Category: LiveJournal

Great Britain Expedition, 2015, part eight

Last night I wasn’t able to write up an entry for our day. I am currently typing this while our bus is retuning from the Isle of Skye. I’m doing this with the virtual keyboard since my Bluetooth keyboard is in my luggage.

So, yesterday we left Glasgow to head north to the highlands. Poor Glasgow didn’t leave as favorable an impression upon us as Liverpool or Cardiff. Perhaps it was the restaurant messing up supper. Perhaps it was the hotel spa closing as we arrived. Perhaps we just aren’t Glasgow gals. Regardless, we were ready to meet the Highlands.

Our first stop in the Highlands was Loch Lomond. Though we skipped Windemere’s boat ride, we opted for this one. It was a hazy, chilly, drizzly day, which just seemed perfect for a loch ride. When we were departing the boat, one of the crew admitted that this was the coldest start to summer that she could recall. She felt sorry for the kids starting their holidays this weekend.

For lunch, James took us off the beaten path to the Drover’s Inn. He said the place reminded him of the Addams Family. Inside, even more so. Lunch was Scotch broth and assorted sandwiches – very tasty. Not even sure what all the sandwiches were other than having butter & mayonnaise. (One was egg, that I’m sure of.)

We then spent the early afternoon driving thru the valley of Glencoe. Despite the historical drama, the valley was peaceful and beautiful. Indeed, the trip was almost scenery overload.

When we arrived at our resort, those of us doing the optional excursion had 20 minutes to get ready. And then it was time to see the puppies!

When we were planning out extra excursions, Amy and I weren’t sold on the sheepdog one. But it’s James’s favorite and he kept selling it. And we finally relented. I’m glad we did. It was fun watching the shepherd herd the sheep with his dogs using only voice commands and unique whistles. And afterwards we got to hold puppies. 🙂

James wanted to apologize for rushing us out of supper the previous night and so bought us drinks before dinner. I had a gin & tonic with Bombay Sapphire. Supper was at the resort and I had leek & potato soup (needed salt), pork belly/back/rump/something & mash & veggies, and chocolate delice (aka chocolate mousse cake).

Mom, Amy and I took a walk around Aviemore and wound up buying junk food at Tescos. I hadn’t brought money with me. But I had enough change in my pocket to get 2 packages of Penguins and a box of tea cakes. We eventually got ourselves situated for bed. I had intended to complete another lesson for my course but it wasn’t to be. (Too busy posting photos of pupies on Facebook, I think). Maybe tonight?

Great Britain Expedition, 2015, part seven

Scotland, I am in you! Woo! (We are now on the second week of our trip!)

This morning, we left Liverpool and headed onward to the Lake District. Most of the group had opted for the steam train & boat ride on Lake Windemere, but we and one other pair had not. So when we got to the train station at Haverthwaite, we headed for the shops while the others got their scones & teas or used the loo or both. In the shop, I bought a few souveniers – tea towels (that match my kitchen), mini-mugs for Doctor Who (TARDIS & Dalek design), and a slate coaster with a sheep painted on it.

Once the main group was off, we bought tea (or, in mother’s case, coffee) and scones in the station restaurant. It was very quaint, in a good way. I think mom is a convert to the joys of scones & cream & jam. 🙂 (She was assured by the wait staff that it had no calories.) The other group who didn’t go is a pair of ladies who are friends from British Columbia. Very nice ladies. Our bus driver, Carl, was the only other one left from our tour group.

At 11, we returned to the bus and Carl drove us around Lake Windemere. He even pulled over once to let us get a really nice shot of the lake from a bridge. (He said that, since it was raining, we’d get better photos outside than through the spattered windows.) We arrived at Bogness (I think) to await the rest of the group’s arrival. And while waiting, we took plenty of photos, including some up-close-and-personal photos of some very friendly swans.

Our next stop, once everyone was aboard the coach, was Grasmere. There, James took us on a short walk to the cemetary and regaled us with the story of William Wordsworth and his wife… and sister. We were then free for an hour to get lunch, shop, view, etc. We all got Cornish pasties at a local place (The Cumbria, I think?) and then shopped. I bought some gingerbread from Sally Nelson’s Gingerbread shop. While we were at the restaurant, a local gentleman with a cute doggie had told us about the place when he heard we were going to Glasmere. But then James had to be the most excellent tour guide that he is and told the whole group about it, too. 😉 I haven’t had any yet – we were still too full from lunch.

Gretna Green in Scotland is, apparently, famous for being the place that English couples would head for to get married because once the marriage laws (age of consent) in Scotland and England were different. And the smithy would perform the ceremony for ’em. It’s mostly a tourist trap now, but the shops were nice. I got an Anderson scarf and a few other touristy things (mostly concerning the Anderson tartan and motto – mum’s an Anderson originally).

James is a wonderful tour guide and often buys us local candy etc to sample on the bus. Earlier today he’d given all of us Penguins. So I had to tell mom and Amy the joke that my friends told me when they first introduced me to the chocolate biscuits: Why don’t polar bears eat penguins? Cuz they can’t get the wrappers off! James heard me tell the joke and gave me a second one. 🙂 Amy and mom now agree that Penguins are pretty tasty. Now if we could just find some imported Tim Tams so they can make a comparision, that would be lovely.

After the Gretna Green stop, James had some shortbread to share with us all – very tasty. And THEN he gave us all samples of a Scotch whiskey that he’d bought to share. It was also pretty tasty (who knew there was a whiskey I could like?) As I said, he’s a great tour guide!

Despite the coach door opening soon after we got onto the highway (Carl pulled over and got it shut again – he is calm during chaos, that man), we made it to Glasgow with time to spare. So James took us around to the Glasgow cathedral for a photo op. There’s also a police box near the cathedral which we got to see. 🙂

Dinner tonight was part of the tour and was at The Corinthian Club, which is a casino in an old bank in Glasgow. I ordered the Scotch Broth for starters, lamb stew and mashed potatos (though it had a fancier name on the menu), and the cranachan in a chocolate cup (a raspberry mousse-like stuff). The starters came out just fine, but when it was time for the entree, something had happened – for some reason the kitchen hadn’t made enough stuff for everyone. And sadly, our table was one of the last to be served. The food was delicious, but we had to scarf up the dessert in order to get Carl back so that he and the bus have 11 hours before they are able to run again. James was outwardly calm, but I’m pretty sure he was livid – he’d emphasized to the restaurant how important the timing was before dinner. Still, we got to the hotel in time – yay!

Actually, I say hotel, but it’s actually a golf resort. And, sadly, the spa closed at 9pm, just as we were arriving. Bummer! But we took a short walk around the resort for a bit more exercise, and then retired to our room. We’re 1-nighting in this hotel, but the next two are 2-nighters. Phew!
Tomorrow, we head further north into the Highlands. Yay!

Great Britain Expedition, 2015, part six

Tonight we are sleeping in Liverpool! Birthplace of the Beatles!

But this morning, we awoke in Cardiff, birthplace of Dame Burley Chassie (AKA Dame Shirley Bassie). I was able to have my “normal” full English breakfast (even though I wasn’t *in* England) since my stomach behaved. And it wasn’t long before we were on the road again.

On our way to Ludlow, we took a slight detour to Tintern Abbey for a photo op. Not only did I get pictures of the abbey, but I also found out they had a millstone at the parking lot roundabout, so I took a selfie of me with “The Coveted Millstone Award” to share with Papa. I’ll get the photo to you eventually, dad, I promise! 🙂

Ludlow, it turns out, has Britain’s highest number of listed buildings with over 500. Most are Tudor-style though there were some Georgian around too. We had a 1 hour stop for lunch, so I popped into the local butcher’s for a pork pie, then added to that with a few items from a local deli (some Thai salad, an elderflower lemonade, and a Portuguese custard tart). It was all very yummy and we sat outside on a bench in a square to enjoy our lunch. Then we took several photos (which I’ll share later) and returned to the bus. Phew!

Next stop was Chester, where James took us on a tour of the Roman rows and pointed out several Tudor, faux-Tudor, Gothic, Roman, and Georgian buildings. Quite a mix, often at the same time. We parted at the Cathedral for a little free-time and mom, Amy, and I found a little coffee shop where we got coffee (not me), hot chocolate (me), and scones with clotted cream & the best strawberry jam I recall having. We finished just in time to return, once again, to the coach.

Our final stop of the day was the aformentioned Liverpool. When we arrived, they dropped off the bags while we had a short potty break (I just walked around the hotel) before turning to the bus, but with a new guide – Peter, our local expert. He’s a Liverpudlian who does Beatles tours usually and gave us a tour of Liverpool in general and the Beatles specifically. Mom, Amy, and I got a photo by a Penny Lane sign.
Amy, mom, and me at Penny Lane

Once back at the hotel, we got our room keys, dumped our bags (the big ones had been delivered), and decided to walk somewhere nearb for supper. After combing all the options at the Albert docks, we decided upon The Smugger’s Cove. They were full up or normal dining, but there was room at the bar. I ordered their hanging lamb kebab, cole slaw, and a Buccaneer drink (rum-based coctail with raspberry liquer and peach juice or something). We had a pleasant evening not being in a rush for once. Plus, when we got back, I was able to work on two of my lessons for the college class I’m taking.

My girls are both asleep now and I should join them. Another early start tomorrow as we wind our way north towards Glasgow! We’ll be in Scotland tomorrow!

Great Britain Expedition, 2015, part five

Helo o Cymrw! (which might say “Hello from Wales” or it might not, depending on the accuracy of Google Translate.)

On this whirlwind trip through Great Britain, we have really only 1 day in Wales, and today was it. Tomorrow morning, we leave this country and head East and North (next hotel is in Liverpool). But Wales, and Cardiff in particular, has left an impact on us – my sister has declared Cardiff her new favorite city, and I can certainly understand why!

We started out in Exeter. Sadly, we had awakened so early that my stomach was still asleep, so no full English fry-up for me! (Considering the theme of today was FOOD, that might have been for the best.) Corn flakes and pain au chocolate plus tea was what my snoring stomach demanded. But we left the lovely town of Exeter (which would have been great to visit, rather than just have as a base for day-trips) and headed on to Glastonbury.

There’s a ruined abbey in Glastonbury that we visited. A young lady pretending to be a pilgrim from the time of the original abbey (14th century, approx) guided us through the ruins. She was quite good and had a suitable amount of snark, especially about Arthur & Guinevere being buried there. And the young lady playing the part is decended from previous caretakers of the grounds and had a story to tell about two of the thorn trees planted on the grounds.

But that was all the time we had for Glastonbury, because we had a “Be our Guest” dinner at a farm called Blackmoor Farm. It’s a new idea for a reality show (coming soon to TLC): 44 tourists, their tour guide and coach driver show up on your doorstep unannounced and you have to preare dinner for the whole group! (Well, that’s what Amy thinks it should be. Heh. They knew we were coming.) The fellow who owns the farm showed us around the Great Hall and then a friend of his, who’s an historian, continued the tour. Really neat history to the building. And I’ve forgotten most of the details, so I’ll blaim tonight’s wine. Heh. After the tour, we had lunch as prepared by the farm staff. Shepherd’s pie (without actual shepherd on top), chicken/ham/leek pie, carrots, broccoli, cauliflower with & without a cheesy cream sauce – all very lovely. And scrumpy, rose cider, and white wine all available. I had the scrumpy. Most veggies I’ve had in one meal on this trip. heh.

We were then on our way to cardiff. We crossed the Severn bridge into Wales and then headed for Cardiff. Carl dropped everyone off at the castle. We had not opted for the castle and instead took a cab to Cardiff Bay to the Doctor Who Experience. Sadly, we arrived just 10 minutes after the last tour of the day – Boo! But we could still get tickets into the museum part of the place – Yay! And the tickets were cheaper – Big Yay! So we did just that and had a blast taking photos of costumes and props. there’s a photo of mom with daleks that’s hilarious and I’ll have to post when I can get it off my phone. I was pleased that mom & Amy indulged me in my passion. 🙂 I also bought a few gift items – a cyberman pin, a pencil, several postcards (including Missy for the Death in Heaven “poster”), and a squishy toy thing that wound up being a weeping angel. Fun stuff!

We headed back toward our hotel using my GPS and some directions on google maps that I’d gotten earlier. The bay and Roald Dahl Plass is lovely. And it was nice seeing the venue we were going to for supper. We arrived at the hotel just minutes before the rest of the group. And then we had some time to rest before it was time to leave for our optional excursion of the Spirit of Wales.

Our group arrived early to the Millennium Center (after witnessing two people helping a guy so drunk he wound up passed out on the sidewalk and when the police started to investigate, the couple walked away as if they didn’t know the fellow – ah, city life!) and were led into the bar by one of the singers who’d be entertaining us. They had small samples of Welsh mead (yummy) and Welsh rarebit (too small of a sample to judge) for us to try while we waited for the other tour groups. When everyone was there, we were brought into ffresh, the restaurant at the Millennium Center, and entertained & fed till we nearly burst. They had 4 singers (3 women, 1 man), their MC (who also was a singer), and a lady who played the harp and piano. They did a number of traditional Welsh songs (and not so traditional) in between courses. I had the goat cheese terrine with beetroot (amazingly good), lamb rump (rymp in Welsh) with veggies (also yummy), and the chocolate something or other that was also lovely. Amy and I wound up finishing off a bottle of Sirrah with a little help from the lady beside me, while mom and the man beside her polished off 1+ bottles of white wine.

As we left the Millennium Center, it was getting dark out (yes, it WAS late) and the whole plaza was lit up beautifully. Amy and I got some really nice photos, which I’ll post at some point. Heh. (If you’re on Twitter, I’ve posted a couple there already.)

So now it’s late and I need to sleep so that I can have real food for breakfast. Cardiff, thank you for your hospitality! Maybe sometime I might get to stay longer than 1 day!

Great Britain Expedition, 2015, part four

It’s not easy posting photos since I have to use my phone to upload them, but I prefer typing up my entry with the keyboard I have for my tablet. And the photos from my camera – well, I have to put its memory card into my phone (which means turning off my phone & removing the current card) yada yada. So not sure when I’ll post photos again, but I will!

So as you could tell from yesterday’s post, we went to Stonehenge in the morning. We vacated the hotel at 8:45 with our bags all packed up again, then Carl drove us to Salisbury. Based upon the description that Judi had give me of her last time at Stonehenge, I wasn’t expecting much. But since her last visit, they’ve really done a lot to let visitors see the stone circle and still keep it protected. The day was breezy and chilly, but those ancient stones were pretty darn nifty!

We then headed on to Bath, a city I have visited before. We got right into the Roman Baths and explored there. I think that has updated some since my last visit – or I just am remembering poorly. Mom and Amy and I then got lunch at The Trinity Pub. I had a steak and ale pie, Amy had fish & chips, and mom had the vegetarian pie (with a curry flavor). It was all tasty and we were the only tourists there.

Back on the road again, we headed on to Exeter to the Mercure Southgate. Earlier in the day, James (our tour guide) had given us name badges, but he took them back before we left the coach. Then at the bar in the hotel (after we’d refreshed a bit), he gave us someone else’s badge and we had to find our own. It was a simple and fun way to meet the others on our tour. When we sat for dinner, Natashia joined us. I had the courgette & thyme soup for starter, baked cod with hollandaise and mashed potatoes (with mustard seed), and maple syrup panna cotta. It was all very lovely. (And I liked the unintended symmetry when I got fish, Amy got curry, and mom got a steak-based meal. Like we rotated from lunch.)

Today we got a slightly later start, which was nice. The Mercure had a full English buffet and it was yummy too. Then we headed out to Plymouth. We had opted to do the boat ride excursion, so we got to travel along the quay and up the river while our captain told us lots of historical facts. He then showed us the Mayflower steps where the pilgrims heading for The New World left by. Then we got back in the bus where we road the ferry across to Cornwall to visit the fishing village of Polperro.

Polperro is a quintessential fishing village. Tiny narrow roads, loads of holiday homes, cute shops, pubs, and lots of Cornish pasties and ice cream. I did not wind up having a Cornish pasty in Cornwall, alas. But we had a wonderful lunch at The Blue Peter at the recomendation of our tour guide, who ate with us. We shared the seafood platter and an order of fish & chips. The crab, shrimp scampi, calamari, scallops, fish & chips were all yummy. Mom and I had scrumpy, which was deceptively mild and tasty.

We popped into a shop on our way back to the coach and I bought a box of shortbread made with clotted cream. And then mom and I got some Cornwall ice cream. Dang, but that’s good stuff! (I’ve had friends tell me that before but this is the first I’ve gotten to try it.) Stuffed to the gills, we returned to the coach.

Carl drove us to Buckfast Abbey next. We had 2 hours there to enjoy the grounds and take advantage of the gift shop. Amy got print-outs on the Shorts and the Andersons which will be interesting to read through. I got some pens and nibs. Mom got a cute sweatshirt with sheeps on it. The grounds had 3 gardens in it, including a lavender garden that looked and smelled lovely. The church was beautiful and an organist was practicing while we were there. It was a very relaxed couple of hours.

We took the scenic route back to Exeter, with Carl moving through winding roads that were almost too narrow for a bus. The Dartmoor lands are gorgeous. I’m glad we went the scenic route (and I didn’t have to watch the people passing us!)

Mom, Amy and I had also opted into the dinner in Kenn. We went to an old pub (built in the 13th century) called The Ley Arms. Knowing full well that we’d picked Fish & Chips for our supper, mom and I still had seafood for lunch. Heh. I also chose the soup (not specified when I picked it) and the sticky toffee pudding with clotted cream. The soup was potato leek, and it was lovely. The fish & chips were also tasty and I discovered that if you put mint into mushy peas, I like ’em! Who knew? I had a Thatcher’s cider and the whole meal was lovely. Plust we got to talk to several other folks from the tour.

After dinner, we walked to the church, which was almost as old as the pub (well, the workmen had to stay SOMEWHERE while the church was being built). The church’s caretaker gave us lots of history about the building. It had 14th and 19th century stained glass, an 11th century font, and 16th century thingummy… term is lost. But it was all in very nice condition – well loved and cared for,

Once we’d gotten back to our rooms, we started preparing for tomorrow. And Amy called dad so we could wish him Happy Father’s Day. But whoops, thats next week! And then the fire alarm sounded! So we stood in disbelief, then sort of got ourselves ready to evacuate. And it went off. Then back on. The gentleman across the hall was wheelchair-bound, so we said we would find a way to help him down stairs. But on our way out the nearest exit, a hotel employee assured us and a few others who’d gathered, that it was a false alarm. Phew!

So we phoned dad to reassure him that we were fine. And now everyone’s asleep except me! good night!

Great Britain Expedition, 2015, part three

Decided to upload a few photos from the trip so far. Today we actually got onto the tour proper, going on our first coach ride to Stonehenge then Bath, and finally Exeter. But some of the photos are from our first two days.

Mom and Amy in Eye
Mum and Amy high above London!

Changing of the guard
The Changing of the Guard – my first time to watch it.

Great Cafe
Ate at this great cafe in Borough Market.

Me at Tussauds
I hung out with Dame Judy at Madame Tussauds’ party. We are besties now.

Me at Madame Tussauds
I met some fellow physicists at Madame Tussauds’ party.

Me at stonehenge
Guess where I am!

Selfie at Crescent
A Selfie of us at The Crescent in Bath.

Gardens in Bath
Gardens near the Crescent in Bath.

ministonehenge
I enjoed Stonehenge so much I bought a mini-Stonehenge!

Great Britain Expedition, 2015, part two

Today was a practically perfect day, starting with the fact that I actually fell asleep last night! It felt so good wandering around London without being exhausted. Here’s hoping I can keep up the good sleep tonight!

We woke up at 6:30am and got ready, then went to breakfast. The hotel has a full English fry up – as a buffet. I had baked beans, fried bread, fried tomato, sausage (more meat than cereal!), two eggs over easy, hash brown patty, banana, and a plum. It was all very yummy. Oh, and really, really weak tea with cream & sugar.

We met the other tour-goers in the lobby for our Regal London tour (part of the package). The coach wasn’t on time, but once it arrived, Sarah (an ex-pat American) gave us an excellent tour. As Amy later remarked, it was nice that the traffic was so bad because we got more interesting facts from her than we probably would have due to the delays. The tour showed us more of London than our Deathmarch of the pervious night (though there was a little overlap). And then Sarah walked our tour over to see something I’d never bothered with on previous London visitis – the changing of the guard at Buckinham Palace. And since tomorrow is the Queen’s “birthday,” she was actally in reidence.

After the tour, mum and Amy and I returned to St. James Park for a reconnoiter to decide upon our next course of action. During the tour, we drove by Borough Market, which Sarah recommended to us claiming that it was one of the factors that convinced her to move from Rome to London. Mom had said that we should go there for lunch, so we did. We bought Oyster cards and took the Jubilee line from Wesminster to London Bridge, then went to Borough Market.

In addition to fresh produce and meat, they have freshly prepared meals as well. We walked through and all decided on what we wanted to eat. I chose a lamb bap from Maria’s Market Cafe and a cider from another booth. It was a tasty sandwich, with rocket and mint jelly. Mom got scallops and Amy got a Cornish pastie. I wasn’t enamored of the cider (their sweet is not as sweet as I like, but enjoyed everything else. We ate next to a Turkish deli and I decided to get some Turkish delights.

We hopped back on the tube to the Baker Street exit to get to Madame Tussauds. The wait to get in was a bit much, but probably no more than the other times I’ve waited. We also decided to pay the £3 extra for the Star Wars exhibit. We had lots of fun posing with celebs and I have posted a few of the images on my facebook if you have one of those. I will get them to LJ one of these days, too!

After Tussauds, we went to find the Sherlock Holmes museum nearby. On our way, we stopped into a couple of shops. One of them had tweed caps, one of which fit me and was only £25, so I bought it. I look cute. Amy got a photo as proof, which I’ll also post when I’m able. We then went to The Volunteer for half pints and a sit down outside. I had Addlestone’s Cloudy cider and mom got Aspall’s cider (which I’d had the day before) and Amy got a London pale ale from a brewer she doesn’t recall. We ate a few pieces of Turkish delight while we relaxed.

We decided to pop into the Sherlock Holmes store (where everything is overpriced according to the lady I bought my hat from. She sells deerstalkers for half the price of the museum store) but not the museum. And then we walked to Regent’s Park for a short walk and a sit down. Then back to the Tube (Jubilee from Baker to Green park, then Victoria to Vauxhall).

One our walk back from Vauxhall last night, we noticed a few eateries and deicded to try one of those for supper. We went to Casa Madiera to their coffee shop side. I had a bacon melt panini and a decadent fruit danish, Amy got a huge avocado salad (with prawn salad, cole slaw, and lots of veggies), and mom got a chicken napoleon or something (chicken and mushroom melt). Supper was very yummy and fairly reasonable in cost.

We returned to our hotel whereupon we’ve been repacking, journaling, talking to dad on the phone, etc. It’s just about time for bed, so I’ll sign off now. Tomorrow we awake even earlier to get on the road proper. By the end of the day tomorrow, we’ll be in Exeter!

Great Britain Expedition, 2015

My mother, sister, and I have arrived in London safely for the first leg of our Great Britain Excursion. We’re doing a Trafalgar tour through AAA cuz we wanted Easy but Fun. Yesterday, dad dropped us off at the airport and we flew to Charlotte and then on to Heathrow. The flight from Charlotte was delayed about an hour, so we wound up getting into London an hour later than intended. And the gentleman who picked us up for Trafalgar had even more issues with his morning than we did!

However, we got to the Riverside Park Plaza Hotel on the Albert Embankment and then headed off to the Coca Cola London Eye since it was such a beautiful day. I feel sorry for the folks who purchased Fast Passes today since we only waited 15 minutes to get into our carriage. And we were on the ferris wheel for about twice that length of time.

Our room wasn’t going to be ready till 2pm, so we walked toward Trafalgar Square (no relation to the travel company) and wound up popping into The Clarence, a pub just south of the square. Lunch there was lovely. I had steak & ale pie with mashed potatoes and onion gravy. Amy had fish & chips and mushy peas. And mum had a cheeseburger and fries. Everything was yummy. I had cider, Amy an ale, and mum wine.

We returned to the hotel for a much needed rest. But we didn’t want to nap for long or else we’d not be able to sleep tonight. So we just did so for an hour, then we headed off to Harrods. Or as mom wound up calling it, The London Deathmarch. (She said she would have been disappointed if I’d not gotten a London Deathmarch in this trip.) Yeah, so I had a few issues with the mini-map not having the smaller street details, underestimating how long the walk would be, and then having my GPS have kittens while trying to figure out where we were while walking. So it might have taken 2 hours to get to Harrods. But we did!

In previous trips, I’d fallen in love with the Chocolate Bar, a little place to buy hot chcolate and other yummy things. Well, Godiva now runs it, and it’s a bigger place. But the chocolate stuff is still yummy. We split a tomato & mozzarella panini and each had one of their Chilled Chocolixirs (Amy and I opted for dark, mom got milk choc). Was very decadent and wound up filling us enough for supper.

Rather than suffer through another Deathmarch, we took the tube back. Vauxhall station is, I think, the nearest to the hotel. And the walk back from the station was very pleasant and an intreesting walk. I’m really not used to staying in high quality hotels in London.

Later tonight, we went down to the Chino Latino bar in the hotel. Amy recommended a Pimm’s cup to me and we each ordered one, while mom got the bar’s elderflower margarita. The drinks were tasty and they brought us some olives and some crunchy & spicy knurdles that were very tasty. Since we figured dad was out at a bar in Ohio while we were in a bar in Londond, we called him on the offchance that he had his cell phone with him. He did, so we chatted briefly and that just made the night even nicer.

Now Amy is writing in her journal and I am writing in mine and mom is already in her bed. Bed sounds good. Since I didn’t sleep on the flight, I REALLY hope I can sleep tonight!

Summer Vacation 2015

Phew! I haven’t had a real post in this journal since Jan 1 of this year. Ah well, guess journalling isn’t my thing at the mo’. However, that may change a bit in the next couple of weeks since my mother, sister, and I will be going on a trip through Great Britain. I expect we’ll have lots of fun. 🙂

But summer has started for us (despite it still officially being spring) since school let out on May 22nd!!! I haven’t gotten much biking or hiking in this season (only twice for each – eep!) but have been enjoying my time off quite a bit. And I’ve done my duty as a “responsible home owner” (yeah right) and had my tumbling down fence replaced.

So that’s what this post will be about – Out with the Old, and In with the New!

Neglect, I has you!
I really hadn’t noticed how poorly my back fence was doing till I started mowing last year. Whoops! Neglect, I has you!

It's really shabby.
It’s really shabby compared to the neighbor’s more recently created fence.

The fence guys start taking the old fence down.
The fence guys start taking the old fence down. Turns out it was installed in sections.

The new fence posts have been installed.
The new fence posts have been installed. The rest of the fence is installed the following day once the post cement has settled, or something. That’s a view of my neighbor’s back yard that I’ve never seen before.

The mulberry tree is now just a stump.
The mulberry tree is now just a stump. And I’ve brushed stump killer on it – DIE STUMP! DIE! (I taped a warning sign up for the little kids who were hanging around that area earlier in the day.) I especially like the bits of mulberry tree that are now a permanent addition to the neighbor’s fence. (Actually, no idea if my predecessor or their predecessor installed that chain link fence. At least with my behind the house neighbor, I was able to ask if it had been her mother or my predecessor who’d put the fence in.)

The fence dudes installing the new fence!
The fence dudes installing the new fence! Whee! (I tried to figure out why this photo had a different aspect ratio than all my others. Turns out I took this while I was filming the dudes installing the fence. The aspect ratio for video with my phone is different than the ratio with my photographs.)

I can has new fence? Yes, I can has!
I can has new fence? Yes, I can has! In October, I need to stain the sucker. Will have to ponder what color I want to stain it. (And I’ll ask my backdoor neighbor what color he wants his side stained since the fence dudes recommended staining both sides if/when I do it.)