A little bit of rain wasn't enough to dampen the enthusiasm of 40 members for a much anticipated visit to Portsmouth's Historic Dockyard's Victorian Festival of Christmas. There was so much to see that even a 5 hour visit wasn't long enough to fit it all in.

The first thing we saw on leaving the coach was HMS Warrior.	Through the gates we were greated by a couple of prisoners with their guard.
Along the road there were Victorian children singing carols ...	... and a group of protestors calling for women's rights.
These women here were more interested in earning money from passing 'trade'!	Inside a music hall another group of youngsters were ...
... entertaining an appreciative audience.	This gentleman didn't say very much ...
... and this trader wasn't raising much interest in his offer to sell the boy.	Up several flights of stairs we could see an actual sail from HMS Victory.
Outside again there was a steam train just waiting to take people on a ride.	HMS Victory itself was open for inspection ...
... of great interest to at least two of our group.	From the deck of the Victory tempting stalls were visible on the dockside.
Although there was no real rain during our visit we did find snow!	It seemed strange that it was only snowing in one particular area ...
... but it certainly created a very authentic scene ...	... and made the idea of being indoors feel most appealing!
As day turned into night HMS Warrior was seasonally illuminated ...	... as was the Spinnaker tower in the background.

The coach on our return journey was strangely quiet - while members rested their feet and thought about the glimpses they'd seen of the Victorian era.