A 74-Year-Old Woman with a Yen to See the World, a Supportive Husband, and a Couple of Backpacks…

All my life, I’ve loved to travel. My dream has been to visit all the countries that interest me on every continent. Until July 2021, however, I’d never left North America.

In Spring of 2021, we could see the world beginning to reopen. Dempsey said, “This year is yours. It’s time to make your travel dream come true.” And so we did!

We’re spending fifteen weeks exploring the world, and you’re invited along.

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Seville

by Jillian Coleman Wheeler | Oct 4, 2021 | Spain | 0 Comments

Spain is a fairly big country, particularly by European standards, and when we finally were fortunate enough to score reservations to Sevilla, it was a long train ride. We arrived after dark and walked a few blocks to our hotel in the old town. It was a tiny pensione with charm and a lovely young woman behind the front desk. Best of all, our very comfortable room and bath were under 50 Euros. We set off in search of food, and found excellent paella and pina coladas.

The next morning we spent the day discovering the city. Paella is a specialty of Spain, especially near the coast.

The next morning we strolled until we found a little cafe tucked inside a courtyard.

Cappuccino and fresh squeezed juice, two things we’ll definitely miss when we return to our regular life.

Seville is full of tiny streets leading to open squares.

There were surprises everywhere we looked. Another narrow street, this one too small for even tiny European cars.

Lots of colorful shops.

Dempsey liked this one, especially the guitars. Seville is the home of flamenco, and we were wishing we could stay to enjoy a show.

A sidewalk cafe.

La Giralda, the bell tower of the Seville Cathedral, was originally the minaret of the mosque that stood on the site of the Cathedral.

This building is adjacent to the Cathedral. I loved the color and the architecture.

The Alcazar was a Moorish palace, and even today the Spanish Royal Family occupies the second floor when they are in the city.

Another view of the Alcazar.

People enjoying the park.

A beautiful statue of Mary and Jesus.

Beautiful squares everywhere.

The Catedral de Sevilla is the largest Gothic church in Spain, and is close in size to St. Peter’s in Rome.

There are so many amazing artworks it was a bit overwhelming. The church itself is organized into small chapels and areas for worship.

This is one of a number of tombs inside the cathedral.

One of the primary altars.

Side view of the tomb of Christopher Columbus.

Front view of Columbus’s tomb. He had asked to be buried in the New World, and he was. But when Spain withdrew from the Americas, they brought his remains home.

Another chapel.

And another.

Goya’s painting of Saints Justa and Rufina.

My favorite was Murillo’s painting of the vision of St. Anthony of Padua, in the baptismal chapel. It’s a huge painting and the colors are amazing.

A view from below of the Giralda.

Beautiful Paris

by Jillian Coleman Wheeler | Aug 2, 2021 | France | 0 Comments

This is the most beautiful city I’ve ever seen, architecturally. I love the way the Seine winds through, and there are trees and parks and flowers everywhere. I’ve seen beautiful cities - certainly Vancouver’s natural setting is the most magnificent I’ve seen. But...

Paris

by Jillian Coleman Wheeler | Aug 1, 2021 | France | 0 Comments

On the second day of August, we took the Eurostar from London to Paris. Eurostar is a super-high-speed train that goes through a tunnel under the English Channel then across the French countryside to Paris. [video width="426" height="240"...

Bath

by Jillian Coleman Wheeler | Jul 30, 2021 | England | 0 Comments

Bath is located 97 miles west of London, in the county of Somerset. It's a small city with about 88,000 residents, and one of the prettiest towns we saw. Of course, almost every town we saw was picture-worthy, but Bath was interesting to us because it's big enough to...