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Dear Readers I think that long haul flights may be a bit like childbirth.

You think, "that wasn't so bad" so you go ahead and do it again, until half way through the process when you scream "what was I thinking"!

But- we survived, its getting harder as we get older.

12th January 

0730 -  Awake and traveled to George's for lunch and to repack our cases. Worried they'll be too heavy, throw out lots of stuff...

20:45 - plane leaves from Heathrow.

Thats already 13+ hours awake. 

Saturday vanished somewhere in Dubai.

14th January - Sunday

22hrs+ on the plane arrive Sydney plane late, nearly 0700, very little sleep on the plane.

Thats now 35+ hours awake.

Wait in airport until 12:15 for Armidale flight.

Thats now 40+ hours....

Plane late - technical problems. But finally home. All well, garden looks dry and messy.

Collected Miss Lizzy "Yippee"

By 19:00 pretty stuffed - more than 47 hours awake! Asleep as soon as head hits pillow, wide awake again at 01:00.... hummmm.

 

Here we are above, looking particularly daggy in our coats in Portsmouth.

Best Bits?

Definitely, the German Christmas markets. Christmas is different over there. Smells different, feels different, looks different.... Is different..

Other good bits - Blenheim Palace was pretty wonderful. Loved Carisbrooke Castle and the Isle of Wight. And my mate below.

Worst Bits

 Getting colds

Hauling luggage about

Rain
being asked if we had seniors cards (don't blame me, that's Grahams fault)

Last few posts got a bit delayed as Live Writer packed it in, so if these last few posts look a bit different that's why.... I may have to download Live Writer again or find a new blog system.

Miss Lizzy was very pleased to see us .... 
"Good grief, my Mum's Dear Readers, 7 weeks they left me at that kennel place,  that's nearly a whole dog year! But, I'm very pleased they are home so I can give them some Lizzy love"...

London - Thursday

LAST DAY!

which mostly revolves around the Royal Albert Hall.

The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London, which has held the Proms concerts annually each summer since 1941. It has a capacity of up to 5,272 seats. The Hall is a registered charity held in trust for the nation and receives no public or government funding.

Since its opening by Queen Victoria in 1871, the world's leading artists from many performance genres have appeared on its stage and it has become one of the UK's most treasured and distinctive buildings. The location of some of the most notable events in British culture, each year it hosts more than 390 shows in the main auditorium, including classical, rock and pop concerts, ballet, opera, film screenings with live orchestra, sports, award ceremonies, school and community events, charity performances and banquets. A further 400 events are held each year in the non-auditorium spaces. (Wikipedia)

We are back here tonight to see  Cirque du Soleil Ovo, but we thought we would like to do the tour in the daytime. So we got to see the place empty.

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Then after lunch we did a walking tour called ‘Hidden London’ (only 3 of us on the tour due to the dismal weather, cold and wet).

Above is something hidden, Big Ben is getting a facelift.

One thing that has changed this trip is the number of concrete barricades that are now in place. In fact there are so many that you stop noticing them.

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After the tour, (walked another 5 miles, next time we travel I am bringing a pedometer) and a wine in the Olde Cheshire Cheese pub…

…we returned to where we started this journey 7 weeks ago, Piccadilly Circus.

It was a quest to visit the Lotus shop, so Graham could make his expensive purchase of the trip. Another jacket, and now he’ll have to carry it home.

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So now back to the Royal Albert Hall, for tonight's performance of OVO.

And bless Cirque du Soleil.. they invite you to take photos of the performance and share on social media. However, they move too fast and its too dark to get a good shot, but I did take the one below of the of the trapeze bit…. 

……….And nicked these two below from the internet!

I think it was a romance between two bugs.

We did enjoy it…

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Now to start the homeward journey.

London- Wednesday

Second last day, and we went to visit the Tower Bridge. I’ve been under it in a boat, way above it in a plane and now we are going to walk across the walkways.

Some Interesting Facts

Tower Bridge has a fascinating history, which is explored in full in Tower Bridge Exhibition. Here’s some to get your started…

1910 - the high-level Walkways, which were designed so that the public could still cross the bridge when it was raised, were closed down due to lack of use.

1912 - during an emergency, Frank McClean had to fly between the bascules and the high-level walkways in his Short biplane, to avoid an accident.

1952 - a London bus driven by Albert Gunter had to leap from one bascule to the other when the bridge began to rise with the number 78 bus still on it.

1977 - Tower Bridge was painted red, white and blue to celebrate the Queen's Silver Jubilee. (Before that, it was painted a chocolate brown colour).

1982 - Tower Bridge opened to the public for the first time since 1910, with a permanent exhibition inside called The Tower Bridge Experience.

(City of London, Tower Bridge site)

And its not cold today, I am actually getting overheated in my coat.

There are glass panels in the walkways so one can look down on the traffic and pedestrians below.

No crowds again, the bonus of being here in winter.

…And, Dear Readers, we found the mirrored ceiling that is missing from our boudoir.

Its on the Tower Bridge so you can take selfies of yourself with the road below.

Says Kim – “How does this work Graham , its a bit too technical for me”

Says Graham,,, “You need to point the camera at the ceiling and look up, silly”

Says Kim… “Ahhh – like this”!

Then it was a stop downstairs to visit the engine room that once produced the steam to raise the bridge –They are not used now,  Its been electric since 1976.

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And then a visit to Harrods to but the 2017 Christmas Bear to add to my collection.

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And Dear Readers! Much excitements as we are going to a Panto at the London Palladium!!!!

Pantomime (informally panto) is a type of musical comedy stage production designed for family entertainment. It was developed in England and is still performed throughout the United Kingdom, generally during the Christmas and New Year season and, to a lesser extent, in other English-speaking countries.

Modern pantomime includes songs, gags, slapstick comedy and dancing, employs gender-crossing actors and combines topical humour with a story loosely based on a well-known fairy tale, fable or folk tale.  

It is a participatory form of theatre, in which the audience is expected to sing along with certain parts of the music and shout out phrases to the performers. (Wikipedia)

    

We laughed and laughed. And with a Panto called Dick Whittington can you just  imagine the Dick jokes?

No plot what so ever..

The costumes were just gobsmacking. Julian Clary must have changed 12 times and each costume was more outrageous than the previous.

All good fun!

London–Tuesday

A day visiting family.

First on the tube to Tooting to see Laurie and Kelly.

Look a rare occurrence,  a nearly empty tube carriage! Had to take a pic.

And it is green waste day and all those who had a live tree have put the dead bodies out on the footpath for collection. Poor trees, gave there lives in the cause of Christmas.

Then a quick stop at Charing Cross for lunch and to change trains to get to Ivy’s at Abbey Wood.

What do you think of the non sexist walk sign!? I had to risk my life to take this photo, the one on the other side is a transgender symbol. There is a link below if you want to know more.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/london-pride-gay-and-trans-symbols-replace-little-green-man-on-traffic-lights-a7091541.html

A bit miserable and dreary.