Thursday 15th April
In which we go on a journey, and Hayley loses a tooth
For those of you keeping count: here is the mid-April news. First of all the bad news. I had to have my last baby tooth removed by the dentist. I had been resisting this for some time but I (and the dentist) decided that since it has started to go a funny browny/blacky colour perhaps it was time for it to come out. In the process I discovered that I also needed two filings. However, on the up side my experience with a British dentist was not nearly as unpleasant as I had been led to believe it might be. Also because it was a baby tooth the tooth fairy made a visit and left £1 under the pillow (now that is inflation, I think I used to get twenty cents).
The clocks went forward in late-March and that threw us (or at least me) for a loop. Just when I get used to one time zone they go and change it all around on me. It took me quite a few days to catch up with myself again. It has meant however, that our friends the squirrels are very much out in force again and we have been through vast quantities of peanuts recently feeding the FOUR hungry mouths that frequent our garden.
With all of that Easter rather crept up on us. Duncan and Bronwyn went off to Prague but we decided to have a quiet Easter at home as we have quite a bit of travel planned over the next 4 months. I had Maundy Thursday off as the University is closed as well as Good Friday and Easter Monday. Nick was not so fortunate having ONLY the Friday and Monday!! Friday was our day of rest when we didn't even attemp to leave the house. However we were a little better for the rest of the weekend. We did a fair chunk of shopping on Saturday and Monday. Nick required new work shoes and I needed and still need spring and summer clothes as I have shrunk out of all those we bought with us. So these days saw shopping trips to Wimbledon and Kingston respectively. We were both successful and this week Nick has not had wet feet nor has he been sock to concrete with the pavement. I found casual clothes but am still rather short on dress work clothes. Never mind I guess it just means more shopping.
On Sunday we decided to head out to Greenwich to see the TinTin display at the National Maritime Museum. The trip proved to be more of an adventure than what we had planned. What we had forgotten was that they do all the major engineering works on train and tube lines during convenient holiday periods. This is because this mainly inconveniences tourists and not commuters! So our normally simple and quick trip to Waterloo was complicated by the train going along the Underground track to East Putney and then on to Clapham Junction before heading through Wandsworth to Vauxhall. We got to see alot more of the south of London than we would normally! Also, when we got to Waterloo I had forgotten that it was Sunday and therefore the Waterloo and City line doesn't run. So a quick detour to the Jubilee line followed. The Jubilee line is by far the nicest line to ride so it wasn't really a hardship. And in some ways it was nice to go into Canary Wharf through the massive new underground station they have built there. It is a huge cavernous space that while clearly made of concrete feels almost organic. The structure looks like a giant ribcage and you expect to bump into a beating heart somewhere behind one of the giant pillars. Following this we had to ride Docklands light rail. Nick's comment was 'You expect Goofy or Mickey Mouse to pop up at any minute' because it feels strangely like one of those train rides you go on around amusement parks to get your bearings. The train ride is also a good chance to see the development that has occured at Canary Wharf where the financial services have moved in in large numbers and there are glass skyscrappers as far as the eye can see. Our favourite station name was Mudschute (I have since been told its name is from the fact that it was the dumping point for sewerage).
Fortunately Greenwich was worth the trip. It is a very old part of London because of its associations with the docks, and many of the buildings date from the end of the seventeenth beginning of the eigteenth century. It, at least the bits frequented by tourists, is very beautiful and very cold! We headed straight for the Maritime Museum but saw the Cutty Sark from the road on the way. The TinTin exhibition was excellent and traced the boy-reporters martime adventures as well as looking at Herge's life and career. The thing that most fascinated me was the amount of detail Herge went into in trying to draw something as accurately as possible. Apparently he was disappointed when he later found out the the first ship he used in one of the stories was so inaccurate it probably would have sunk! He kept an amazing collection of articles and notes all impecabbly catalogued and many of these were also on display. Snowy and Captain haddock also featured prominently. We were tempted by a small stuffed toy Snowy but resisted temptation and just bough another card for our collection.
Nick was keen to go to a Planetarium show at the Observatory so we headed out through Greenwich park and then up the rather steep hill to get tickets. Unfortunately they were sold out but we learnt that we need to go earlier to secure tickets. Instead we decided to wander through the park and take in the view from the hill. It is another one of the vantage points from which you can see the great sweep of London. We had been told that we wouldn't be able to move for squirels at Greenwich so I had taken some peanuts just in case. As it turned out we only saw two squirrels and only got close enough to feed one. But it was very friendly and it did come back for more! After a wander in the park and having seen Queen Elizabeth's Oak, the Roman Remains and the flower gardens we decided to repeat our mammoth journey and head for home. I suspect we need to spend more time in Maritime Greenwich.
Lastly, we can finally tell that Spring has sprung in full force because we have beautiful red tulips outside our bedroom window. Obviously the flowers aren't treats for our furry friends. It is very cheering to see the bright burst of colour outside our window each morning and evening. And, even more importantly, I haven't had to wera polyprop all week.
Posted by good girl Hayley
Wednesday 14th April
Happy Birthday Fiona
It is our dear friend Fiona's birthday today and we just wanted to mark it here in our own small way. We hope you have a very happy birthday Fi. We miss you heaps and wish we could be there with you to share a glass (or bottle) of champagne : )
We did do things and visit places over the long weekend and we'll post details soon so stay tuned.
Posted by Hayley & Nick