England - May 2005

5/9/05 Left Detroit at 9:40 on a direct flight to London's Gatwyck Airport.

5/10/05 Arrive Gaywyck at 10 a.m. Met Holly Smith, a paleontologist from the University of Michigan on the plane. We enjoyed chatting. She was traveling to the Museum of Natural History to study the bones of Spitalfield -- a group of weavers from the 16th and 17th centuries --comparing their small growth rates to the larger rate of an African boy skeleton she's written on. We traveled together to Victoria station where she tubed off and I tried to orient myself to a map. After a false start or two and a nice tour of the Victoria Station area, I found my way to the James Hotel. Since it was too early to check in, I got directions to the Weaver's Studio, which turned out to be at the next to the last stop on the Victoria Line -- about a 35 minute ride on the Tube. The shop was a healthy 15-minute walk through neighborhoods from the Tube station. It is small but full of goodies. She had a nice selection of books -- I picked up three out of print spinning ones, small tubes of many very fine yarns, magazines, roving, wheels, a classroom, and oddments of other related "stuff." I purchased very fine linen for the handkerchiefs I am weaving for Peter and Jeannine's wedding and some super fine wool to do a miniature weaving someday.

After that expedition, I found my way back to the neighborhood where I was staying, grabbed a sandwich and slept for a very long time! I have no idea how long as I had no clock in my room.

8/11/05 My room was tiny. They call it a "standard single." The facilities were down a half-flight of stairs. I had a TV and sink in my room and the standard tea pot. The room came with a "full English breakfast" -- OJ, toast, scrambled eggs, ham and mushrooms the first day and pineapple the next. I declined the grilled tomato. Sharon, the proprietor, is a knitter, so we swapped stories and had show and tell. She's made some lovely baby things using Sirdar yarn. Sharon gave me directions to John Lewis, a London department store near Carnaby Street that has a "wool" department. It was busy, but selection was very limited (as Sharon warned me). They had Rowan, Jaeger, Sirdar, a bit of fluff and some Noro. The notions were very limited. I know Londoners must appreciate the loop (loop.gb.com), a new yarn store that has opened since I was there.

Following the visit to John Lewis (I bought Rowan wool for a hat for Mark), I went to Islington to the Crafts Council to view the knitting exhibit, Kint2Together. And what an experience that was. The first thing you encountered upon entry was an entire living room decked in Aran knitting -- lamp, chair, computer, picture, vacuum cleaner, etc! The artists used knitting in non-traditional ways with conventional and non-conventional materials, including human hair, strips of paper made from pages in a book, elastic, wire, yarn and rope. Some was knit with needles, some "French" knitted (spool knitting), some with a machine. Everything pushed boundaries. It was serious, insightful, silly, superfluous, significant. It made a statement -- knitting isn't just for necessity any more.

Without pausing to catch my breath, I headed back to the tube and made my way to the V&A for the Arts & Crafts exhibit. I couldn't help but think Mariah would love all the "tubing" and then the subway (tunnel) to the museum. The exhibit moved from the British, to American, to German/European and finally Japanese representations of this important era in art history. I think some of the basis for the movement -- a return to things that are important, quality over frivolity, clean lines and country living all have meaning today. My favorite textile piece was the Wm. Morris animal tapestry. The richness of the natural dyes and complexity of shading are incredible. I also visited the textile and tapestry room at the V&A, but felt I needed much more time to appreciate the extensive archives. Pieces are available for study ranging from weaving fragments dating to 600 BC as well as lace and embroidery through the ages and to the present day. An incredible collection worthy of way more time than I could give it.

After that my dogs were tired (imagine that!) so I explored the neighborhood a bit and took the tube back. On the way back I picked up dinner and retreated to my room. I spent the evening knitting and watching BBC and went to sleep early. Woke up in the middle of the night and knit a bit on the Fair Isle hat then finally snoozed until morning.

8/12/05 I packed before breakfast and knit a bit more while watching GMTV. After parking my bags with Sharon, I set out to be tourist, camera and all. I walked by the Royal Mews (the horse stables), Bucking Palace and the Guards, around Queen Victoria's fountain and to West minster through St. James Park. I sat and knit for a bit in the park and a squirrel came and sat on my lap! When he realized I didn't have any food, he scurried off. As I knit I could hear the Westminster chimes, which reminded me of the clock dad made for Grandma and Grandpa. The weather was nice, a bit cool and windy, but partly sunny. Perfect for a walk.

After enjoying Big Ben up close and watching the government workers bustling around, I decided to grab the tube and pop over to Harrod's. I didn't know before reading the guidebook that Harrod's was started by an Egyptian (duh! with all the Princess Di stuff, I should have remembered that!) and is centered around an Egyptian theme. There are original artifacts and repro's, quite overdone as one would expect for a tourist trap! I purchased cookies to take back to the shop, tea for mom, an argyle Harrod's back to hold my knitting and a couple books for Mariah. Then it was back to reclaim my bags, doing more souvenir shopping on the way. I picked up a "Mind the Gap" t-shirt for Mark and the obligatory fridge magnet. Had my first fish & ships for lunch and then headed out to Arundel (pronounced AIR-n-dl) to meet Anne. I forgot to call before I left, so I rang when I got off the train but found I had a bad phone number. It took me a minute to figure out what to do next -- as I stood with my bags at a train station in the middle of nowhere in a foreign country! I decided to have a cab take me to the B&B and I hoped they'd be able to help me find Anne. The B&B had Anne's local number, so all was well.

Anne came over and we had tea, took a walk and then went to Ann Sutton's home for cocktails. An incredibly famous weaver and art supporter and promoter, I found her views inspiring and stimulating (tho I didn't agree with everything!). She's a delight. We drank a couple bottles of some rather ordinary sparkling French pinot noir and a bowl of olives, had a bit of show and tell and toured her studio. She has two computer assisted 24H AVLs. My favorite part of her house, which was guilt in 1812, was the kitchen. It was a study in contrasts: original cupboards, bright green paint in several shades and a Bosch fridge set into a cutout nook. As many homes here, you must travel a distance from the front of the house to the living area. It seem you "discover" rooms as you go and looks can be deceiving.

After leaving Ann, we had dinner in the pub. No pints for us -- just food to balance the wine! I had a wonderful Steak & HSB (a brand of beer) pie. Meat and beer and broccoli in a puff pastry set on a bid of al dente parsnips, carrots and fresh new potatoes. We talked until we were too tired and I walked Anne "home" and returned to the B&B.

5/13/05 It is unseasonably cool and windy all over Great Britain this week. As with most other mornings, I woke before six, showered and knit until time for breakfast. I gave up on the Fair Isle as the colors are just plain ugly and not even worthy of a bad sample. I do love working in the finer gauge -- it goes remarkably fast -- but need to have pleasing colors! Next I picked up the alpaca shawl and finally got past where I had ripped when I got to London. After breakfast I explored Arundel a bit. Found a couple books at Kim's Antiquarian and Used Book Shop -- a Gansey and Guernsey book from 1955 (now in reprint) and a Baines hardcover original of her Spinning Book. Visited several antique shops and found three silver tea spoons and a lamb figurine that needed homes. Visited the needlework store, and was informed, "We were THE first Rowan stockists." They had minimal yarn, basically the same as John Lewis. Few notions, but I did find an old "circular knitting pin" for Mark's hat and got a small pair of scissors to replace the confiscated ones. These will go in the checked luggage! Met Anne at the Foundation. It is small! They have 4 24H AVL looms. The one Anne is using is 20" and the others are 36 - 42". The interior is starkly modern -- white walls, galvanized metal stairs, which is a real contrast to the building which connects to Ann Sutton's 1812 flat (which you can see from the Foundation). In one of the outdoor spaces the building wraps around (about 5 x 12') you can see parts of the ovens from when the space was a bakery. Anne showed me the devore work she is doing -- removing fibers chemically after weaving is done. She has a number of samples woven that are quite interesting. She's working with wool, rayon, poly cotton, poly. The chemical dissolves cellulose fibers and leaves the others undisturbed. When applied to the poly/cotton (poly core, cotton around -- like sewing thread), the poly remains. Leaving wool alone in the warp and cellulose in the weft, leaves long strands that squiggle. When using cellulose that dissolves at a different rate, a haloing effect is achieved. Interesting work. I'll be eager to read her final report. While I was there, she ordered more yarns to experiment with from Textura Trading.

Used her Internet to send an email home, then we closed up to be tourists for the rest of the day. Stopped at a very busy, very casual bakers (not even a sales center, rolls were cooling on the floor in a crate) and got fresh bread. Back at the flat we paired it with cheese, had a bite and headed for the castle.

Entry fee for the castle seemed steep £11 ($20 US) -- but they let us in for the £9 senior rate! However, when we left we did comment that it was worth the fee. The castle has been occupied by the same family since 1067, first as an Earldom, then Duchy. The current duke has five children aged from 8 to 18, the eldest with the title of Earl.

Our tour began in the Keep, the oldest part of the castle. The Keep kept everyone safe in unsecure times -- until the invaders figured out that the water supply came from the lake, so they drained it to make the well run dry. Those inside lasts 16 days before surrendering. The Arun's were (and are) Catholic. There is a chapel at the top of the keep, another in the manor house and one up the hill. And I mean chapel like some people mean cottage when talking about their up north summer homes! The separate church, St. Nicholas, has two parts -- half is Episcopalian, the other half Roman Catholic. Then, across the street is the Cathedral (which we visited yesterday) that has been the head of the Diocese since 1970. The Cathedral and the main part of the castle were built in the later part of the 19th century and are considered excellent examples of Victorian architecture. From the people perspective, I found it interesting that photos of the current family with Pope John Paul II were liberally sprinkled though the tour. The portion of the manor that we toured is still in regular use by the family.

Structurally the construction is of two locally available materials: limestone and flint. This is found around town as well. From the top of the keep we could see to the Channel. Yellow fields of rape in bloom spotted the countryside. We saw a few cows, but no sheep.

After a late afternoon respite, Anne and I met for dinner. We ended up at the same pub. This time I had a pin of HSB -- a heavier, fairly dark beer that felt "round" in my mouth. It wasn't too bitter, but a pint was enough! We chatted for a long time. It was the first time I've seen dusk since I've been here. I really enjoy our stimulating (and opinionated) talks. From weaving to growing up to raising children, conversation is never dull.

5/14/05 Today we are off to Brighton to stay with Neil -- a local weaver who has taken a class with Anne. There's a three week long arts festival there every May and we are smack in the middle of it. Perfect timing. We'll bus their and train back. Weather looks to be dry - yeah!

Well, it was wet. It was raining by the time we got to Brighton, but not enough to use an umbrella from the bus stop to Neil's, about a 15 minute walk. By the time we'd chatted a bit and had lunch our jackets were dry. Neil's friend, Deb, was down from London for the weekend. Neil is a retired medical doctor and Deb a social worker for the government. Both are very lovely people.

We settled on visiting downtown, the Grand Pavillion and Brighton Pier before having dinner and viewing a fireworks display. The Grand Pavillion was build by George IV during the first half of the 19th century as his summer Palace. It is gaudy, odd and very pretentiously designed and decorated in an Asian style. The outside is reminiscent of the Taj Mahal and the inside of an elaborate Chinese Restaurant! Queen Victoria didn't like the home because she couldn't see the sea and it was ugly so she removed the contents and sold the building to the city of Brighton. The inside is now being restored to it's original state and some of the original contents are on loan from the Queen. The kitchen was our favorite place. Pots and pots and more posts, all copper. A huge fireplace with spites in front of it. Massive stove with copper pots for heating water and tiny rats (taxidermied) at unexpected places!

In town, there was a Busker festival of sorts. really silly entertainers -- men on stilts making music, two men dueling with toilet plungers attached to their bellies, a man on a slack rope playing the violin, policemen in nylons held up by garters and so on. It seems that Brighton is Britain's Las Vegas -- people go there to play.

The Brighton Pier is like a permanent carnival with food, gambling, rides and lots of kids with headphones, cellphones and metal on their faces! We walked from the pier to the marina and ate at a Spanish restaurant which had horrible and noisy flamenco and wonderful food. Everything is a la carte. So we each ordered three dishes and shared.

Following dinner we walked to the bus and took it to the "field of fireworks." We arrived just as they turned off the lights and the "choreographed" show began. It was a spoof on a government pamphlet from the 70s about what to do in the event of a nuclear attack. Good humor, good show (once it was explained to me!). It was unique in that the viewers stood in the middle of the display, which happened in 360-degrees. We took a city bus home, had a brandy and went to bed. I told them it was the first time I'd stayed up past dark since I arrived -- I didn't know England had night time!

5/15/05 Went to mass in the neighborhood. At first the only way I knew it was a church was because the street was being used as a parking lot. The church is tucked between two houses, and it's not big, so it'd be easy to miss. It was probably build in the late 1800s and it seems overloaded -- like it had to have one of everything that was popular at the time including big pillars with an angel atop each one (each playing a different instrument).

Just after the "peace be with you's," the most unexpected thing happened -- the man of the couple next to me collapsed. They were both quite elderly. She bumped into me and I glanced over and saw he had fallen into her and had crumpled to the floor! I thought for sure he was dieing! Someone called an ambulance and it was collectively decided he may have had a heart attack or stroke. As we were in the back of the church, most people had no idea what was happening and mass continued with no disruption to the flow.

After mass I walked back and we visited through breakfast and lunch. I did my flight check in and we took the bus to several artist's open houses. The houses were better than some of the art! Interesting concept tho' -- over 1,000 artists participate and display their work in private homes all around town. Each home has the work of many artists and art varied from Giclee (photos from an ink jet) to devore, carving, weaving (no imagination and the only one in the show), lawn art/sculpture, jewelry, pottery, handpainted silk and most was for sale.

We left at dinner time and took two trains and a bus to get back to Arundel. We were tired. Ate fish and chips takeaway at the B&B and said good night and went to bed.

5/16/05 Go home day. I woke early, packed and took a walk on a path by the river. A really beautiful morning. Cows grazing, school children on a field trip, boats lolling along the river -- really pleasant. I had no idea where I was going, but the path just looped around to the village and had a surprisingly great view of the Castle. Stopped at the grocery and bought cookies (Digestives!) for Holly and Kath, Mariah's British friend and her mom, to take home. Anne met me at the B&B and we walked to the train station. She accompanied me all the way to the airport -- we had great conversation that was just too special on the train ride. This trip was one of those really special "girl" times we happen upon in life. I'm so glad I decided to go.

The flight home was uneventful. I left early afternoon and got home late in the afternoon. Mark met me at the airport and it was back to the real world!

England Diary/Blog
5/9/05 Left Detroit at 9:40 on a direct flight to London's Gatwyck Airport. 5/10/05 Arrive Gaywyck at 10 a.m. Met Holly Smith, a paleontologist from the University of Michigan on the plane. We enjoyed chatting. She was traveling to the Museum of Natural History to study the bones of Spitalfield -- a group of weavers from the 16th and 17th centuries --comparing their small growth rates to the larger rate of an African boy skeleton she's written on. We traveled together to Victoria station where she tubed off and I tried to orient myself to a map. After a false start or two and a nice tour of the Victoria Station area, I found my way to the James Hotel. Since it was too early to check in, I got directions to the Weaver's Studio, which turned out to be at the next to the last stop on the Victoria Line -- about a 35 minute ride on the Tube. The shop was a healthy 15-minute walk through neighborhoods from the Tube station. It is small but full of goodies. She had a nice selection of books -- I picked up three out of print spinning ones, small tubes of many very fine yarns, magazines, roving, wheels, a classroom, and oddments of other related "stuff." I purchased very fine linen for the handkerchiefs I am weaving for Peter and Jeannine's wedding and some super fine wool to do a miniature weaving someday. After that expedition, I found my way back to the neighborhood where I was staying, grabbed a sandwich and slept for a very long time! I have no idea how long as I had no clock in my room. 8/11/05 My room was tiny. They call it a "standard single." The facilities were down a half-flight of stairs. I had a TV and sink in my room and the standard tea pot. The room came with a "full English breakfast" -- OJ, toast, scrambled eggs, ham and mushrooms the first day and pineapple the next. I declined the grilled tomato. Sharon, the proprietor, is a knitter, so we swapped stories and had show and tell. She's made some lovely baby things using Sirdar yarn. Sharon gave me directions to John Lewis, a London department store near Carnaby Street that has a "wool" department. It was busy, but selection was very limited (as Sharon warned me). They had Rowan, Jaeger, Sirdar, a bit of fluff and some Noro. The notions were very limited. I know Londoners must appreciate the loop (loop.gb.com), a new yarn store that has opened since I was there. Following the visit to John Lewis (I bought Rowan wool for a hat for Mark), I went to Islington to the Crafts Council to view the knitting exhibit, Kint2Together. And what an experience that was. The first thing you encountered upon entry was an entire living room decked in Aran knitting -- lamp, chair, computer, picture, vacuum cleaner, etc! The artists used knitting in non-traditional ways with conventional and non-conventional materials, including human hair, strips of paper made from pages in a book, elastic, wire, yarn and rope. Some was knit with needles, some "French" knitted (spool knitting), some with a machine. Everything pushed boundaries. It was serious, insightful, silly, superfluous, significant. It made a statement -- knitting isn't just for necessity any more. Without pausing to catch my breath, I headed back to the tube and made my way to the V&A for the Arts & Crafts exhibit. I couldn't help but think Mariah would love all the "tubing" and then the subway (tunnel) to the museum. The exhibit moved from the British, to American, to German/European and finally Japanese representations of this important era in art history. I think some of the basis for the movement -- a return to things that are important, quality over frivolity, clean lines and country living all have meaning today. My favorite textile piece was the Wm. Morris animal tapestry. The richness of the natural dyes and complexity of shading are incredible. I also visited the textile and tapestry room at the V&A, but felt I needed much more time to appreciate the extensive archives. Pieces are available for study ranging from weaving fragments dating to 600 BC as well as lace and embroidery through the ages and to the present day. An incredible collection worthy of way more time than I could give it. After that my dogs were tired (imagine that!) so I explored the neighborhood a bit and took the tube back. On the way back I picked up dinner and retreated to my room. I spent the evening knitting and watching BBC and went to sleep early. Woke up in the middle of the night and knit a bit on the Fair Isle hat then finally snoozed until morning. 8/12/05 I packed before breakfast and knit a bit more while watching GMTV. After parking my bags with Sharon, I set out to be tourist, camera and all. I walked by the Royal Mews (the horse stables), Bucking Palace and the Guards, around Queen Victoria's fountain and to West minster through St. James Park. I sat and knit for a bit in the park and a squirrel came and sat on my lap! When he realized I didn't have any food, he scurried off. As I knit I could hear the Westminster chimes, which reminded me of the clock dad made for Grandma and Grandpa. The weather was nice, a bit cool and windy, but partly sunny. Perfect for a walk. After enjoying Big Ben up close and watching the government workers bustling around, I decided to grab the tube and pop over to Harrod's. I didn't know before reading the guidebook that Harrod's was started by an Egyptian (duh! with all the Princess Di stuff, I should have remembered that!) and is centered around an Egyptian theme. There are original artifacts and repro's, quite overdone as one would expect for a tourist trap! I purchased cookies to take back to the shop, tea for mom, an argyle Harrod's back to hold my knitting and a couple books for Mariah. Then it was back to reclaim my bags, doing more souvenir shopping on the way. I picked up a "Mind the Gap" t-shirt for Mark and the obligatory fridge magnet. Had my first fish & ships for lunch and then headed out to Arundel (pronounced AIR-n-dl) to meet Anne. I forgot to call before I left, so I rang when I got off the train but found I had a bad phone number. It took me a minute to figure out what to do next -- as I stood with my bags at a train station in the middle of nowhere in a foreign country! I decided to have a cab take me to the B&B and I hoped they'd be able to help me find Anne. The B&B had Anne's local number, so all was well. Anne came over and we had tea, took a walk and then went to Ann Sutton's home for cocktails. An incredibly famous weaver and art supporter and promoter, I found her views inspiring and stimulating (tho I didn't agree with everything!). She's a delight. We drank a couple bottles of some rather ordinary sparkling French pinot noir and a bowl of olives, had a bit of show and tell and toured her studio. She has two computer assisted 24H AVLs. My favorite part of her house, which was guilt in 1812, was the kitchen. It was a study in contrasts: original cupboards, bright green paint in several shades and a Bosch fridge set into a cutout nook. As many homes here, you must travel a distance from the front of the house to the living area. It seem you "discover" rooms as you go and looks can be deceiving. After leaving Ann, we had dinner in the pub. No pints for us -- just food to balance the wine! I had a wonderful Steak & HSB (a brand of beer) pie. Meat and beer and broccoli in a puff pastry set on a bid of al dente parsnips, carrots and fresh new potatoes. We talked until we were too tired and I walked Anne "home" and returned to the B&B. 5/13/05 It is unseasonably cool and windy all over Great Britain this week. As with most other mornings, I woke before six, showered and knit until time for breakfast. I gave up on the Fair Isle as the colors are just plain ugly and not even worthy of a bad sample. I do love working in the finer gauge -- it goes remarkably fast -- but need to have pleasing colors! Next I picked up the alpaca shawl and finally got past where I had ripped when I got to London. After breakfast I explored Arundel a bit. Found a couple books at Kim's Antiquarian and Used Book Shop -- a Gansey and Guernsey book from 1955 (now in reprint) and a Baines hardcover original of her Spinning Book. Visited several antique shops and found three silver tea spoons and a lamb figurine that needed homes. Visited the needlework store, and was informed, "We were THE first Rowan stockists." They had minimal yarn, basically the same as John Lewis. Few notions, but I did find an old "circular knitting pin" for Mark's hat and got a small pair of scissors to replace the confiscated ones. These will go in the checked luggage! Met Anne at the Foundation. It is small! They have 4 24H AVL looms. The one Anne is using is 20" and the others are 36 - 42". The interior is starkly modern -- white walls, galvanized metal stairs, which is a real contrast to the building which connects to Ann Sutton's 1812 flat (which you can see from the Foundation). In one of the outdoor spaces the building wraps around (about 5 x 12') you can see parts of the ovens from when the space was a bakery. Anne showed me the devore work she is doing -- removing fibers chemically after weaving is done. She has a number of samples woven that are quite interesting. She's working with wool, rayon, poly cotton, poly. The chemical dissolves cellulose fibers and leaves the others undisturbed. When applied to the poly/cotton (poly core, cotton around -- like sewing thread), the poly remains. Leaving wool alone in the warp and cellulose in the weft, leaves long strands that squiggle. When using cellulose that dissolves at a different rate, a haloing effect is achieved. Interesting work. I'll be eager to read her final report. While I was there, she ordered more yarns to experiment with from Textura Trading. Used her Internet to send an email home, then we closed up to be tourists for the rest of the day. Stopped at a very busy, very casual bakers (not even a sales center, rolls were cooling on the floor in a crate) and got fresh bread. Back at the flat we paired it with cheese, had a bite and headed for the castle. Entry fee for the castle seemed steep £11 ($20 US) -- but they let us in for the £9 senior rate! However, when we left we did comment that it was worth the fee. The castle has been occupied by the same family since 1067, first as an Earldom, then Duchy. The current duke has five children aged from 8 to 18, the eldest with the title of Earl. Our tour began in the Keep, the oldest part of the castle. The Keep kept everyone safe in unsecure times -- until the invaders figured out that the water supply came from the lake, so they drained it to make the well run dry. Those inside lasts 16 days before surrendering. The Arun's were (and are) Catholic. There is a chapel at the top of the keep, another in the manor house and one up the hill. And I mean chapel like some people mean cottage when talking about their up north summer homes! The separate church, St. Nicholas, has two parts -- half is Episcopalian, the other half Roman Catholic. Then, across the street is the Cathedral (which we visited yesterday) that has been the head of the Diocese since 1970. The Cathedral and the main part of the castle were built in the later part of the 19th century and are considered excellent examples of Victorian architecture. From the people perspective, I found it interesting that photos of the current family with Pope John Paul II were liberally sprinkled though the tour. The portion of the manor that we toured is still in regular use by the family. Structurally the construction is of two locally available materials: limestone and flint. This is found around town as well. From the top of the keep we could see to the Channel. Yellow fields of rape in bloom spotted the countryside. We saw a few cows, but no sheep. After a late afternoon respite, Anne and I met for dinner. We ended up at the same pub. This time I had a pin of HSB -- a heavier, fairly dark beer that felt "round" in my mouth. It wasn't too bitter, but a pint was enough! We chatted for a long time. It was the first time I've seen dusk since I've been here. I really enjoy our stimulating (and opinionated) talks. From weaving to growing up to raising children, conversation is never dull. 5/14/05 Today we are off to Brighton to stay with Neil -- a local weaver who has taken a class with Anne. There's a three week long arts festival there every May and we are smack in the middle of it. Perfect timing. We'll bus their and train back. Weather looks to be dry - yeah! -- Well, it was wet. It was raining by the time we got to Brighton, but not enough to use an umbrella from the bus stop to Neil's, about a 15 minute walk. By the time we'd chatted a bit and had lunch our jackets were dry. Neil's friend, Deb, was down from London for the weekend. Neil is a retired medical doctor and Deb a social worker for the government. Both are very lovely people. We settled on visiting downtown, the Grand Pavillion and Brighton Pier before having dinner and viewing a fireworks display. The Grand Pavillion was build by George IV during the first half of the 19th century as his summer Palace. It is gaudy, odd and very pretentiously designed and decorated in an Asian style. The outside is reminiscent of the Taj Mahal and the inside of an elaborate Chinese Restaurant! Queen Victoria didn't like the home because she couldn't see the sea and it was ugly so she removed the contents and sold the building to the city of Brighton. The inside is now being restored to it's original state and some of the original contents are on loan from the Queen. The kitchen was our favorite place. Pots and pots and more posts, all copper. A huge fireplace with spites in front of it. Massive stove with copper pots for heating water and tiny rats (taxidermied) at unexpected places! In town, there was a Busker festival of sorts. really silly entertainers -- men on stilts making music, two men dueling with toilet plungers attached to their bellies, a man on a slack rope playing the violin, policemen in nylons held up by garters and so on. It seems that Brighton is Britain's Las Vegas -- people go there to play. The Brighton Pier is like a permanent carnival with food, gambling, rides and lots of kids with headphones, cellphones and metal on their faces! We walked from the pier to the marina and ate at a Spanish restaurant which had horrible and noisy flamenco and wonderful food. Everything is a la carte. So we each ordered three dishes and shared. Following dinner we walked to the bus and took it to the "field of fireworks." We arrived just as they turned off the lights and the "choreographed" show began. It was a spoof on a government pamphlet from the 70s about what to do in the event of a nuclear attack. Good humor, good show (once it was explained to me!). It was unique in that the viewers stood in the middle of the display, which happened in 360-degrees. We took a city bus home, had a brandy and went to bed. I told them it was the first time I'd stayed up past dark since I arrived -- I didn't know England had night time! 5/15/05 Went to mass in the neighborhood. At first the only way I knew it was a church was because the street was being used as a parking lot. The church is tucked between two houses, and it's not big, so it'd be easy to miss. It was probably build in the late 1800s and it seems overloaded -- like it had to have one of everything that was popular at the time including big pillars with an angel atop each one (each playing a different instrument). Just after the "peace be with you's," the most unexpected thing happened -- the man of the couple next to me collapsed. They were both quite elderly. She bumped into me and I glanced over and saw he had fallen into her and had crumpled to the floor! I thought for sure he was dieing! Someone called an ambulance and it was collectively decided he may have had a heart attack or stroke. As we were in the back of the church, most people had no idea what was happening and mass continued with no disruption to the flow. After mass I walked back and we visited through breakfast and lunch. I did my flight check in and we took the bus to several artist's open houses. The houses were better than some of the art! Interesting concept tho' -- over 1,000 artists participate and display their work in private homes all around town. Each home has the work of many artists and art varied from Giclee (photos from an ink jet) to devore, carving, weaving (no imagination and the only one in the show), lawn art/sculpture, jewelry, pottery, handpainted silk and most was for sale. We left at dinner time and took two trains and a bus to get back to Arundel. We were tired. Ate fish and chips takeaway at the B&B and said good night and went to bed. 5/16/05 Go home day. I woke early, packed and took a walk on a path by the river. A really beautiful morning. Cows grazing, school children on a field trip, boats lolling along the river -- really pleasant. I had no idea where I was going, but the path just looped around to the village and had a surprisingly great view of the Castle. Stopped at the grocery and bought cookies (Digestives!) for Holly and Kath, Mariah's British friend and her mom, to take home. Anne met me at the B&B and we walked to the train station. She accompanied me all the way to the airport -- we had great conversation that was just too special on the train ride. This trip was one of those really special "girl" times we happen upon in life. I'm so glad I decided to go. The flight home was uneventful. I left early afternoon and got home late in the afternoon. Mark met me at the airport and it was back to the real world!
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