Sunday we traveled by car (again) to Portsmouth (on the south central coast - near Southampton). It was "Meet your Navy" day and we enjoyed exploring the ships of the past, present and future. Rob says our navy is just a bit larger. Our favorite ships were the very old ones.
The HMS Warrior, launched in 1860, was the first ship we explored.
The HMS Victory (launched in 1765) was involved in the Battle of Trafalgar. There were lots of artifacts of the time period aboard the ship to read about and examine. It was really neat.
There were wonderful demonstrations of water rescues and forty marines and plenty of photo opportunities to pose with various weapons from past and present battles.
Madison even had the chance to shoot a rifle with the help of a sailor. She happily sat in the Captain's chair of the HMS Enterprise.
Standing at the helm of the ships, we were impressed by the sheer size of the wheels that steered the ships at sea.
The weather was warm (26 C), a perfect day to be outdoors. There was a cool breeze from the sea throughout the day.
