There’s something deeply moving about leaving New York Harbor on an ocean liner, watching the Statue of Liberty (Liberty being the key word here) grow smaller behind you, knowing your ancestors made the same journey in reverse over a century ago. We called it “reverse immigrating” — and honestly, standing on the deck of the Queen Mary 2 as Manhattan’s skyline faded into the horizon, I got a little emotional about it. The seven-day Atlantic crossing was ridiculously cool. BONUS: We spotted the Stad Amsterdam in the middle of the ocean — we’d sailed with her during Sail Amsterdam last year. What are the odds?

Before we even boarded the ship, New York City delivered some unexpected gifts. We scored tickets to the Colbert Show and got to see Sally Field and Chris Stapleton, which was incredible considering Colbert was in the final two weeks of his show and the tickets were impossible to get. Due to David’s lifetime employee discount and my bulldoggedness on getting the reservation, we stayed at The Plaza. And here’s a fun tip: The Plaza has a Mercedes Maybach that will take guests to nearby museums for free. We rode in absurd luxury to the Frick Collection simply because we could. Sometimes you just have to say yes to the absurd.

Once we landed in Southampton, the real adventure began — a road trip covering nearly 1,000 miles across the UK. Left-side driving, clockwise roundabouts (I stopped counting after 200), and weather that was cool, overcast, and occasionally magical. Portsmouth gave us HMS Victory and Henry VIII’s Mary Rose, which any boat lover needs to see. Salisbury Cathedral houses the best-preserved copy of the Magna Carta. We stayed in a 400-year-old manor in Bradford on Avon and wandered the gorgeous streets of Bath

The Wye Valley is stunning with its vistas, and the funky little book town of Hay-on-Wye was gearing up for a book festival. At Chepstow Castle, we met a couple in their 90s who had done exactly what we’ve done — sold everything, bought a sailboat, and cruised the Mediterranean in their 60s. Meeting your future selves in a Welsh castle is a wonderful thing. Not every stop was a winner though — Dolgellau was listed as an amazing historic town, and it really wasn’t. But we did meet Helen there, a Londoner who’d moved out solo and didn’t want us to leave because she was desperate for good conversation. Those unexpected human connections end up being the real highlights.

Looking back at all the photos now, I’m genuinely amazed at how much ground we covered — from the Lake District to Edinburgh, from Beaumaris on the Isle of Anglesey to the Falkirk Wheel in Scotland and finally down to London. Oh, and fair warning to anyone planning a Stonehenge visit: it’s been completely “Pier 39’d.” You know what I mean. But the biggest takeaway from this whole adventure? When people ask how to avoid jetlag, I tell them to take seven days crossing the Atlantic on a ship. Your body adjusts naturally, you arrive refreshed, and the journey itself becomes part of the destination. That’s the secret.