Friday, August 13, 2010

Days 32 & Onward

























Dalek from the Doctor Who Exhibit in Cardiff

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Getting an Internet connection that is not dial up or that has a strong enough signal has been a problem for some time now.

Since leaving Ramsbury, we went to Barry, by way of Cardiff, where we checked off an important box for Elizabeth -- seeing the Doctor Who Exhibit. We then went on to Barry, checked into the Tadross Hotel (formerly my uncle Bob's local, the Bassett, but now considerably nicer and less rough.

Jeanette forgot when we were arriving, so when Nicholas and I arrived at the Seaview Labour Club and tapped her on the shoulder, she was genuinely shocked. We also saw Chris later that day, though he no longer keeps evening office hours at the Club.

Next day we visited, but also drove into Cardiff to do a little shopping and took a guided tour or Cardiff Castle. The day later, we drove up to revisit Caerphilly Castle.

After three nights in Barry, we drove up to Brecon to visit Florence -- well, to Llanddew, actually. .Nicholas and I stayed at the Wellington Hotel, in Brecon, as Florence's little cottage was a bit too small for all of us.

After this we drove down to Portsomouth, to break up the trip to Kent. Unfortunatel it was a little late to visit the Victory, but we did have a good wander around the Gunwhale Quays area -- a massive redevelopment next to the old naval docks.

Originally we planned to have a quick visit to the Victory, before driving on to Herne Bay. We wound up staying longer than expected at the Historic Naval Yards -- visiting the Warrior, the Victory and splitting into two groups to have Kathryn and Elizabeth visit the Mary Rose museum, while Nick and I went on a harbour cruise. We didn't set off from Portsmouth until 2 p.m.

Taking the coastal route was time consuming and our intended stop at Arundel did not come off because of an extreme downpour as we arrived. We finally arrived at Herne Bay in the early evening and went for dinner at the George and Dragon pub in Fordwich. The next day was a quiet one -- a sleep-in and a walk along the beach to Herne, Bay. before spending the evening with Bob and Ingrid.

An early start to our last day got us to Gatwick Airport shortly after 9 a.m., allowing us to check into the Marriott at the airport, return the car, and set off by train for a day in London by 10:30 a.m., arriving at London Victoria berore 11:00 a.m. Kathryn and Elizabeth went off into the East End to go to the Doctor Who store, then Kensington for tea at the Orangerie, and a further wander around Kensington. Nick and I went to the Monument (and got certificates proving we climbed the steps to the top), the Imperial War Museum, the Globe Theater, and a wander about the City. We all finished up with dinner at Garfunkels before returning to Gatwick to sleep.

Up at 5:00 a.m. and a flight lasting 12 hours finally brought us home.

Monday, August 9, 2010

Day 31 - West Kennett Barrow - Silbury Hill - Marlborough - Ramsbury


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Today was mostly a visiting day, though we did go just to the other side of Marlborough to visit the 5,500 year old burial mound, West Kennett Barrow, and its neighbour, Silbury Hill. Tony and Hamish, the dog, took us there. On the way back we stopped at Marlborough, then returned to Ramsbury to await Ivor's arrival, with his wife Arabella and daughter, Rebecca. There are now more Benoys than Goodrich at 16 Oxford Street. We had a fabulous BBQ Lamb dinner (except for the three vegetarian girls).

Tomorrow we are off to Wales.

Sunday, August 8, 2010

Days 29 and 30


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This post really deals with two days. First thing in the morning we left our hotel and headed out to Gatwick to pick up our English rental car and also to rendezvous with Nicholas. We ran into him by chance, heading roughly in the same direction. Our car is a Skoda Octavia -- a Camry-sized vehicle which is relatively luxurious, but which drives like a bit of a tank compared to Winnie the Peu in France. A little white-knuckle driving took us to Ramsbury. I think I know where the sides of the vehicle are now and I'm slowly adjusting to driving on the other side of the road.

Our base is Olwynne & Tony's place in Ramsbury. We stayed about and visited on our first day, then wandered off the next day to see the 2000 year old Uffington Horse, carved into a hillside in southern Oxfordshire. Lunch was at the Red Lion Pub in Avebury, where we had another look at the neolithic stone circle, before returning to the house and then taking a walk up to the ridge above Ramsbury.



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Our second day in London. Elizabeth wanted to see the antiques and retro fashions around the Portabello Market, so off we went. Elizabeth ticked off two items that Dyna recommended, so was quite happy. I picked up an 1826 print map of France. We then ticked off another box for Elizabeth, heading to the Beatles store on Baker Street.

Lunch and a rest and it was time to get ready to go to the theater -- the Apollo Victoria -- where we saw Wicked. This was Elizabeth's third time seeing it, so she can add London to New York and Seattle. After the performance, we happened upon the stage door, so Elizabeth camped out and was rewarded with the autograph of the lead actress.

Saturday, August 7, 2010

Day 27 - Paris - London


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Actually the title is a bit of a misnomer. There is one picture of the Gare de Nord, but the rest are all of London, where we arrived by Eurostar around noon. First stop was Platform 9 3/4 at King's Cross station -- well we did arrive right next door at St. Pancras after all. Next to our hotel in Victoria and a wander around London by foot -- off to Buckingham Palace, where we ran into my former colleague and Nicholas`grade 11 Social Studies teacher, then to the Thames at Westminster, wandering around Parliament and Westminster Abbey and the like, and back to the hotel. Its odd not having to communicate with people at an imbecilic level of vocabulary now that we can speak English all the time.


Day 26 - Paris


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Heaps of walking today -- back to the 2nd to look around again in the area we stayed last time in Paris. In the evening we went to the Left Bank to see the Sorbonne, have dinner and walk up to the Pantheon (naturally arriving too late to go inside). Tomorrow we head to London.


Day 25 - Paris


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Kathryn and Elizabeth went off shopping and out for a formal tea at a prestigious Paris establishment. I went to the Louvre (along with half of the population of Paris -- well half of the tourists in the city) and then walked on to the Cluny Museum of the Middle Ages. In the evening we returned to the Louvre to take some night pictures.