I have some time to kill before the airport shuttle arrives so I’ll close out this adventure.
Overall we had a great time, BUT we are slowly beginning to realize that too much activity is not good these days. The problem I (we?) have is that it is counter intuitive to go on holiday to new countries and then sit around doing nothing. We may need to reset our thinking on that one! All that to say, we are both ready to head home for a rest!!
One great thing we liked in Europe (sorry Americans) was that not once were we asked / expected to tip in restaurants. There wasn’t even provision on the credit card machines to allow for this. This took away one level of “stress” no more “should I tip”, “how much should I tip” etc. In Europe restaurant staff are paid a living wage so tipping is not required, if only this would spread across the pond. Unfortunately, nearly every American (probably out of habit) would tip cash. This I am sure will eventually spread the tipping culture into Europe.
We have been very lucky with the weather, with one exception where we got drowned on a tour. Even Iceland, although cool, hasn’t been too bad. It is still odd to wake up at 2AM and find it light outside.
I have recovered from the shock of being reintroduced to British driving! Once I got the feel of the size of the car things went better (and faster). Roundabouts in the UK are very prolific and work very well. In most cases way better than 4 way stops or traffic lights. Why do they work so well…. drivers know how to use them. In North America they are relatively new and appear to scare the living daylights out of the majority of drivers. Hopefully that will change with time.
Our next trip will be to celebrate our 50th anniversary. In October we are taking a cruise around the Greek islands.