More London

                                                     These are views from the Eye.

Well we travelled to more sights around London Town, first another trip down the river or is that up. London is such a jumbled city I have lost all sense of direction, buses that seem to be going around in circles or doubling back on themselves. Anyway back to the job at hand, we saw the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace, the big band leading an airforce guard, mounted police & the Queens cavalry with their gold trappings.Then to a ride on the London Eye giving panaramic views of London from135 metres. This is something that we reccomend although be prepared to que for a long time unless you pay extra to get fast tracked.

Then we thought that we would go to Harrods for a look & lunch, Harrods where a  doorman ushers you in, then once inside even the floorwalkers look expensive, We went to the food court where mains start  at35 pound so over the road to an Italian restaurant where we had a great meal at a lot less cost.

We only have 2more days to finish our London Holiday then on to Hong Kong

Things that we saw in London

On the Underground

Anyone for Pizza

Police Box

 Pol

More Paris

We were somewhat amazed at the Eifel Tower to see soldiers with machine guns patrolling. This is a sad reflection on today's society.

Paris is indeed a beautiful City, but what a contrast with above.

London &Paris

Eifel Tower

Seine Traffic

Marble Arch

London Street

London Parking

Well the fossils did the BIG BUS tour which took in the major tourist spots of London. Places that I had only seen on TV or postcards. Parliament House,Big Ben, Cleopatra's Needle, Nelsons Column, Tower of London & London Bridge. Included also was a cruise on the Thames, where The HMS Belfast is moored. Other places we saw & will require us to return were Buckinghan Palace &Marble Arch, seeing all these places & the history involved makes you realise how young our country is. One thing we have noticed about London is how rude pedestrians are, not so much the English but foreign speaking people. The most friendly are the dark people who are the first to offer a seat to Elderly (for elderly read fossils ) on trains & buses. Always with a smile. What a change from the friendliness we found as we travelled the country

We have just returmed from Paris after a trip on the Euro Star, leaving the new station of St Pancras we enjoyed a 2 hour trip through the channel before alighting at Care Du Norde. The Euro Star is a nice train although the seats are cramped.
What a beautiful City, wide boulevards,needed for the traffic, which is a bit erratic, especially down the other narrow roads. Impressive old buildings Le Opera, The Lourve, Notra Dame etc do make a pleasant change from the harsh modern architecture. We were escorted by a charming French guide on our bus tour of Paree, she kept us well informed of what we were seeing with her soft French accent. After seeing Paris by road we had a leisurely cruise down the Seine, passing under 22 of the 36 bridges over the Seine. The girl doing the commentry spoke 4 & a half laguages (her own words) fluently. Her ability to switch languages was amazing.

Then possibly the Highlight of the tour a trip up the Eifel Tower for a geat meal, true French cooking, a chicken dish to die for, mashed potato that made you want MORE followed by a chocolate dessert, all washed down by a great wine.

Countryside near Stowe

English street

Hednesford Church

English Countryside

STAFFORDSHIRE, CANNOCK & HEDNESFORD

After our stay in West Derby it was down to Staffordshire & the Lunt area around Cannock & Hednesford. Again we were amazed at the way people were prepared to help. The staff at Cannock Chase museum went out of their way to ring people up & they were able to help me catch up with the lady who gave me so much help when I first started my search for George Lunt. They have given me information on early Cannock & Hednesford including a post card showing Henry Lunt's shop in Cannock. I walked the streets of Hednesford, drove up Church Hill where they lived & visited “ Our Lady Of Lourdes” Church where Grandma & Grandfather Lunt were married. Prior to coming here I didn't think that the Lunts had strong accents but on hearing the locals speak it came back. THEY DID!!!!!!! I don't know why but I seem to have been affected more by my Durham relatives than here, maybe because I have living relatives up North??????????? But with new information the search continues.
After leaving Cannock we travelled to Northhamptonshire to stay with Friends of Browny,where we have again been treated so well, driven around through some typical English Villages. These villages, although similar have their own individuality & charm. We also have visited Stowe with its magnificent landscaped Garden. At night it was a sight to see the Geese & chickens put in the barn away from marauding foxes, the geese going in in a stately manner while the chickens milled around & had to be funnelled in.
Browny & Pennie reminiscing about school days in Italy, while Bill & I listened to the exploits of 2 “ladies” at finishing school.
Leaving there we travelled on to Browny's cousin in Berkshire, where again we have been treated royally. This has given Browny a chance to catch up with her family. Here we also caught up with another of Shorty's family, Keith & Moira's son & family. Paul & Sally again proved how nice the English family are.
We now travel to Wisbech to spend our last week with Karen & Dave, the trip up was good although roadworks on The A25 held us up for about an hour, but the rest was fine and the route took us through some more quaint villages, These still amaze us with cars parked on both sides of the road facing either direction.

We have had a great time here & went to a village fair complete with Old time cars, tractors & stem rollers. also the usual rides for kids & stalls selling the usual array of clothing tools & plants
We will soon be back in London for the last part of our English trip & do the tourust thing