The trip part 5

This day was to be one of my personal highlights of the trip; taking grandma to high tea at the Brighton Grand. We travelled by car and stopped in via Sevenoaks on the way. Now, as I have mentioned previously, I had the best of times and some might say, some of the worst of times in this town. I left in 2003, but the town had left an indelible mark on my life, so it would not be right if I didn't see how the town was faring. A little bit had changed, the McDonalds was gone, the two pubs down near the station were gone, but otherwise things were pretty much as I left it. It was still a ghost town on a Mid Sunday morning too. So onto Brighton and the trip to the Grand. I wanted to take Grandma there 4 years ago, but her health was a little on the down side, so it was not to be, so consider this a wish fulfilled. Now, I must say, I have never had high tea before, I've only read about it or else seen it on one of those ever perky travel TV shows. But man oh man, how good was it?? I give the whole experience 5 stars, truly exceptional. The staff were lovely, the service impeccable, and the food, my god the food. The three tiered silver platter with sandwiches on top (with crusts cut off too!), and cakes etc on the lower two tiers. Who would have thought that picking at little cakes and things would fill you up, but I don't think anyone managed to get through everything, we literally rolled out of there quite contented. The next day, Miss R and I did a big tourist day around London. Well, a bit of a tourist day anyway. We caught a river ferry from Waterloo down to The Tower of London. I love the Tower...the history of the place is quite staggering. This was my third visit, but quite frankly, it wouldn't have bothered me if it was my 10th. We managed to tag along on a Beefeater tour who had a voice that could wake the dead. No microphone and loudspeaker for this chap, lord no. After watching the two Elizabeth movies and "The Other Bolyn Girl", Miss R was intrigued by the fact that this was the place where it all happened. Here was the place where Anne Bolyn was beheaded and buried, here was where Elizabeth I took the crown and here was where King Henry VIII ate his way into a diabetic coma. Awesome. Also housed in the Tower are the Crown Jewels. The Beefeater explained at length that the jewels on display are the real deal, and not replicas as some urban legends would have you believe. Why would they house replicas in a 2 foot thick vault? Doesn't make sense. So, yes, these are the real deal, and stunning is a word that can not begin to describe them. The 500 odd carat Cullinan diamond is a whopping piece of stone if ever you've seen one. To give you some idea of its size, I would think a clenched fist is about right. Bloody huge. Leaving the Tower, we thought we'd head via docklands light rail to Greenwich. Easy you might say, but alas, track works scuppered that idea and instead of a quick 15 minute trip, it took a 40 minute tube ride changing at three stations to get there. Greenwich really is lovely, we walked from the station up into the park and the Observatory. Miss R and I did the obligatory standing on the 0 degree longitude thing, which we all must do I suppose. THere is a great view of the London skyline from there as well, although I really didn't think Greenwich was that far from the city, but it jolly well was. Anyway, we caught the ferry back to Waterloo along the river. The weather was starting to get a bit chilly by this point and we weren't exactly dressed for the cold weather. As a side note, I should say, that travelling on the river ferry seemed to a nice, relaxing mode of transport, and yet, pulling into Canary Wharf at 5.30pm on a weekday, you'd think more people would use this wouldn't you? Not many suits got on, I mean, it wasn't exactly fast, but I can think of far more taxing ways to get around London that's for sure.

The trip part 4

We spent a a great evening cacthing up with our Rezza neighbour Mr S, who just so happened to be in London at the same time. Funnily enough, we found out he was staying only two train stations away on the same line. Very convenient. The next day Miss R and I had grand plans of doing another walk around London, but wasn't to be as a dodgy panini ruined Miss R's morning, so we made our way back to Earlsfield where Miss R spent the rest of the day in bed and I ended up catching up on British day time TV. Such quality, although, thankfully, Miss M had the British History Channel, so the nerd within was quietly satisfied with numerous documentaries on the Roman occupation, World War 2 and Ancient Battlefield Strategies. A catch up day with our very dear friends Miss G and Mr J down in Surbiton was in order. So, Miss R and I made our way on the train only to find that Surbiton had decided to hold, apparently, it's once in a decade street party. Being a recent arrival to the town, Miss G had no idea where all the people had suddenly come from. But she and Mr J kindly took us down to Kingston on Thames where we soaked up some rays for a while. The weather had turned it on by the way. We all headed back to my sister's house where my dear cousin Super G and his fiance had arrived to meet us. It was an awesome night. Miss M had cooked up a pretty mean roast with...wait for it...Yorkshire puddings!!! So the 8 of us had a really nice feed and chin wag out the back in the courtyard.

The trip part 3

I guess the main reason from the trip was to visit my dear old grandma. When you think of the word 'grandma' my bet is your mind conjurs up some image of a white haired, 4 foot tall woman with glasses and a deep respect for the British Royal family. Well, my grandmother couldn't be far off that description. She really is a remarkable woman, and she is turning 98 this December, and from what I could gather, is well on her way to cracking the ton and then some. She has an amazing memory too. She remembers when she was a child during the FIRST world war, going down to the Brighton Docks with her mother to meet up with the fisherman as they came into shore as there were rations on meat and that was the only real chance they had to get substantial protein. So it was great that Miss R got to meet her that day, a real privilege I must say. And Brighton hadn't really changed since the last time I was there four years ago. I took Miss through my favourite part, the North Laine area, full of students and musty old second hand shops. It's still a great part of the world, and may I add, one of the few places in the UK where we scored a decent cup of coffee...most important. I did notice though a bit of mainstream creeping into the area, which is unfortunate, I think the appeal was the fact that it was so secret, or that the tourists stayed away from there, instead opting for the more exclusive Brighton Lanes with all their jewellery shops (more of which I'll talk about later). So, the next day, Miss M and Lord Bez took us up to Cambridge. I had never been to Cambridge before so I didn't know what to expect. Well, I could quite happily live there that's for sure. Such a lovely town, chock full of history and bikes! Miss R and I availed ourselves onto one of the many open top tourist buses of the trip for a bit of a guided tour. I learned the following facts about Cambridge, but please correct me of you know differently: - There have been 40 Nobel prize winners from Cambridge (and at last count, good old LaTrobe uni had a big fat zero). - THey first split the atom at Cambridge. - They first discovered DNA at Cambridge. - Students can't own cars within 5 miles of the city centre...hence all the bikes. - Schlumberger have a lab there that has a roof that can blow off should an experiment go wrong. Okay then. I guess I should post some photos, so here they are: THis first pic of of some old building. I think it's Kings College. Obviously the significance is a little lost on me. I must say I was quite taken by the green-ness of the grass and its distinct lack of weeds. Obviously no drought going on here then. This next pic is of the River Cam...hence Cambridge. Obviously had their thinking caps on there when they thought of a name for the place. This last pic shows the usual mode of travel on the River Cam, a punt. Kinda like a Gondola except not. There is no shortage of punt rides you can take. One is quite frequently accosted by, my guess is PhD students needing extra project funding, offering punting rides. In the end it kind of felt like guys in big trench coats outside of a strip joint whispering out the corner of their mouths "Hey, looking for a good time??"

The trip part 2

My sister Miss M had booked us for two very 'touristy' outings for our second day in London; The London Eye and Buckingham Palace. So, the London Eye is just a very big ferris wheel, moving very slowly around and around. It wasn't a terribly clear day, the lower cloud deck was encroaching on the skyscrapers in the distance and there was that unmistakable European haze that I had missed so terribly....not. Being a Tuesday, it wasn't terribly busy. Miss R and I jagged a capsule with a group of 4 Italian tourists, which was lucky as the next capsule was packed full of pensioners probably on their annual day trip. So there I was pointing out all the landmarks to Miss R who, I figured out, had absolutely no idea what I was crapping on about. Oh look, it's Charing Cross Station, Tower Bridge, The Soda Bottle Building, Buckingham Palace etc etc.... ......where where where?? Was the typical response. From the eye, we walked across to the Embankment for the first of what was to become many a pathetic excuse for coffee. I guess we might be spoilt here in Melbourne with the quality of coffee, but I guess what you don't know won't hurt you, and the people in London have obviously accepted mediocre coffee as how it should be. Newsflash people!!! Coffee should not be served so hot that it scalds your hands through a ceramic mug, (or later we were to find coffee so cold that it might as well have been a coffee Big M) don't let the espresso shot run through too long, and for the love of god, where's the taste??? After forking out the equivalent of $18 for two coffees and a muffin, we moved on. We walked up to Covent Garden, around to Leister Square and to Picadilly Circus. I was to find out later from my Grandmother that my great-great (I think)-uncle cast the bronze statue of Eros in the middle. Good job too! We walked onto Trafalgar Square which I had not seen since the road in front of the British Portriat Museum had been closed. We were scheduled to a 2pm tour of Buckingham Palace, so we managed to get there just in time. Obviously, the tour wasn't to go through the entire building, but it did wind its way through some pretty impressive areas. The first was the courtyard area where foreign dignitaries and the like get greeted by HRH. TO be honest, the front door was a bit of a let down. I would've expected giant Corinthian columns and the like, not what amounted to a dodgy glass lean to. Anyway, inside we were treated to a number of rooms, many of them quite dark and full of old, and lets face it, quite uncomfortable furniture. The big exhibit was the setting for a state dinner. Apparently it takes upwards of four days to set the tables for a state dinner and you can really see why. Each knife and fork etc is set using a measuring tape which smacks of OCD at the highest level. The setting they had set up was for 300 guests (I think). And the washing up??? All done by hand using a sink and a bottle of Fairy apparently. Wouldn't want to put all that gold leaf edged Royal Dalton through the dishwasher I guess.

The trip Part I

In the beginning...... We flew out of Tullamarine at 12.00am on the Sunday morning. As flights go, it was pretty uneventful, we ended up flying with Amalysian Airlines, so yes, the route to Europe encompassed a 3 hour stop over in Kuala Lumpur. This 9 hour leg was punctuated by a lovely 5 hour sleep courtesy of Stillnox. The only down side being that I woke up with my head hanging down to the left, so a sore neck ensued. How much is First Class again?? The stop over in KL was, well, let's just say, airports aren't exactly the most exciting places on earth, and certainly KL airport reinforced that fact. Miss R and I ended up sitting in the Starbucks for two hours because quite frankly everything else seemed fully dodgy. MMmmmm, yummy. Had no idea what the exchange rate was...didn't care. The next leg to Heathrow we were bundled onto a aging BOeing 747. Not the quietest plane going around, I'm sure the new airbus will have no problem being a bit on the quieter side...the competition, let's face it, is pretty poor. Arriving at Heathrow, my super sister Miss M and her boyfriend Lord Bez picked us up and drove us back to their place. It felt a bit funny being back in the UK again. My last trip in 2003 encompassed many good, and bad, memories. But it didn't feel foreign at all, just another suburb of Melbourne really. I mean, it wasn't, but it just felt familiar. Luckily we had landed around evening, and my jet lag wasn't as bad as I remember it in the past. Neither was Miss R, so thumbs up for prescription medication. We slept like babies that night and woke up on our first day of the trip quite okay. Unfortunately Miss M and Lord Bez still had to work, so it was up to MIss R and I to find ourselves around. We were staying in the South-western Suburb of London called Earlsfield, which despite Miss M informing us it was a tad unsavory, it felt like quite a nice place. Our first little trip involved us heading to Wimbeldon and Richmond on the overland train system. I forgot how fast british trains travel, and how frequently they travel too. A train every 6 minutes! Man, if only Connex in Melbourne could do that...sheesh! We got to Richmond to try and find a vegan shoe shop for Miss R. My lovely sister had SMSed me to give me the address which ended up being a 45 minute walk. No problem, got to see some lovely back streets of Richmond, including the back of the local Sainsbury's. Tops. But the shoe shop was a great success according to Miss R who proceeded to make good a purchase of two pairs of shoes. Not bad really, you can't get those sorts of things in Melbourne. The jet lag wall closed in on that first afternoon, but it was nice walking around in England again. The weather was pleasant...in fact, pretty much the whole trip was blessed with good weather. Brucie Bonus there. .....more to come.

The trip...a summary.

So, where does one start when describing a 3 week holiday overseas? I guess this will just have to be chronological...as mundane as that sounds, I can't find it in me to sit here and write umpteen paragraphs today. A more fully scaled description of events will follow, but the outline will go something like this: - Flight from Melbourne left at midnight on 21st September. Arrived London 8pm that night. Long haul flights suck. Sleeping tablets are a god send. - My sister Miss M and her boyfriend Lord Bez met us at Heathrow and took us back to our digs in Earlsfield for the next 11 days. - First day wandered around Richmond and Wimbeldon. Too tired to do much else. - Second day went on London Eye, walked to Covent Garden, Leister Square, Trafalgar Square, Picadilly, Had a tour of Buckingham Palace. Feet hurt. - Third Day went down to Brighton to visit my dear old grandmother. - Fourth Day hitched a ride with Miss M and Lord Bez to Cambridge. Wandered around there, took a tourist bus around the town and caught train back to London. Met up with Mr S who came over for a few drinks and dinner. - Fifth Day went into London again but Miss R had dodgy lunch so day trip aborted. - Sixth Day caught up with old family friend the Gabster and her hubby. Miss M then cooked a great roast with my dear cousins also dropping in. Great night. - Seventh Day down to Brighton again and took grandma to high Tea at the Brighton Grand Hotel. - Eighth Day to the Tower of London and Greenwich. - Ninth Day shopping around Oxford Street - Tenth Day last trip down to Brighton. - Eleventh Day Camden Market and Natural History Museum - Twelfth Day fly out to Barcelona. Main suitcase lost. Spanish people not very friendly nor helpful. Hired bikes and rode around a bit. - Thirteenth Day suitcase shows up. Catch tourist bus around Barcelona. - Fourteenth Day Catch tourist bus to La Sagrida Familia cathedral and to Park Guell. - Fifteenth Day get stitched up for phone calls and a $80 cab ride to airport. Vow never to return to Barcelona. Arrive in Paris and feel instantly welcomed. Wander around a bit. - Sixteenth Day catch tourist bus around Paris. Marvel at LaFayette department store. - Seventeenth Day Catch tourist bus to Musee D'Orsay and the underground to Montmarte. Get hassled by a group of dodgy African guys. Trust no-one. - Eighteenth Day Fly back to Australia...lose a day. Again sleeping tablets are a god send, but being sat in the 'baby zone' was well out of order. - Nineteenth day home.