbynanci.smugmug.com/Travel-Photography while we're all

#StayatHomeSavesLives
#StopTheSpread

Here's what's been posted so far.

March 20

HE The Governor - Cayman Islands is closing the Cayman islands. All visitors must leave before March 22. Hope all my island friends remain healthy and safe. Hope to see you all soon at Little Cayman Beach Resort Reef Divers Cayman

March 21

This virtual Travel Memory is from Sydney Australia. In 2017 we traveled to Australia to take in 4 Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band Shows and to check out Sydney and Brisbane.

March 22
Today we're visiting the land of my paternal grandfather. Italy. I hope all the good people we met in 2013 in Lecco, Lake Como, Verona, Venice, Bologna, Florence, Siena, Assisi, Perugia, Pompeii, Capri and Rome are OK.

March 23
Today we're off to Great Britain. We traveled there in October 2017. We're sending positive thoughts across "The Pond" to our friends in Oxford, London, Salisbury, Bath, Cardiff, Stratford Upon Avon, Liverpool, York, Durham, Edinburgh, and Newcastle.

March 24
Today we're visiting SCOTLAND. Hoping all our friends in Edinburgh, Inverness, the Western Highlands, Glasgow and all around this beautiful country are doing well. We've visited twice and will definitely be back for more visits. The Western Highlands remind me of Vermont.

March 25
Today, let me introduce you to my favorite fish-The Eagle ray. This photo was taken in the water near Little Cayman in December 2010.

We're divers and have visited Little 18 times! We love this island and all her people. And we're hoping they are safe and well.
See you on the bottom really soon!

March 26
Today, we're hopping back to SCOTLAND because I needed a RAINBOW.
We've visited Scotland twice. Once in 2015 traveling all around visiting some of their many castles. (Like Eilean Donan from the other day.)
And we also visited on our GB trip in 2017. (Hit many of the OUTLANDER TV locations.)
I say-slàinte mhath! You respond do dheagh shlàinte!

March 27
Kia Ora! Today we visit my favorite place on Earth-New Zealand. They have the North Island (Te Ika-a-Māui), and the South Island (Te Waipounamu) and 600 smaller islands.
They are the land of the Māori, Kiwis, the haka, The "All Blacks", the national rugby union team. We fell in love with the people and the landscapes. We visited in November 2016 with EF Go Ahead Tours

March 28
Today we are visiting the islands of Darwin's Adventures-The Galápagos.
Jay and I visited in the summer of 2005.

I was shooting with a 35mm camera that I bought in 1976 with babysitting money. My underwater camera was a 2nd generation 35mm low budget camera. The photos aren't as sharp as the ones I can take now. But still cool to browse through.

We loved the landscapes (kind of lunar-like) and all the unique animals we saw. I really want to return with my current land and underwater cameras.

Favorite things-diving with sea lions and penguins!

Oh-and seeing WHALE SHARKS (they are really BIG fish!) up close and personal.

March 29
G’day! We're bouncing back to Australia today. Sydney harbour to be specific.
We visited because we had tickets to see Springsteen but we also had plenty of time to explore Sydney and Brisbane.
The people were AWESOME and loved that we traveled from VERMONT.
We reckon we'll head back there soon!

March 30

We're hopping back to the UK today. We visited Great Britain in October 2017. We traveled all around the UK-England, Scotland, and Wales.
We hope all the friends we met are safe and well.
CHEERS!

March 31
Buona Salute! This morning's snow in Vermont reminded me of our visit to the Lake Como region in March 2013. The people there were very surprised to see snow and weren't sure what to do with it. One person said we had brought it from Vermont.
We hope all our friends in Italy are doing well.

April 1

Thinking about all my friends on Little Cayman today. We've visited the island about 18 times over the years. Little Cayman Beach Resort Reef Divers Little Cayman Resort
#ClearlyCaymanDiveResorts #LittleCaymanBeachResort #BeachNutsBar #LittleCaymanDiving

The Cayman Islands are on lockdown and we're hoping everyone is safe. Little Cayman typically gets their mail by turboprop plane and their food by weekly barge. They have a nurse on the island and get doctor's visits occasionally. Fingers crossed that the 100 or so permanent residents are safe and sound.

April 2
One year ago I was diving at Little Cayman Beach Resort with Reef Divers Little Cayman Resort and got a birthday wish from this loggerhead turtle.
#ClearlyCaymanDiveResorts #LittleCaymanBeachResort #BeachNutsBar #LittleCaymanDiving

April 3
Today we should have been flying to Ireland to spend a week or so traveling around with Vagabond & Driftwood Small Group Tours of Ireland.

We had plans to hike, bike, kayak and horseback ride but that all changed.

We're postponed but not canceled because we LOVE this island country and will return (fingers crossed in the fall) for our third visit. I'll be posting scenes from our two previous adventures over the next week. But for now-enjoy Humpty Dumpty in Westport.

April 4

Dublin Ireland. Today we would have been walking around the city taking in all the sights. Then heading to one our favorite pubs for lunch and dinner.
We'll be drinking Galway Bay Brewery Stormy Port soon, we hope, when we tour Ireland with Vagabond & Driftwood Small Group Tours of Ireland later this year.

April 5
Virtual Ireland trip. Today a sheepdog demo in Connemara. We would have traveled by van from Dublin to Connemara. Heading toward the "city of the tribes" Galway.

April 6
Fáilte go hÁrainn Virtual Ireland-today we're visiting the Aran Islands . The Aran Islands are located just off Galway and Doolin. Inis Mór, Inis Meáin, Inis Oírr make up the Aran Islands, Ireland. There are holy ruins and sacred sites including the World Heritage site Dun Aonghasa which is set on dramatic 300 ft cliff edge.
https://photosbynanci.smugmug.com/Ireland-2014/Aran-Islands/

April 7
Virtual Ireland Tour-today we're visiting Aillte an Mhothair, the Cliffs of Moher , in County Clare.
They run for about 14 kilometres (9 miles).
At their southern end, they rise 120 metres (390 ft) above the Atlantic Ocean at Hag's Head, and, 8 kilometres (5 miles) to the north, they reach their maximum height of 214 metres (702 ft) just north of O'Brien's Tower, a round stone tower near the midpoint of the cliffs, built in 1835 by Sir Cornelius O'Brien, then continue at lower heights.
The closest settlements are the villages of Liscannor 6 km (4 miles) to the south, and Doolin 7 km (4 miles) to the north.

#cliffs #cliffsofmoher #burren #theburren #wildatlanticway #clare #visitclare #ireland #ireland🍀 #irelandtravel #ireland🇮🇪 #ireland_insta #ireland_gram #ireland_daily #ireland_travel

April 8
Virtual Ireland-Today we're going to the South Pole, the South Pole Inn that is. It's located in Abhainn an Scáil (Annascaul), County Kerry, Ireland, contains a collection of Tom Crean memorabilia.
A great stop for an Irish Coffee between Tralee and Dingle. The inn was formerly owned by Tom Crean who was famed for his Antarctic explorations starting 1901 under the command of Captain Robert Scott & Sir Ernest Shackleton

Crean is known as the Irish Giant

#wildatlanticway #kerry #westkerry #dinglepeninsula
#southpoleinn #tomcrean #unsunghero #antarctic #antarctichero #antarcticexploration #irishrestaurant

April 9
Virtual Ireland-Iveragh Peninsula, The Ring of Kerry. Traveling the Ring of Kerry you travel back into the ancient heritage of Ireland - you'll see the Iron Age Forts, Ogham Stones, Old Monasteries and a landscape carved out of rock by the last Ice Age 10,000 years ago. More info: https://www.irelandhighlights.com/ring-of-kerry/

#wildatlanticway #kerry #westkerry #dinglepeninsula #ringofkerry
#discoverireland #beautifulireland #irelandgram #rawireland #exploreireland
#ringofkerryireland #stonecircles

April 10
Virtual Ireland-Áth Dara, meaning "ford of [the] oak" Adare Village called one of Ireland's prettiest towns is in County Limerick, located south-west of the city of Limerick.
#adare #limerick #adaretouristoffice #adareheritagecentre #adarevillage

April 11
Virtual Ireland-Caisleán na Blarnan, Blarney Castle a medieval stronghold in Blarney, near Cork, Ireland, and the River Martin. And no I didn't kiss the Blarney Stone-YUK! Blarney Castle and Gardens
https://www.blarneycastle.ie/
#blarneycastle
#blarneycastleandgardens #purecork #ireland #irish #irelandtravel #loveireland🍀 #castle🏰

April 12
Virtual Ireland-Caisleán na Blarnan, Blarney Castle a medieval stronghold in Blarney, near Cork, Ireland, and the River Martin. And no I didn't kiss the Blarney Stone-YUK! Blarney Castle and Gardens
https://www.blarneycastle.ie/
#blarneycastle
#blarneycastleandgardens #purecork #ireland #irish #irelandtravel #loveireland🍀 #castle🏰

April 13
Virtual Ireland-Today we would be saying Slán, go dtí an chéad uair eile (Goodbye, until next time). One last visit to Reilig Ghlas Naíon Glasnevin Cemetery Museum in Glasnevin, Dublin, Ireland which opened in 1832 to pay our respects.https://www.glasnevinmuseum.ie/

The cemetery contains historically notable monuments and the graves of many of Ireland's most prominent national figures including the graves of Daniel O'Connell, Charles Stewart Parnell, Michael Collins, Éamon de Valera, Arthur Griffith, Maude Gonne, Kevin Barry, Roger Casement, Constance Markievicz, Pádraig Ó Domhnaill, Seán MacBride, Jeremiah O'Donovan Rossa, James Larkin, Brendan Behan, Christy Brown and Luke Kelly of the Dubliners.

The grave of Michael Collins, the nationalist leader who was killed in the Irish Civil War in 1922, is among the most visited sites in Glasnevin. Around him were buried at least 183 soldiers of the Irish Free State. In 1967 their names were recorded on memorial around Collin's grave.

#glasnevin #glasnevincemetery #lovedublin #dublin #ireland🍀 #irelandtravel #photosbynanci #travelphotography

April 14
Virtual Travel-Today we visit Basílica de la Sagrada Familia, Basilica of the Sacred Family Basílica de la Sagrada Família designed by Spanish/Catalan architect Antoni Gaudí (1852–1926).
Many of the towers are still under construction, It is anticipated that the building can be completed by 2026, the centenary of Gaudí's death.
#SagradaFamília #SagradaFamiliabarcelona #AntoniGaudí #Gaudí #architecture #arquitectura #Barcelona #worldheritage #Modernism #Modernismo

April 15
Virtual travel-Today Machu Picchu a 15th-century Inca citadel, located in the Eastern Cordillera of southern Peru.

Most archaeologists believe that Machu Picchu was constructed as an estate for the Inca emperor Pachacuti (1438–1472).

It was known to the locals but remained unknown to the outside world until American historian Hiram Bingham (a lecturer at Yale University) brought it to international attention in 1911.

#peru #adventureperu #inca #Aguascalientes #Machupicchupueblo #machupicchu #discoverperu #southamerica #naturephotography #travelphotography #bucketlist

April 16

Virtual Travel-Culloden The Battle of Culloden (Scottish Gaelic: Blàr Chùil Lodair) was the final confrontation of the Jacobite rising of 1745. https://www.nts.org.uk/visit/places/culloden/
Culloden Battlefield & Visitor Centre

The photo is the memorial cairn erected in 1881.
#cullodenbattlefield #culloden #outlander #scotland #inverness
#exploreedinburgh #loch #simplyscotland #scotlandlover #scotland_ig #walkhighlands #scottishhistory #unlimitedscotland #glencoe #CullodenMoor #ntshighlands #ntsculloden
 On 16 April 1746, the Jacobite army of Charles Edward Stuart (Bonnie Prince Charles was the eldest son of James Stuart, the exiled Stuart claimant to the British throne) was decisively defeated by a British government force under William Augustus, Duke of Cumberland, on Drummossie Moor near Inverness in the Scottish Highlands.
 The battle lasted only an hour, with the Jacobites suffering a bloody defeat; between 1,500 and 2,000 Jacobites were killed or wounded, while about 300 government soldiers were killed or wounded.



April 17
Virtual travel-Fort George (Dùn Deòrsa or An Gearastan, the latter meaning literally "the garrison"), is a large 18th-century fortress near Ardersier, to the north-east of Inverness in the Highland council area of Scotland.
https://www.historicenvironment.scot/visit-a…/…/fort-george/
#dùndeòrsa #fortgeorge #fortgeorgescotland #highlands #highlandsofscotland #scotlandhighlands #scotland #fortgeorgeview #scottishfortress #scotlandadventures #exploringscotland #visitscotland #scotlandscenery #Scotland

It was built to control the Scottish Highlands in the aftermath of the Jacobite rising of 1745, replacing a Fort George in Inverness constructed after the 1715 Jacobite rising to control the area. The current fortress has never been attacked and has remained in continuous use as a garrison.

The fortification is based on a star design; it remains virtually unaltered and nowadays is open to visitors with exhibits and facsimiles showing the fort's use at different periods, while still serving as an army barracks.

April 18
Virtual Travel-The Colosseum, also known as the Flavian Amphitheatre is an oval amphitheatre in the center of the city of Rome, Italy.

The Colosseum could hold an estimated 50,000 to 80,000 spectators at various points of its history over the centuries, having an average audience of some 65,000; it was used for gladiatorial contests and public spectacles such as mock sea battles (for only a short time as the hypogeum was soon filled in with mechanisms to support the other activities), animal hunts, executions, re-enactments of famous battles, and dramas based on Classical mythology.

#romeitaly #colosseum #Roma #rome #Coliseu #colosseum #colosseo #italy #visititaly #goaheadtours

April 19
Virtual Travel-Typical Sunday in Granada Spain (before COVID-19). We traveled to Spain in November 2019. On a beautiful Sunday morning we arrived in Granada. While waiting for our designated time at the Alhambra we walked around the city.

Granada is the capital city of the province of Granada, in the autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain.

Granada is located at the foot of the Sierra Nevada mountains, at the confluence of four rivers, the Darro, the Genil, the Monachil and the Beiro.

The Alhambra, an Arab citadel and palace, is located in Granada. It is the most renowned building of the Islamic historical legacy with its many cultural attractions that make Granada a popular destination among the tourist cities of Spain.
#granada #granadaspain #España #visitspain #streetmusicians #curiouskids

April 20
Virtual Travel-The Patio of the Lions (Spanish: Patio de los Leones; Arabic: بهو السباع‎), Nasrid Palace, Alhambra Granada Spain.

The Patio of the Lions is probably the most famous place of the Alhambra. it is called that because of the twelve lions that throw jets of water and are part of the fountain in the middle of the patio.

The big dodecagon-shaped basin rests on top of these twelve lions that surround it. This white marble fountain is one of the most important examples of Muslim sculpture. A poem by Ibn Zamrak was carved on the border of the basin.

This patio was built by order of Mohammed V. Its construction started in the second period of his reign, between 1362 and 1391 AD. The patio ground plan is rectangular and it is surrounded by a gallery in the style of a Christian cloister.
#alhambraespaña #alhambraspain #alhambrafortress #alhambrapalace
#spain #granada #granadaspain #españa #patioofthelions #lionfountain #moorisharchitecture

April 21
Virtual Travel-Because I'm missing Little Cayman Beach Resort Little Cayman is one of three Islands of the Cayman Islands.

It is located in the Caribbean Sea, approximately 60 miles northeast of Grand Cayman and five miles west of Cayman Brac. Little Cayman is by far the least populous, with a permanent population of about 190 and another 40-50 part-time residents. It has THE BEST DIVING! Bloody Bay Wall is AMAZING.

So this week I'll be sharing some underwater photos from some of our 18 trips to Little Cayman.
#littlecayman #sunset #bloodybay
#littlecaymandivers #divecayman #lcdivers #clearlycayman #caymanislands #scubadiving #caymandiving #scuba #valetdiving #reefdivers #underwaterphotography #caribbean
#littlecaymanbeachresort

You are all caught up on this Virtual Travel Adventure. 
Check back for more photos.


Nancy Nutile-McMenemy is an Upper Valley freelance photographer and writer who loves to attend concerts and local events in and around Weathersfield and the Upper Valley.

If you have anything you think I should post during our Stay At Home Time drop me an email: photosbynanci@comcast.com


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