Henry has a Day out in London

Henry has posted over here about his day out in London yesterday...

A trip into London to the National Maritime Museum

Thursday afternoon the Sailor turned up on our doorstep for a surprise visit.  I can tell you Mum was so very happy indeed!  She wants to make the most of these visits as next year he will be away most of the year and won't even be home for his birthday in July OR Christmas in December!  Can you imagine that?  Not being home for Christmas?  So glad I'm not grown up yet and so don't have to go away at sea to work.  But he loves it so that is the main thing.  

Anyway on Saturday Mum, Dad, the Sailor and I went into London.

We travelled on the Docklands Light Railway and I got to sit at the very back and could see where we leaving and all the different sights.  Leaving Canary Wharf.

Passing by Heron Quays.  Didn't see any Heron's though, so not sure why it is called that!

Seeing if any other trains are following us.

Our destination...

The National Maritime Museum of course!  Where else?  

This was impressive!

I wonder how fast this went?  It was very shiny.

Gilded with gold.

Ship figureheads.  They were huge!

A lady stopped us here and wanted to know all about me.  So I told her my history and she thought it was pretty cool and said if she ever saw a boy like me she would snap him right up and never let him go.  I think that means she would like to hold him and look after him, not snap him.  She seemed a nice lady.

There was so much to see and do that we didn't get a chance to discover everything here.

I pretended I was sailing the seas.

Um, yes I do rather have a fascination for canons.

A monument in memory of those who lost their lives in New Zealand during the Invasion of Waikato which was the biggest and most important campaign of the 19th century New Zealand wars.   Hostilities last fro nine months from July 1863 to April 1864.

Oh and guess what we got to talk to a fellow New Zealander who has been living here for the last eleven years, but is thinking he will probably go back home next year.

All in all an interesting and fun day out and so much to see and do if we had had more time.  There are walks to go on to visit various sights and important places and landmarks.  The lovely park and of course the museums and The Cutty Sark.  A day really isn't enough and the few hours we had certainly wasn't.  

Henry visits Covent Garden

Well we journeyed into London today - but was very disappointed with the weather - too wet to go to the parks, so had a brief wander around Covent Garden before coming home.

Henry got to pose with all sorts of unusual people!

Having a little lie down!

A New Zealand friend comes to visit: London

At very short notice I heard that my friend from New Zealand was able to come up and stay with me for a few days.  She has been over visiting her daughter who has just had a baby, and we weren't sure she would have the time to spend a couple of days with me.  Fortunately she was so on Monday morning Henry and I went into London to meet her at Waterloo Station.

Henry was very excited about meeting my friend Jill as he had heard me talking about her before.  We went to the same ante-natal classes 22 years ago and for the first four and half years our children grew up together.  She is what I consider my best friend and I have missed her dearly these last 17 years, especially as she really is no good at writing letters or sending emails!

We visited Buckingham Palace, Trafalgar Square and browsed Hamleys (of course!)

He peered through the gates at Buckingham Palace to watch the guard marching.

Henry took a photo of Jill and I (clever isn't he?!)

Henry admired the grandeur and size of the statues.

Henry marvelled the size of this statue's foot

We strolled through the park and were delighted by the Pelican preening himself: 

Henry enjoyed the waterfall in Trafalgar square.

We admired Big Ben.

We completely forgot about photo opportunities in Hamleys!

Secret Santa delayed two days until Wednesday 7th November

Due to an unexpected opportunity for a friend from New Zealand to come and stay with me for a couple of days from today, the Secret Santa allocations will be delayed until Wednesday 7th November so that I can spend some time with her.  Please forgive me for the delay, if this causes problems for anyone if you could let me know that would be fine.  It is time consuming to write all the individual emails as they are all different and I would prefer to spend that time with her while I have the chance and then concentrate on the Swap details on Wednesday.  Plus I am still waiting on confirmation from one person.

Thank you for your patience,

Lorraine & Henry :-)

A taster of our day today collecting my friend in London... more photos of our time together after I have sent all the emails on Wednesday.

A trip into London

I'm on the waiting list for the waiting list for the waiting list for the Pain Management Clinic, Queens Square Hospital, London.  This being despite my doctor phoning them while I was in his surgery way back when...and telling them that I have been suffering from constant pain since the beginning of 2009.  Good ol' National Health System?!

Fortunately I have medical insurance which I carried over with me from New Zealand, so we resorted to using this as enough is enough.

So into London Henry came with me on Wednesday...

I think he thought he was going on a grand adventure...

We did manage to spend an hour in a lovely park near the hospital, but the playground was packed with children visiting from a local school - oh the cheek of it!

Henry is wearing his lovely cricket vest sent by Erica from New Zealand.

Instead the day was spent in big noisy machines...Xray, MRI and SPECT CT Scanner.  Not a lot of fun for a lad all set for adventures...I don't think he will be planning on coming on any more hospital visits with me!

Just got to wait until 14th October for the results now to see if they show anything.