We returned to Orpington to say farewell to Anne & Phil,
as they were returning to Australia that evening. It was sad saying goodbye, as we don’t know
when we will see them again. I think
that they enjoyed their time in England and I know that they loved seeing
Margaret and Peter again.
Michael and I then returned the hire car and once more
caught the train to London. We checked
in to our hotel at Russell Square and then it was off to the Tower of London,
as I wanted to see the art installation called Blood Swept Lands and Seas of
Red. The installation is made up of
120,000 blood-red ceramic poppies, which have been planted in the dry moat
surrounding the tower. More will be
added in the coming months until there are 888,246, which will represent the
number of British and Commonwealth soldiers killed in World War 1. The sight of the poppies is awe-inspiring and
it will be truly mesmerising when all of the poppies have been planted. I sincerely hope to return to see the
completed work.
We called into All Hallows-by-the Tower after we had left
the exhibition. This is the oldest
church in the city of London, having been founded in 675. It is also where Samuel Pepys climbed the
church’s spire to watch the Great Fire of London. There is an effigy of Tubby Clayton who
opened Talbot House, a rest house for soldiers, which we saw at Poperinge in
Belgium.
The next day we caught up with Matthew at Westminster
Abbey. We spent a good couple of hours
wandering the Abbey, listening to an excellent audio guide, which explained
much of the history of both the abbey and the various monuments. I was particularly thrilled to see Poet’s Corner,
especially Charles Dickens’ grave.
The rest of the day was spent rambling around the city –
Bond Street, Soho, Jermyn Street and Fortnum & Mason. It doesn’t matter how many times we retrace
out steps, there is always something new and interesting to see. We finished up at South Bank where there was
a Festival of Love being held and Michael and Matthew decided to visit a Freak
Show. I really wanted to go with them
but thought better of it at the last minute, and by the sound of what they saw,
I am glad I did! There was a lizard man
with a forked tongue, a girl doing flame tricks and grossest of all – a man who
put fish hooks into his eyes and hung weights from them. I felt ill just listening to them describing
what they had seen.
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| Bar on a carousel |
We said goodbye to Matthew, as we were leaving the following
day to continue our journey. He has
another 3 days to explore London and then it will back to Australia for
him. I think he enjoyed his time in
England and France and I don’t think that it will be long before he travels
again, as I think, he has been bitten by the travel bug!
Dublin Me Darlin’
The day arrived for another sad goodbye, this time to the
city, which I love so much. London is
such a wonderful place, full of history and I feel so much at home there. I really hope that I can return again soon.
Once again we boarded the train at Euston Station and had a
very relaxing journey to Holyhead. We
then transferred to the waiting Ulysses and a very calm ferry crossing took us
to Dublin. It is good to be back.
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