Day 6 with some photos

The first picture is Kyle and Abby in their back yard. We had gone outside after dinner to play a bit when I got this shot. I know it looks like they are at the Queens Palace but it is just the little garden in the back of their house. The garden is filled with lavender that is just starting to bloom and the most magnificant yellow roses that I have ever seen. Many of the houses have rose gardens in their 6 foot front yards. Small spaces are overflowing with the most beautiful roses I have ever seen. It is a pleasure to walk the streets looking at these flower shows.
The second picture is Ger, KYle and Abby standing on the main corner in Windsor with the castle behind them. Windsor is a touristy town but remains quaint and inviting. In this photo we were on our way to the train station to go into London for a ride on the "London Eye", the gigantic ferris wheel that you see in the last photo.
Hopefully I can now include more photos now that I have figured out the process.
Today was a quiet day because we are getting ready for our next adventure to Stonehenge tomorrow. This is a big adventure that entails 4 train changes and a 2 night stay in Salisbury. What are the chances we'll find our way back from this trip?
So today we spent the day doing some laundry and catching up on little things that we have put aside since we got here. Ger is nervous about our adventure but I figure we can't get that lost. We are doing pretty good on our own and I am getting more and more comfortable with our new surroundings. This afternoon we walked over to Abby's school to pick her up and got to meet her teacher, Mrs. Jones, and some of the other moms and kids. We have gotten lots of invites for play dates for when K&B are in the Ukraine so I think we will do fine.
The day today was a mix of rain and sun. Woke up this morning feeling quite chilly and am now sitting here in my tank top and shorts. You need a complete wardrobe to just make it through a day.
Another FYI for you . . . Government healthcare over here is interesting. The night we went to the hospital to check out my shoulder it didn't cost us a penny. No question of insurance or payment. That was fantastic! It was also very speedy. From the time we walked in to the time we left was exactly an hour. That was also great!
BUT . . . They don't have a doctor seeing you. We were seen by a paramedic and there are signs all over telling you that there are no doctors available. You can't go to just any hospital as most of them don't have emergency care. When we saw the "doctor" he asked why we were there and that was the only thing he focused on. He didn't care that my hand was bleeding, my arm was scraped or my hip was bruised. I came in and said "I HURT MY SHOULDER" and that was all they cared about. Didn't take a temperature, blood pressure, ask about meds, NOTHING . . . just the shoulder. So although it is efficient there is a good possibility you could die.

Day 5 - BURP!

It was a lovely day of exploring and eating! Ger and I took our first adventure on our own today and actually made it back in one piece. We walked to the corner and took a bus into Windsor. The first bus that came along was not going to Windsor, the second bus was going to Windsor but we didn't have the exact change so they put us off. After an hour we finally got on a bus that would make change AND take us to Windsor. We had no idea where in Windsor we would end up but I was comfortable enough with the town to figure we really couldn't get too lost. As it was we got off at the last stop which was on a street that we were familiar with. After such an exciting journey we needed to renew our strength so we had a lovely lunch at a French restaurant. From there we went exploring some of the shops and picked up odds and ends along with some post cards and stamps. Next a stop at the phone store for a cell phone that Kyle and Bridget can reach us on should we be off on one of our excursions. (Or a phone for us to call for help when we are lost.) All that shopping really wore us out so we needed to stop for an ice cream cone. It was really, really good ice cream and we will remember where that shop is! (We have to keep up our travel tradition that was started 10 years ago when we went to Ireland with Gerry's sister Ann Marie . . . an ice cream a day keeps the sore feet away.) So far that has worked very well for us. Next stop, the grocery store for some supplies. They sell Coke Zero but not creamer for your coffee. The eggs are not refrigerated, sometimes the milk is. The potato chips are called crisps and they have the most delicious assortment of cheeses. We bought 2 plastic tote bags for 20 pence a piece and off we went, groceries in hand, in search of the bus stop to hopefully return home. No problem with that and before we knew it we were back at Prince Albert Pub. This was the pub that we all had dinner at the night we returned from London. They have the BEST BBQ ribs and chicken that I have ever tasted. (This is quite a compliment coming from Cath & Ger who LOVE ribs!)
Now if you remember, The Prince Albert Pub not only has ribs but they serve that wonderful cider that I told you about the day I fell. How, after a day of traveling and walking, could we not stop for a pint? It was a delicious as I had remembered! So now I have totally stuffed myself for the day with crepes, ice cream, and cider and now have to walk the 1/4 mile home with our groceries. I am trying to convince myself that all the walking is balancing off all the eating and drinking. But I am not so sure that is the case as my pants are getting tighter and we haven't even been here a week. But at least I didn't fall in the street this time.
FYI . . . It stays light here until almost 10 PM and the sun is up by 4:30 AM.

Day 4 - Sunday

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh a cooler, quieter day and a lovely roast for dinner. Last night was a challenge to find a comfortable position to sleep after my flop in the street. A huge bruise on my leg and my right arm is still very sore but I think I am going to live. Ger and I slept in till 9 and then after breakfast with the family we all headed off to church. Thankfully Bridget drove us into town so we didn't have to walk in our Sunday Best. The church, St Edward the confessor, is a lovely old stone church. Not too big but beautiful stained glass windows and great stone statues. We met the priest on our way in and he immediately welcomed us to the "best,(and only)Catholic church in Windsor. He asked where we were from and at the end of the mass he welcomed all the visitors from Florida, Australia and wherever else. It really was quite nice. After church Abby and I spent the day playing while Kyle got to the gym and Bridget got to do some clothes shopping for their trip to the Ukraine on the
20th of this month to get the final paperwork done for the adoption of Roman. Abby tired me out playing princess and queen, (I am the queen because "Queens have wrinkles on their faces, princesses do not"), so that when Kyle came back from the gym I took a nap and left Abby in charge of daddy and grandpa. I needed a hour to just crash and have some uncrowded sleep. (Have I mentioned that Ger and I are sharing a DOUBLE bed? It is tight quarters but we have been so tired that it hasn't mattered.) Princess Abby woke me after a much appreciated hour and we all had a lovely roast chicken for dinner. Dessert tonight was a, ("A" as in ONE), cookie. The cookies are a bit strange, a round cracker like thing with chocolate coating on one side. They are called,. . . (are you ready for this?). . . DIGESTIVES ! Now how appealing is that? They don't taste bad but what a name!
Our First Sunday in England was lovely and quite enjoyable. It was a little cloudy today and quite a bit cooler, thank goodness. I could have stayed in Florida for hot and humid. Tomorrow Kyle leaves for Germany for 3 days, Abby returns to school after her week off and Ger and I may attempt a bus trip into town to check it out on our own. If there is no posting tomorrow night you will know we are lost somewhere in the wilds of Windsor, riding a bus never to be heard from again. Maybe we'll meet the queen.

Day 3 - London and a Fall

Another HOT day here. Who told me to pack warm clothes? We were all up early today, Abby at 6:30, me at 6:45. We're going to take a train into London so I don't want to miss a thing. Kyle drove us into town (no mile and a half walk today. Got to save our strength for walking in London ). We still had to walk about 1/4 mile to the train station but that was O.K. Abby is a trooper . . . she plods along doing a pretty good job of keeping up. An hour later our train arrived in Waterloo station, London. Great ride through the lovely country side and into the station that looks exactly like something out of Harry Potter. Huge glass ceiling and wide open area with hundreds of people rushing through. We walked out of the station, across the street and found ourselves at the base of the London Eye. It is a Huge, Gigantic ferris wheel on the banks of the Thames. Great, glass capsules holding 25 people at a time, slowly rotate up and over the top giving you fantastic views of London, the river, Big Ben, Westminster Abby and Buckingham Palace. We got to see the changing of the guard from way up in the air. What a show. We then walked along the river enjoying all the street performers. Abby got to make a HUGE bubble with the "Bubble Man" and stood in awe watching some acrobats contort themselves into unbelievable shapes. After a nice lunch we took a boat tour on the Thames down to Tower Bridge and back. We learned a few things about the buildings along the river but really have a very difficult time understanding these Englishmen. They don't seem to be able to pronounce the letters "TH" as we do. Rather they pronounce it as an "F" sound. As in,"I frew the ball". But it was a fun ride anyway. We took the train back to Windsor and went to a local pub for dinner. This is where the trouble started. Kyle introduced me to CIDER. WE know cider as the juice from apples. Not in England. Cider is a type of beer, light and fruity and absolutely delicious. (and apparently rather potent). I had 2 pints with dinner and it was quite fine. After dinner Bridget, Abby and I started walking home while the boys paid the bill. Almost home I turned to see where Abby was and fell over my own two feet. I WAS NOT GRACEFUL ! Landed on my right shoulder, cut my arm and my hand and thought I was fine. A half hour later Kyle was taking me to the ER at a local hospital along with Ger. Bottom line, x ray showed no fracture or dislocation but my shoulder is sore. I will be attending mass tomorrow in a sling.
So much for a great day in London.

Day Two

My computer is giving me a hard time so I hope I can get this written without too much cursing.
Day two has been HOT and quiet. How come I packed all those long sleeves when it is near 80 degrees outside? As warm as it was yesterday it is hotter today, but at least we stayed home today. Abby was her usual early bird and up before 6 AM ! This is NO grandchild of mine. Ger and I rolled out at around 9 and once we were able to stand we felt fine. Yesterdays walking did take a bit out of us but we are managing to keep standing. Abby and I spent the entire morning playing "Baby Bird", a favorite pretend game of hers. I am the momma bird and she is my baby. We make a nest of pillows and fight off attacking raccoons and buzzards. This house is perfect for pretending. There are nooks and crannies to hide in and stairs to climb. The gargoyle outside the bedroom window makes a great evil buzzard to hide from.
After lunch we were going to all walk to the "pirate" park but Abby decided she needed a rest. I do think all the walking yesterday tired her out. After all, it almost killed us. Abby and Bridget returned home for a rest and Ger and I set out to check out the neighborhood. The "castle" sits on a huge piece of property with beautiful lawns and giant oak trees surrounding it. There is a large new apartment complex built off to the side and back that you don't even realize is there. To the front of the "castle" there is a car park with an avenue of cone shaped trees in the center. Following the road out of the car park you walk past a school for girls and out onto the main road. Once out there we turned right and followed the sidewalk to the next intersection where we found a few shops. And after that . . . we got lost. Don't ask how . . . we just did! We finally found our way "home" and crashed on the couches in the big, beautiful living room. And here we will stay till Abby wakes up. No more adventures for today. WE need to save up our strength for a trip into London tomorrow.
FYI . . . EVERYTHING in this country is backwards. Not only do they drive on the "wrong" side of the road, the light switches are upside down. To turn the light ON you have to push the switch down, not up. There are NO screens on the windows! You just open the window and hope nothing flies in. The telephones ring funny . . . a very high pitched British "bringggggggggggg". Just weird stuff! OH, and in our guest bathroom we have a bidet in front of the mirror. The sink is across the room by the window so if Ger wants to shave he has to wet the razor in the sink and then turn around and cross the room to see what he is doing. I suppose he could use the bidet to shave in but that seems a bit gross. It's all very strange and quite different!
But we are glad to be here and enjoying our adventure so far. See you tomorrow !

The First 24

Hi there. I'm writing from "ACROSS THE POND". I got thinking that this would be a great way to journal our adventures here in England with grand daughter Abby. BFF Sharon asked if I would be keeping a journal because she wanted to know ALL about England. So here we go Sharon and all else who could possibly give a rat about my trip.
We arrived at Heathrow, outside of London, yesterday about 3PM England time, 9AM Florida time. (Only 3 hours late, thank you Delta Airlines) Our suitcases did arrive on the same plane so at least we had that going for us. Abby and Bridget were there to meet us and off we went on the first great adventure . . . finding our way out of the airport and back to the house, I think we went around at least 20 round-a-bouts before we found the correct road to Windsor. If you think the roads in the US are crazy the British roads are insane. Narrow does not even come close to describing them. And of course there is that driving on the WRONG side of the road thing. Not a problem till you come to a roundabout and naturally start to go to the right. But we made it "home" and got our first view of Castle Lawlor. This place is amazing. (I am in love with the stairs to the second floor and am very tempted to try sliding down the banister.) We had a quiet afternoon playing on the playground next door and after dinner we were sound asleep by 9:30 PM.
Today we WALKED into Windsor! A long, long walk. Once there we took the Windsor double decker tour bus around the castle and into the town of Eton. It is beautiful countryside and the towns are quaint and picturesque. The weather is fantastic . . . high 70's and sunny.
So far we are having wonderful time and enjoying Abby and family. I think they are happy to have us here to bring a little America into their lives. The British are pleasant enough but can't compare to USA Southern hospitality. We did meet a couple of wonderful Scottish ladies yesterday who were on the plane with us. They were returning from "holiday" in the US after visiting Memphis, New Orleans and a few other Southern cities because they love jazz. They were delightful and invited us to come to Scottland to see their beautiful country. Maybe later in our trip we will do just that.
For now we are happy to be here with the family and get our English feet under us.
Don't know what's in store for tomorrow but I'll be sure to include you in our adventures. TA TA for now . . .

Leaving Town

You may not be hearing from me for a while. We are about to depart for England to see Abby, our 5 year old grand daughter. We will be away for the next 2 months so I don't know how much time I will have to devote to this blog.
Normally I wouldn't mention leaving town for fear of someone braking into our empty house but considering the fact that I have packed everything it is not a concern. We have very little here to steal on a normal day. No big screen TV, no fancy electronics, no expensive jewelry, no masterpieces hanging on the walls. We are talking about two OLD folk who are not living in the 21st century yet. My basic cell phone and computer are coming with me. (Don't have an i Pod, i Phone, or i Pad) The ancient TV is so old it is one step up from black and white. Our cameras are packed and coming with us, we have no DVD or DVR, just an ancient VCR. Forget jewelry, I have lost the 2 "good" pieces of jewelry that husband gave me and the rest of the clutter in the jewelry box comes from Target or TJ Max. We joke that if someone ever broke into our house they would probably leave something.
But then we also have our top notch security patrolling our community and the deaf and almost blind watch dog that lives next door.
All things considered I don't have a worry in the world that the house will be fine for 2 months on it own. Unless a hurricane hits! We have entered hurricane season in South Florida and they are predicting a BIG season for storms. I am glad on that account to be going to England. We have taken in all the furniture from outside and piled it on the patio. (That is an added deterrent to thieves . . . they would have to climb over lounge chairs and picnic tables to get into the house).
Other than all that, my fingers are crossed and I'm putting myself in Gods Hands for the next couple of months.
Have a great summer and I'll be talking to you from across the pond.