Back From My Trip to Blighty! Part 1
Oct 23rd 2006, 12:07 pm
#16
Thinking about it
Joined: Oct 2005
Location: Mid-West
Posts: 9,435
Re: Back From My Trip to Blighty! Part 1
Great post - glad you had such a nice trip
Oct 23rd 2006, 3:10 pm
#17
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 1,198
Back From My Trip to Blighty! Part 1
Wonderful post! I can't wait to read about your time in London.
Could you tell me more about your "cup of tea at the lovely old Molecatchers house"? The only place for a cuppa in Richmond Park that I know about is at Pembroke Lodge. Please fill me in!
We like Richmond a lot. My stepson is chef at The Lass O'Richmond Hill. How we miss living in London!!!!!
Cheers,
Denise (a/k/a Tea Lover Denise
)
Could you tell me more about your "cup of tea at the lovely old Molecatchers house"? The only place for a cuppa in Richmond Park that I know about is at Pembroke Lodge. Please fill me in!
We like Richmond a lot. My stepson is chef at The Lass O'Richmond Hill. How we miss living in London!!!!!
Cheers,
Denise (a/k/a Tea Lover Denise
)
Oct 23rd 2006, 3:36 pm
#18
BE Forum Addict
Joined: Dec 2002
Location: Ft Lauderdale, FL
Posts: 4,792
Re: Back From My Trip to Blighty! Part 1
Originally Posted by Englishmum
I've just arrived back from a trip to Blighty (5th - 22nd October) and have had such a brilliant time.....it was a killer having to go to Heathrow yesterday for the flight back to Newark... 
The flight over was great - I took a morning flight with BA which arrives around 8.30pm and it was near-empty, apparently the morning flight usually has far fewer passengers connecting from other incoming flights so they put on a smaller plane in the mornings rather than the 777s; it was a 767 and out of 141 seats in World Traveller, 93 of them were empty! My friend who works for BA gave me a pass for the exec lounge and a nice bulkhead aisle seat with loads of legroom (2 + 4 + 2 configuration). The window seat beside me was empty so I actually had more space than the folks in WT+ one row in front of me. Send me a PM if you want the seat numbers LOL!
I rented a car and drove 90 miles up the M40 to stay with my sister in Coventry. The next few days were a whirlwind of seeing my mum, other sister, my brother and their spouses and children and seeing old friends from school. I couldn't resist going to the chippy for fish and chips on Friday evening LOL! On the Saturday I went to see my friend's teenage son play rugby which was fun, then in the evening we joined my sister and had a good laugh (we're thinking of going on a girls weekend trip to Amsterdam next year....
.
On Sunday morning my mum and I drove down to Richmond-Upon-Thames to meet up with my daughter and her boyfriend. It was the first time I'd met him and I wasn't impressed.....he's almost the same age as me and a bit of a dork. We did have a lovely roast Sunday lunch at one of the riverside pubs then a stroll along the riverbank and up Marble Hill for the fab views across the river valley. We also drove over to Richmond Park and had a cup of tea at the lovely old Molecatchers house (and observed a colourful African wedding party).
The next few days were spent mostly doing things with my mum, shopping for accessories for my cousin's wedding, seeing a movie, visiting my siblings etc. and going to Stratford-Upon-Avon which I never fail to visit whenever I'm in England.
On the Friday I drove down to Heathrow to meet up with my husband who had flown in on the overnight flight from Newark and spent a few hours working on his laptop at the airport. We were going to my cousin's sons' wedding; he's been out to visit us twice in the US so we just had to go! We then drove to Tenby in Pembrokeshire, SW Wales and arrived at the hotel in the early evening. The hotel is on a clifftop overlooking the bay and the town, so we strolled down to the town for dinner.....and ended up in a fish and chip restaurant! It was very lively in this pretty little seaside town as there are lots of pubs there, so of course we just had to go for a few drinks in a pub as well....
We had a few more when we joined up with other members of the wedding party back at the hotel....
http://www.parkhoteltenby.com/
Well, the weather has been unbelievably warm and mild in the UK and Autumn is late there this year (lots of concerns about global warming). The weather was really nice for the wedding in the nearby town of Saundersfoot in a picturesque old C of E church on a hill. I took a photo of the list of vicars in a side chapel to show the Yanks how old the church was....the year of the first vicar was 1492 (when Columbus discovered America I seem to recall). It really was a typical British wedding.....ladies in hats and the men in the wedding party in Welsh kilts - they have red dragons embroidered on them to distinguish them from the Scottish ones.
The reception speeches were hysterical; the groom and his family are very theatrical and Gareth spent a year in Stratford-Upon-Avon and did a drama degree at Cardiff, so lots of 'luvvie' friends were there. Dancing took place in the evening....it was just like the movie 'Four Weddings and a Funeral' with some terrible/hilarious dancing from the older uncle types. They had a well-known local couple doing the singing with karaoke type backing music, unfortunately not my cup of tea but the stuff to get most people up eg. 'I will survive' 'Dancing Queen', 'Is this the way to Armadillo?' and one Robbie Williams song. I had killer heels on so couldn't dance...
We were spending our second week in London as my husband was going to be in meetings all week at HO in Canary Wharf, so on the Sunday we took the scenic route back to the M4 and went on a lovely walk up a hill on a marked footpath in the beautiful hills and moorland of the Brecon Beacons. We encountered wild ponies and lots of sheep......I was nearly in tears when I thought about how I never get to experience things like that in the US; I was in Upstate New York at Hunter Mtn a couple of weeks beforehand but it doesn't compare with the wild countryside of the UK.
Hope I'm not boring you.....will write about my week in London in a seperate post later today....have to get back to all the laundry and bills LOL!
The flight over was great - I took a morning flight with BA which arrives around 8.30pm and it was near-empty, apparently the morning flight usually has far fewer passengers connecting from other incoming flights so they put on a smaller plane in the mornings rather than the 777s; it was a 767 and out of 141 seats in World Traveller, 93 of them were empty! My friend who works for BA gave me a pass for the exec lounge and a nice bulkhead aisle seat with loads of legroom (2 + 4 + 2 configuration). The window seat beside me was empty so I actually had more space than the folks in WT+ one row in front of me. Send me a PM if you want the seat numbers LOL!
I rented a car and drove 90 miles up the M40 to stay with my sister in Coventry. The next few days were a whirlwind of seeing my mum, other sister, my brother and their spouses and children and seeing old friends from school. I couldn't resist going to the chippy for fish and chips on Friday evening LOL! On the Saturday I went to see my friend's teenage son play rugby which was fun, then in the evening we joined my sister and had a good laugh (we're thinking of going on a girls weekend trip to Amsterdam next year....
. On Sunday morning my mum and I drove down to Richmond-Upon-Thames to meet up with my daughter and her boyfriend. It was the first time I'd met him and I wasn't impressed.....he's almost the same age as me and a bit of a dork. We did have a lovely roast Sunday lunch at one of the riverside pubs then a stroll along the riverbank and up Marble Hill for the fab views across the river valley. We also drove over to Richmond Park and had a cup of tea at the lovely old Molecatchers house (and observed a colourful African wedding party).
The next few days were spent mostly doing things with my mum, shopping for accessories for my cousin's wedding, seeing a movie, visiting my siblings etc. and going to Stratford-Upon-Avon which I never fail to visit whenever I'm in England.
On the Friday I drove down to Heathrow to meet up with my husband who had flown in on the overnight flight from Newark and spent a few hours working on his laptop at the airport. We were going to my cousin's sons' wedding; he's been out to visit us twice in the US so we just had to go! We then drove to Tenby in Pembrokeshire, SW Wales and arrived at the hotel in the early evening. The hotel is on a clifftop overlooking the bay and the town, so we strolled down to the town for dinner.....and ended up in a fish and chip restaurant! It was very lively in this pretty little seaside town as there are lots of pubs there, so of course we just had to go for a few drinks in a pub as well....
We had a few more when we joined up with other members of the wedding party back at the hotel.... http://www.parkhoteltenby.com/
Well, the weather has been unbelievably warm and mild in the UK and Autumn is late there this year (lots of concerns about global warming). The weather was really nice for the wedding in the nearby town of Saundersfoot in a picturesque old C of E church on a hill. I took a photo of the list of vicars in a side chapel to show the Yanks how old the church was....the year of the first vicar was 1492 (when Columbus discovered America I seem to recall). It really was a typical British wedding.....ladies in hats and the men in the wedding party in Welsh kilts - they have red dragons embroidered on them to distinguish them from the Scottish ones.
The reception speeches were hysterical; the groom and his family are very theatrical and Gareth spent a year in Stratford-Upon-Avon and did a drama degree at Cardiff, so lots of 'luvvie' friends were there. Dancing took place in the evening....it was just like the movie 'Four Weddings and a Funeral' with some terrible/hilarious dancing from the older uncle types. They had a well-known local couple doing the singing with karaoke type backing music, unfortunately not my cup of tea but the stuff to get most people up eg. 'I will survive' 'Dancing Queen', 'Is this the way to Armadillo?' and one Robbie Williams song. I had killer heels on so couldn't dance...
We were spending our second week in London as my husband was going to be in meetings all week at HO in Canary Wharf, so on the Sunday we took the scenic route back to the M4 and went on a lovely walk up a hill on a marked footpath in the beautiful hills and moorland of the Brecon Beacons. We encountered wild ponies and lots of sheep......I was nearly in tears when I thought about how I never get to experience things like that in the US; I was in Upstate New York at Hunter Mtn a couple of weeks beforehand but it doesn't compare with the wild countryside of the UK.
Hope I'm not boring you.....will write about my week in London in a seperate post later today....have to get back to all the laundry and bills LOL!
Good one.
Reg. Frank R.
Oct 24th 2006, 12:45 am
#19
Thread Starter
Joined: Feb 2002
Posts: 6,848
Re: Back From My Trip to Blighty! Part 1
Originally Posted by DDL
Wonderful post! I can't wait to read about your time in London.
Could you tell me more about your "cup of tea at the lovely old Molecatchers house"? The only place for a cuppa in Richmond Park that I know about is at Pembroke Lodge. Please fill me in!
We like Richmond a lot. My stepson is chef at The Lass O'Richmond Hill. How we miss living in London!!!!!
Cheers,
Denise (a/k/a Tea Lover Denise )
Could you tell me more about your "cup of tea at the lovely old Molecatchers house"? The only place for a cuppa in Richmond Park that I know about is at Pembroke Lodge. Please fill me in!
We like Richmond a lot. My stepson is chef at The Lass O'Richmond Hill. How we miss living in London!!!!!
Cheers,
Denise (a/k/a Tea Lover Denise
)We did see a regal-looking stag grazing in the park....there were warning notices advising people to be aware that they could be aggressive as it's currently the 'rutting' season.
Do you get across to see your stepson often in Richmond? I can see why you miss living there so much...I love London too!
Oct 24th 2006, 1:29 am
#20
Lapine Member
Joined: Nov 2004
Location: Austin, Texas in my own little world
Posts: 21,691
Re: Back From My Trip to Blighty! Part 1
Back in February Toontje and I had a nice Sunday roast dinner at The Dysart in Richmond. Good stuff.
Oct 24th 2006, 1:57 am
#21
SUPER MODERATOR
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 88,104
Re: Back From My Trip to Blighty! Part 1
Englishmum....your PM box is full.
Oct 24th 2006, 1:59 am
#22
BE Forum Addict
Joined: Dec 2002
Location: Ft Lauderdale, FL
Posts: 4,792
Re: Back From My Trip to Blighty! Part 1
Originally Posted by Jerseygirl
Englishmum....your PM box is full.
Oct 24th 2006, 2:00 am
#23
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Joined: Dec 2005
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Re: Back From My Trip to Blighty! Part 1
Originally Posted by frrussre
Sounds painful.
Oct 24th 2006, 2:31 am
#24
Joined: Mar 2003
Posts: 68,280
Re: Back From My Trip to Blighty! Part 1
I have had a cuppa at thatched house lodge in the park ...
But you cannot get there ..SO14 ..have armed patrols there ...
and cameras in the trees ...
But you cannot get there ..SO14 ..have armed patrols there ...
and cameras in the trees ...
Oct 24th 2006, 9:39 am
#25
Thread Starter
Joined: Feb 2002
Posts: 6,848
Re: Back From My Trip to Blighty! Part 1
Originally Posted by Ray
I have had a cuppa at thatched house lodge in the park ...
But you cannot get there ..SO14 ..have armed patrols there ...
and cameras in the trees ...
But you cannot get there ..SO14 ..have armed patrols there ...
and cameras in the trees ...
Isn't that one of the places where the royals live or have lived there in the past.....didn't the Queen and Prince Philip live there as newlyweds?
Oct 24th 2006, 9:42 am
#26
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Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 88,104
Re: Back From My Trip to Blighty! Part 1
Originally Posted by Englishmum
Isn't that one of the places where the royals live or have lived there in the past.....didn't the Queen and Prince Philip live there as newlyweds?
Oct 24th 2006, 10:33 am
#27
Joined: Mar 2003
Posts: 68,280
Re: Back From My Trip to Blighty! Part 1
Originally Posted by Englishmum
Isn't that one of the places where the royals live or have lived there in the past.....didn't the Queen and Prince Philip live there as newlyweds?
There daughter (Marina) became well known as a bit of a wild child
and married some tosspot ... But I met her a few times ..and she was Ok ...
Oct 24th 2006, 10:34 am
#28
SUPER MODERATOR
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 88,104
Re: Back From My Trip to Blighty! Part 1
Originally Posted by Ray
Yes!!! Princess Alexandra, and Angus Ogilvy..(he died a while back)
There daughter (Marina) became well known as a bit of a wild child
and married some tosspot ... But I met her a few times ..and she was Ok ...
There daughter (Marina) became well known as a bit of a wild child
and married some tosspot ... But I met her a few times ..and she was Ok ...
Well that's blown my post about you right out of the water hasn't it?
Oct 24th 2006, 10:34 am
#29
Joined: Mar 2003
Posts: 68,280
Re: Back From My Trip to Blighty! Part 1
Originally Posted by Jerseygirl
Well that's blown my post about you right out of the water hasn't it?
Oct 24th 2006, 11:16 am
#30
Mummy and baby 1982
Joined: May 2003
Location: North West Chicago Suburbs
Posts: 1,067
Re: Back From My Trip to Blighty! Part 1
Hello EM
I really enjoyed reading your post. I know all of the places you mentioned as I was born and brought up in Wales and lived in South and SW Wales. I remember the Brecon Beacons with the wild horses and sheep and also Tenby and Saundersfoot. We used to walk through the tunnel from Saundersfoot to Coppet Hall to watch the cricket, and Amroth was great for pebble collecting. It brings back very happy childhood memories.
I also lived just outside Coventry and worked there for over 12 years. I also worked in Warwick and Straftford u Avon. When I was back in July this year I went with some old work colleagues for a leaving party and we went on a canal narrow boat for a lovely meal on the Avon from Stratford.
My husband is from Putney and we've taken some wonderful walks in Richmond Park and Wimbledon Common. His siter still lives there so it's something nice to do when visiting.
I am also looking forward to part 2 of your visit home!
Maggie
I really enjoyed reading your post. I know all of the places you mentioned as I was born and brought up in Wales and lived in South and SW Wales. I remember the Brecon Beacons with the wild horses and sheep and also Tenby and Saundersfoot. We used to walk through the tunnel from Saundersfoot to Coppet Hall to watch the cricket, and Amroth was great for pebble collecting. It brings back very happy childhood memories.
I also lived just outside Coventry and worked there for over 12 years. I also worked in Warwick and Straftford u Avon. When I was back in July this year I went with some old work colleagues for a leaving party and we went on a canal narrow boat for a lovely meal on the Avon from Stratford.
My husband is from Putney and we've taken some wonderful walks in Richmond Park and Wimbledon Common. His siter still lives there so it's something nice to do when visiting.
I am also looking forward to part 2 of your visit home!
Maggie
Originally Posted by Englishmum
I've just arrived back from a trip to Blighty (5th - 22nd October) and have had such a brilliant time.....it was a killer having to go to Heathrow yesterday for the flight back to Newark...
The flight over was great - I took a morning flight with BA which arrives around 8.30pm and it was near-empty, apparently the morning flight usually has far fewer passengers connecting from other incoming flights so they put on a smaller plane in the mornings rather than the 777s; it was a 767 and out of 141 seats in World Traveller, 93 of them were empty! My friend who works for BA gave me a pass for the exec lounge and a nice bulkhead aisle seat with loads of legroom (2 + 4 + 2 configuration). The window seat beside me was empty so I actually had more space than the folks in WT+ one row in front of me. Send me a PM if you want the seat numbers LOL!
I rented a car and drove 90 miles up the M40 to stay with my sister in Coventry. The next few days were a whirlwind of seeing my mum, other sister, my brother and their spouses and children and seeing old friends from school. I couldn't resist going to the chippy for fish and chips on Friday evening LOL! On the Saturday I went to see my friend's teenage son play rugby which was fun, then in the evening we joined my sister and had a good laugh (we're thinking of going on a girls weekend trip to Amsterdam next year.....
On Sunday morning my mum and I drove down to Richmond-Upon-Thames to meet up with my daughter and her boyfriend. It was the first time I'd met him and I wasn't impressed.....he's almost the same age as me and a bit of a dork. We did have a lovely roast Sunday lunch at one of the riverside pubs then a stroll along the riverbank and up Marble Hill for the fab views across the river valley. We also drove over to Richmond Park and had a cup of tea at the lovely old Molecatchers house (and observed a colourful African wedding party).
The next few days were spent mostly doing things with my mum, shopping for accessories for my cousin's wedding, seeing a movie, visiting my siblings etc. and going to Stratford-Upon-Avon which I never fail to visit whenever I'm in England.
On the Friday I drove down to Heathrow to meet up with my husband who had flown in on the overnight flight from Newark and spent a few hours working on his laptop at the airport. We were going to my cousin's sons' wedding; he's been out to visit us twice in the US so we just had to go! We then drove to Tenby in Pembrokeshire, SW Wales and arrived at the hotel in the early evening. The hotel is on a clifftop overlooking the bay and the town, so we strolled down to the town for dinner.....and ended up in a fish and chip restaurant! It was very lively in this pretty little seaside town as there are lots of pubs there, so of course we just had to go for a few drinks in a pub as well.... We had a few more when we joined up with other members of the wedding party back at the hotel....
http://www.parkhoteltenby.com/
Well, the weather has been unbelievably warm and mild in the UK and Autumn is late there this year (lots of concerns about global warming). The weather was really nice for the wedding in the nearby town of Saundersfoot in a picturesque old C of E church on a hill. I took a photo of the list of vicars in a side chapel to show the Yanks how old the church was....the year of the first vicar was 1492 (when Columbus discovered America I seem to recall). It really was a typical British wedding.....ladies in hats and the men in the wedding party in Welsh kilts - they have red dragons embroidered on them to distinguish them from the Scottish ones.
The reception speeches were hysterical; the groom and his family are very theatrical and Gareth spent a year in Stratford-Upon-Avon and did a drama degree at Cardiff, so lots of 'luvvie' friends were there. Dancing took place in the evening....it was just like the movie 'Four Weddings and a Funeral' with some terrible/hilarious dancing from the older uncle types. They had a well-known local couple doing the singing with karaoke type backing music, unfortunately not my cup of tea but the stuff to get most people up eg. 'I will survive' 'Dancing Queen', 'Is this the way to Armadillo?' and one Robbie Williams song. I had killer heels on so couldn't dance...
We were spending our second week in London as my husband was going to be in meetings all week at HO in Canary Wharf, so on the Sunday we took the scenic route back to the M4 and went on a lovely walk up a hill on a marked footpath in the beautiful hills and moorland of the Brecon Beacons. We encountered wild ponies and lots of sheep......I was nearly in tears when I thought about how I never get to experience things like that in the US; I was in Upstate New York at Hunter Mtn a couple of weeks beforehand but it doesn't compare with the wild countryside of the UK.
Hope I'm not boring you.....will write about my week in London in a seperate post later today....have to get back to all the laundry and bills LOL!
The flight over was great - I took a morning flight with BA which arrives around 8.30pm and it was near-empty, apparently the morning flight usually has far fewer passengers connecting from other incoming flights so they put on a smaller plane in the mornings rather than the 777s; it was a 767 and out of 141 seats in World Traveller, 93 of them were empty! My friend who works for BA gave me a pass for the exec lounge and a nice bulkhead aisle seat with loads of legroom (2 + 4 + 2 configuration). The window seat beside me was empty so I actually had more space than the folks in WT+ one row in front of me. Send me a PM if you want the seat numbers LOL!
I rented a car and drove 90 miles up the M40 to stay with my sister in Coventry. The next few days were a whirlwind of seeing my mum, other sister, my brother and their spouses and children and seeing old friends from school. I couldn't resist going to the chippy for fish and chips on Friday evening LOL! On the Saturday I went to see my friend's teenage son play rugby which was fun, then in the evening we joined my sister and had a good laugh (we're thinking of going on a girls weekend trip to Amsterdam next year....
. On Sunday morning my mum and I drove down to Richmond-Upon-Thames to meet up with my daughter and her boyfriend. It was the first time I'd met him and I wasn't impressed.....he's almost the same age as me and a bit of a dork. We did have a lovely roast Sunday lunch at one of the riverside pubs then a stroll along the riverbank and up Marble Hill for the fab views across the river valley. We also drove over to Richmond Park and had a cup of tea at the lovely old Molecatchers house (and observed a colourful African wedding party).
The next few days were spent mostly doing things with my mum, shopping for accessories for my cousin's wedding, seeing a movie, visiting my siblings etc. and going to Stratford-Upon-Avon which I never fail to visit whenever I'm in England.
On the Friday I drove down to Heathrow to meet up with my husband who had flown in on the overnight flight from Newark and spent a few hours working on his laptop at the airport. We were going to my cousin's sons' wedding; he's been out to visit us twice in the US so we just had to go! We then drove to Tenby in Pembrokeshire, SW Wales and arrived at the hotel in the early evening. The hotel is on a clifftop overlooking the bay and the town, so we strolled down to the town for dinner.....and ended up in a fish and chip restaurant! It was very lively in this pretty little seaside town as there are lots of pubs there, so of course we just had to go for a few drinks in a pub as well....
We had a few more when we joined up with other members of the wedding party back at the hotel.... http://www.parkhoteltenby.com/
Well, the weather has been unbelievably warm and mild in the UK and Autumn is late there this year (lots of concerns about global warming). The weather was really nice for the wedding in the nearby town of Saundersfoot in a picturesque old C of E church on a hill. I took a photo of the list of vicars in a side chapel to show the Yanks how old the church was....the year of the first vicar was 1492 (when Columbus discovered America I seem to recall). It really was a typical British wedding.....ladies in hats and the men in the wedding party in Welsh kilts - they have red dragons embroidered on them to distinguish them from the Scottish ones.
The reception speeches were hysterical; the groom and his family are very theatrical and Gareth spent a year in Stratford-Upon-Avon and did a drama degree at Cardiff, so lots of 'luvvie' friends were there. Dancing took place in the evening....it was just like the movie 'Four Weddings and a Funeral' with some terrible/hilarious dancing from the older uncle types. They had a well-known local couple doing the singing with karaoke type backing music, unfortunately not my cup of tea but the stuff to get most people up eg. 'I will survive' 'Dancing Queen', 'Is this the way to Armadillo?' and one Robbie Williams song. I had killer heels on so couldn't dance...
We were spending our second week in London as my husband was going to be in meetings all week at HO in Canary Wharf, so on the Sunday we took the scenic route back to the M4 and went on a lovely walk up a hill on a marked footpath in the beautiful hills and moorland of the Brecon Beacons. We encountered wild ponies and lots of sheep......I was nearly in tears when I thought about how I never get to experience things like that in the US; I was in Upstate New York at Hunter Mtn a couple of weeks beforehand but it doesn't compare with the wild countryside of the UK.
Hope I'm not boring you.....will write about my week in London in a seperate post later today....have to get back to all the laundry and bills LOL!
