September 2009 in London

We spent a belated honeymoon in London, enjoying uncharacteristic Indian summer weather while soaking in the architecture, history and culture that defines this city. We were even lucky enough to be cruising down the Thames on one of the rare occasions when Tower Bridge was raised.
One of our afternoon walks took us from The London Eye down The Strand past Twinings Tea (in business in this very shop since 1706)




















to St. Paul's Cathedral.




















We became true tourists at The Tower of London




















and walked across the Thames from our B&B on Sunday morning for church at Westminster Abbey.




















There is nothing that feeds my soul as well as a Choral service and it took just a few minutes to convince Jeff of the same. We had planned our itinerary around concerts and services and enjoyed at least one every day. It still seems completely wrong that we were able to hear the amazing London symphony (in concert with one of my all-time favourite pianists) for fraction of what we would pay for our local orchestra. Ten times the quality for a quarter of the price. Sheesh.

We missed the last Proms concert at Royal Albert Hall but I surprised Jeff with an afternoon at the Museum of Instruments at the Royal Academy. That made for one happy husband.



London fashion was as colourful and memorable as ever. I enjoyed two hours on Oxford Street (while Jeff went to the Handel Museum) and was not surprised to see that even Wallace and Gromet were well-dressed.

We took two day trips from London, the first to Richmond upon Thames. When we arrived, we thought it was too foggy to see anything.


Thankfully, the day cleared and we had a great view of everything at King Henry VIII's home, Hampton Court Palace .


Our second trip out of the city centre took us via train to Windsor for another sunny day at the home of Kings.


We walked to Eton in the afternoon but came back to Windsor Castle for evensong at St. George's Chapel. The choir and the service were the highlight of the day.


We decided not to have lunch at the Crooked House of Windsor. It gave Jeff a headache just to look at.

October 2008 in the Southwest English Countryside

We met up with Jeff's sister and family in Cheltenham and our first adventure brought us to a tiny village with a large and rather impressive gate house.

The garden gate led us to a special welcome sign.





















Too bad the main house is not something we can lay any claim to.
We walked through the nearby village of Stanton. The houses were all Cotswold Stone with rose gardens and perfect tranquility.

We had a wonderful week in Tewkesbury. I loved the tudor architecture in the centre of town in all it's crooked splendor and could not be anything but impressed at the Bell Hotel, in business since 1696.



The River Avon Weir on western outskirts of town.
















The Tewkesbury Abbey was such a highlight. We took in an amazing organ concert (that Jeff still talks about), listened to bell ringing practice across the field in the late afternoon and soaked in its amazing history.

From Tewkesbury, we ventured off for several day trips. Jeff had never been to Bath and fell in love with the trademark stone architecture. We escaped our first day of rain in the Roman baths



and bravely tasted the yucky sulphur-y spring water in the Pump Room. Jeff thought it tasted like Ontario tap water.



Our homage to my dear Jane Austen included searching out her home and visiting the famous John Wood designed Circus. I made Jeff run after me to declare his undying love and affection, just as Captain Wentworth did for Anne Elliott. And yes- it was just as good as the movie.



Our hosts took us on day trips to Wales for the fantastic coal mine tour at Big Pit


and to Gloucester to visit the Cathedral.









The cloisters feelt eerily familiar.... don't you feel like you've been here before?



Ah- Hogwarts!



On the way home from Gloucester, we stopped at Deerhurst. The village now consists of a couple of old houses and St. Mary's Church. It is one of the best surviving examples of Saxon architecture and was just as beautiful as the cathedral.

We spent the final day of our visit in the Cotswolds and walked through sheep fields and across streams from the tiny village of Lower Slaughter to the tiny village of Upper Slaughter. Obviously- the scenery is not as macabre as the name suggests.



The Cotswolds are referred to as the "Heart of England" and this view from Cleeve Hill (complete with quaint castle) created the perfect end to a great trip.