More from the ship…

 I am convinced that sailing on the Queen Mary II is the way to go to England!  

This is how I was welcomed to the stateroom…

It was a surprise to see this box of Godiva chocolates on the table.

I had not expected such a delicious welcoming!

There were approximately 90 Susan Branch “girlfriends” on board.  Some of us are gathered here on deck for our first sight of Susan and Joe.

Susan gave us a welcome on board, with the reminder to be sure to watch for the Statue of Liberty as the ship sails from the harbor!

Just a bit out of order.  Oh, well.  I have never been able to master this adding pictures thing.  Anyway, there was special decor all around the ship.  This is an example.

Sure enough, there is the Statue of Liberty!

Every day at noon, from Tuesday on, we were instructed to advance our time pieces an hour.  This bell would sound at the correct time.

This is only one view of the library on the ship.

More decor from the ship.

These two statues were in place on either side of the entrance into the Planetarium.

This is a view of the interior of the Planetarium.

More wall display.

This is from the interior of the theater where entertainment was presented.  Vocalists, pianists, dancers, comedy acts…such a beautiful space. 

On the screen before our session with Susan and Rachel was this image of Joe holding their kitty, Jack.

Susan and Rachel (from England) preparing to present a session on letter-writing and the development of their friendship via hand-written letters.

There is much, much more!  I haven’t even mentioned the food!  That’s for another day!  

As I may have mentioned, passengers on the Queen Mary II had to bring documentation of up-to-date vaccination, a negative COVID test within two days of sailing, and we were required to wear masks at all times when we were outside our stateroom.  All employees were masked as well.  I definitely felt safe taking this trip.

Have a good weekend!

Some favorite scenes…

 The celebration of Queen Elizabeth’s Platinum Jubilee has been underway for a couple of days now.  This would be an exciting time to be in England!  

I’m remembering special sights from my recent visit to London.

The entranced to our hotel was marked by these flags.

Bicycles in place, waiting for someone to come to ride them.  This was the view while walking to Hyde Park one morning.

This is a monument in Hyde Park.

The Royal Albert Hall, across from Hyde Park.

The view from the door of our hotel.

Looking out the same front door with a slightly different angle.

Architecture on Gloucester Street across from where we were eating.

The Tower Bridge!  We boarded a ferry here and rode on the Thames River.

The view of Big Ben from the ferry.

We even rode under London Bridge!!

We were blessed to enjoy good weather while we were visiting.  

Who’s ready to join me in a cup of tea?  A scone, perhaps?  Have you made some Coronation Chicken Salad?

Wishing everyone a weekend filled with all good things!

A Saturday excursion…

It was just two weeks ago that oldest daughter and I took another excursion from London UK.

Several years ago, I began following the blog of Cherry Menlove in England.  In fact, I bought these two books which she wrote.  They are still available from Amazon.

In the past few years, she has opened a deli/bakery in Petworth in West Sussex.  Never in my wildest dreams had I thought it would be possible to visit someday!  That is, however, where we headed on May 14th!

The train doesn’t have a station in Petworth, and we had to get off in Pulborough.

The interior of the train….

Off in Pulborough….

On the bus to Petworth….

A first glimpse of Petworth from the bus stop…

It wasn’t difficult to locate Cherry’s Deli…

However, she wasn’t at the deli.  She was at Petworth Park, the site of the Antiques and Fine Art Fair, where her deli was the food vendor!

Before we went to Petworth Park, I took this picture of the deli.

She is hard at work!

A guide to Petworth Park.

The menu was on display…

Forgot to take a picture of the salad before I began eating! It was delicious!

The tent, draping at the top with a chandelier created the perfect atmosphere!

How lovely it was to finally be able to meet Cherry!  She was incredibly welcoming and charming!  

If you find yourself in the area, you will be glad you stopped at Cherry’s Deli and Bakery!

All too soon, it was time to board the train to return to London.

Quite a special Saturday memory!  

Another train ride…

On Thursday, May 12, it was another train ride, this time from London’s Paddington Station to Oxford.  

Oldest daughter had spent some time studying at Exeter College in 1994, so we were traveling on familiar ground for her. 

Oxford University is comprised of over 30 colleges, and we viewed portions of two of them.  The following pictures are from this tour.

Flowers were in bloom. I’m not able to identify them.  Perhaps one of you will be able to comment on what kind they are.

Beautiful interior of a chapel.

John Wesley attended Lincoln College.

This is the tree of Harry Potter movie fame!

Prince Charles had been scheduled to make a visit to Trinity College (where he attended) for the opening of a new building around the time we were there.  We didn’t see him.  Someone mentioned that he may have used another entrance.  

Most of the buildings we viewed are part of New College.

More floral beauty in green spaces that the buildings surround.

Other buildings in the area.

It is possible to climb stairs that reach to the top of this church tower.

Maintaining green spaces on the campus.

We ate lunch here, the oldest pub in Oxford.

Stuart Holloway leads us on our Oxford tour.

It was an amazing day, and our time there was not long enough!  

This has been a difficult week for many.  Remember to treat everyone with kindness.  There are those who are experiencing struggles of which we are unaware.  Let’s be their light of hope!