Hope you all enjoy tagging along on our sunny day exploring the Portsmouth harbor area last October! We loved how much the city shared and embraced its military history! Plus, the donuts and crab croquettes were a yummy bonus. 😀
You went to Portsmouth and didn't visit HMS Victory, Admiral Nelson's flagship? Have you not heard of the Battle of Trafalgar (after which the famous London square is named) which took place in 1805? Nelson defeated the combined French and Spanish Fleet, but he was killed during the Battle. He is Britain's greatest naval hero.
@@davidlauder-qi5zv I wish we had been able to visit all the ships, and that the Historic Dockyard hadn't been closing down when we tried to go! To be 100% honest, I haven't really heard much about the Battle of Trafalgar, because we don't learn about it in school (like I assume British people do). In America, I learned a lot of American history and general World History. I didn't opt to take the AP European History class in high school, since it wouldn't have given me any credits towards my business degree once I got to college. Instead I took a current events course to fulfill the social studies requirement. Maybe the Battle of Trafalgar would have been taught in an AP Euro class? That said, I believe I heard about the Battle of Trafalgar when I visited Trafalgar Square in London. 😀
@@MeansToTravel Are you seriously telling me you haven't heard of Admiral Nelson? It's not a question of whether or not you read about British history at school. His name must surely have come up in general world history, which you say you studied at school. Major political or military heroes of both our countries are usually known to people on either side of the "Pond". I'm sure you'd be astonished, not to mention offended, if hadn't heard of Abraham Lincoln, or George Washington, and yet I didn't study American history at school. Have you heard of The Duke of Wellington? You know, the guy who had a bit of a punch up with a French guy called Napoleon in 1815 at a little fracas called The Battle of Waterloo? Please don't tell me you haven't heard of him!
@@davidlauder-qi5zv I didn't quite say I haven't heard of those British historical figures at different fleeting points in my life, but I was more-so saying we didn't have a unit specifically about British wars or anything very in-depth like that in high-school level world history. If I remember correctly, World History just walked through topics from Europe such as the bronze age, iron age, dark ages, middle ages, Renaissance, Industrial Age, etc. and the corresponding themes around those eras and how they impacted the world. I haven't taken a history class in fifteen+ years, and I also admit that my brain doesn't really care much about military history compared to other types of history because I feel really emotionally uncomfortable when thinking about people fighting and human perils. 😥😥😥 Luckily, that's where Derek comes in! He genuinely likes learning about military history, and even plays those video games called Total War for fun, haha!
Great looking church! In Estepa, Spain there is a similar church with no roof except the bell tower because it was bombed during the Spanish civil war. Awesome video
Thanks Iggie! Wow no roof except the bell tower - sounds like such an interesting thing to see! So sad when history has been unkind to beautiful structures. 🙏🏻
Great video of my home city. Portsmouth is known as the home of the Royal Navy, it’s the oldest naval base in the U.K. and has the oldest dry docks in the world. Tons of history all around you in Old Portsmouth and Southsea. Garrison church was one of the first buildings to get hit in the two air raid on the night of 10/11 January 1941. The first raid started around 7pm lasting 2.5-3 hours. This raid the Germans used high explosives on the city hitting 1000s of buildings and actually the very first bomb landed on the old power station which was near where you had your beer. The second raid of that night started around 11pm lasting up to 3 am. This part of the raid was the deadliest as all the bombs dropped were fire bombs and it was said around 35,000 bombs were used that night. It caused a huge fire all over the city and it actually cut Portsmouth from the mainland and the call went out to other fire brigades to assist. London, Guildford, Brighton, Southampton and Winchester sent fire engines and men but sadly unable to get into the city as roads and bridges were destroyed or blocked. Portsmouth burned for three days/nights, both my parents experienced the horrors of war. Thanks for showing my ex city in all its glory. I left the city in 1979 and moved to London.
"Sorry about the wind".... STORY OF MY VLOGGING LIFE! Really makes audio challenging, doesn't it? But y'all did a GREAT job with this video! Fun day. Glad the weather cooperated!!!
Haha I'm constantly trying to figure out ways to make my videos less windy, and I think the UK was trying to figure out ways to make my videos MORE windy!
You were lucky with the weather (well in the first part of the day at least!) the UK is really lovely when the sun shines. The area of historic Portsmouth was a pleasant surprise to me as originally Portsmouth was supposed to be just the place we got the ferry to the Isle of Wight. Now I want to go back and spend more time exploring. Thanks for showing the coastal trail to Southsea, that's getting added to the list!
So glad you liked seeing Portsmouth with us! In the next vlog, we'll be catching the ferry to the Isle of Wight so things might start looking a bit familiar again! 😀
I had the pleasure of taking the train in from Waterloo to Portsmouth in August 2019 en route to taking that Brittany Ferry to La Havre. We spent the day essentially where this video takes place, plus we went to the historic Naval Yard to tour the HMS Victory which I presume was closed at the time of this filming. Thank you for visiting the Still & West, we had a great time there as well, although my friend that grew up in the area kept lamenting how things had changed, this happens at a 400 or so year old pub. Anyway, a BIG THANKS for taking me down memory lane.
Good to see you both enjoyed yourselves in Southsea and Old Portsmouth. I grew up in the city and have been to some of the places you went to. You brought back childhood memories when you went into the Round Tower, used to go there a lot with family and friends over the years. Hope you're able to come back in the future when all these restrictions are lifted.
I love Portsmouth. Both of my children went to university there in the mid-noughties and I used to go there a lot. Now I usually go once a year on a coach trip but I did not go this year as I could not afford to run up a large shopping bill at Gunwharf Quays as I did last year. My husband is very disappointed that he never got round to visiting HMS Victory as now he has mobility problems and he could not get on it now. Very interesting city.
Thanks so much for watching! We agree that Portsmouth is nice and very under-rated! So sorry to hear your husband is disappointed at not being able to visit HMS Victory anymore. That's such a bummer. And haha to the Gunwharf shopping bill - it can happen to the best of us, no doubt! 😀
Your walking tour is brilliant, because it did all the bits that are not accessible to wheelchairs. Yesterday I did the same walking tour but didn't know what was behind that giant wall. I also went in my wheelchair as far as the dock yards to the north.
Great video, looks like you liked Portsmouth and Southsea. Don't know if you're familiar with Mr Bean, but the episode "Mind The Baby Mr Bean" was filmed around the Clarence Pier and nearby areas you were exploring here. Always great seeing familiar places from an American perspective.
I've heard of Mr. Bean and seen clips here and there, but never watched an entire Mr. Bean comedy. I had no idea there was one filmed at Clarence Pier, so fun! Glad you let me know! 😀
I was in Pompey that night of Jan 10/11 1941. Dad was in the recue squads, so Mum and I moved out of town PDQ. The Garrison Church is still operational , the covered roof end is in use.
Wow! Thanks so much for commenting and sharing about your experience! I’m sure you’ve had to carry that memory heavily. 🙏🏻 I hope someday I’ll be able to go back and go inside the Garrison Church when it’s open to the public. 🤞🏻
hey!..Nice spot you got there.. the Smell of the sea..Salty...hahaha...Ohhh...that donut looks just like the Berliner...hmm...lecker...Take the photo for instagram..."How does it taste?"... "hmmm"...lol... Where is the Fish and Chips??? Ohh...beautiful indeed and the Royal Garrison Church..so much history of this building I am sure.. The weather is soooo unpredictable...Thank you for sharing and tagging us along on your travel on this video. I am sure it was fun for your visit that area... Till next vlog.. Greetings from cold Germany...:) :)
Thanks a million for these nice words!! We ate SUPER YUMMY fish and chips in our Greenwich vlog, actually! (which I published in December!) It's kinda funny, cuz even though I uploaded that vlog a couple months ago, it was filmed on Oct-4 and this one was filmed on Oct-9. WHAT IS TIME ANYMORE!?! Haha! 😅😅🍟🐟
@@MeansToTravel ahhh.. I was waiting for the fish and chips because I thought it was included in this vlog..But I will just have to look it up in your videos..hahaha..BTW.. when exactly is you LIVE sched..I would love to visit..Anyhow.. have fun vlogging and hope to see more of your adventures..Be safe you both and be blessed...
Our next livestream is on April 1st at 8pm ET so it might be a little late for your time, but I’d live to have you join if possible! So glad we were able to connect thru Darion!
@@MeansToTravel me too..haha... I will see if I can attend..so difficult with this time difference..but anyhow..keep vlogging... haha.. Greetings to your husband...
If from a navy family or love ships and seaside Portsmouth is the place, beach is stony but most go old Portsmouth or get in car Brighton, Poole, sandbanks not far etc
I've been to Brighton before I started this channel and I think it's so fun! It's also a stoney beach there, but hey, it's England haha! Thanks for watching our videos!
So great you liked the Portsmouth vlogs! I think it would be a great place to go to uni because there's a large beach, lots of pubs, and an easy train to London. :)
I also want to say that your disclaimer at the beginning was a very responsible thing to do. On the one hand, there aren't any crowds, but on the other, what did you miss (of important sights to you) that were closed?
Thanks! Yeah the disclaimer is not fun, but important right now. RE: WHAT WE MISSED - that's a really great question that I realize we don't speak to much in our videos themselves. We actually "missed" a lot because we made the decision not to do many indoor or potentially crowded sights unless we felt we could be extremely safe. For Portsmouth, we didn't go to the top of Spinnaker Tower, tour the warship museums, walk up and down the Southsea pier, and more. Instead, we opted to see those things from a further vantage point and hope we'll come back someday. RE: CLOSURES: We almost exclusively were in regions and cities throughout our time in the UK that were in Tier 1, so we didn't encounter a lot of closures. That said, there have been a couple closures so far that we've mentioned in our vlogs such as the No Man's Forts (Portsmouth) and the Churchill Wartime Tunnels (Dover), but we were never in a region that was in any form of lockdown.
So glad you like the video!!! We didn’t make it to Portsdown Hill but we got kinda close when we went to Portchester Castle in our One Day In Hampshire vlog!
@@MeansToTravel Horndean Special Beer. It's a local beer by Gales that fullers bought out. It's served in the Still and West and Bridge Tavern, and lot of other pubs generally in Portsmouth and Hampshire.
Hope you all enjoy tagging along on our sunny day exploring the Portsmouth harbor area last October! We loved how much the city shared and embraced its military history! Plus, the donuts and crab croquettes were a yummy bonus. 😀
Us Pomponians are very proud of our city and it`s heritage.
You went to Portsmouth and didn't visit HMS Victory, Admiral Nelson's flagship? Have you not heard of the Battle of Trafalgar (after which the famous London square is named) which took place in 1805? Nelson defeated the combined French and Spanish Fleet, but he was killed during the Battle. He is Britain's greatest naval hero.
@@davidlauder-qi5zv I wish we had been able to visit all the ships, and that the Historic Dockyard hadn't been closing down when we tried to go! To be 100% honest, I haven't really heard much about the Battle of Trafalgar, because we don't learn about it in school (like I assume British people do). In America, I learned a lot of American history and general World History. I didn't opt to take the AP European History class in high school, since it wouldn't have given me any credits towards my business degree once I got to college. Instead I took a current events course to fulfill the social studies requirement. Maybe the Battle of Trafalgar would have been taught in an AP Euro class? That said, I believe I heard about the Battle of Trafalgar when I visited Trafalgar Square in London. 😀
@@MeansToTravel Are you seriously telling me you haven't heard of Admiral Nelson? It's not a question of whether or not you read about British history at school. His name must surely have come up in general world history, which you say you studied at school. Major political or military heroes of both our countries are usually known to people on either side of the "Pond". I'm sure you'd be astonished, not to mention offended, if hadn't heard of Abraham Lincoln, or George Washington, and yet I didn't study American history at school. Have you heard of The Duke of Wellington? You know, the guy who had a bit of a punch up with a French guy called Napoleon in 1815 at a little fracas called The Battle of Waterloo? Please don't tell me you haven't heard of him!
@@davidlauder-qi5zv I didn't quite say I haven't heard of those British historical figures at different fleeting points in my life, but I was more-so saying we didn't have a unit specifically about British wars or anything very in-depth like that in high-school level world history. If I remember correctly, World History just walked through topics from Europe such as the bronze age, iron age, dark ages, middle ages, Renaissance, Industrial Age, etc. and the corresponding themes around those eras and how they impacted the world. I haven't taken a history class in fifteen+ years, and I also admit that my brain doesn't really care much about military history compared to other types of history because I feel really emotionally uncomfortable when thinking about people fighting and human perils. 😥😥😥 Luckily, that's where Derek comes in! He genuinely likes learning about military history, and even plays those video games called Total War for fun, haha!
Enjoyed it a lot. The crab cakes looked great. Remember, if you don't like the weather in England, just wait 5 minutes and it is bound to change.
Haha exactly!! Gotta be prepared for all weather possibilities! 🇬🇧
TRUTH
Great looking church! In Estepa, Spain there is a similar church with no roof except the bell tower because it was bombed during the Spanish civil war. Awesome video
Thanks Iggie! Wow no roof except the bell tower - sounds like such an interesting thing to see! So sad when history has been unkind to beautiful structures. 🙏🏻
Great video of my home city. Portsmouth is known as the home of the Royal Navy, it’s the oldest naval base in the U.K. and has the oldest dry docks in the world. Tons of history all around you in Old Portsmouth and Southsea. Garrison church was one of the first buildings to get hit in the two air raid on the night of 10/11 January 1941. The first raid started around 7pm lasting 2.5-3 hours. This raid the Germans used high explosives on the city hitting 1000s of buildings and actually the very first bomb landed on the old power station which was near where you had your beer. The second raid of that night started around 11pm lasting up to 3 am. This part of the raid was the deadliest as all the bombs dropped were fire bombs and it was said around 35,000 bombs were used that night. It caused a huge fire all over the city and it actually cut Portsmouth from the mainland and the call went out to other fire brigades to assist. London, Guildford, Brighton, Southampton and Winchester sent fire engines and men but sadly unable to get into the city as roads and bridges were destroyed or blocked. Portsmouth burned for three days/nights, both my parents experienced the horrors of war. Thanks for showing my ex city in all its glory. I left the city in 1979 and moved to London.
Wow I didn’t know all those details - what a history. 🙏🏻
I hope.is save now bcuz am looking for admission into Portsmouth University, from Africa 🙏
Oh yeah, my hubby would SO want that blackberry crumble donut!!!
You'll have to grab one when you go back to the UK!
@@MeansToTravel sounds like a plan!
"Sorry about the wind".... STORY OF MY VLOGGING LIFE! Really makes audio challenging, doesn't it? But y'all did a GREAT job with this video! Fun day. Glad the weather cooperated!!!
Haha I'm constantly trying to figure out ways to make my videos less windy, and I think the UK was trying to figure out ways to make my videos MORE windy!
@@MeansToTravel yes I believe it!
But you guys walked straight past the Hovercraft. Never get tired of seeing it come in😁
We thought about taking it on our day at Isle of Wight to show it in the vlogs but ended up taking the car ferry so we could drive around ☺️
Portsmouth is one of my favourite cities in England I really want to live there when I’m older
I agree, we had a really nice time! Thanks for watching!
You were lucky with the weather (well in the first part of the day at least!) the UK is really lovely when the sun shines. The area of historic Portsmouth was a pleasant surprise to me as originally Portsmouth was supposed to be just the place we got the ferry to the Isle of Wight. Now I want to go back and spend more time exploring. Thanks for showing the coastal trail to Southsea, that's getting added to the list!
So glad you liked seeing Portsmouth with us! In the next vlog, we'll be catching the ferry to the Isle of Wight so things might start looking a bit familiar again! 😀
Oooooh, those crab croquettes looked scrummy!!
Oh yeah those TOTALLY hit the spot!
Portsmouth looks great but that donut... yum!
Haha the donut is a STAR! 🌟
Enjoyed your video :) love Portsmouth and all its history attached. Thanks for the video
Thanks so glad you enjoyed it!! Yes, Portsmouth was such a fun place to visit!
Great video guys and yes that donut looked majestic 🙌
We should have bought two! Sad we had to share! Southsea coffee was definitely our favorite coffee place there (and we tried several!)
It was true BLISS
Love you guys 🥰 Hope you're doing ok and your lovely baby. We did a similar trip just before covid. All the best. 🥰 Harriet, Jim and Yuki
My heart! Don't mind me getting all nostalgic over here
Surprise! I talk about you in the video! :) :) :)
I had the pleasure of taking the train in from Waterloo to Portsmouth in August 2019 en route to taking that Brittany Ferry to La Havre. We spent the day essentially where this video takes place, plus we went to the historic Naval Yard to tour the HMS Victory which I presume was closed at the time of this filming. Thank you for visiting the Still & West, we had a great time there as well, although my friend that grew up in the area kept lamenting how things had changed, this happens at a 400 or so year old pub. Anyway, a BIG THANKS for taking me down memory lane.
Thanks for this great comment! So glad you got to re-live your trip via this video!
Good to see you both enjoyed yourselves in Southsea and Old Portsmouth. I grew up in the city and have been to some of the places you went to. You brought back childhood memories when you went into the Round Tower, used to go there a lot with family and friends over the years. Hope you're able to come back in the future when all these restrictions are lifted.
We're crossing our fingers that we can get back to Portsmouth so we can see even more! So glad this vlog was able to bring back good memories!
I love Portsmouth. Both of my children went to university there in the mid-noughties and I used to go there a lot. Now I usually go once a year on a coach trip but I did not go this year as I could not afford to run up a large shopping bill at Gunwharf Quays as I did last year. My husband is very disappointed that he never got round to visiting HMS Victory as now he has mobility problems and he could not get on it now. Very interesting city.
Thanks so much for watching! We agree that Portsmouth is nice and very under-rated! So sorry to hear your husband is disappointed at not being able to visit HMS Victory anymore. That's such a bummer. And haha to the Gunwharf shopping bill - it can happen to the best of us, no doubt! 😀
I liked the disclaimer at the beginning hope that keeps the not so nice comments from happening. Great vlog
Hehe thanks Lori!! We've included our filming dates at the beginning of every UK vlog so far, but maybe this will be more obvious. 😊
Great video. Really enjoyed it. I hadn’t realised you had UK ones still in the can.
Thanks! Yes we probably have about 30 more UK vlogs in the hopper! So much to look forward to. 😆
SO MANY!
@@MeansToTravel
Wow! 30 more. I’ve just got used to you road tripping across the States 😂
Your walking tour is brilliant, because it did all the bits that are not accessible to wheelchairs. Yesterday I did the same walking tour but didn't know what was behind that giant wall. I also went in my wheelchair as far as the dock yards to the north.
Thank you so much, I'm really glad you enjoyed watching!
Great video, looks like you liked Portsmouth and Southsea. Don't know if you're familiar with Mr Bean, but the episode "Mind The Baby Mr Bean" was filmed around the Clarence Pier and nearby areas you were exploring here. Always great seeing familiar places from an American perspective.
I've heard of Mr. Bean and seen clips here and there, but never watched an entire Mr. Bean comedy. I had no idea there was one filmed at Clarence Pier, so fun! Glad you let me know! 😀
@@MeansToTravel You’re welcome 😊
I was in Pompey that night of Jan 10/11 1941. Dad was in the recue squads, so Mum and I moved out of town PDQ. The Garrison Church is still operational , the covered roof end is in use.
Wow! Thanks so much for commenting and sharing about your experience! I’m sure you’ve had to carry that memory heavily. 🙏🏻 I hope someday I’ll be able to go back and go inside the Garrison Church when it’s open to the public. 🤞🏻
hey!..Nice spot you got there.. the Smell of the sea..Salty...hahaha...Ohhh...that donut looks just like the Berliner...hmm...lecker...Take the photo for instagram..."How does it taste?"... "hmmm"...lol... Where is the Fish and Chips??? Ohh...beautiful indeed and the Royal Garrison Church..so much history of this building I am sure.. The weather is soooo unpredictable...Thank you for sharing and tagging us along on your travel on this video. I am sure it was fun for your visit that area... Till next vlog.. Greetings from cold Germany...:) :)
Thanks a million for these nice words!! We ate SUPER YUMMY fish and chips in our Greenwich vlog, actually! (which I published in December!) It's kinda funny, cuz even though I uploaded that vlog a couple months ago, it was filmed on Oct-4 and this one was filmed on Oct-9. WHAT IS TIME ANYMORE!?! Haha! 😅😅🍟🐟
@@MeansToTravel ahhh.. I was waiting for the fish and chips because I thought it was included in this vlog..But I will just have to look it up in your videos..hahaha..BTW.. when exactly is you LIVE sched..I would love to visit..Anyhow.. have fun vlogging and hope to see more of your adventures..Be safe you both and be blessed...
Our next livestream is on April 1st at 8pm ET so it might be a little late for your time, but I’d live to have you join if possible! So glad we were able to connect thru Darion!
@@MeansToTravel me too..haha... I will see if I can attend..so difficult with this time difference..but anyhow..keep vlogging... haha.. Greetings to your husband...
The Garrison Church is where Charles II got married
Oh wow, we didn't realize!
Yay donuts. Bramble?
I believe it was a blackberry and creme crumble donut! So yes, I think we could call it bramble?
That donut was top notch!
Next time we won't split them, and each have our own! 🍩
If from a navy family or love ships and seaside Portsmouth is the place, beach is stony but most go old Portsmouth or get in car Brighton, Poole, sandbanks not far etc
I've been to Brighton before I started this channel and I think it's so fun! It's also a stoney beach there, but hey, it's England haha! Thanks for watching our videos!
enjoy your travels around the uk
Thanks so much, Stephen! We had a blast and I'm still enjoying making lot's of videos about it!
Hopefully I will be going to Uni here. I'm a bit worried whether I'll like it there or not but your video has given me more assurance.
So great you liked the Portsmouth vlogs! I think it would be a great place to go to uni because there's a large beach, lots of pubs, and an easy train to London. :)
@@MeansToTravel yeh the beach and the pubs are very attractive 😂 thanks for the great video!
@@alecneate76 my pleasure!
Nice video guys
Glad you enjoyed it!
I also want to say that your disclaimer at the beginning was a very responsible thing to do. On the one hand, there aren't any crowds, but on the other, what did you miss (of important sights to you) that were closed?
Thanks! Yeah the disclaimer is not fun, but important right now.
RE: WHAT WE MISSED - that's a really great question that I realize we don't speak to much in our videos themselves. We actually "missed" a lot because we made the decision not to do many indoor or potentially crowded sights unless we felt we could be extremely safe. For Portsmouth, we didn't go to the top of Spinnaker Tower, tour the warship museums, walk up and down the Southsea pier, and more. Instead, we opted to see those things from a further vantage point and hope we'll come back someday.
RE: CLOSURES: We almost exclusively were in regions and cities throughout our time in the UK that were in Tier 1, so we didn't encounter a lot of closures. That said, there have been a couple closures so far that we've mentioned in our vlogs such as the No Man's Forts (Portsmouth) and the Churchill Wartime Tunnels (Dover), but we were never in a region that was in any form of lockdown.
You can't watch this and not want to go badly.......
Haha so glad to hear! Maybe the Portsmouth tourism board will give us a call to come back! :)
@@MeansToTravel I have to get over my fear of driving on the left first than I'll be right there.
My hometown, surprised you didn't mention about Clarence Pier being the most unique pier in the whole of the UK.
Oh cool, I didn't know that it's been deemed the most unique! Thanks for watching our video! 😀
I would point out that, even more importantly, they didn't visit HMS Victory. Doesn't that surprise you as well?
I live near Portsmouth. Love this video. Did you get to see portsdown hill?
So glad you like the video!!! We didn’t make it to Portsdown Hill but we got kinda close when we went to Portchester Castle in our One Day In Hampshire vlog!
My home town.
I'm pompey through and through
That's awesome! Thanks for watching our vlog!
Good weather can be expected in Portsmouth
Yes we had a lot of sunny days in our month in Portsmouth!
Cool 👍🏻
Thanks!
What's up with the baby Burj Khalifa? Can see why you all like Portsmouth.
Haha do you mean Spinnaker Tower?
I am looking for admission into Portsmouth University that's why im here to see how the city looks like 🙏
That's great! Good luck with your applications!
Should of got the HSB...
What is the HSB again?
@@MeansToTravel Horndean Special Beer. It's a local beer by Gales that fullers bought out. It's served in the Still and West and Bridge Tavern, and lot of other pubs generally in Portsmouth and Hampshire.