2. London on the go

I love how much we walked around London!  we were very conscious about packing lightly and only taking carry on luggage.  Overall, we were properly prepared with good shoes and outfits.  i think we were surprised that, in general, it was cooler than we expected.

I love that we found a Whole Foods market where we bought lots of produce and bread.  We ate grocery store food and only ate at a restaurant once each day.  this was our preference for health and finances.

 Walking to Buckingham Palace was lovely through large parks.

Here, mom liked the impressive iron gates surrounding Buckingham Palace, which is the London home of Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II.  Walking around London, and visiting all these palaces, our interest in the royal family increased.  We tried to get the names and stories straight of the major royal family members. it's fascinating, really.

 so many points of interest, museums, and interesting sculptures along our walks.

 stopped into a church we passed along the way, where a choir was practicing.

 Royal Albert china for sale like my Grandma bought on her visit many years ago.

 Eros statue at Piccadilly Circus, a busy area.
I appreciated the reminders about which way to watch for oncoming traffic.  one week wasn't enough to stop old habits of looking the wrong way.

 For dinner this night, I had Bubble and Squeak Mash, with a butternut squash and goats cheese pie.

 i always enjoy fun public art.

 tills = checkout/cash registers

 the underground = subway

1. worldwide

I am very lucky to have had the opportunity to travel with my parents to England.  Grandpa was fantastic to plan the main itinerary.  traveling there wasn't stressful because we all traveled together on an easy direct flight (thanks to them for driving to me).  unlike the time that Mom and i were supposed to meet in Israel, but I was on my own for the first day (with the tour group) after she was delayed by a snowstorm.
We stayed awake to adjust our internal clocks and started exploring.

Grandpa navigated the subway system to get us to the lovely hotel he had found for us.

Fast Sunday was nice. we met many good people at church.

The telephone booths were empty, but still iconic.  Grandma has a tradition of photos with phone booths when traveling.

Many of the museums are free, and huge, and beautiful.  This is the V&A - Victoria and Albert.
an angel for E above.

enjoyed learning a few English words, such as paddling instead of wading.

the building shows damage from WWII bombings.

We saw a decent number of bicyclists, of which, about half wore helmets.

We remembered our family back him when we saw things such as Cafe Luna.  hi Luna!

Harrods is a really large expensive everything store.  pretty fancy!

in my reading after our visit, i see there is are two memorials to Princess Diana and Dodi Fayed in this area.  It's fun to research in preparation for the trip, reading and seeing while on the trip, and more after i'm home.  lots to learn in life, at all points along the way.

Gparents visit

 Grandpa and Grandma visited us.  They encouraged and supported E with his Twinkle and A Major Scale practicing.  At this same time, we had night visitors - raccoons, alerting us that the figs are ripe and ready to eat!  We climbed the fig tree and ate so many of these amazing fruits. 

 these 3 pics are not our house, but show elements that I like:  the top two have a live perimeter  - trees and shrubs all around the house providing beauty and privacy.  the third picture is a nice black iron fence - which says i'm not a fortress, i'm accessible, but i'm secure and sophisticated.  maybe steel? mix it up with brick or stone columns.  or all brick, partitially hollowed is an option, like we saw in England.

 Neighborhood night out was a fun potluck.  a little overwhelming to meet so many folks.  it's good though, since they all live there and we walk past their houses every day. it's nice to make acquaintances.

 thanks to Aunt A for gifting granola.  We loved it with our yogurt and will make some homemade for ourselves!

what a treat. can't wait for next year.

took dog om walk to schmitz park dragon.

Forest bathing

 

this was a really pretty tree at the front entry. maybe a Filbert. but it wasn't healthy. wobbly and losing leaves.  we will plant more than one to "replace" it. 

We loved having the R &J H family visit.  hopefully next time they will stay longer than just dinner.  R said he had a bond with the house as it has the same doorknobs from his childhood TN home. :)

 lovely Ms. C got us out for some forest bathing.  it was a nice experience to hike at our own pace and discuss our own concerns.  thanks to R for watching E for the day.

 gorgeous Rainier behind us!

 paragliders hiked up (with their huge packs) instead of getting a ride although it was a pretty steep hike.   one said he wanted to earn it.  they rode the wind currents for a long time.  one woman we saw at the top, landed when we arrived at the bottom, an hour later.

 ward friend and running buddy Ms. E.
ward potluck had some yummy mac and cheese and PB/chocolate rice krispies.

 

 L's 7th bday party. very creative parents.  here was the volcano game. kids ran to get the treasure, trying to avoid the streamers and balloons. 

 I've never packed for a trip so far in advance.  usually its the night before and packing all sorts of extras just in case.  We're excited for London!  traveling with nothing more than carry-ons is part of the adventure/challenge. going to try the Rock deodorant.