We caught the ferry Ulysses from Dublin Harbour to Holyhead
and once again the crossing was very pleasant.
The ferry was very crowded as it was the end of the school holidays and
many families were returning to the UK.
I had expected a nightmare experience at customs in Wales as the UK is
has increased their security threat level to severe and with a number of Ebola
scares I thought we may be subjected to increased scrutiny and temperature
checks. Ever alert, I had my passport in
my hand with my finger marking the correct page ready for a long wait and then
– walked straight through! No passport
check, no security, no sniffer dogs, nothing.
We then caught the train to Euston station (another pleasant journey)
and no one even looked at our tickets.
We checked into our hotel, The President in Russell Square, and lost no
time reacquainting ourselves with our now familiar stomping ground.
Our apartment was ready to move into on Monday so it was
back to the Nell Gwynn complex in Chelsea where we have stayed a couple of
times before. I love the location as it
is within walking distance to Harrods and it wasn’t long before I was there
checking out the store.
I took a tour of Kensington Palace, as I wanted to see the
exhibition Fashion Rules. On display
were a number of dresses from Queen Elizabeth, Princess Margaret and Diana,
Princess of Wales. The dresses from the
Queen dated back to the 1950’s and were absolutely exquisite. The beading and embroidery were unbelievable
in their detail and would still look glorious if they were worn today. The items on display from Princess Margaret
were from the 1960’s and 1970’s and made me smile with their bright colours and
“out there” fashions. The ones that
disappointed were Diana’s. It was
surprising to see just how daggy the 1980’s were for fashion. I could remember seeing photos of her wearing
the dresses at the time and she looked beautiful in them, however they have not
stood the test of time at all. The rest
of the palace was interesting with displays on Queen Victoria, which were
fascinating. One of the more bizarre
features was a scratch and smell map of the Georgian Court which you could take
around with you and then smell what each room would have smelled like in the
time of George II and Queen Caroline. I
can honestly say I have never had that experience before!
One of the delights of coming to London is walking through
Hyde Park. We have been lucky as the
first couple of weeks that we have been here have been very mild and quite
sunny. The park is ablaze with autumnal
colour and it is just beautiful to stroll through the area people watching and
seeing all the squirrels scampering about.
The Canadians go on about the fall colours of Canada but I would say
that London is just as beautiful in the autumn.
The Christmas lights are being progressively switched on all
over London and the city is being transformed into a winter wonderland. Covent Garden looks beautiful with a giant
illuminated Christmas tree and a huge statue of a reindeer. Massive decorative balls hang from the
ceiling and fairy lights twinkle everywhere.
Oxford Street switched on their lights last week and the whole street
was closed off to traffic to allow families to stroll the street and admire the
lights. The window displays at
Selfridges are amazing and the big department stores compete to outdo each
other with ever more lavish displays. Harrods, John Lewis, Harvey Nichols and
Fortnum and Masons all set the benchmark high.
Regent Street will turn on their lights on Sunday evening and I am sure
that they will be just as spectacular.
Outdoor ice skating rinks have sprung up outside Somerset House and the
Natural History Museum with children and adults alike having a wonderful time. Michael and I either take a walk or a bus
ride each evening to see all the decorations. Marks and Spencer have even changed their name
to Magic and Sparkle for Christmas!
Michael and I have been unbelievably lucky to return to
London in time to see the completion of the artistic installation Blood Swept
Lands and Seas of Red. I mentioned this
installation in our last London blog when we were lucky to see the planting of
the first few poppies in the moat of the Tower of London and then saw it again
after the planting of the next few thousand poppies. Now there are over 800,000 ceramic poppies
and the visual impact is powerful. Over 4,000,000 have been to view the
exhibition and Michael and I joined the throng shuffling past. A petition was started to have the poppies
remain permanently in the moat however, every single poppy has been sold to
raise money for charity, so they have already started to remove them. 8,000 volunteers (including Michael’s
Godmother) will remove, clean, package and post them to their new owners.
I took myself off to the Cartoon Museum to see an exhibition
titled Hogarth’s London. There were many
of his prints on display and I spent a few hours happily examining the works
and reading all about them. The museum
provided magnifying glasses so I was able to really study each print. There was hardly any one else about, so I
could take my time and really enjoy the artworks.
Michael and I attended the Lord Mayor’s Show. This show has been held for 799 years so next
year’s show should be an even bigger celebration. We watched the flotilla featuring the Queen’s
barge Gloriana row gently down the Thames.
The Tower Bridge opened to salute the flotilla and then it was time for
us to head to the parade. The parade was
huge and involved more than 7,000 people, 180 horses along with dancers,
drummers and floats.
The mayor is
transported in the gilded state coach, which is normally on display at the
London Museum. The Worshipful Company of
Feltmakers, Pipemakers, Paviors, Marketors, Fruiterers, Farmers, Glass Sellers,
Fishmongers, Surveyors and Chartered Accountants were just some of the groups
represented. There were a number of
military bands, reggae singers, piano players and other musicians also as well
as numerous floats representing the armed forces both past and present. There was one entertainer who cajoled the
crowd with cries of “Hi De Hi” to which we all dutifully responded “Hi De
Ho”. It was a fun way to spend some time
knowing that many other generations before us had cheered their new mayor in a
similar fashion. The main thing that I
learned is that there are two mayors of London.
One is The Right Honourable the Lord Mayor of London, which is not be
confused with Mayor of London. I have
included 2 links, which explain the difference and are quite interesting.
St Paul’s Cathedral was open for free as part of the Lord
Mayor’s Show. It is a fabulous building
of immense proportions and is beautifully decorated throughout. It was interesting to wander the crypts and
to see Wellington’s tomb, which is so humble when compared with Napoleon’s
lavish tomb at the Hotel des Invalides.
The Lord Mayor’s Show finished with a bang with a
spectacular fireworks display over the Thames. The rain, which had threatened
all day, came down quite heavily just before the fireworks finished, however no
one put up their umbrellas, as they knew that they would block the view for the
people behind. We all stood there
getting quite soaked instead. The
British really do have beautiful manners.
I had a very pleasant walk around Fulham Palace which in the
historical home of the Bishops of London.
The palace grounds are beautiful to walk around and there is a 500 year
old oak tree there among many fruit trees and other rare trees. It is a very peaceful place with many
squirrels scampering about.
On Armistice Day I was fortunate to join the crowds at
Trafalgar Square for the Silence in the Square event. The programme started at 10.00am with a Welsh
male choir singing songs from WW1. The
choir was followed by various readings by actors and other entertainers and
performers. At precisely 11.00am all traffic was stopped and the crowd observed
the most profound 2 minutes silence I have ever experienced. Not a sound could be heard, not a cough,
sneeze nor a baby crying. The Last Post
was played followed by the boyband, Collabro, singing Bring Him Home from Les
Miserables while being showered with red poppy petals. The service was absolutely beautiful and very
moving. The crowd was then invited to
place paper red poppy petals into the fountains at Trafalgar Square.
The Household Cavalry Museum was next on my agenda and I
spent a morning listening to a guided tour explaining the various
exhibits. It was a fascinating look at
the history of the cavalry as well as to take a glimpse into their every day life. One of the most sobering displays dealt with
the deadly IRA attack on the Household Cavalry in 1982 during which 4 soldiers
of the Blues & Royals and 7 horses were killed.
Another exhibition I attended was called Fields of Battle
Lands of Peace 14-18, which was held in St James’s Park. These wonderful photographs show how nature
has over time healed the battlefields.
Each photograph links what happened one hundred years ago with what the
area looks like today. I found this
particularly interesting as Michael and I had visited a number of the
photographed areas when we toured the battlefields of the Somme.
I have just returned from the Tower of London where I went
to see the royal salute in honour of Prince Charles’ birthday. Three guns fired a total of 62 rounds to mark
the prince’s 66th birthday.
It was quite a show and by the time the last shot was fired you could
barely see the guns through the smoky haze.
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