Sept 10

Another sunny day today -- we have been so very lucky and enjoyed beautiful weather! A few overcast days, but the temperature has been perfect for walking-around.


We caught the Tube to Paddington, then an overland train to Windsor Castle. The crowds were sparse so we easily toured the State Rooms and St. George's chapel in a couple of hours. The castle is the Queen's weekend house when she is in London, but as she and family (sans Will & Kate) are in Balmoral, Scotland, on summer holiday, a bit more of the castle/grounds were open to public viewing.

Inside the castle we saw a special display of Queen Mary's dollhouse --


standing 8' wide x 4' deep x 5' high --- yes, those are "feet" wide. It is incredibly detailed -- apparently she collected miniatures as a hobby -- and quite a sight to behold. The State Rooms (NO PHOTOGRAPHY) were regal, as you would expect.

We were allowed to walk around the castle to the Royal family's private garden in the front, usually closed off when they are in residence (though State Rooms are still open). It was really beautiful; I wonder how much time they really spend enjoying that greenery? Farley was taken by the golf course (links?) just past the gardens -- a guard told us it was only 8 holes and for the exclusive use of staff and Royals.


My favorite was St. George's Chapel. Many royals are buried there -- in fact, since George III, MOST royals are buried here (possibly aided by the fact that Westminster Abbey is full). Of course, for me, Tudor fan that I am, the slab marking Henry VIII and Jane Seymour was the most meaningful. I was surprised to see Charles Brandon buried very close to Henry, fitting because they were such close friends (most of the time) and he married Henry's sister. If anyone is keeping count (Nancy), on this trip we've seen Anne of Cleves vault (Westminster), been oh-so-close to Anne Boleyn's and Catherine Howard's graves (at the Tower), now Jane and Henry. And we'll see Katherine Parr's tomorrow. A clean sweep except for Catherine of Aragon! I realize probably only Nancy realizes the significance of this paragraph. I'm saving that last gravesite for when we do our tour of Tudor/Stuart sites in England, D'Under!


We had our best lunch (so far) of the trip at a restaurant in Windsor: Sebastian's Italian Restaurant. Courgette carpaccio with shaved parmesan, green peppercorns, lemon juice & olive oil, accompanied by a smoked seafood sampler. Oh and two glasses of wine of course! Delicious!

An afternoon train ride back to the city left us just a small window of time to


visit the London Transportation Museum. A great facility; we wish we could have spent longer there. We saw personal conveyances (carried by two unfortunate handlers), early horse drawn buses, read about the construction of the Underground and sat in early Tube cars. A very nice museum with lots of displays.

After a quick French dinner, it was back to the hotel. We hauled out our suit cases and prepared to say goodbye to the hustle-bustle of the big city and spend the next two nights in the countryside. Winchcombe in The Cotswolds to be precise.
We head out early to Heathrow to rent a car -- wish Farley luck and he copes with manual transmission AND drives on the wrong side of the road!



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Location:Park Lane,London,United Kingdom