Jennifer and Winston are Back

Jennifer and Winston got back home to Reston yesterday afternoon, after a couple of months in London and vicinity. After Winston finished up his work, they spent a couple of days in Brussels and Amsterdam before heading back to the States. If you haven't seen all the pictures on my web pages, here's one of Jennifer and Winston relaxing on the south bank of the Thames outside Shakespeare's Globe on a beautiful Sunday evening.

Coming Home from London and Wales

Monday, September 28...It seemed as though I had just arrived, but it was time to leave. I left the hotel in plenty of time to get to Heathrow and through security, but the Underground was punctual as usual, and security didn't take long. I had an early lunch (consisting of a full British breakfast), bought some books, and got on the flight to Atlanta. While on the plane, I thought about how I would do things differently the next time. For details, and a few pictures, go to http://www.gordonrmorgan.com/Events/LondonWales2009/LondonWalesHome.htm and click on Sep. 28.

I'll be posting a few more things about the trip now and then, as I scan some postcards and brochures. Can't wait to go back.

Last full day in London: Tower and Globe

On Sunday, September 27, the three of us went to the Tower of London to see the Crown Jewels, the Bloody Tower, the exhibits in the White Tower, and more. Later in the day we were Groundlings in Shakespeare's Globe during a performance of Love's Labour's Lost. Find out what that means, and see the pictures and details, using the Sep. 27 button on the London and Wales home page at http://www.gordonrmorgan.com/Events/LondonWales2009/LondonWalesHome.htm

Blog bonus: The bell tower at St. Paul's Cathedral announces to the busy street that it's four o'clock...

Saturday Sep. 26: Westminster Abbey & British Library

Saturday morning we saw the incredible collection of statues, memorials, gravestones, and relics that is Westminster Abbey. Before going into the Abbey, we visited the much simpler Methodist Central Hall for an early lunch. The only thing a little unusual there was the Cafe Americano, which tasted more like espresso (in a good way).

After touring Westminster (no pictures allowed inside), we walked back to the Westminster Station and Jennifer and Winston went back to the hotel. I found a non-linear path to the British Library, which was very much worth a visit. I took a double-decker bus back to near the hotel, and later we all walked to Blackfriars Pub for a quick pub supper.

Pictures and more details: Click on Sep. 26 at
http://www.gordonrmorgan.com/Events/LondonWales2009/LondonWalesHome.htm

Blog bonus: Paving the street in front of St. Paul's:

View from St. Paul's and a Wicked Musical

On Friday, September 25, Jennifer and I looked around many square miles of London...from near the top of St. Paul's Cathedral. I also saw a piece of the original London wall at the Museum of London, and strolled across the Millennium Bridge to the South Bank of the Thames. In the evening Winston took us to an elegant restaurant and a production of the musical Wicked in the Theatre District near Victoria Station.

As usual, see more details by clicking on Sep. 25 on the web page at http://www.gordonrmorgan.com/Events/LondonWales2009/LondonWalesHome.htm.

Blog bonus: a movie clip of the set of Wicked before the action began:

Last day in Wales (this year, anyway)

On our last day in Wales, Jennifer and I motored west to the Cardiff area, and north of Cardiff we easily found the town of Caerphilly. Finding Caerphilly Castle, the largest castle in Wales, turned out to be surprisingly difficult. We did find it, however, and enjoyed walking around and in it, and the area around it.

With some good directions from the clerk in the Castle gift shop we made it to the Avis location near Cardiff Central. After a little unpleasantness from Avis (which preferred that we return the car in the same good condition in which we rented it) we walked back to the train station. There we made one last gift shop foray, and hopped on the train for London.

See the web page at http://www.gordonrmorgan.com/Events/LondonWales2009/LondonWalesHome.htm
and click on Sep. 24 to see this latest installment in the saga.

Catching up a little

I've finally finished updating the web pages of my trip to London and Wales through Wednesday, September 23. There are many pictures, and a lot of details to get right. See the web page http://www.gordonrmorgan.com/Events/LondonWales2009/LondonWalesHome.htm for pictures and more.

Still working on the Second Day in Wales

I've added the rest of the pictures for Wednesday, September 23, and some more general narrative. Still to come: captions for all the added pictures. Tomorrow?

Meanwhile, here's the link to the updated pages again:
http://www.gordonrmorgan.com/Events/LondonWales2009/LondonWalesHome.htm

Full Day in Wales (so far...just through mid-morning)

On Wednesday, September 23, we drove to the church of Llanedi Parish, St. Edith's, and then found the old farm on which my 4xgreat grandfather William Morgan lived until he died in 1835. The farm is still there, with the same name. There's even a Morgan descendent still living there.

I ran out of steam getting this far with the narrative and pictures...I'll pick it up tomorrow and see if I can get through that long and eventful day.

Meanwhile, what I have so far for September 23 is on the updated web site at
http://www.gordonrmorgan.com/Events/LondonWales2009/LondonWalesHome.htm

On to Wales

On Tuesday, September 22, Jennifer and I took the train to Wales' capital, Cardiff. We enjoyed the nearby St Fagans museum, in which a large number of houses, farm buildings, stores, and other structures have been moved from the original locations around Wales and restored to represent various periods of Welsh history. Very interesting and enjoyable. The drive from there to Llanedy was also interesting, but much less enjoyable.

Driving on the left side of the road was easy compared to the difficulty of interpreting road signs that don't usually include a simple "west" or "east" but instead show the next town. If you don't know the next town, you're in trouble. If you're going around a tight-diameter two-lane roundabout with such signs on closely-spaced exits, you're in more trouble. If you take the wrong exit, you won't know it for a while because it's not necessary to put a sign on the road you're already on. But all that pales compared to contending with the widths of the roads. Frequently while worrying about scraping the oncoming cars on my right, I would be interrupted by Jennifer telling me urgently to move farther to the right, as the stone wall on the left was just inches from her face. We got well-acquainted with the low curbs on the outside, and also learned that pedestrian crossings often intrude into the lane--with curbs around them. In the more urban areas, the narrow lanes were often half blocked by parked cars. A lot of parked cars. To be fair, they were as much on the sidewalk as in the road, but they were still in the way. I never had to worry about the speed limit. Whatever it was, I could never go that fast.

Eventually we made it to the M4 (what a relief to drive on a limited access highway!) and to the Tafarn y Deri (Tavern of the Oak). This was a tavern / restaurant / Bed & Breakfast in Llanedy, the village and parish where my Morgan ancestors lived until they emigrated in the 1870s. We greatly enjoyed Welsh ale (Brains was the brand name) and cockles & laverbread (shellfish and seaweed in a cream sauce, topped with cheese), and we slept well that night.

For pictures and more commentary, see the updated web pages at
http://www.gordonrmorgan.com/Events/LondonWales2009/LondonWalesHome.htm

Second Day in London

Monday, September 21, was my second day in London. Winston had to work, but Jennifer and I toured parts of London by bus and by boat, I had fish-and-chips and Guinness, and we "saw" the Prime Meridian at Greenwich. Another full and fun day. See pictures and more on the newly updated London & Wales web pages: http://www.gordonrmorgan.com/Events/LondonWales2009/LondonWalesHome.htm

Blog bonus...We passed these bell ringers working hard in the dusk on our way to eat dinner:

First Day in London

With the travel and 5-hour time change, Sunday morning, Sep. 20, was just a continuation of Saturday. After I got into central London and joined Jennifer and Winston, however, it became a new day and so it gets its own blog entry.

We were all hungry so we got lunch first, at a pub just up the street. Then we got on the Tube and headed across central London to the British Museum. Winston had walked all around the area before, and (with the help of his iPhone GPS) was able to take us quickly the last few blocks to the Museum. The museum is massive, and we only hit some high spots.

Then we took the Tube to the London Eye (now the 3rd largest ferris wheel in the world) and finished up at an Italian restaurant near the hotel. London is a very international city, with all kinds of people and all kinds of restaurants, and we did our best to sample everything.

For more, including pictures, see the updated web site: http://www.gordonrmorgan.com/Events/LondonWales2009/LondonWalesHome.htm

Blog bonus: What it's like to ride in the London Eye:

London & Wales: Travel Day(s)

Two weeks ago today, I left Tallahassee for London, via Atlanta and Amsterdam. I've started an illustrated chronicle of the trip on my web page. You can go directly to it at http://www.gordonrmorgan.com/Events/LondonWales2009/LondonWalesHome.htm

On that page there are links to pages for each day of the trip. Most of the links aren't active yet, but the one for Saturday, September 19, is ready to go.

Geography lesson: The British Isles are shown below. All but Ireland are part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. The main island on the right is Britain. England (in blue) and Wales (in tan) are part of Britain (and part of the UK), and London is the large city in England colored red.