Positively....

"Keep your thoughts positive because your thoughts become your words.

Keep your words positive because your words become your behavior.

Keep your behavior positive because your behavior becomes your habits.

Keep your habits positive because your habits become your values.

Keep your values positive because your values become your destiny."

        .............Mahatma Gandhi

Maya Angelou

This wonderful woman passed away today...... and one of the sweetest, most honest and honorable and most-listened-to voices is now still and quiet...... the world has indeed lost a treasure.

How time does fly...

When I got my first part-time job as a stenographer/typist for a law firm, I was a 16-year-old high school senior.  As I opened the envelope containing my first paycheck, I was surprised to see that Social Security had been taken out of my pay.  I asked the lawyers about that.... they said they had to do it, even though I was part-time, and my boss added: "One day when you're over 60 you'll thank us for doing that."

At 16, Social Security and any age over 60 is at least two or three life-times away.  Isn't it?

I started working full-time at other secretarial and bookkeeping jobs, finally settling into the job of a book-lover's dream.... working in a public library.  I started out at the library as a part-timer, waiting for a full-time job to open up, which it eventually did.  Then the full-time job eventually led to a supervisory position, which I gladly applied for.... and that's the job I had when I left that library sixteen years later, moving from NY to Texas.

And with all those jobs, for all those years, Social Security was deducted from my paychecks.  And still, the age of 62 still seemed like a life-time away.

Well, pooh.  This is my 62nd year.  That life-time crept up while I wasn't looking, I guess.

I had to make the decision.... would I apply for the Social Security checks, or wait till age 65 or 70. My husband suggested that I wait till I turn 70... "We don't need the money," he said.   Then he added "Who knows... they may even run out of Social Security money by then anyway?"  (And why don't they ever run out of bail-out money for huge banks and corporations?  Or run out of money for public assistance programs?  Seems to me that the Social Security fund is always the one threatened.)

Well...... this is my 62nd year.  And doesn't age 70 seem like a life-time away?

Today, my first Social Security check was direct-deposited into my bank account.  I know that because I checked first thing this morning, to make sure.  They will continue to direct-deposit the payments each month.... I will continue to check the bank balance, to make sure.

I don't plan on spending the money. I'll just let it build up into a nice savings account.  Am I saving for a rainy day?  No.... I'm saving for another life-time, which still seems so very far away.

Weekend visit...

Our young friend Miss C drove up here with one of her girlfriends yesterday..... we all had a nice lunch and a good long visit (but never quite long enough).  We told C about the trip to London, and my husband showed the girls some of the photos.  I told both girls that when they ever get a chance to fly over the Atlantic, England has to be first on their must-see list of countries, without a doubt.

No matter how much time passes between C's visits, our cats remember her and run up to say hello. Especially Mickey Kitty, who was just a teeny-tiny kitten the first time he saw C..... he crawled up on her shoulder when he met her, and started to bury himself in her hair..... and he does the same exact thing with C each and every time they're together.

King George (the peacock) didn't make an appearance while C was here, and Orange Kitty stayed hidden underneath the cottage, but came out shortly after C and her friend drove down the road headed towards home.

This house is always so alive when C is here, and then drifts back into silence when she's gone. Not that there's anything wrong with silence... but both my husband and I have commented recently that we miss having C as an every-day part of our lives.

Love notes to London...

I loved that people eating together in restaurants didn't have their cell phones next to the silverware, nor did their cell phones ring once they sat down. As my husband and I were talking about what we had just seen, and what we would do next, people at nearby tables were having actual conversations, just not three-word questions and one-word answers.  The connections between friends and families there were 'in the moment,' not through hand-held electronic equipment.

I loved how the British treat their dogs.... like family members, not just four-legged animals.  Dogs were brought on the underground trains and the double-decker buses.... they sat on their owner's laps, or right close to their feet. None of them were ill-trained and never did we hear so much as a tiny growl from any of the dogs we saw on London's public transport.  At nearly all of the outdoor cafes, we saw dogs quietly sleeping by their owner's feet, or sitting down near their tables and just watching the world go by.  Mostly all of the stores have metal rings near the doors so dogs' leashes can be securely tied down while (whilst!) their owners are shopping.  We saw one man and his dog in three different parts of London on three different days..... as the man stretched out on a park bench in the sun, his dog slept belly-side-up between the man's legs, and everyone who passed either took notice and smiled or took a photo.

All of the cafes and restaurants we went to were kept with pride, with respect to the customers and the food they served.  The museum cafes were outstanding, and the food they offered was gourmet quality,  nothing served on paper plates with plastic forks and paper cups.  Even the food vendors at The Borough Market under the London Bridge.... the food was garden-to-market fresh, and cooked with care and cleanliness. The Tower Cafe, at The Tower of London, was a first-rate example of perfection, with excellent food, and efficient employees beyond measure.

The town of Hammersmith, where our B&B was located, was filled with three and four-story townhouses, mostly all with tiny gardens out front....... roses bloomed and rock gardens were arranged, and some homes had slate or concrete driveways tucked under ancient trees. We saw very few residences there with unkempt properties. Every morning, the shop-keepers and cafe owners in the town's center would be sweeping their sidewalks and cleaning off the outdoor tables and chairs.

The city of London was very crowded at certain times of the day, and the underground trains were over-flowing with passengers during rush-hour times. Never once did we hear foul language, no one had a city-attitude, everyone was helpful when we asked for directions. As my husband studied the map of the train and bus stops, sometimes a Londoner would ask if help was needed. And then, as we got close to the point where we needed to get off, that Londoner would remind us to exit the train.  And always, on every train, there would be that gentle recorded announcement to "Mind the gap." as we left the train.

I loved the double-decker buses, which we used every day. From the top tier of the bus, we could appreciate the ornate architecture of the buildings, and see off into the distance and look at tall townhouses and small apartment buildings.  Nearly all of the ground-floor businesses have apartments on the upper floors, and just about every restaurant and cafe has outdoor tables and chairs.  A few of the cafes had small lap-blankets on the back of every outdoor chair, in case your legs got cold from a London chill coming off the Thames.

We saw twelve museums while in London, and in nearly all of them, there were groups of school children with their teachers. All the children were nicely dressed in their school uniforms, and all but a very few were quiet and well-behaved (those that weren't behaving were told just once by their teacher to 'be quiet, look, and learn,' and that one sentence ended the high-jinks.  With one particular group of second-graders, a little boy looked up at his teacher and told her: "I am thoroughly enjoying this outing!"  Just imagine... that sort of compliment from a such a young student. I loved it, just loved it.

People-watching in London was a treat.... all the styles were mind-boggling, to say the least. The fashions, or even the lack of fashion, was a never-ending kaleidoscope of color, texture, and design. Women wore vintage clothing with just-off-the-rack styles. Everyone wore layers upon layers, dressing for the cool mornings and prepared for the warmer afternoons that would switch into cooler evenings. While we were there, I learned to do the same, although I didn't mix vintage with current styles.... I mixed classics with classics and felt very comfortable, very British.  And no one, absolutely no one, judged anyone else's garments, as they do constantly in New York.  People wore what they had, wore what they liked, wore what was comfortable and convenient and somehow, everyone looked as they should in their own mind. On one particular bus ride, I was sitting next to an older lady wearing a very pretty hat. It was so pretty, and she looked so nice in it, that I told her just that. She smiled so wide... and told me she had designed the hat.  The hat itself was nearly 50 years old, she said, but every year, she added different ribbons and trims and she ended up 'with a new hat, for just a pound or two.'

In the past twenty years, my husband and I have been to six countries and 30 states... never once have we come home from a destination with such vivid and stirring memories that are still with us a week after landing at the Texas airport.

I love you, London..... I love your heart, your character, your history, your traditions, your good manners, your sense of style, your tea, your everything.

Tea in London

We never did get to a "High Tea," but when we go back, I would definitely put that on our schedule.  I had tea wherever we ate, and every cup was respectfully served and deliciously prepared.  Not only did they give you a china cup and saucer and a dainty little silver spoon, but the tea was presented in a teapot on a tray.  "Twining's English Breakfast Tea" was always served, no matter if I ordered it in the morning, at lunch, or in the evenings.

My very first cup of tea in London, at The Grove Cafe, was so delicious that it brought tears to my eyes because it tasted exactly like the tea my grandmothers used to make.  I don't drink coffee at all, and I've always loved good tea, and I'd rather do without than have a cup of tea that's poorly made.  And don't even offer me a cup of tea in one of those take-away cardboard cups.... and if you're making tea in the microwave, then I'm out the door.

But the tea in London.... at any of the tea salons, in the museums, in all of the restaurants.... delicious, just delicious, and properly made, and meant to be leisurely enjoyed.

Since we've been back home, I've been using one of my teapots every day... a small one that will make two cups of tea.... small teacups, not mug-sized cups.  I've bought Twining's English Breakfast tea.... I've put the milk into the cup first, then the sugar, and then poured in the hot tea.... stirring it with a small silver spoon that's in proportion to the Made-in-England china cup and saucer.

The little teapot sits on an oval china plate, along with a very small sugar bowl and creamer... I've been trying to have tea every day between three and four o'clock, which was about the time we had tea in London because by that time of the afternoon, we needed a break from sight-seeing.

The sugar that was served with tea in London was not loose-sugar that you scoop up with a spoon. All of the cafes and tea salons had both white and brown crumbles of sugar.... not perfectly-made cubes, but little clumps or crumbles in uneven shapes and sizes. I tried both the white and the brown, and those light brown crumbles definitely made the tea sweeter... a smaller brown crumble would be even sweeter than a larger white crumble.

Both of my grandmothers took time every afternoon to sit down with a cup of tea. They each had a collection of teacups, a habit that I naturally picked up from them. My grandmothers were Italian, not British.... and they each put sugar and milk into their tea, and always had a little piece of cake or a biscuit or a cookie with their tea. It was a daily ritual with both grandmothers, one that I was taught when I was just three or four years old.  I was given my own little china cup and saucer, with a very small spoon. We would sit at the table, always covered with a pretty tablecloth..... with that plate of something sweet in the middle of the table with the sugar bowl and creamer.

With my afternoon tea now, in this house, I don't know if I'm trying to duplicate tea in London, or tea with my grandmothers.

Westminster Abbey

Not only did we tour the entire Abbey, but we attended a Sunday afternoon organ recital and heard The Coronation March played on that historic and beautiful instrument. (These recitals are given every Sunday, unless otherwise noted on the events board outside the Abbey.) There is always a line of people waiting to tour the Abbey, and we waited about 45 minutes on a Saturday morning, but it was definitely worth the wait, without a doubt.

When you walk into Westminster Abbey, your jaw drops open and stays there.  Everywhere you look, every corner, every stained glass window, every chandelier, every altar, every everything is just exquisite, and exquisitely old and cherished.  We have been to dozens of churches in Germany, and we thought nothing could top those.... but (with apologies to the Germans) Westminster Abbey tops them all, and then some.

As you begin the tour of the Abbey, you're given a little device that looks like a cell phone. You walk around the Abbey and there are little numbered signs in all the aisles and corners..... you type those numbers into your little phone-thing and a very polite and soft-spoken British voice gives you the history behind what you're looking at.

Even though you're listening to the recorded voice as you walk around the Abbey, you can't help but look at everything else around you, as well as the spot you're standing in.  There are statues and sculptures, tombs and graves, stained glass and altars, monuments and busts, engravings and artwork.... and there's the Poets' Corner and the Lady Chapel (that chapel will take your breath away because it's so delicately beautiful).

Our Abbey tour was on a Saturday, and then we were back there the following day for the late afternoon organ recital.  Hearing that music, in that beautiful Abbey, was just beyond description.  And for me, after all the years that I watched the televised weddings and funerals that took place in the Abbey, to be standing right there was just a lot to bear and I had tears in my eyes from time to time.

Still more British museums...

The Victoria and Albert Museum was  just stunning..... displays were well-planned and easy to see even with crowds..... and the rooms were just filled with collections and artwork dating from the year 700...... paintings and sculpture, furniture, silver and gold, precious jewelry.  Definitely a not-to-be-missed British gem of a museum. The outside of the building is very grand, and the entrance itself makes a statement that everything inside its doors is most important and much respected.

We went to the Science Museum because my husband was particularly interested in the section containing the very first computer, made by Charles Babbage.  We looked at other displays as well, which were all interesting and educational, but the Babbage computer is what brought us there. It's always over-whelming to me when original notebooks and drawings and blueprints are available for viewing, and they had those as well, in glass cases near Babbage's computer equipment..... they're referred to as his "scribbling books."

As a note... Charles Babbage (1791 - 1871) was Victorian England's most creative thinker... so impressive was this brilliant man that when he died, scientists studied his brain. The right side of his brain in on display in a glass jar in the Victoria and Albert Museum.

Another museum we visited was the Tate... 500 years of British art is in that building. We had a guide which directed us to the highlights, and we by-passed the very modern displays (I have to wonder why they were in the Tate at all, considering that London has a Modern Art museum.  Every British artist you can think of is in this museum.... with rooms devoted to Turner, Constable, Sargeant.

We also went to the Natural History Museum, but didn't spend that much time there. After the Victoria & Albert and the Science Museum, the Natural History was a bit of a let-down.  Ditto for the Soane's Museum, which basically was a private home filled with dimly-lighted and haphazardly displayed furniture and artwork and architectural pieces.

The Portrait Gallery was a visual delight.... every British Royal you can think of is in there...... I expected to see more portraits of Queen Elizabeth II, so that was a little disappointing.  The portraits of Queen Elizabeth I were outstanding and mesmerizing.

The Musical Museum near Kew....... that was so nice that we went back a second time, to see everything again the day before we left for home.  I can still hear the music boxes playing, and I know that if we lived there, both my husband and I would offer to be volunteers in that wonderful place.  If you want a nice musical treat, do a search on a song called "The Umbrella Man," sung by Flanagan and Allen. We heard that song in the Musical Museum and we're both still humming it. My husband found it on the Internet, it's in both of our computers and we've been playing it every day since we got home.

Harrods

I've read books on the famous Harrods of Knightsbridge, and love the history of that huge store, so of course we had to go there.  From one tiny store-front, Harrods now has over four acres of selling space. And they do sell everything...... if it can be found anywhere in the world, you can order it at Harrods and they will not only get it for you, but deliver it to your door if you live over there.

As soon as we walked inside the store, we asked for a store guide... with so many departments, on so many levels, it would have been impossible to find anything without knowing which direction to head off to.  I was aware that Harrods would be expensive, but neither my husband nor I were prepared for such prices.  And I kept having to remind myself that the prices were in pounds, not dollars, which made them even more expensive.

We looked at a few of the luxury-item departments, and it was like looking at the Crown Jewels..... way off the charts in price, but also off the charts in beauty.  One of my favorite departments was "The Writing Room," an entire selling space dedicated to pens and stationary and desk accessories. Again, off the charts in the pricing..... but looking doesn't cost a penny.

The Food Courts in Harrods are quite impressive..... whatever food you can think of that's on this planet, you'll find it at Harrods... and if they don't have what you're wanting, they'll order it for you.  Plus, the Food Courts themselves were so rich with design and architecture that they were a feast for the eyes.  We didn't splurge on one of the cafes within the store, but we did get take-away lunches from one of their many Deli counters... all of which have ready-made gourmet foods.  We ate our delicious lunch that day on a sunny bench outside the Victoria and Albert Museum.

Now I can say that I've been to Harrods..... and I can also say that I'm glad I was able to find items from Harrods in the shops of Camden Passage, where the prices were more reasonable.  If (when) we go back to London, I'd want to go back to Harrods and look at more of their departments and merchandise.

Camden Passage and Regent Street

We walked along London's Camden Passage, which is a series of winding streets filled with tiny shops and outdoor booths, filled with flea-market treasures new and old (mostly old). Some of the indoor shops were about the size of a walk-in closet here in Texas, and other stores were smaller than the inside of a large refrigerator. No matter the size, the vendors had their wares displayed nicely, and it was a flea-marketer's dream-come-true.

I found some good treasures here, gifts to bring home to family and friends.... and I resisted the urge to buy a silver teapot for myself.  I had a sterling teapot years ago, but the Texas weather didn't cooperate with keeping that teapot bright and shining.  As I looked at that cute little teapot in Camden Passage, part of me wanted it so badly just because it was old and British-made and I love teapots in general.... but then I got to thinking that I'd spend the rest of my life polishing it or I'd be selling it in my booth at the antique shop (like I did with my first silver teapot).  So after picking up that sterling teapot three times (and the vendor gave me a cheaper price each time) I put it down and just walked away.

We also found a shop that sold vintage music boxes... a small store with large glass windows in the front. My husband found the shop on the Internet and had planned to visit while we were there.  Not far from the music box store was a tiny closet-sized shop that sold hand-made chocolates..... we spoke to the candy-makers, took our time choosing chocolates one by one, which they put into a beautiful gold box and tied up with a purple ribbon. Everything, every little thing, is done with such care and grace...... there's just no other way to explain how twenty minutes in a candy shop can leave such an indelible impression on your mind.

We had our first 'fish and chips' meal that day, after our stop in Camden Passage. My husband asked some of the locals to direct us to a good pub for fish and chips, and everyone suggested the same place. Off we went, walking the cobblestone streets..... and had the most delicious lunch at Charmagne's Fish and Chips Shop.  I don't usually eat fried foods, but I had promised my cousin F that I'd have fish and chips in London, and I knew she'd be asking me about that when we got back home. Without a doubt, that meal was worth the calories...... plus with all the walking we did, I don't think those calories mattered that much anyway.

We took a double-decker bus to Regent Street after lunch.... and found Hamley's Toy Store, which is over 250 years old. Amazing place.... you go in their door and it's like walking into a British DisneyLand.... toys and games and fun things wherever you look, with their sales people all over the store, all holding different toys and games and displaying them, "selling" each one whether you wanted to buy them or not. What a fun place to work, but the faint-of-heart need not apply..... to work there, you need a massive reservoir of enthusiasm.  They had Lego-statues of Prince Charles, and William and Kate....... and a candy store on the top floor that had every sweet thing you could wish for.

My husband and I had dinners and lunches at a lot of pubs during our 10-day trip to London. All of the pubs were neighborhood gathering places, filled with friends and families...... the food was always very good, the pubs were clean and tidy, the restrooms were tiny beyond belief (and always either on the top floor or the below-stairs floor).... lots of winding stairways with lots of narrow steps in all those old pubs.

Every day of this trip was an experience, and an unforgettable memory.

The Tower of London, Tower Bridge, London Bridge

We had a rainy day when we went to the Tower of London.... but we couldn't let a little rain (sometimes a lot of rain) stop us from seeing this famous landmark.  Right in the middle of the city of London, there sits the Tower of London....... just amazing.  Right next to it is Tower Bridge, which is just beautiful, and very ornate... standing outside on the sidewalk, you didn't know where to look first.... but no matter where you looked from that point, the views were unbelievable.

We walked into about 4 or 5 of the towers within the complex there.... saw the Crown Jewels, which are in glass display cases.... we ooohed and aaahed over them three times... after the moving walkway in front of those cases takes you from one end to the other, you can re-trace your steps to see both sides of all the historic crowns and jewels. Absolutely breath-taking.... we looked at them all three times...... and then moved on to the display cases holding the silver and gold items that are used for coronations and ceremonies.

One of the towers is filled with weapons and shields, and metal armour used by the soldiers, knights, and even the horses. Guns and cannons and equipment for torture.... it's all there in the towers.  Lots of steps, most of which are uneven, so you have to be careful as you walk to the upper floors in the towers.  I kept touching the walls, wondering whose hands had touched those same spots in the centuries and centuries before London was a tourist destination.

There was a beautiful cafe in one of the towers, and we had lunch there. The food was presented so nicely, everything fresh and hand-made, and served on real china with real forks and knives... no plastic plates and forks and paper cups in any of the London cafes, no matter where we stopped to eat.

The rain went from a drizzle to a downpour, so we left the Tower grounds, but stopped at Southwark Cathedral.... it's 1000 years old, and still open to the public for services. There are tombs within the church grounds, dating back to the 1500s and 1600s.

Under the London Bridge (just a bridge for cars, and definitely not ornate in design like the Tower Bridge).... we found the Borough Market... an outdoor market filled with mostly food vendors..... fresh and home-made foods that looked delicious (representing every country you can think of)... but we had eaten lunch at the cafe within The Tower complex.   We did buy some chocolates (handmade) from one of the vendors and saved them for later on in the day.

The banking district of London had a small clock museum on the ground floor of one of their buildings.... we stopped there and looked at all the clocks and pocket-watches... an amazing collection, and free to anyone who wants a look-see.

We had dinner that night at an Italian cafe in Holland Park (near Notting Hill) called Mr. Pumpernink's..... wonderful little cafe, its owner originally from New York..... he moved to London 40 years ago and opened the cafe........ and they have the best pizza we've had since we moved out of NY twenty years ago.  The manager of the cafe was very nice, we could see our pizza being made, the waitress was very sweet when she brought my teapot on a small tray with the little pitcher of milk..... we felt like it was home, back in NY, and we had dinner there quite a bit during our stay.  Every time we walked in, the cafe manager seemed both happy and surprised to see us again. By the time we left London, we felt like we were saying goodbye to old friends in that cafe.  We knew we would never find pizza so delicious once we got back to the States, unless the plane stopped in NY first.

We also discovered a French pastry cafe (a patisserie) called "Paul."  Delicious home-made pastry and cakes, rolls and breads, cookies and sweets of all kinds... everything freshly made, presented so nicely on pretty plates..... and of course the tea was delicious.  We usually had dessert and tea there at night, sitting at the tiny tables and talking about the day's adventures and just enjoying the tea and the atmosphere.

The British Library

This building and its contents were totally over-whelming and humbling, to say the least. We spent a lot of time in here, just looking with disbelief at the history contained within its walls.  As a bit of trivia, The British Library contains approximately twelve million books.

The list of this library's historical documents cannot be fully listed here.... I'd be typing for at least a month.  We saw original drawings by Leonardo da Vinci... original music scores by Handel, Mozart, Beethoven, Debussy, Stravinsky, and The Beatles.  And that's just those that I remember.

Literature was well-represented also.... original manuscripts by Sir Walter Raleigh, Jane Austen, Charles Dickens, Charlotte Bronte, Elizabeth Barrett Browning, Oscar Wilde, Sylvia Plath.  The sole surviving manuscript of "Beowulf" is also here, under glass of course, along with the other hand-written manuscripts.

In glass display cases, there were hand-written letters from Napoleon, Charles Darwin, Isaac Newton, Samuel Pepys, TE Lawrence, Winston Churchill, Michelangelo, Galileo...... to name but a few.  It was incredible to see the handwriting of people with such historical and cultural significance.

They had the personal prayer book of Princess Elizabeth, dated 1545..... and a handwritten Chinese almanac, dated 877.  There were sacred prayer books from all corners of the world, hand-written and hand-painted... some of them seemed to glow even under the dim lighting (kept dim, to protect the ancient pages).

In a very small, separate room, they had the original copy of The Magna Carta..... very dim lighting in there, once again to protect the document, dated 1215.  The critical principle of "The Great Charter" was that the King, like his people, was subject to the law.  This room was always filled with people, yet you could hear a pin drop... everyone was just so quiet and so respectful of this amazing document.

There was a collection of bibles, some of them hand-written, a lot of them with hand-painted illustrations, from all over the world.  Another display case had a personal collection of hand-made book covers... everything from the finest silk and satin to the most precious gold and gem-stones.

The British Library had the most wonderful bookstore and gift shop, which of course we had to see. I found books of all kinds there, and knew I'd have to buy one to take home. After much looking, and after picking up at least two dozen possibilities, I chose a red-cloth-covered edition of "Jane Eyre," by Charlotte Bronte..... such a beautiful book, small in size, but gigantic in beauty with all of its pages edged in gold.  I already have a copy of this book, one of my favorites, but this small red and gold volume from The British Library will be a treasure of its own for my library shelves, and I'll read it yet again before setting it into its place on the bookcase.

A Day Filled with London Museums

Three days after arriving in London, my husband's well-planned-out schedule had us enjoying an early breakfast at The Grove cafe in Hammersmith (quite close to our B&B), and then we took a double-decker bus towards Piccadilly Circus.  And a circus it was... people-watching in Piccadilly can be an all-day enjoyment, and you have to prepare yourself for both the historical and the comical, as I told my cousin F in one of my postcards to New York.

London fashion is beyond anything I've seen in our travels over the years..... layers of vintage clothing mixed with just-released-from-the-runway outfits..... and somehow, most of it works. Not for me, though.... I like classic styles that don't go out of style in fifteen minutes. But I did enjoy the people-watching, I have to say... and we did see it all..... including young men in skirts and tights, and one particularly daring man in an Alice In Wonderland outfit that would have had even the Mad Hatter blushing bright red.

We went to the Wallace Collection Museum.... a beautiful old mansion filled with paintings and artwork, chandeliers, mirrors and clocks, and furniture covered in the most luxurious fabrics I've ever seen. This home was truly a much-loved jewel box of priceless art and artifacts.... not to be missed, and if (when) we go back to London, I'd want to see this museum again. Even the carpeting and the ceiling woodwork and the staircases were intricately beautiful and ornate..... and we made sure to stay close to the vintage clocks as they chimed...... so lovely to hear, all of them.

From there we went to the Toy Museum on Whitfield Street.... once again, an old private home (not a mansion) filled with tiny rooms and alcoves and stairways... each packed with vintage toys and games, cards and blocks and stuffed animals, doll houses and marbles and dolls, horses and soldiers...... everywhere you looked, you found toys, toys, and more toys, of every decade beginning with the Victorian era.  Even the narrow staircases, which you have to walk through with care because of the different-sized steps and the lack of elbow room.... those walls were covered with vintage board games and tiny shelves filled with miniature toys.  I would imagine that children would love this museum, but it's definitely a no-touching zone, so kids would have to be on their very best behavior.

We had lunch that day at "The Green Door," a small cafe owned by a Greek family..... no menu....... he writes on a chalk-board every morning, listing what he has made for the day. When the food is gone, the 'closed' sign goes up and the door is locked.  I had baked fish and salad, and my husband had meatballs and potatoes..... totally home made and perfectly fresh..... and the owner gave us a piece of his wife's just-made carrot cake for dessert.  We told the owner we lived in Texas and found his restaurant on-line, and had written him into our itinerary that day for our lunch.  He was thrilled, and wanted to give us more cake.

After we said goodbye to our new Greek friend, we went to The British Museum...... they had thousands of books from the library of King George V.... and book-lover that I am, I was trying to read as many of the titles as I could. The one book that I remember--- "The State of Virginia," by Thomas Jefferson.  (A signed first edition for the king, without a doubt.)

In the British Museum, the Rosetta Stone is on display behind glass..... amazing piece of history. They also had one of the Easter Island statues set up on a huge wooden platform.  So much to see in that particular museum..... my husband got a map of the building, which had the highlights of the collection pin-pointed, so we saw all of those before leaving.  I would imagine you would need most of a full day to see everything the British Museum has to offer.

We found a small Italian restaurant for dinner later that evening.... "Bella Italia."  We ordered a very small pizza and split it. The restaurant was in the middle of a very busy area, but that particular street was closed to auto traffic, so it was a quiet meal.  So much of London is filled with buses, walkers, bicycle-riders, and noise, noise, noise......but a happy wholesome noise. At no time did we feel threatened by the city-life there.

We're still talking about how polite and well-mannered the British people are. One of the passengers on the underground train told us about the possibility of a 'tube strike' the week we were there. But the strikers themselves are so polite that they announced the day and time they might strike, as well as the day and time they would resume work.  My husband called it a 'polite strike.'  That strike, however, never happened, so we were free to come and go via the underground or the buses, without any problems other than getting on the wrong train, which we quickly corrected by getting off at the next stop and back-tracking. In the ten days of our trip, I think that happened just twice, which is pretty good considering we don't ever take public transportation at home. (Actually, there isn't any public transportation here at home.)

Buckingham Palace

We spent over an hour waiting to see The Changing of The Guards at Buckingham Palace on our third day in London. Once again, it was a beautiful and sunny day..... and the crowds were overwhelming in front of the Palace. The British flag was flying high atop Buckingham, and I was wondering if the Queen looks out of her windows every morning to look at all the people watching the Palace.

The Changing of The Guards.... impressive, to say the least..... the best place to watch is at either end, not in the center of the gates.... much too crowded in the center parts.... and don't be standing right in front of the gates because the police will ask you kindly (but firmly) to move because the gates will have to be opened during the ceremony.

We rode the double-decker bus to see Big Ben (which chimed the hour for us) and the Parliament building..... and had lunch at The Albert Pub.  Another bus to Trafalgar Square.... and we went to The National Gallery to look at the paintings.

A visit to London isn't complete without walking along Charing Cross Road, which is a bit of heaven for book-lovers.  84 Charing Cross Road (made famous in the book of the same name by Helene Hanff) is a must-see..... but it's no longer a bookstore.... it's a Belgium cafe.

We walked so much that day (as well as every other day)..... comfy shoes are a must..... I was fine in the Pikolinos shoes that I had ordered on-line, but still, with all the cobblestone streets, and miles and miles of walking (both outside and then inside museums), by the end of the day your feet will tell you if you have walked too much.  I saw a lot of women in high heels and wondered how much practice they needed to be able to navigate around the cobblestones without turning an ankle. As much as I love to wear heels, cobblestone streets just don't make sense with heels.

Every night when we went back to the B&B, we would miss our big bed and our separate bathrooms.... it's a luxury to not have to share a bathroom with your husband, and I'm sure my husband enjoys having his own bathroom as well..... and that bathroom at the B&B was probably smaller than any hotel bathroom we've ever had to share.  We didn't see the B&B owner very much..... we left before she got up for the day, and we returned to our room just before dark and that's usually when she was out to dinner. They eat much later in London than we're used to, so it was never difficult getting a table at the restaurants we chose for dinner each night.

Riding the underground trains...... very crowded, very noisy..... I liked riding the buses much better. I never did like riding the NYC subways, and the London underground is much like the subway, but without the litter and the graffiti. The trains were very clean, with nicely upholstered seats, and the stations were very tidy as well. The buses, most of which are double-decker, give you such a different perspective of the city..... you can see everything, and every little thing is so worth seeing.

The Musical Museum at Kew Bridge

On our second day in London, after having breakfast at The Grove in Hammersmith, we took the bus to Brentford, Middlesex to visit "The Musical Museum."  Both my husband and I have an interest in mechanical music boxes, and this particular museum has one of the world's most famous collections of "mechanical musical instruments."

This museum was the dream of one man (Frank Holland) and after his death in 1989, a charitable trust was created to keep the museum operational and staffed by volunteers. The museum is filled with all kinds of player pianos, barrel organs, large orchestrions (which simulates a large orchestra), violin players (a music box simulating piano, percussion, and violins)... music boxes that play paper music rolls, noted cardboard music sheets (handmade by a noteur), pipe organs, a huge Wurlitzer organ, Philharmonic organs, and many many more that I can't remember just now.

The Musical Museum was so inspiring that we visited it on the second day of our trip, and again on the last day of the trip..... the volunteers are enthusiastic and informative, and their passion and deep respect for this collection is clearly visible.

We had lunch that day at a pub called The Cricketer, which is across the road from a beautiful green field which has hosted cricket games since 1737. Honestly, everywhere you look, there are historical signs dating back not just years but centuries.

Back on the bus, and we went to St. Paul's Cathedral for an organ recital. Such a beautiful church, and the music coming from that massive organ was just breath-taking. The Sunday recitals are free, and very much worth the time. Funny thing about St. Paul's that day.... there were two pigeons high up in the dome of the church, flying from one side to the other, apparently having simply walked into the open doors of the church one day and not being smart enough to get out the same way.  I was surprised to see simple chairs in St. Paul's, rather than heavy wooden pews.

We had dinner in London's 'China Town' that night, and walked along the streets in the theater district.... we saw the Lyceum, the Globe, the Hippodrome. It was all so surreal...... everything you can imagine is in London.... from the historical to the comical, from the economical to the astronomical.... it's all there.... you just have to look for it.

Kensington Gardens

Our Bed & Breakfast in Hammersmith was within a short bus or underground ride to everything that was on our must-see-in-London list.  That first day we arrived at Heathrow, we checked into the B&B to drop off our suitcases, get the key, and go out exploring--- rather than sleep, which we really wanted to do after getting off of that plane. So many people coughing and sneezing on that flight, we're lucky we didn't both get sick.

We went to Kensington Gardens, but knew we were too tired from the long flight to walk the entire Gardens, so we didn't pay to get into the Botanical area..... we walked instead around Kensington Palace, walked into the Palace to get some information (only a couple of rooms open to the public, and those rooms not fully furnished) so we didn't pay the entrance fee for that.  We took pictures of the Palace, I bought beautiful postcards in the gift shop there, and we walked around part of the gardens around the Palace itself. It was a beautiful, sunny, warm day..... families were out walking and bicycling with their children and their dogs, and it was such a happy atmosphere no matter where you looked.

Dogs are very much loved in England, and are allowed on the buses and the underground trains (they have to be on a leash, and if they're not well-behaved, the driver can ask them to "depart the transport.")  I talked to some of the dog owners, who were appalled that dogs are not allowed on "public transport" in the U.S.  One of the dog owners asked me "Well, whatever does one do if one can't bring the dog on a bus?"  When I said that the dog would be left at home, the look on that dog owner's face was pure disbelief and horror.

We had an early lunch at a small neighborhood pub that day... fresh salmon cakes with a fried egg on top of it, served on top of "wilted spinach," which was very good. Every neighborhood has at least two or three pubs, which are family cafes, really, and they all allow the family dogs to come and share the meals with their owners.

We went back to the B&B late that afternoon and took a much-needed nap..... then walked around the Hammersmith neighborhood again and found a tiny Chinese restaurant for dinner.  I kept looking up, up, up as we walked..... and the higher up you looked, the more beautiful the architecture of the homes..... all that decoration way up near the top of the roof....... and mostly everything you look at over there is hundreds of years old.  Built to last, that's for sure.

The double-decker buses were a treat for the eyes..... as the bus wound around the streets you could see all of the shops (very small ones, specialty shops) and then there are apartments over the stores.... and you just knew that those buildings had been there for at least a few hundred years.  Traffic goes very slowly in London, so there's plenty of time for sight-seeing...... too many cars and buses for fast driving, and it took us a while to get used to seeing everyone driving on the 'wrong side' of the road. We didn't rent a car there...... we took the underground or the buses..... didn't even splurge on a taxi because the public transportation was so easy for my husband to figure out.

Crossing the streets was an adventure.... you have to remember to look to your left, not to your right, because of the way the traffic is moving (on the wrong side of the road!)  There are plenty of cross-walks for that purpose, and it's best to use them, rather than trying to cross in the middle of the street.

I kept looking at all of those old buildings and homes, all the tiny shops......it was just hard to believe that after all the years of reading stories about England, and memoirs of British writers, that we were really in London.

And speaking of tiny shops..... we actually found "The Old Curiosity Shop," made famous by Charles Dickens....... it's still a shop... they sell very expensive European shoes now.... the shop has changed owners many times over the years.... it was teeny-tiny-tiny..... and it brought tears to my eyes, just seeing it there on that very narrow street in the middle of busy London.

My first cup of tea in Hammersmith, at The Grove (neighborhood cafe)................ it also brought tears to my eyes..... Twinings English Breakfast tea, with sugar and milk....... tasted just like the tea my grandmother used to make.  I took one sip of that tea and my eyes just puddled up with tears.

To London, to London, to visit the Queen.

We did go to London, but the Queen never did invite us in for tea. Oh well..... every cup of tea I had there was just delicious, and my first cup of tea brought tears to my eyes because it tasted just like the tea my grand mother used to make for me, with milk and sugar.  My eyes got all teared up after the first sip... there was just no hiding it.

Flight to London left from the Austin airport, which is smaller and much easier to deal with than the larger Houston airports. We left at dinner time..... got on the plane in daylight..... flew into darkness.... and when the plane landed in London, it was early morning the following day.  My husband quickly mastered the underground trains and the bus routes... and we made our way from Heathrow Airport to the Bed and Breakfast that he had arranged.

The B and B home was in Hammersmith.... convenient to London, but not right in the middle of the city.  We stayed on a quiet street there, in a very old four-story town-home.... the bedroom we stayed in was about the size of the smallest room in our own house, and the bathroom we used was the size of one of our closets.  My husband and I felt like we were living in a shoe-box the whole time we were there, after being used to the Texas-sized homes here, in particular our own home which has very big rooms.  It all worked out...... we got up early, left the B and B before eight o'clock every morning, had breakfast in  a nearby cafe, and didn't get back to the teeny-tiny bed/bath till nearly dark.... and then we fell into bed from being on our feet all day long. Of course, once you fall asleep, you don't even notice that the room you're sleeping in is about the size of a laundry room in a Texas house.

This trip to London had been scheduled for a couple of months ago.... we had to cancel  and re-book the flight because my husband hurt his leg on a ladder...... we knew that trying to get around London with one of us being on crutches wouldn't work, and as soon as we got there, I was glad we re-scheduled the whole trip. We flew British Airways, and they charged a ridiculous amount of money for re-booking those flights from March to May......  we weren't too happy with that, but what can you do.  Those charges, however, wouldn't encourage us to fly again on British Airways..... I'd love to go back to London, but I'd fly another airline.

Lots of coughing and sneezing on that flight to London...... we're lucky we both didn't get sick. (Knock wood.)  We slept some, watched some movies, they fed us dinner soon after getting up in the air, then gave us breakfast before we landed.  I tried to watch "12 Years a Slave" on that flight, but the movie was too upsetting...... I had read the book, which was easier to bear than the film, and I admired the book, the story, the writing.   I did watch "The Book Thief" on the plane and that was a beautiful movie..... I have the book up in the library, waiting to be read......... so I'll wait a few months and then I will read the book. I'm sure the author had more to say than what could be expressed on film.

London was everything I thought it would be, and then some. I wrote notes every day we were there, and I'll spend the next few days describing what we saw.... but right now, I'm still trying to catch up on Texas time, which is six hours earlier than London time.... so I'll start the travel descriptions tomorrow.

One thing is certain..... no matter where we go, no matter the city or the country.... there's nothing so great as coming back to your own home and your own bed.

No, my cats are not spoiled.

There I was in the thrift store yesterday, looking for things to sell in my antique shop booth. At the front of the store was an upholstered child-sized chair.... it was sturdy and well-made and looked very comfy, and it also looked nearly new. The best part was that the fabric was very soft, and it was in that brown and white patchy cow pattern that's so popular in western designed furniture.

I looked at that chair and knew that I could re-sell that at a good price in my shop booth.  Into the car it went, and I brought it home to put a price tag on it and record it in my inventory book. Before I had a chance to do just that, Sweet Pea decided that the chair was just his size...... and he sat it in to try it out, then curled up into his cat-ball napping position, and he slept in it for two hours right there in the kitchen. So much for the new price tag and bringing it to the antique shop.

When Sweet Pea woke up from his afternoon nap, I moved the chair into the TV room.... with him following me.  I put the chair in the back of the room near the piano. Sweet Pea stood by the door and just watched me. Something told me it wasn't in the right spot.  So I moved it to the other side of the room, near the bookcase. Sweet Pea didn't move an inch.  Then I moved it near the TV, and Sweet Pea walked right over to it. 'His' chair is positioned so that when he's in it, he can see us sitting on the sofa, or he can see the birds outside the windows. And he can also watch TV from that chair now (he likes the cooking shows.)   It was just so funny that as soon as I set the chair down in that spot, Sweet Pea walked over to it, curled up in his napping position, and went to sleep again.

I guess Sweet Pea's chair is in the right spot.  As I said.... No, my cats are not spoiled. Not a blessed bit.  I can see it now... my husband will be in his chair in the TV room, Sweet Pea will be in his little chair, and they'll be fighting over the remote.