A Long and Winding Road….

Ahhhh…. Tour is over, and I’m pretty happy with that. Being with a group of people that I don’t know, who are older than me, and doing things that aren’t always what I want to do, isn’t what I would consider the ideal travelling conditions. Besides, for an extreme home body, being away from home for more than 3 weeks is a little much; I’m looking forward to getting home.

We left Brighton this morning at 8am and headed for a small town that Queen Anne used as a resort town about an hour away. I bought a post-card, but seem to have lost it along the way – I’m hoping it’ll turn up when I unpack. We had less than an hour there (and there wasn’t much to see) but it was nice to stretch the legs and get some pictures. All I remember about the place was that Anne had pan tiles installed on the main promenade since one of her sons fell and broke a leg there. Once we left there, we had a 2 hour drive to Leeds Castle.

Because of the school break and the drop dead gorgeous weather Leeds Castle and it’s grounds were full of people. There was also supposed to be a jousting exhibition, but we didn’t get to see any of it because there was lots of talking before the jousting was to start. Walking the grounds was extremely beautiful – the flowers, lawns, ponds, and streams were charming and pretty. The castle was a mix of it’s original medieval structure and building projects that stretched into the 20th century. The highlight of the stop for me had to be the box maze though. I entered it, thinking I would always take right turns to get to the grotto at its center – that didn’t work. After about 10 minutes, I was back at the entrance. I headed back into the maze taking right turns, but quickly realized I was walking the same paths over and over again. I finally fell into line behind a family that had their 6 year-old daughter sitting on her father’s shoulders and giving directions to get to the center of the maze. From there, there was an exit through an underground grotto – it wasn’t well lit and they were playing The Rhyme of the Ancient Mariner so it had a real creepy feel to it; besides, it was huge underground and led out to a place outside the maze. In all, I was there about 30 minutes.

Our bus was supposed to leave at 1:05, but two ladies (who were really heavy) misjudged how long it would take them to get back to the bus, so we didn’t get out of there until 1:15. From there, we headed strait to London. We’re staying at the Novotel at Hammersmith – I’m not to far from the Tube, so I’ll be able to get to my hotel tomorrow morning without to much of a hassle. The big shock about the hotel was that the rates were posted on the back of the door - $200 pounds a night! :-O

When they dropped us off I took a couple of minutes to relax, then headed out to the shops looking for a luggage store. I found a piece that’s a backpack with wheels on it and loaded is up with some heavy stuff so I don’t have to pay the over-weight fee on my luggage again. It’ll be easier to carry, and I’ll come out $30Can ahead in the situation, so there you have it.

I chose to pass on the optional tour excursion tonight – it was dinner and a show (Billy Elliot, the Lion King, or Wicked; one I’ve seen and the other two I have no interest in, and it cost like $60 pounds – not cool). Instead, I had dinner at a little bistro where the food was fresh, inexpensive, unpretentious, and delicious; it was probably the best meal I’ve had since getting here. Yum!

Well, tomorrow I’ll start with my last free tour provided breakfast, then head to my new hotel, then to the National Portrait Gallery in the morning, then Richoux for one last tea! A full day planned, but a relaxing night tonight. I have a couch in my room, and I’m enjoying sitting on a couch for the first time in 3 weeks!