Li-Ann and I went to visit Buckingham Palace today - the palace has been open on during the summer for the past few years, and you visit most of the state rooms. Sadly you don't get to see the Queen's bedroom! It was interesting to see a proper working palace, so many of the palaces you visit in Europe are museums and not in practical use. So there were quite a few rooms we recognise from state banquets, investitures and different ceremonies.
The tour took about an hour and a half and there was a very informative audio tour included in the price. One of the most impressive bits was the collection of Old Masters -Rembrant, Vermeer etc. A collection to rival any museum! Because it's the 60th anniversary of the founding of the Commonwealth, there was an exhibition showing gifts and outfits from the Queen's visits to different countries in the Commonwealth. One of the gifts was a wool tapestry of Mount Cook donated by the Timaru City Council! Brilliant!
The tour ended with the possibility of a cream tea on the terrace, a (very ornate) gift shop and a stroll through the gardens. The gardens were actually gorgeous and huge! Security was very tight and we were watched pretty much all the way by staff so there was no chance to run amok or steal stuff.
Sunday, September 13, 2009
Friday, September 11, 2009
pub!
Kt and I visited the Duke of Wellington for dinner on Wednesday night before going to the movies to see Broken Embraces. Thankfully the food at the Wellington had improved since we were there for my birthday - it was a bit shambolic to say the least that night! Still, it's a nice pub apart from somewhat casual staff! There was a football match being broadcast in the back room but it didn't have an impact on the front room which is always nice. And they always have lovely fresh flowers on the bar!!
Moving!
I think as I'm about to move out of my flat I'll write a little bit about what I've been up with with all the packing, moving, transitioning etc!
My flights are all booked to leave London on 17 December. I've got a few days in LA and San Diego then I arrive in NZ on 24th December. So I've got three more months left in London! I've got some great things planned - a couple of weeks in Turkey, weekend trips to Reims and Brussels, a day trip to Chirk, visiting Buckingham Palace and completing the London Loop! Not to mention finishing off at work and trying to catch up with people too.
Thankfully one of the hardest bits is nearly completed - I'm moving out of my flat tomorrow and all my boxes are being picked up by Anglo Pacific to go back on the ship to NZ. They should arrive in Wellington around Christmas time. I have 21 boxes! And that doesn't include most of my clothes which I will need for the next wee while as it will be winter by the time I leave. The majority of boxes are 'book boxes' which are the small ones in the picture. They hold about 200 CDs or about 30 books. Each box is meant to be able to be carried by a man so you can't totally fill them up with heavy stuff. I've also got a couple of linen cartons (to my left in the photo), a picture carton and a couple of other sizes. Everything has to be inventorised for customs. I'm wondering what they will open to inspect - I suspect my Egyptian rug and my wooden souvenirs (so I've packed them at the top). I've tried to be quite ruthless about everything, so there have been a few trips to Oxfam over the last few months, and there is also a lot of kitchen ware which is too tired to continue with so I'm just going to chuck it.
I'm not sending back any big items at all. The furniture I own I've either given to friends or contacts I've found on Freecycle. Freecycle is a community bulletin board where you advertise free stuff you want to give away or would like to be given. A guy came round to get the sofa futon last night (he'd just moved in somewhere and was sleeping on the floor!) and he took the wine rack and the clothes horse as well! So it's really nice to know that things are going to a good home.
I'm going to stay with friends for the next few weeks - thanks friends! It will be nice to stay in different parts of London too - I've already got beds organised in Highbury, Putney and Hither Green.
My flights are all booked to leave London on 17 December. I've got a few days in LA and San Diego then I arrive in NZ on 24th December. So I've got three more months left in London! I've got some great things planned - a couple of weeks in Turkey, weekend trips to Reims and Brussels, a day trip to Chirk, visiting Buckingham Palace and completing the London Loop! Not to mention finishing off at work and trying to catch up with people too.
Thankfully one of the hardest bits is nearly completed - I'm moving out of my flat tomorrow and all my boxes are being picked up by Anglo Pacific to go back on the ship to NZ. They should arrive in Wellington around Christmas time. I have 21 boxes! And that doesn't include most of my clothes which I will need for the next wee while as it will be winter by the time I leave. The majority of boxes are 'book boxes' which are the small ones in the picture. They hold about 200 CDs or about 30 books. Each box is meant to be able to be carried by a man so you can't totally fill them up with heavy stuff. I've also got a couple of linen cartons (to my left in the photo), a picture carton and a couple of other sizes. Everything has to be inventorised for customs. I'm wondering what they will open to inspect - I suspect my Egyptian rug and my wooden souvenirs (so I've packed them at the top). I've tried to be quite ruthless about everything, so there have been a few trips to Oxfam over the last few months, and there is also a lot of kitchen ware which is too tired to continue with so I'm just going to chuck it.
I'm not sending back any big items at all. The furniture I own I've either given to friends or contacts I've found on Freecycle. Freecycle is a community bulletin board where you advertise free stuff you want to give away or would like to be given. A guy came round to get the sofa futon last night (he'd just moved in somewhere and was sleeping on the floor!) and he took the wine rack and the clothes horse as well! So it's really nice to know that things are going to a good home.
I'm going to stay with friends for the next few weeks - thanks friends! It will be nice to stay in different parts of London too - I've already got beds organised in Highbury, Putney and Hither Green.
Sunday, September 06, 2009
looping!
We did another two sections of the London Loop yesterday - we're picking up the pace now to get it all finished before I leave. This week's walk was from Moor Park (on the Met Line) to Elstree (on Thameslink). The whole walk was over 12 miles so it was quite long but very enjoyable.
There were seven of us this time - Nicola and Sarah were in their final preparation mode before starting to walk around the Isle of Wight this week. Highlights were walking past Grim's Dyke (where WS Gilbert died), navigating past some cows and many cowpats in the Bentley Priory Open Space, very fancy houses on Priory Drive (possibly the poshest we've ever seen - the only people we saw were gardeners!), and a fantastic view over London from a car park/picnic spot on Old Redding. WE could see planes landing at Heathrow (so strange to think we were walking under them at the start of the summer, a few walks ago), Harrow on the Hill and Wembley Stadium.
There were seven of us this time - Nicola and Sarah were in their final preparation mode before starting to walk around the Isle of Wight this week. Highlights were walking past Grim's Dyke (where WS Gilbert died), navigating past some cows and many cowpats in the Bentley Priory Open Space, very fancy houses on Priory Drive (possibly the poshest we've ever seen - the only people we saw were gardeners!), and a fantastic view over London from a car park/picnic spot on Old Redding. WE could see planes landing at Heathrow (so strange to think we were walking under them at the start of the summer, a few walks ago), Harrow on the Hill and Wembley Stadium.
Alan!
I went to see Alan Cumming in his show 'I Bought a Blue Car Today' on Friday night at the Vaudeville Theatre. The show is a collection of his favourite songs and focuses on his last ten years living in New York. Alan became an American citizen last year so that he could vote for Obama (unfortunately he just missed out and couldn't vote) and the phrase 'I bought a blue car today' was one of the sentences he had to write down as part of the English test.
There was a huge variety of songs - a Dolly Parton song, a Cyndi Lauper song, and then some from different musicals, Chess, Cabaret and Hedwig the Angry Inch (my favourite!). There were also a couple of songs that he'd written as well - quite comic lyrics. Alan interspersed the songs with anecdotes, chat and witicisms which we all lapped up. I was sitting next to an excitable American who whooped at every opportunity but it all added to the excitement. There were about ten musicians onstage, some of whom were the brunt of Alan's jokes.
I thoroughly enjoyed it - Alan has a great voice and is a really entertaining stage presence! I've seen him onstage before in Cabaret (in New York) and in Bent and he's always brilliant!
There was a huge variety of songs - a Dolly Parton song, a Cyndi Lauper song, and then some from different musicals, Chess, Cabaret and Hedwig the Angry Inch (my favourite!). There were also a couple of songs that he'd written as well - quite comic lyrics. Alan interspersed the songs with anecdotes, chat and witicisms which we all lapped up. I was sitting next to an excitable American who whooped at every opportunity but it all added to the excitement. There were about ten musicians onstage, some of whom were the brunt of Alan's jokes.
I thoroughly enjoyed it - Alan has a great voice and is a really entertaining stage presence! I've seen him onstage before in Cabaret (in New York) and in Bent and he's always brilliant!
Thursday, September 03, 2009
beachy!
Had a lovely day out in the British seaside on Sunday (it was a Bank Holiday).
Kt and I met Li-Ann and Andrew, our chauffeurs for the day, at their house bright and early and we set off for Suffolk out through east London. We had a great view of the Olympics building site on the way out through Stratford - it's a huge site and we could see the skeletons of most of the buildings rising up. It's going to be very impressive when it's finished!
It took us a couple of hours to drive out through the pebble-dashed suburbs but soon we were in Essex and then Suffolk. Out first stop was the town of Aldeburgh which is right by the seaside. We drove through town and immediately headed for a restaurant for some lunch. There were a few takeaway fish and chip shops with huge queues outside but we found a lovely wee place in the lanes, 152 Aldeburgh and had identical, fab fish and chips with a lovely bottle of rose.
It stayed pretty sunny throughout, and so we had a wander along the beach afterwards and Li-Ann and I braved a paddle in the North Sea. There were a couple of people actually in the sea but we weren't brave enough even though it probably would be the same temperature in Caroline Bay! We had a look in some of the shops and then a delicious ice cream.
Our next stop was a bit further up the coast. Southwold is also a seaside town, but this time with loads of little beach huts and a proper pier. This beach was sandy and some sand castles had been constructed but were being demolished by the encroaching sea. The pier had been renovated quite recently and had some cute little design touches.
We finished off the day with a drink at the Lord Nelson pub which was a very cheery local.
Kt and I met Li-Ann and Andrew, our chauffeurs for the day, at their house bright and early and we set off for Suffolk out through east London. We had a great view of the Olympics building site on the way out through Stratford - it's a huge site and we could see the skeletons of most of the buildings rising up. It's going to be very impressive when it's finished!
It took us a couple of hours to drive out through the pebble-dashed suburbs but soon we were in Essex and then Suffolk. Out first stop was the town of Aldeburgh which is right by the seaside. We drove through town and immediately headed for a restaurant for some lunch. There were a few takeaway fish and chip shops with huge queues outside but we found a lovely wee place in the lanes, 152 Aldeburgh and had identical, fab fish and chips with a lovely bottle of rose.
It stayed pretty sunny throughout, and so we had a wander along the beach afterwards and Li-Ann and I braved a paddle in the North Sea. There were a couple of people actually in the sea but we weren't brave enough even though it probably would be the same temperature in Caroline Bay! We had a look in some of the shops and then a delicious ice cream.
Our next stop was a bit further up the coast. Southwold is also a seaside town, but this time with loads of little beach huts and a proper pier. This beach was sandy and some sand castles had been constructed but were being demolished by the encroaching sea. The pier had been renovated quite recently and had some cute little design touches.
We finished off the day with a drink at the Lord Nelson pub which was a very cheery local.
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