Hever Castle

After the busy Wednesday, we had a leisurely breakfast and then set off for Hever Castle, the childhood home of Ann Boleyn. The weather was superb, allowing us to wander around the grounds in comfort. The following photos show one of the many huge trees, the Castle and Maria & Sue framing a very interesting background!

Photo Detail

Having spent some time exploring outside, including the Water Maze, we then looked around the house, which is very interesting with some very small and steep stone circular staircases. By the time we had looked around, we all should have been experts on the Tudors but I fear that old age and a fading memory has meant that I remember very little.

Visit to London

October is the month when we usually have our 89th Entry of RAF Halton, Reunion. This year, the reunion was organised by Mick Mepham near to Tunbridge Wells in Kent. We were lucky enough to be invited to stay with Sue and Mick before the event of which more later. We travelled up on Tuesday 7th October to their "cottage" in Crowborough, East Sussex.

"White Cottage" Garden

Maria and Sue had done some prior arranging and had booked seats for "Dirty Dancing" on Wednesday evening so we travelled up to London late on Wednesday morning and then meandered from Charing Cross to Covent Garden where we had a drink after which Mick and I paid a visit to the London Transport Museum, whilst the ladies wandered around looking at shops.
After we met up again, we made the decision to visit the Portrait Gallery; Sue had a particular wish to look at the Tudor Gallery. Having spent some time studying Henry VIII, and his various wives and associates, we popped up to the top of the building for a coffee and a splendid view over the roofs of London. The Portrait Gallery, now free to enter, is well worth a visit, if only to see what these historical figures did look like. It would take days to view everything in any detail.
From there we walked on to Picadilly where Sue had booked a 'pre-show' table at the Criterion Restaurant. This is a Marco Pierre White establishment and it was a real treat to sit in those surroundings and to have a good meal served by staff who seemed genuinely interested in ensuring that the customer enjoyed the experience.
We took a taxi from there to the Aldwych Theatre for the show, which we thoroughly enjoyed despite the fact that it really is a 'girlie' show and most of the audience knew every word. Anyway, the dancing was great and it was interesting to see how a theatre produces a show from a film where some of the most significant action takes action in a field and lake - very clever.
Because of the time, we took another taxi back to Charing Cross in time to catch the 22:45 train back home. A long day but most enjoyable and we really must thank Sue and Mick for doing all the organising.

New Year Update - Part 3

01 Jan 2007 - Land’s End

We had arranged for friends Dot and John to take us to Land’s End for our traditional New Year’s Day visit. We set off at about 10:45 with the weather in Newquay grey but fairly warm and, most importantly, dry. We arrived about an hour later to a bleak and very windy day and as we walked towards the restaurant, it started to rain; the trouble was that the rain was coming in horizontally and felt like icicles against any bare skin. We took refuge in the hotel/restaurant/cafe and after some rather bizarre circumstances, which I do not wish to go into here, we had a snack and drink until the squall cleared. We eventually ventured outside and took a few photographs before beating a hasty retreat to John’s car and the hour’s journey back home again.

For those that really know me, please note that, in the photo above, I am wearing Jeans, but to maintain my standards, although it cannot be seen in the photo, I am wearing the obligatory Turner Tie.

Dot and John stayed for a Roast Beef dinner with Fresh Fruit salad and/or Trifle for afters. This was topped off with a tot of Limoncello, which, for those not in the know, is a rather pleasant Italian after dinner Liqueur, very Lemon and at 34% by volume, fairly strong. We had a quiet evening listening to music and discussing the various attributes of MP3 players and I was at last able to help someone else with a demonstration of how to load the contents, or part, of a CD onto the IPOD.

Now I am back at work - great.