Ships, castles and spas – passing through southern England and Wales COMPLETED - Page 6 - PassPorter - A Community of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and General Travel Forums
As of January 1, 2019, we have closed our forums. This is a decision we did not come to lightly, but it is necessary. The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk. The server software itself must be updated, and it cannot be without removing the forums.
So it is with a heavy heart that we say goodbye to our long-running forums. They came online in 2000 and brought together so many wonderful Disney fans. We had friendships form, careers launch, couples marry, children born ... all because of this amazing community.
Thank you to each of you who were a part of this community. You made it possible.
And a very special thank you to our Guides (moderators), past and present, who kept our forums a happy place to be. You are the glue that held everything together, and we are forever grateful to you. Thank you aliceinwdw, Caldercup, MrsM, WillCAD, Fortissimo, GingerJ, HiddenMickey, CRCrazy, Eeyoresmom, disneyknut, disneydani, Cam22, chezp, WDWfan, Luvsun, KMB733, rescuesk, OhToodles!, Colexis Mom, lfredsbo, HiddenMickey, DrDolphin, DopeyGirl, duck addict, Disneybine, PixieMichele, Sandra Bostwick, Eeyore Tattoo, DyanKJ130, Suzy Q'Disney, LilMarcieMouse, AllisonG, Belle*, Chrissi, Brant, DawnDenise, Crystalloubear, Disneymom9092, FanOfMickey, Goofy4Goofy, GoofyMom, Home4us123, iamgrumpy, ilovedisney247, Jennifer2003, Jenny Pooh, KrisLuvsDisney, Ladyt, Laughaholic88, LauraBelle Hime, Lilianna, LizardCop, Loobyoxlip, lukeandbrooksmom, marisag, michnash, MickeyMAC, OffKilter_Lynn, PamelaK, Poor_Eeyore, ripkensnana, RobDVC, SHEANA1226, Shell of the South, snoozin, Statelady01, Tara O'Hara, tigger22, Tink and Co., Tinkerbelz, WDWJAMBA, wdwlovers, Wendyismyname, whoSEZ, WildforWD, and WvuGrrrl. You made the magic.
We want to personally thank Sara Varney, who coordinated our community for many years (among so many other things she did for us), and Cheryl Pendry, our Message Board Manager who helped train our Guides, and Ginger Jabour, who helped us with the PassPorter-specific forums and Live! Guides. Thank you for your time, energy, and enthusiasm. You made it all happen.
There are other changes as well.
Why? Well, the world has changed. And change with it, we must. The lyrics to "We Go On" for IllumiNations say it best:
We go on to the joy and through the tears
We go on to discover new frontiers
Moving on with the current of the years.
We go on
Moving forward now as one
Moving on with a spirit born to run
Ever on with each rising sun.
To a new day, we go on.
It's time to move on and move forward.
PassPorter is a small business, and for many years it supported our family. But the world changed, print books took a backseat to the Internet, and for a long time now it has been unable to make ends meet. We've had to find new ways to support our family, which means new careers and less and less time available to devote to our first baby, PassPorter.
But eventually, we must move on and move forward. It is the right thing to do.
So we are retiring this newsletter, as we simply cannot keep up with it. Many thanks to Mouse Fan Travel who supported it all these years, to All Ears and MousePlanet who helped us with news, to our many article contributors, and -- most importantly -- to Sara Varney who edited our newsletter so wonderfully for years and years.
And we are no longer charging for the Live Guides. If you have a subscription, it's yours to keep for the lifetime of the Live Guides at no additional cost. The Live Guides will stay online, barring server issues and technical problems, for all of 2019.
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Thank you, thank you, thank you for your amazing support over the years. Without you, there's no way us little guys could have made something like this happen and given the "big guys" a run for their money. PassPorter was consistently the #3 guidebook after the Unofficial and Official guides, which was really unheard of for such a small company to do. We ROCKED it thanks to you and your support and love!
If you miss us, you can still find some of us online. Sara started a new blog at DisneyParkPrincess.com -- I strongly urge you to visit and get on her mailing list. She IS the Disney park princess and knows Disney backward and forward. And I am blogging as well at JenniferMaker.com, which is a little craft blog I started a couple of years ago to make ends meet. You can see and hear me in my craft show at https://www.youtube.com/c/jennifermaker . Many PassPorter readers and fans are on Facebook, in groups they formed like the PassPorter Trip Reports and PassPorter Crafting Challenge (if you join, just let them know you read about it in the newsletter). And some of our most devoted community members started a forum of their own at Pixie Dust Lane and all are invited over.
So we encourage you to stay in touch with us and your fellow community members wherever works best for you!
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Caught back up! What a great experience at the castle - maybe moreso given you knew nothing about it until that morning!
Your breakfast looked delicious! Those poached eggs just looked so light, fluffy and perfect!
Oh, how I love to see military in full regalia, and the British really have some regal looking uniforms. How special to see them as well as the castle.
Oh, how I love to see military in full regalia, and the British really have some regal looking uniforms. How special to see them as well as the castle.
I know what you mean - we always say our military do pomp and ceremony so well.
Thursday 11 June – part three: watching the soldiers head out
By the time we could see outside again, as either all the holes were covered up, or they only gave you views outside, we realised we were directly opposite the main entrance to the castle, and everyone was now massed, waiting to head out. It was just before 10:00am, and we’d been told that they were leaving around 10:15am, so we watched the sight before us, as they got ready, and then headed out. Wow!
Making sure they’re absolutely perfectly prepared All ready to go by the castle entrance – look at the crowds outside! Schoolkids watching the spectacle!
As soon as the regimental band passed out through the entrance, it was suddenly really quiet. It had been lovely to hear them strike up, and it just goes to show how thick these walls must be to keep the sound out!
It was also wonderful to see how many people had turned out to see the soldiers parade to the Millennium Stadium. I just love how patriotic we are when it comes to things like this.
And then they were all gone, and I have to be honest, the huge expanse of field in the centre of the castle now looked quite lonely. It didn’t look right without them there.
We made our way down to that green, and there were still a few police officers left behind, although no doubt they’d soon be gone. This is the North Gate, which is a restoration, but the original Roman stonework remains at the base of the towers. It was rebuilt in the early 20th century, but apparently locals thought it was too high, so it had to be lowered…
Next: this is like no study I’ve ever seen before!
Oh wow, you were in the right place at the right time! Your photos from your vantage point were amazing! So much better (I think) than anyone on ground level. Wow!
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WOW! What a very impressive sight! And you had such a perfect vantage point! Surprised more folks didn't pay the admission fee just to have a better view than they'd get from the street. I assume the crowds were thinner inside than what you show at the gate?
Oh wow, you were in the right place at the right time! Your photos from your vantage point were amazing! So much better (I think) than anyone on ground level. Wow!
WOW! What a very impressive sight! And you had such a perfect vantage point! Surprised more folks didn't pay the admission fee just to have a better view than they'd get from the street. I assume the crowds were thinner inside than what you show at the gate?
Well, if you look at some of the wide angle shots, you can see the grounds and walls of the castle - and there are very few people inside the castle. I think there was literally the school party and maybe a dozen or so other people...
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I think had I known, I'd have made other plans and not bothered going near the castle, which would've been a huge mistake.
Katie's graduation
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