When in Rome, sorry, Portsmouth

 So there we all were, the day after yours truly was certified clever, in sunny Portsmouth, a town synonymous with the Royal Navy, sea shanties and fish and chips!

 In  past life I was a sub lieutenant in Liz's flotilla so it seemed like a good idea to take the apprentice and rug rat mkII round my old haunts, or rather on a highly edited version of where daddy used to hang out with beered up shipmates. Inevitably we ended up at Gun Wharf Quay , formerly the place where the Navy kept all its ammo but is now the top place to go shopping, even for blokes! Its also home to many tourist traps so we set off to sample as many as two tired children would allow us to see.

 Obviously they were interested in certain aspects like ice creams.

 Not the least bit interested in feats of architecture

 or ships

 so ever mindful of their needs we stuck them on a ship and went for a tour of the harbour.

 Now this was a first for yours truly as in previous life I was on the water in a big or little boat keeping tourists away from Liz's ships while fetching clumsy sailors out of the water.

 So to be on the boat drinking beer and generally having a great time in glorious sunshine was a real treat.

 If I was really well behaved in the Navy I got one of these, usually I ended up with a kayak, ahem.

 Now we currently have 6 destroyers

 and

 all

 of

 them were alongside, the UK and all its assets being protected from sea attack by a fishing trawler just off the Isle of Wight.

 My old ship was there (it never moves) looking particularly forlorn and unused.

 But nostalgia almost over we chased a ferry to spice island

 the oldest part of Portsmouth

 before rewarding the well behaved amongst us with more ice cream.

 A spot of lunch before heading skywards

 where rug rat mkII had his sense of depth perception

 challenged

 by standing on a glass floor above a

 slight drop

 of around 100 metres.

 The view from the top of the Spinnaker Tower is quite simply jaw dropping

 especially on a clear day

 so we took dozens of super snaps including super grandma looking very glam.

 Being ex navy I was allowed to take a destroyer out

 but they are

 no where near as big as I remember them!

 All this touristing worked up a healthy appetite and we headed off for the best pizza emporium found at Port Solent , I had to complain about how teeny the portions were.

And that was Portsmouth. Thrilling.