Flowers in my hair...

San Francisco so far... what a great City! Lots to see and lots to do. The weather has been fantastic so far, nice and warm with a gentle breeze. On my first day I didn't wake until about 11am, which I think was acceptable being that I had been awake for 27 hours previous to that! Melon and Lexi drove me about the area they live, and we had a nice cruisy sort of day which I was pleased about. We went to somewhere called Gilroy, where there are heaps of outlet shops. I managed to do really well for myself in the shopping department... I got a new watch (it is AMAZING), four dresses and a cardie... and I only spent about $140USD - not bad!! We had good old American Starbucks (which by the way, Emily - was pretty good!!!), and we even had the traditional food of America, McDonald's.

A really cool old-school fire hydrant. It's the small things that get me excited.

Starbucks Mocha Frappuccino, in Amercia?? Heck YES!!

In the Jelly Belly shop with Melon

In the evening we went to a friend of Helen's, Jen's place and had a BBQ with her and some of her friends. They had a bonfire there which was nice to sit around and chillax- though would have been made better had we have had some marshmallows. We actually tried looking for some at the supermarket but they only had little teeny tiny hot chocolate ones. One of the people at the BBQ is a sports TV cameraman. He also is heavily into music. We went across the street at one point to his place, and I was excited to see an amazing collection of music memorabilia, including: Two framed golden records from Capitol by the Beatles (so super cool) and a SIGNED LP by old Blue eyes himself - Frank Sinatra.  I was quite impressed with his collection, and apparently he has loads more things that he has not yet framed. He has met all sorts of famous people - 2 degrees of separation right there!

Melon, myself and Jen at Jen's place

So excited right now!

Lovely ladies...

Today (Monday) we got up and headed into San Francisco City. Wow - I really liked it. Nice and clean, although still a number of homeless people sleeping around the place with their shopping trolleys full of their possessions. We jumped on a bus tour of the city, as they tend to be the best way to get your bearings and learn about a city. We drove past the apartment complex where Francis Ford-Coppola wrote the screen play for "The God Father" (oooh and ahhh I hear you say), and we even took a drive down Steiner Road... where the seven painted ladies are. You might recognise the houses from a TV show called...FULL HOUSE! Yes, that's right. I was quite excited about that. It was awesome to go in the bus across the Golden Gate Bridge, even though it was *so* windy and cold! City Hall is also an impressive structure, which is actually a replacement for the one that was destroyed during the 1906 Earthquake. A random fact for you is that Joe DiMaggio and Marilyn Monroe were married at City Hall back in 1954.

Alkatraz

The green building is the one where the God-Father screenplay was written

The "FULL HOUSE" houses on Steiner Street

That's the Golden Gate Bridge!

Alkatraz

For lunch we stayed on the bus and made our way back to the starting point - Firsherman's Wharf. It was there that I did what you do when you go to San Francisco. I had Clam Chowder in a Sour Dough bowl for lunch... which is interesting being that I am not a seafood fan... but I have to admit, it was quite nice! I think Mum would have been proud haha. After lunch we walked down to Pier 39 and had a look at the Sealions who reside there - *so* cute, and especially nice that they are in their natural environment. We then had a look around at the shops on Pier 39, and then headed to Macy's for some shopping. By this stage it was quite late in the day, and we were all quite lethargic. Macy's is quite amazing, it is a huge department store, somewhat like Selfridges in London. Unfortunately my brain wasn't engaging in the shopping, and neither was anyone elses so we decided to head home and save more shopping for another day.

Clam chowder... actually... NOM

At Pier 39

Oh yes! A shop for left handers!! aMaZiNg!

I am hoping that we go to Alkatraz this week - we do have plans to go to the Aquarium which is quite exciting. I love aquariums... there is something quite peaceful and magical about them. I'd quite like to go to Kelly Tarlton's again in the near future as haven't done that in a while. Anyway... I am sure there will be more adventures to come... meanwhile, when Melon wakes from her Nana Nap, we might watch some Twilight.... hahahah.


Cheery bye :)

I wanna be in A-mer-i-ca!!

My flight from London to Washington DC was not due to leave until 16:20 on the 28th of May, so my start to the day was at a leisurely pace. I woke at about 08:30, showered and dressed, still not feeling like I was really going anywhere. I then finished off packing and did some skyping. Mum first, followed by Jacinda and Chloe and last but not least, my Piggy (sister- Rebecca).   

I hung up from Rebecca and made my way to the bus stop to get a bus to Brixton station. What a great time of day- there were only about six others on the bus so maneuvering my NEW super lightweight luggage was easy. Once at Brixton station I boarded the train- again, not at all busy. I changed trains at Green Park and jumped onto the Piccadilly line which would take me all the way to Heathrow airport. 

It was an easy, stress-free ride. Then I tried checking in. The automated check-in machine was trying to tell me that my final destination was Calgary, Canada. Ummm??!! I decided to go to the ticket desk and question it- but when they scanned my passport it showed up that my destination was Washington DC, as my tickets had said. Whew! I placed my suitcase on the weighing belt- 12kg. That must be some kind of record for me! I then set the security machine off - it beeped for quite some time... Then I was asked to step aside and put my arms up whilst a woman patted me down. Everywhere. And when I say everywhere.... I mean everywhere. She ran her hands all over- inner thighs included. There was a man sitting not far away staring and smiling... It all seemed a little extreme being it was only my gold jewellery that set it off!!!  I finished checking in and then had some time to kill, and as I spent the morning on skype I thought I should probably eat as I had not yet had breakfast! 

I went somewhere called The Tin Goose- which looked nice. I was seated... And waited 18 minutes to be served. In that 18 minutes I observed several things. A lot of uncleared tables- and staff just standing around who seemingly looked away when I glared at them. Then I observed a man come from out the back to clear tables next to mine. He tutted and carried on whilst stacking a huge pile of dirty dishes- and then- I kid you not; he yelled across a *full* dining room; "Danielle. Come and do your bloody job properly - these tables are bleedin' filthy!". A young girl came scooting over with a washcloth and started wiping the table down as the man continued to rant and rave about the state of the dining room. Pretty bad I thought. 

I had now waited 18 minutes. I only know this because I looked at the time when I sat down. I leaned over and said "Excuse me- do I order from the bar?" to which he replied "Haven't you ordered?". 
"No... Not yet."
"Right- I'll get someone." 

He disappeared out the back and another guy came and took my order. I had already decided at this point that there was *no way* I was paying them service. I placed my order and the food came out quickly (roasted pumpkin, toasted seeds and yoghurt sandwich, if you're wondering) which was disappointing), paid my bill and left. 

My gate number had not yet shown on the screen so I wandered about looking at the duty free shops (I love fine fragrances) and did a last toilet stop. Whilst I was "doing my business" (that's lady-like for having a pee) I heard my name come over the loud speaker. "Would passenger Herbert please report to the United Airlines desk immediately". I had just realised about ten minutes earlier that my Swiss army baby pocket knife was on my keyring. Had they suddenly noticed and was I going to have to surrender it? I was hoping not because it technically was a gift from Bob and Karen Stephen for my 21st! I then thought how ridiculous I was being- it couldn't be that!

I made my way, somewhat nervously, to the UA ticket desk and told them who I was. A man said "Oh good, you're here. Passport please."
There was no; "This is the situation, Madam." I was left wondering what the hang was going on as he was typing goodness knows what into the computer. After a few minutes I decided to ask. He said; "Oh, right, sorry! I didn't let you know what the problem was."

He then explained that my plane to Washington had been severely delayed, so as there were seats on the flight to Auckland, via LA on AirNZ they would put me there. It was an earlier flight. Lucky i arrived early at the airport, I suppose. 

So there I was, making my way to Gate 48- AirNZ to Auckland- via LA. My heart feeling heavy because I quite liked the idea of Auckland!!! But it was not to be... I was to get off in LA and fly onwards for an hour to San Francisco. 

So I reached Gate 48. Armed with a new itinerary I handed it over to the woman at the gate. She said "No- you're not on this flight. This is AirNZ not United Airlines." I was starting to wonder if I had misunderstood- but I was adamant I was right- so I explained what had happened again (potentially in my slow "do you understand now?" teacher voice) and she guided me through to another desk. Still not feeling entirely at ease I stood nervously at the desk as the man processed my passport and printed me a boarding pass- then breathed a sigh of relief when it was all fine and took a seat. For about three minutes. Business class were called, followed by Premiere Economy. I thought I should check where I was to be seated- and would you believe it? Premiere Economy!!! I couldn't believe my luck. Amazing! I am sitting next to Les Lloyd (of Lloyds TSB bank!) who is from
Helensville- hehe. He is really friendly. My seat is huge- width and length. And I have so much leg room! My seat reclines almost flat. Has a touch screen telly with more movies than you can shake a stick at, a bean bag for my feet to rest on, a DOWN pillow, a fancy goodie bag with the usual- plus some little Clarins tubes. This is the most amazing flight ever. La-di-daa!! I am *stoked*. Especially being I was supposed to be in the budgetest of the budget flight! This is the life. NZ wine on tap- they just keep filling my glass. I better stop soon.... but how I've missed NZ wine! The food is incredible, served on ceramic platters. They have also served a fancy desert, followed with a cheese selection- which I felt would be rude to have without Port. Dear lord... I'm gonna sleep well on this flight!!!

Note to self; I need to marry a rich man so that I never have to fly budget economy again. 
K. Thanks. Bye.

PS) There is a man in his 50's who has only watched back-to-back Simpsons since we got on the plane. I love it. He knows where it's at!!!

PPS) Big ups to AirNZ Premium Economy- outstanding service, food, entertainment and seating! 

Ooh- now onwards to San Francisco from LAX- which is a rather confusing airport! I went through the security machine, and like always do, set the alarms off. The man told me to take of my bracelets and try again. So I did. Beeeeeep. He then suggested I remove my watch. So I did. Beeeeeeeep. He then asked me to remove my rings. So I did. Beeeeeeep. He asked if I had any piercings. And so I had to remove my navel bar. Great success! No more beeping!! How insanely sensitive is that machine?!  

I then had ten minutes to get from terminal 2 to terminal 7... Agh! When I asked directions a lady said "Go left, out across the street blah blah blah- but she was speaking so fast it was hard to follow! I overhead a couple of others saying they were going to San Francisco as well... So I followed them. Like a sheep. Baa baaaaaaa. I'm now seated on my flight from LA to San Fran- and this flight is PACKED! To the point there is luggage in the aisle. Is that even legal?! 

Oh... apologies for leading people into thinking I was coming home. I posted that comment in a hurry before switching off my phone and didn't realise what it was inferring! I did, however, leave that plane (and my amazing comfortable seat) with a heavy heart... Auckland, NZ sounds like a wonderful destination!!!!  It's nice to know people were excited at the idea I was coming home ;)

Cheery bye :)

Delightful Devonshire Tea in Devon

On Friday the 20th of May, I arrived at Paddington station and printed my tickets - then had about an hour to kill so went and drank an appalling latte in a cafe and made good use of their couch. I was sat opposite an older man- I'd say in his 50's, who had fallen asleep, mouth wide open, snoring away. Bless. 

I went to find the bronze statue of Paddington bear so I could get a photo but there were people sitting all around the base of the statue- so perhaps I can do that next time! My train journey was pleasant. Three hours direct travel- although I had a one hour wait between changes. The countryside whilst it was still light was a pleasant change from the concrete jungle that is London town. I saw about 20 hot air balloons passing through Tiverton at sunset which was quite lovely! Apparently there is a hot air balloon festival!

They look so pretty, floating up there in the sky!

I arrived at Barnstaple station at about 10:15pm, where David and Fran were waiting to collect me. Fran is my Dad's cousin, making her my second cousin. They live in Ilfracombe which is about half an hour drive from Barnstaple, and only minutes from the ocean. Oh! How I miss the luxury of the closeness of the ocean!

The room I was to stay in was on its own floor - it was like having a wing to myself! The view is to die for... ocean! Across from where there house is, you can see Wales. Unfortunately it was never clear enough for me to catch a glimpse, perhaps next time. 

The view when I sat up in bed. The cats LOVED to sit on the window sill and watch
the birds flying about. 

On Saturday morning we woke early and left their place at 7.45am... Destination? The Devon County Fair. It was like the Easter show, but much more impressive. There were hundreds of stalls, horse supplies, farming stuff etc as well as locally produced foods. I guess it is what you might call an agricultural fair? There was row after row of stalls, and we were lucky we were in the gates by 9.30am as it wasn't so busy- not like it was when we came to leave at about 3pm... There were thousands of people. The food tents were full of locally produced and/or grown goods from ciders and liqueurs, meat, pates and cheeses (oh, and fudge. I got some of that in honour of my Dad. NOM!). 

I *love* it - a real cheese competition! You don't see these just anywhere!

Being we had the dogs (the most beautiful chocolate labs you ever did see!!) who are called Molly and Bella, we couldn't all go into the tent together. A friend of Fran and David's, Angie, came along for the day too, so she and I went into the tent first. Angie was a hoot- I had only known her for about half an hour- but she was right in there for the free samples- asking to try each variety and then saying she would be back later to buy the product as she didn't want to carry it around. I very quickly learnt how she did this and later followed suit! She was good value, a nice lady. I didn't buy anything from the day... I am starting to avoid buying things I am only going to either throw or give away, or ship home. It seems a little pointless! 

When we had had our fill of the day and could stand the increasing crowds no longer, we left and David drove us to a local Pub where we sat by the river and had doorstop sandwiches- yum. Oh... And chips. How to make chips (which are already not *great* for you) even worse for you? Cover with melted cheese!! Yum!

We dropped Angie back to her car and ventured home... Where we all had "Nana naps" for an hour. Bliss. There's nothing quite like a nap on a Saturday afternoon! We decided to go out for dinner and walked down to the local pier. It's not the Viaduct but it is really quite lovely. There were a bunch of small fisherman's boats in the harbour which was lined with small sea-side shops, a couple of pubs and restaurants. We were all still full from lunch so had glasses of wine and nibbles, being the restaurants had closed by the time we were ready to eat! We walked home full of wine, hummus, bread and olives. 

Beautiful Ilfracombe

Lots of fresh fish in these parts!

Ooh... a cheeky wine...

Sunday was a slow start... Which I loved! I woke at 6.30am (what is up with that?!!) so I read for a couple of hours and watched the ocean for a bit, pondering life, as you do. I finally got out of bed at 9.15am and got organised for the day. 

We all hopped in the car (Molly and Bella too!) and dropped into Alban House, which is the care facility Fran and David run. It is a lovely, homely place and the residents all looked happy- although again with views to die for- so they should! After a quick tour we continued onwards to Woolacombe beach after dropping one of the residents at church. 

Woolacombe beach reminded me of Long Bay Beach- but much wider and with more sand dunes. It was really windy and the wind was freezing cold but I really, really enjoyed the walk along the beach. I miss that so much about NZ. How spooky we are back home. The dogs *loved* the beach. 

Amazing blue sky this direction...

Hmmm....not so amazing blue sky in this direction! Loving the wind-swept hair :P

So cool. I want to drive one of these around NZ one day. Or somewhere!

We went and had brunch at somewhere called The Red Shed- David and I enjoyed the man sized all day breakfast... Mmmmm. We had to pick up the resident we dropped off at church and drop her back to Alban house before going home again for another wee rest. It's a hard life. 

Something I had wanted to do whilst here was have a traditional Devonshire Cream Tea, so we walked to Chambercome Manor which was not far from their place. 

Chambercombe Manor was owned by the Champernon family from around 1162. In the early 16th century it became the property of Henry, Duke of Suffolk father of the ill fated Lady Jane Grey. The Manor's most infamous ghost was found in a room, now known as the 'haunted room' (gee - how unexpected!). In 1865, the owner at the time was making some roof repairs and noticed that the outline of the window didn't have a room associated with it on the inside. After some further exploring in the area where the window was, the owner and his wife knowcked through a wall and discovered a four poster bed... and on it was a skeleton. Woo!


They had tours available but they lasted one hour and we didn't really have the time. Instead we had a cream tea- how amazing is clotted cream!? Oh my! I'm not even much of a cream fan... But this was good!!! Stuffed full we walked home again before I packed and David and Fran dropped me at Barnstaple station- destination London town. 

Scone, Raspberry Jam, strawberries *and* Clotted Cream. OMG.

Yeah, it was amazing. 

Oh! By gosh - a spot of tea too!

I had an outstanding weekend- just the right amount of chill time and entertainment, and the company was excellent. It has been nice getting to know family whom I have never really had the opportunity to get to know before. I was so well looked after all weekend, which is just so nice when you're not around family often. 

The best bonus of the weekend is that David and Fran have invited me to join them in Italy at the start of August. I am definitely keen, so my UK trip is postponed for a week now!! I love how I never really know what's around the corner and how my life is continually evolving- it's quite liberating in a way. 

This time next week I will be in San Francisco... I hope the US of A (and my friend, Helen) is ready for me to wear flowers in my hair...

Until then....

Cheery bye :)

My few nights as a Hobo

WELCOME BACK FROM EGYPT! Now you have to move out. By Wednesday. Even though today is Sunday. Good luck with that.

ARRRRRGH was my first thought! I was, however, lucky to have Cameron who told me to chill - not worry about and that we would work it all out. He was right :)

I was a little stressed about the fact I only had a few days to pack, although don't have that much (HA! Who am I kidding?) and it was even more stressful that I;
a.) Didn't have anywhere to move straight to.
b.) Had to move in the middle of the week, not the greatest time to move.

Luckily Cam and I have a wonderful, understanding landlord who did everything that she could to make the experience less stressful, for example allowing us to stay until the Saturday to buy us some more time which was such a god-send. I ended up getting in touch with my friend Zoe who lives in Queen's Park, and asking if she would mind if I came and borrowed her couch for a few nights whilst I worked out what I was going to do next... thankfully she said yes!

It didn't take long to pack - the most annoying part was that so many things ended up being thrown away, simply because I didn't know where I was going next, and I just had too much to carry. Zoe's flat got lucky and inherited all the really good kitchen stuff, so I am pleased it has gone somewhere rather than in the rubbish!

I spent Saturday - Tuesday night on Zoe's flat couch. Her flatties Tania and Lorna were so welcoming as was Zoe. I never once felt like a burden - even though I was well-aware that I had taken over their lounge. And my belongings seemed to be breeding in the corner of Zoe's room! Zoe was great - she forced me to not think about my lack of living space, saying I could stay as long as I needed to, and she took me out to meet some of her friends in the evening. It was a shame I was so exhausted, I did my best though and enjoyed the outing when I was more awake earlier in the evening!

Hehehe... my couch bed.

My now ex-landlord had offered me a room for the 10-11 weeks that I would require a room, if I needed it. I wasn't sure if she was just being nice, so I sent her an email message to offer her an out and not put her on the spot on the phone. She replied with a 'come when you like!' message, so I gave her a call and we spoke about how it might all work out. I am pleased to say I now live with Fola, who was our landlord at Lyham Road.

I am staying in her 14 year old sons room as he is off at boarding school. I have everything I need... somewhere to sleep, eat and shower...and store some of my stuff. I am so blessed to be here, and it is really great. Fola and I have had some great chats which I am looking forward to more of - we both always seem to have *plenty* to speak about! I like how relaxed I feel, knowing that I am settled until I officially leave London town on the 1st of August (or a few days before that... to be decided!)

So Brixton Station didn't end up being a good enough location for me to live... this is *much* better! I am happy I'll be staying here until I leave London town to go and travel for a few months. Ooh - and I have a second fridge! A Tesco Express Supermarket just at the end of the road... yussss!

Speaking of travel... I should probably fill you in on my plans after Summer term...
On the 22nd July the school year finishes. I have resigned from my position, so it will be my last term working there. I plan to leave London on or just before the 1st of August and travel down to Exeter, and fly to Italy for a week with Fran and David (second cousins). When I return from there, I plan to galavant around the UK countryside by train/coach and sometimes planes for three weeks. I will be spending time with Rodney and Gill in Portsmouth, Canterbury with Kat and her husband Simon (I went to school with Kat), Workington to stay with some distant cousins; Neil and Pam and then Leicestershire to hopefully spend some days with my friend Anne's parents. I will also be making stops in York, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Liverpool, Blackpool, Oxford and some other smaller places.

When I finish my three-four week trip I will again return to London, hopefully land myself a couch for a few nights before flying to wherever in the world Erin and Thomas Heatley-Smith are at in their campervan, and gate-crashing their trip for a week or so, before meeting up with my friend Scott who is arriving from NZ back in London again.  We will then do some traveling around together...location/s to be confirmed! I am looking forward to just traveling... and not much else! I have a job lined up in Auckland from the 7th November at my Principal's wife's school in Mt. Roskill. It is a 5 week position teaching the Year 2 class until the end of the year. I want to be home back in NZ before years end so that I can sort out my classroom at Murrays Bay Intermediate for 2012 and then enjoy the Kiwi Summer. By that stage I really would have done the travel I want to do. I am so looking forward to returning to Murrays Bay. I will bring back some experiences and ideas with me, but most of all I will be returning with renewed enthusiasm, ready to expand the minds of the kids in my class. I have missed having my own class, most of all.

Anyway, now everyone is in the loop of my plans...

Until next time...
Cheery bye :)

London to Portsmouth

My weekend started on Friday afternoon as I made my merry way to Victoria Coach Station. A serious case of de ja vu reminded me that I needed to focus and be listening to when my coach arrived, being that the last time I was there, Portsmouth bound, David, Rene, Alasdair and I all managed to miss the call for our coach and missed it! This time I was ready! 

At 6pm it was time to board- I was relieved knowing that I'd be in Portsmouth within the next two hours. No such luck! There had been a traffic accident on the way out of London so that added an hour to the journey- never mind. I settled my head against the window- rested on my jacket and got some shut-eye. Turns out all my holidaying in Turkey and Greece has exhausted me! 

After a three hour journey I hopped off Horndean and saw Gill parked up. Rodney and Gill's place is only a few minutes from that stop so it wasn't long before we were 'home'! Rodney was at a rehearsal so Gill and I caught up on life for the first half an hour- when Rodney burst in the door. How nice it was to see him again, as I haven't since 2007 when I last came to Portsmouth. 

A little background about Rodney and Gill... I know them through my maternal grandfather as Rodney was in the Royal Marine Band with my grandfather. Rod played clarinet and violin when he served. He also used to babysit my mum and her sister when they were young. He came over to NZ in 2000, which was when I first met him. He learned that I didn't own a clarinet, and once he went back to England, what turned up in the post one day but a clarinet... Which is the one I still play! I've always felt a special bond with him - both playing the clarinet and loving music I guess :)

We caught up and went to bed at about 11pm which was lucky as I was exhausted... I think I'm still catching up on sleep from my Turkey/Egypt trip! I had joked before bed that I should be up by 10am... I surfaced about 9.45am haha! 

Gill was out for the day, so I showered and dressed whilst Rodney made me breakfast- tea and toast :) breakfast wasn't long finished when we were setting up our instruments, Rodney the clarinet and myself the flute, and played through some duets for a bit which was great fun. Rod later switched to violin too. After loads of mistakes (disguised as laughter and giggling!!) we packed up and started bantering about where to next. We settled on a drive to Southampton so hopped into his car and went that direction.

It is quite a nice place, Southampton. Somewhere that I'd like to see a little more of. We parked and walked around, following the wall which was built onto the front of merchants houses in 1380. 1380!?!!!!! Insane to think. We wandered for a bit and somehow (no idea how this happened) ended up at The Duke of Wellington where Rod splashed out on a pint of coke, whilst I enjoyed a Pear Cider. Which was brewed in Tipperary... It's a long way!! The pub was so old it was held together with wooden pegs- quite amazing. 

The Southampton Wall (or a part of it!)

Harbour view :)

It's a long way... tee hee!

Held together with wooden pegs - that *is* old!

Me and me mate Rodney :) Mad musos from way back when...

We then went back to the car and returned to Portsmouth as Gill would be home soon and we were to be going to a pub for dinner, which was very nice actually. (even if the apple crumble was cold ;)

We chatted a bit once home again and then it was time for bed. I thought I'd be up earlier the next morning.... And I was. I was out of my room by 9am this time!! Rodney and Gill had been talking and making plans and drove me to Bosham first- and what a quaint but interesting place that is! I hadn't understood why Gill had been concerned about the time of the tides until I saw this place! 

Bosham is a small coastal village located in the Chichester district of West Sussex. The unique (and crazy) thing about Bosham is that at high tide the water comes right up an floods the lower road. In fact- many of the houses lower down have really big front steps or concrete barriers, just in case!! There is seaweed strewn all over the lower part, it kind of just looks like a playing field... But with stranded boats on! A really interesting place to visit- and quite busy with tourists having a nosy! We had a good look at the church there too. We then went in search of tea and scones and found a cafe with a great view of where the water comes up. Great scone too!!!

Insane that it floods this much!! It looks like a field!

You can see how far up the wall the tide goes.

High doorsteps... in case of flooding! Tiny wee doors! 

NOM! How very English. Rodney had a flapjack and coke... somewhat American I thought!

After we left there we drove to Chichester as we were so close by. We went to Chichester Cathedral and spent a decent amount of time looking around. The cathedral itself is 900 years old. That alone is impressive! Rodney and Gill are definitely the best people to go somewhere like that with as they have such broad knowledge of things about the cathedral. Rodney often plays concerts there so knows it well. I ended up getting a bit of a bonus whilst there- as it is where Gustav Holst is buried! Wow. 

I've seen that many cathedrals, yet still say WOW when I see the ceilings!

Oh my... best bonus ever. I didn't know his remains were here! 

The rear view of the cathedral

We made our way back to Portsmouth and Gill started organising 'Sunday lunch'- a roast! Yussssssss! Dericious. Aaannnnd... Hot rhubarb crumble. Really nice- and a lovely way to finish our weekend together over a meal. As the lunch was cooking, Rodney and I squeezed in a few more tunes which, as always, was great fun! 

Myself, Rod and Gill xxx

I had a wonderful weekend staying with them both- It was so nice to catch up properly. I felt very well looked after, like family- which let's face it, is a real novelty when living on the other side of the world from your family!! I am coming back on my whirlwind trip of the UK in August which I am now really looking forward to. 

As I boarded the coach back to London town, the sky chucked it down... We were so fortunate with the weather this weekend! I emailed Rodney and Gill to let them know I was on the coach and only minutes later received a phone call from Rod asking if I was on yet as they'd passed a coach on their way home again and were worried I'd be waiting a while. Then he asked if I'd call them when I arrived home so they know I arrived safely. Feeling the love? Very much so! It's nice having people care about where you are. Something I think that is taken for granted when you have it all the time. 

On another note... Cam and I do need to be out of the flat by this Wednesday. Best adventure ever haha! We are having a lol about it- I'm so lucky to have Cam around as he makes me feel like it's not worth the stress... So I'm feeling pretty calm about it to be honest. (Cam might beg to differ...) We'll sort it out ... Watch this space!!

Until more adventures...

Cheery bye :)