Adventures of a Wild Thing (or is that "Thingy!?")

[Priscilla]

And here they are, notes from our trip. I'll start with Feb. 20 and 21, as the first day was all plane flight and not terribly eventful. One day each day, so I can draaaag it out! :devil:

Feb. 20 - 9:30 p.m. On the plane, waiting for take off. It was pleasantly uncomplicated getting to the airport, checking in, etc. I wish the bus driver on the trip to the airport hadn't been playing a baseball commentary station on the radio the entire ride (about 2 hours). Not only was that boring, but it repeated the same thing about 4 times! Yuck! We were one hour late taking off while the wings were de-iced. Who can sleep on a plane!? Saw the most amazing smoke ring like puffs go by the wing at about 8:30 a.m., Jeff says they are cold related. Arrived at Heathrow about 10 a.m. Anneli was waiting.

Feb. 21 - Piled into Anneli's car and went into the city to her house, a brick row house (corner unit) with a nice little back yard, green house and flower beds. There are daffodils, crocuses and a single yellow rose blossoming! She had to go to work at 2 so we went for a walk to find the Underground station nearest her house and buy a few things at a nearby shop. It's really cold, and began to snow squall, so we went back to the house. Jeff fell asleep in front of the tv and went to bed at 7:30. I stayed up to visit with Anneli when she got home from work at about 8:30.

[Priscilla]

Feb. 22

Out the door at about 9:30. Took the Underground to see Big Ben, Parliament & Westminster Abbey. We thought about going into Parliament, but there was a long line, after which you had to go through a trailer and metal search, plus we weren't sure if you could look around once you were inside or if you had to go into the visitors gallery and sit for hours. So, we looked at the outside of the building only. :sad: Crossed the street and paid our 8 pounds each to visit Westminster Abbey. Odd that all the museums were free, and a church you had to pay to look at! Anyway, it was as lovely as I remembered, crammed with so much you couldn't possibly see it all! Walked across a bridge in the bitter cold wind and snow flurries to get to the London Eye (huge ferris wheel). Bought winter hats near it, our ears were freezing! Took the ride on the Eye, wonderful view, and I wasn't too scared even though it is very high because it moves very slowly. Walked to Buckingham Palace. While there a limousine pulled up, 8 or 10 young Japanese men and women got out in very light weight wedding attire, stood for pictures with the Palace in the background and jumped (shivering) back into the limousine! :D We took the Underground over to Trafalgar Square and got some photos of it. Then, Underground back to Anneli's for a nice quiet evening.

[Dux]

*sits down in comfy chair with cuppa and waits for more*

[Jaycee]

*joins dux with a :klah: and a :cookie:*

[Shazza]

*Finds a nice comfy beanbag to curl up in while listening to the story*

[NeouofPern]

*joins the others*

[Priscilla]

Feb. 23

And here it is, my visit to Thingy and the Bobwynn Clan! :heartbeat Got on the train at Euston at about 11:15, headed for the home of Bob, Caer and assorted younglings! Caer and Bob met us at the station (couldn't miss the newly "purpled" hair, done especially for us!). They made us feel at home immediately. I unpacked the few "bits and pieces" I'd brought and the beef jerky for Simon got sampled all around the room and termed a success. Bob grabbed the bottle of maple syrup "hey, Bob. Gonna Share?!" :devil: Thingy was wonderful. I got lots of cuddle time, even had the chance to feed him a bottle! He was learning to chortle and can make kiss/smack sounds! Bob cooked up a delicious chicken soup for lunch and Caer did homemade rolls! Yummy! We had a good "play" with Thingy and then they took Jeff and I by car to a pet shop, which no longer sold chipmunks, but they did once! :sad: Drove down a teeny, tiny winding road, and then to a pub beside a canal where Simon used to work as chef. Entle', Bob and Caer took turns playing pool. Back to their house for more play with Thingy (can you tell who gets the most attention in THAT house!? :ok: ) and a delicious mild Thai curry that Bob made for dinner. I think that was because I've mentioned quite a few times that I've never had one. Thanks, Bob! Caer had made a wonderful cheesecake for dessert (or is that, "pudding"? :razz: ) It got very late, we hated to leave, and we barely made the very last train to London and the very last Underground of the night! We were back at Anneli's at around 1 a.m. with lots of pictures and memories of a really fun time! {{{{HUGGLES}}}} to all there!

[Bobbsy]

Feb. 23

<snip>

Bob grabbed the bottle of maple syrup "hey, Bob. Gonna Share?!" :devil:

<snip>

Herewith evidence I DID share...the muck and sticky stuff around the mouth are the remnants of the pancakes and maple syrup Thingy (and the rest of the family) tried.

(And, as you may tell from the expression, to combination was popular, particularly with Thingy!)

Bobbsy

[Priscilla]

What a good (and self-sacrificing) daddy! Looks like Thingy enjoyed them! {{{HUGE HUGS}}} to my darlin' little nephew from his Auntie Cilla!! :heartbeat And, more hugs to all the rest of you, of course! ;)

[Master Harper Andrea]

Well there's more maple syrup here where that came from!

So glad you're back Clam....your story is really fun to listen to!

[Dux]

more? (said in tiny little voice)

[Master Harper Andrea]

*chants* We want more....we want more....we want more.........

[C_ris]

more? please? *puppydogeyessmilie*

[Purpura]

Herewith evidence I DID share...the muck and sticky stuff around the mouth are the remnants of the pancakes and maple syrup Thingy (and the rest of the family) tried.

(And, as you may tell from the expression, to combination was popular, particularly with Thingy!)

Bobbsy


It's the sweets in the Sweet Thingy! He Likes it! Hey Auntie Clam! (Paraphrasing a little of an old Life Cereal advert in the States Hehe)

[Milo]

What fun! Did you take a camera by any chance?

[NeouofPern]

We demand pictures! Hehe. :devil:

[Priscilla]

Did indeed take pictures. I'm waiting for my husband to download them. Should be, tomorrow I think. I got a lovely one of me holding Thingy! :heartbeat

[Purpura]

Awww :heartbeat Isn't he a CuddlyCuteLil'growin'likeaweed Thingy?

[Faren]

Enjoying the story, Priscilla! :good: I'm so glad you had such a great visit.

*pulls out snuggly blanket and settles down for more*

[White Rabbit]

It sounds as if a good time was had by all.

Settles down with a cuppa.

[Bamy]

joins in and settles on a big comfy cusion since i couldnt get to london.

[Priscilla]

And now for today's installment! :D

Feb. 24

Today was British Museum day. Got out the door at about 11 and took a double decker bus to the museum. The weather was warmer (slightly) and therefore rainy and yucky. Saw the Rosetta Stone, the Elgin Marbles and a LOT of statues; ancient pots, bowls, jewelry, armor and weapons . . . and did I mention statues!? ;) We got back to Anneli's at about 5 and decided to go out to eat at one of her favorite restaurants (Brown's I believe was the name). It was right on the river, overlooking Tower Bridge, and while we were there it began to snow again! To get to the restaurant we had to walk across a small footbridge and noticed that it was low tide! Apparently the Thames has a 15 foot tide, which amazed us because even where we are here on the coast we only have an average 8 or 9 foot tide. I threatened to bring my daughter a lump of mud home as a souvenir (she's studying Marine Biology) but luckily it was WAY down there and I had no chance of getting down to scoop up some for her! :roll: For dinner I had a delicious steak, Guinness and mushroom pie and for dessert I had a banana and pudding with toffee. Jeff had fish which he said was delicious. Came back home by double decker bus and it was snowing seriously. Tomorrow is supposed to be our visit to Anneli's parents in the Cotswolds. I hope the weather cooperates! :erm:

[Lady Legira]

I love the British Museum, one day I may see more than the Egyptian collection ;)

[Priscilla]

Now, should I be extremely :devil: and not tell you yet whether we were able to leave London or if we got snowed in there? Should I, should I not!? Hmmmmmmmmmmm! :cool: Ah, well!


























Feb. 25 (did I scare you!?) :D

The weather doesn't look too bad so we're on our way to the Cotswolds. Jeff and I stayed around Anneli's for the morning, reading and resting. Got in the car, and it took a good hour to get to the outskirts of London from her house! It was flurrying most of the time. It was actually snowing fairly hard as we neared her parents'. Got there around 4:30/5. Lovely little place. They had a delicious chicken dinner all ready for us with a choice of almond cake or meringue cake for dessert (ummmm, yeah, I put on two pounds over vacation! :erm: ) Up to bed at about 11. It seems like we didn't "do" much today, but most of it was riding in the car and looking at scenery. Except that the houses are mostly all attached even way out in the country it is surprisingly similar to some of our states. The color of stone used for houses in the Cotswolds (golden brown) is unusual and like nothing we have, though! :D

[Master Harper Andrea]

So cool! We have some bricks here that are light brown in a city down in SE WI. It's called "Cream City" because of the color.

Thank you for the delightful travelogue!

[Bobbsy]

The Cotswolds...and the Cotswold stone buildings....are lovely.

I'm not sure exactly where Anneli took Cilla, but for an example of what the stone looks like, check out THIS! (http://www.places-to-go.org.uk/Broadway_CotswoldStone.htm)

Bobbsy

[Dux]

Glad you got to go to the British Museum. I love that place.

[Master Harper Andrea]

And I hope that Bobbsy's pic was representative of the archetecture!!!!

:kiss:

[Purpura]

Looks pretty :)

[Priscilla]

Feb. 26

Up at about 7:30 and had a bowl of cereal. Took off with Anneli and her mom to see a few villages before meeting Tony at 12. Stopped in a town called Stow-on-the-Wold to look at a very pretty church. Met Tony at a Marks and Spencers at 12 and he took Jeff and I back to his house where we met his wife, daughter and two cute, silly dogs! :D Had a cup of tea and got a chance to see where he sits at his computer (always nice to be able to visualize where people are!). It was wonderful having the chance to meet him! Came back to Anneli's parents house and had a short rest and lunch. Then off to a pub in town to meet some old friends I've known since my college days in England, 27 years ago! They now have three adorable little boys, age 9 and 5 year old twins. Alan's parents were also able to come over as well so it was a lovely time! The older boy was so cute and shy. He wanted to ask me something and his dad had to coax him over to ask me. He barely whispered "what's it like in America?" I thought, out of the mouths of children! Now that would make a good children's book - no preconceived notions, no Hollywood nonsense, no biased newscasters or sensationalist newspaper reporting. Who knows, maybe I'll just do it! :ok: They looked pretty much the same, and it was wonderful seeing them again! After we got back to Anneli's parents' we arranged to go out to dinner at a lovely pub. I had a yummy meal of duck and choc. cake for dessert! Mmmmmm! :bouncy:

[Priscilla]

Feb. 27

Had a lovely breakfast of fried egg, bacon, sausage and toast. Sunny, "crisp" weather. Left Anneli's parents' at about 10:15 and got back to her house in London at about 12:30. Dropped our bags in the house and turned right around to get to the Pub for the Gather! :D Jayson, K.C., Maygirl, Honeymouse, BM, and H were able to make it and we had a wonderful time getting acquainted, taking silly pictures and revelling in being able to put voices and faces to some screen names! :ok: Very nice old pub, and a good lunch. I brought along little magnet/dragons and had just the right number to give one to everyone! Got back to Anneli's at around 6:30, did laundry, read a book and to bed!

[-H-]

Feb. 27
.... Jayson, K.C., Maygirl, Honeymouse, BM, and H were able to make it and we had a wonderful time getting acquainted, taking silly pictures and revelling in being able to put voices and faces to some screen names! .....


One Sentance!!!!!!!

is that all we came too in the great Adventures of a Wild Thing Epic story :eek: :faint:

Are you not even going to mention the food we all had? :devil:

[Priscilla]

Well, H. I figured I'd keep mine short and simple and let the rest of you elaborate! ;) Besides, I don't remember what you all had to eat! :roll:

[-H-]

Well, H. I figured I'd keep mine short and simple and let the rest of you elaborate! ;) Besides, I don't remember what you all had to eat! :roll:

bah ... well of course we ate spam :D ;) .... well actualy i had bangers and mash ... and then some spam ;)

here for the benefit of those who did not atend is a prime example of the Bedpost Hugging Dragon :D

[Priscilla]

Feb. 28

Up and out the door early to see the Cutty Sark, Maritime Museum and Greenwich Mean Time clock observatory. Lots of walking today, boy did my feet hurt! :sad: We were in the maritime museum and looked out a window "way" up the hill and Jeff said "we go up there next". I really, really thought he was kidding! :faint: The Cutty Sark was very nice, but I'm not that excited about old ships so Jeff paid to go on and I sat on a bench and "people watched"! :D Lots of school children with drawing pads showed up as time passed and sat in the cold to sketch the ship. Joggers went by (brrrr!) and people hurrying to walk through the tunnel that is right there to the other side of the river. We did that (walked through the tunnel that is) and there was a group of young independent film makers doing a couple "shots" in the middle of the tunnel, so we had to stop and wait both directions while they worked. We had lunch in a pub near the Cutty Sark. I had "bangers and mash" (sausage and mashed potatoes). When we got up to the observatory, I kept looking for a sign that would say "this is the current clock used to calculate Greenwich Time". Never did see one, but I guess it was the digital thing on the outside of the building!? :roll: Got back to Anneli's and cooked ourselves up a little bit of supper as she was going to be late getting home from work. Today's visits and Thurs. to the RAF museum were really for Jeff as ships and planes are things he's most interested in. :ok:

[Lily]

CillaASis! Isnt there a line in the road marking the 0 meridian or whatever its called? I'm so glad you experienced all these Brit things and enjoying hearing of your adventures

[Priscilla]

Yep, there's a line in the sidewalk and a "sign" that people were going nuts having their pictures taken in front of, but as far as we could see no where was there a notice saying that "this specific clock is the one we now use to calculate Greenwich Mean Time" :roll: :D Glad you're enjoying hearing about our travels! :ok:

[Beisla]

Thanks, auntie Clam, that was lovely to read. :)

Any more? :D

[Priscilla]

Out the door around 9:30 to go to the Tower of London and see the Crown Jewels. We had a very interesting guard (Beefeater) give us a 45 min. walking tour. Then, in to see the jewels. Spectacular doesn't do them justice! We went around them 5 or 6 times. My favorite crown, oddly enough, were the simple ones with no jewels on them at all. I kept thinking of the old expression "heavy hangs the head that wears the crown" and how bulky those great big encrusted things would be! We did notice that the British have caught on to the "bright" idea of putting gift shops full of expensive tacky junk at strategic exits all around the Tower! :roll: There are also rooms full of armor and had a really good grin over that worn by Henry VIII. There was, shall we say, a special portion of armor attached that I didn't see on anyone else's that would, shall we say, protect "the crown jewels"! :redfruit: and believe me, he had a very "large" opinion of himself! :faint: ;) Hopped a bus to Oxford Street. Found the Scottish shop but it was all sweaters and scarves, so no shopping got done. Back to Anneli's for supper. I've noticed that in spite of many comments about how much better European news coverage is of the U.S. than our coverage is over here of Europe, that it doesn't seem to be the case! The television news was just as vague and local as ours is, and the only thing about the U.S. in the newspapers the two weeks we were there was about Michael Jackson! :disguise: I guess if we really want to be informed we all look to many different sources no matter where we live!

[Mayhem]

*Slips in late*
:shhh:
*curls up to listen*
Sounds like a good time! Carry on :D

[Master Harper Andrea]

Vicariously getting a charge through Clam's discription of her trip! Keep it up!!!!! :ok:

[Mayhem]

*shuts my mouth* **sorry Platinum**
*Grins and whispers*
Here, have a beanbag!
:shhh:

[Priscilla]

Mar. 2

Out the door again at about 10. Most museums don't open until that time so there isn't much point in getting any earlier start. It was quite a distance to the RAF museum, we didn't get there until about 11:30. As I said to Jeff - "to me there are 4 kinds of airplanes: big, little, old and new". But I'm glad he enjoyed it. We got back into the city about 3:30 and to Covent Garden market/shops about 4. Much more successful gift hunting! Some tiny little Celtic knot earrings for Jenn, a pewter cat for Fred and a little guitar on a keychain for Mike. We had supper in a pub and I had my one half-pint of Guinness of the trip. Back to Anneli's at about 7:30, read a book and to bed around 10:30. Last full day tomorrow. Lovely to see a place but good to go home. I'm starting to miss the kids and the cats! :roll:

[Priscilla]

Mar. 3

Out the door at about 9:30, to the old Tate Gallery. We did see some good paintings (old favorites of mine) - Millais, Turner and a very few of my most favorite William Blake. Sadly, they've rearranged all the rooms by "themes", instead of each room being dedicated to a single artist. You had to hunt around for paintings by your favorites. Not the way I'd like it done. Ah well. Had lunch in another pub and took the Underground again to the Natural History Museum. Very lovely old building. Enormous hall full of case after case of rocks, minerals and gem stones. Bought Jenn and Mike a piece of fluorite that should shine under their black light. Passed a hall of stuffed monkeys, and hall with a full sized plaster blue whale hanging from the ceiling and a cabinet with hundreds of tiny stuffed hummingbirds arranged on a bunch of tree branches, which I thought was kind of sad looking. Wore off our feet walking! Jeff slipped down a couple of stairs on the main staircase but luckily caught himself before tumbling down the whole thing. I had visions of spending much extra time in England with him in hospital, leg arm or both in traction! :faint: It's supposed to be very cold and snowy tomorrow. I wish I had a "transporter" so we just shimmer our way home. Where's my Ruby slippers?! :roll:

[Caerwyddyn]

Glad Jeff didn't hurt himself badly... :shake:
Bet he was shaken-up though ?

Just imagine how many miles you've walked while in England ?
Training for OZ next, maybe?
*smirk*

Your diary is a joy to read, ''Auntie'' Cilla, Thanks for sharing with us! :hugs:

[Priscilla]

Mar. 4

Got up about 4:30 and had both a bowl of cereal and egg and toast for breakfast. I always seem to get hungry traveling. It was snowing hard early but stopped at about 10. We went out to look around at the little shops near Anneli's house but didn't see anything we wanted. Came back for a sandwich. Anneli took us to the side entrance of the Underground at about 2. I had organized my stuff so that I was using a backpack instead of a shoulder carry on, and it was much easier getting to the airport! Whoever invented wheels on suitcases has my thanks! :bow: At about 5:30 in the airport we were getting ready to go into the boarding area. The flight was pleasant again, no sleeping though. When we got into New York we had a very easy time through customs and out to the terminal where we picked up transportation. That was miserable, it was the kind of van they use to transport people around airports - no springs and the seats were like boards. Plus, we made about 7 stops both at Kennedy and then at LaGuardia before we could finally even start back. Then we stopped at about 5 cities before reaching home. Still, it was about 12:30 when we got here, and Jenn was waiting for us. So good to see her, and to be home! :heartbeat

I'd like to take this last bit to first of all thank Anneli for having us! It was wonderful, we had a fabulous time, and without her incredible offer to stay with her we wouldn't have done it! Thank you, you are the BEST!!! Then to Caer and Bob who had us for a day, and even seemed to want more of us (you really are gluttons for punishment!) Wonderful meeting all of you, and getting to know my darling "nephew"! Also, to Tony - I'd have been very sad if we couldn't have gotten together. It was short, but I'm glad we had a little while! Finally, the Gather! You were all wonderful to come, I know travel is not cheap anywhere, and it was lovely to meet all of you! Thank you, to everyone for a wonderful vacation!!! :applause:

[Dawn]

I'm glad you both had such a good time, Sis! :hugs: It sounded like a lot of fun. :cool: :bouncy:

[Faren]

Wow, what a great trip, Priscilla! :applause: Thanks so much for sharing it with us.

Maybe one day.*sigh*

[Caerwyddyn]

Then to Caer and Bob who had us for a day, and even seemed to want more of us (you really are gluttons for punishment!) Wonderful meeting all of you, and getting to know my darling "nephew"! 'Cilla and Jeff.......
Not only DID we want more time with you-both, but we're keenly looking forward to your OZ Tour! :good:
We'll have the pleasure (I DO Hope?) of putting-you-up, Next Time :ok:
:hugs:

Thingy agrees... He wants a LOT more of Auntie 'Cilla :hopping:
:bouncy: :heart: :wave:

[Dux]

Sounds like a wonderful trip! I'm very jealous.


*starts wondering when she can get back to England*

[Hans]

Thanks for writing all that up for us HS! I enjoyed it very much :kiss:

[Anneli]

Sorry I've not been around much for the last few weeks, with an imminent move (next week :eek: ) I've been pretty busy as you might imagine :roll:

Priscilla, you and Jeff are ideal guests :D You look after yourselves, you don't mind me saying "I'm off to work, here are the keys, the bus stop into town is over there, have a nice day" ;), you buy your own food, you entertain yourselves, you don't grab the bathroom when I want it - what more can I say? :good: :fiend:

Rest assured that, no matter where I may roam, you'll always be welcome :D


I'd like to take this last bit to first of all thank Anneli for having us! It was wonderful, we had a fabulous time, and without her incredible offer to stay with her we wouldn't have done it! Thank you, you are the BEST!!! :applause: