Our Trip to England

Our Trip to England
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My husband Howard and I traveled to England as part of our celebration of 50 years of marriage. I hope you enjoy some of our many photos! To see larger views, click on the small pictures. In addition, you can do a "virtual tour" of what we saw if you click on the links I've provided. ~Marge Marshall

Links updated 13.Apr.2015

	The reason we went to England was to finally meet my pen-pal, Kath Green. We have been writing to each other since 1947. At that time we were school-girls, she in Birmingham UK and I in Lyons, Kansas USA. She now lives in Camberley, Surrey and I lived in Klawock, Alaska in 2002.
	We met one member of the Green family in 1981, when their son John came to visit us in Kansas City, while he was on a break from college. So it was fun to see him again and meet his own family. Here he is with Richard, Jennifer, and me. We met his wife Janet when she prepared a lovely dinner for us.
	The Greens are a delightful family. Here we are with some of them at John and Janet's home, as they toasted us before dinner Sunday evening. That morning, we had visited St. Paul's Church in Camberley, a very friendly congregation.
	Off to London on the train! Our most exciting day was Saturday, when we took the train to Waterloo Station in London, the most convenient way to go. We did some walking and rode in taxicabs a couple of times, another fun convenience. We went past Buckingham Palace in one of them. The Royal Channel on YouTube
	In London, we toured Westminster Abbey (awesome!) and St. Margaret's Cathedral, then walked along Whitehall toward Trafalgar Square. We passed a huge Methodist church and a statue of Abraham Lincoln. It would have been neat to ride the open double-decker bus, but we didn't want to take the time to do the whole two-hour tour.
	A couple of scenes along the way. To the left, you can see the Trafalgar monument. The moving van was interesting, because my brother Carl Seaton is in the business.
	We saw the member of the palace guard who stands so still (each man is only there for two hours at a time because it is so tiring). We also saw parade ground where the Queen surveys her troops before they march along the Mall to the Palace. Queen Elizabeth II celebrated her 50 years on the throne this year, and some of the literature we collected mentions her Jubilee Year. So Howard and I are celebrating our Jubilee Year too! (See Leviticus 25:9-15.) I really enjoyed seeing the old buildings "in person," such as The Houses of Parliament, the Big Ben clock tower, the military ministries buildings, the Palace, and so on. Eventually we had lunch in the Sherlock Holmes Pub. I had "bangers and mash" (sausages with mashed potatoes and gravy) and Howard had "shepherd's pie" (stew). Sir Arthur Conan Doyle had rooms above the pub where he wrote about Sherlock Holmes, a fictional detective.
	The London Eye is spectacular. British Airways built it in 2000. It's a great way to see London. It's a cross between a giant Ferris wheel and a tram up a mountain! It moves very slowly and you simply step into the car and soon you can see from horizon to horizon.
	Kath & Norm were wonderful hosts. Norm, a retired Brigadier General, enjoys history so he was a marvelous tour guide and teacher. Kath is a planner, so she arranged our tour and kept us on schedule. It was quite a challenge because there was SO MUCH to choose from!
	One of the places we visited on Monday was the Royal Logistic Corps Officers' Mess at the Princess Royal Barracks at Deepcut in Camberley. Here Norm explains that this table was the one around which the Normandy Invasion was planned. The Queen has been at this table, so of course I sat there too!
	We had some rain on Monday, so out came the umbrella. Here's Kath at Runnymede Meadow in Egham where King John signed the Magna Carta. We purchased a copy of it at Westminster Abbey because our American Declaration of Independence and Constitution are based on its principles, and it does mention God!
	English streets and roads are more narrow than those in the USA, so their cars are smaller too. Riding on the left side of the road is interesting! This picture is a street scene in Salisbury. Country roads are lined with trees. On the way to Runnymede, we drove around Royal Holloway College in Egham, Surrey, which was built to be a women's college, but is now co-ed. A fascinating building, so be sure to look at it. Scenes of it are in the movie Howard's End.
	We took tea breaks often. Here we are in Church Street in Royal Windsor, where I ordered white tea (with milk). Several times we stopped by a Sainsburys Supermarket where they have an amazing variety of teas, and even have canned lemon slices. We once had tea in their lunch bar and I had a scone with clotted cream and jam - yummy!
	Naturally we had to go by Ascot Racecourse, which is the only one in the world that's a full mile around. Kath and Norm often saw the late Queen Mum there, because she was an enthusiast (as is Kath).
	On Tuesday, we drove southwest out of Camberley, to visit Greens' daughter Sarah, who lives in Christchurch. Sarah gave me a cute little teapot, the small Alice in Wonderland by Cardew.
	*I really liked Sarah's car, the Fiat Multra. It seats six adults comfortably, runs on diesel and gets 70 miles to the gallon. And it was fun to ride in!*
	Sarah's home is the Mudeford area of Christchurch, near the coast, from which we could see The Isle of Wight. Sarah said she and her family enjoy their Mudeford beach hut during the summer.
	We saw other things during the day, of course. Here Kath and I are in the Close around Salisbury Cathedral, which is in Salisbury. In Christchurch, Norm, Howard and I went into The Priory Church and had a nice visit with the gentlemen serving as guides. We lunched in the garden of the St. George Pub.
	I had been hoping we'd see some thatched-roofed houses, and we did! They are charming and look so cozy that I was tempted to knock on the door and ask for a tour ... but I resisted because it was getting late in the day. We drove back to Camberley on a Motorway, which we call a "freeway" in the USA.
	A big highlight of our trip was our Wednesday visit to Windsor Castle. It was terrific! We were there on September 11th, and all through the castle grounds, a minute of silence was observed because of the attack in New York the year before. About 50 British citizens perished. A memorial service was held in London's St. Paul's Cathedral and Kath videotaped it so we could watch it that evening.
	I have always thought that a castle is one very large building with a wall around it (and a moat, of course). But Windsor Castle is a collection of very large buildings and a wall, but no moat. We borrowed a wheelchair so I could get around better. Not many people have had a Brigadier "chauffer" them! Here Norm and I pose at "the Norman Gate." The State Apartments are magnificent, and I hope you'll look at www.royalcollection.uk - find the link to the Windsor Castle video and enjoy. Check out the "Semi-State" link as well. Another way to see some of the "apartments" is to go to www.google.com and select "Images," then type in Windsor Castle State Apartments.
	Near this cobblestoned little street was a "reject china shop," and we purchased a teapot with pictures of Windsor Castle on it, along with two matching mugs. We also got cork placemats with elegant pictures of other castles on them.
	By the time we finished touring the Castle, we were more than ready for tea! This time, I ordered "white tea," which had milk in it.
	Wednesday evening, we had a delicious dinner at Cricketers in Bagshot.
	When it was time for dessert (which the menu called "pudding"), we all thought it would be fun for Howard to have the "Baked Alaska." The server graciously took a picture of the four of us. Facts about the Baked Alaska.
	And ... then ... our wonderful visit was over. Norm and Kath returned us to Heathrow Airport and we took an American Airlines flight back to Kansas City, Missouri. This was a special trip we'll never forget! Thanks, Kath and Norm!

Our home page: www.spaciousskies.me/home/

This page is www.spaciousskies.me/England

E-mail: mmarshall@spaciousskies.me

Credits: Pictures, Howard Marshall. Background, Marge Marshall