A Departure From Quilting--London Adventure 2018

My travel project.

Last August, I decided to visit our daughter in London, England this Spring. I bought the tickets in September. It seemed like a long time to wait; but, March 18 arrived and I was flying to meet her and her boyfriend.

When I travel, I pack a handwork project in my carry on bag. This blackwork project of different eight blocks with a Halloween theme has been in the travel box for a number of trips. This is what this block looked like when I left Oregon. I stitch in the airport or maybe on the plane or maybe in the evening. It is a good project because there is no thinking. . .just stitching!!! You can see the other finished blocks here.

Graphic wall in San Francisco

View of the landscape

Visiting my daughter, means leaving room in the suitcase for "goodies" to share from Oregon as well as leaving room for special essentials. Originally, I had packed the checked bag to be about 45 pounds; then, I added a few more "needed" items. Imagine my shock at the check in counter when my bag weighed 63 pounds and it would be an additional $200 to send it.

I can think of many other more fun ways to spend $200, so I transferred goods out of the bag I planned to check. First, I filled the carry on. Second, I filled my handbag and last, I filled my coat pockets! It was a tight fit; but all items made it to London. I had to laugh at myself because I had a pound of filberts in one pocket and a pound of almonds in the other pocket which made my coat heavy to wear! My purse and carryon bag was packed so tightly that both could have been turned upside and shaken and nothing would have fallen out. This was a good thing because the bags were too full to zip and they were knocked over during the trips so the theory was true!

Coffee at Cafe Ne

I snapped a photo of a wall as I walked to my gate at theSan Francisco airport. I thought that the line shapes were interesting and of course I was drawn to the bright colors! This trip, I traveled solo. My sweet husband isn't in to long flights. Traveling on my own was okay. The flight left San Francisco at 4 in the afternoon and arrived in London at 9:45 in the morning. I slept about five of the nine hour flight. I was surprised to see snow on the landscape as we approached Heathrow airport.

Walking along the River Thames

Jérôme met me at the airport. He treated me to a coffee at Cafe Nero to help me stay awake during my first day. We rode the train to Central London. He prepared a proper French lunch for me---pasta, meat/vegetable sauté with a glass of wine. Yes, there was a cheese course after the main course and the last course was a chocolate cake that he baked specially in my honor. It was delicious and I felt honored!

Fruit display at Borough Market

After lunch we walked along the River Thames past Tower Bridge to Borough Market. On a Monday, a number of stalls were closed; but there was still lots to see! I love the colors in the vegetable/fruit market! We also stopped at a French cheese shop to compare the cheeses that I remembered eating in France last August with the ones that I could purchase at the market.

On the way back, we walked to St. Paul Cathedral which is a beautiful old structure surrounded by modern architecture. We found a book store and I picked up a couple of books for the grands.

We walked through the bank district and by the Monument to the Great Fire of London in 1666. I had read the facts about it; but, hadn't seen it. It was impressive! The weather was cold and windy; but, there was no rain. Sometimes, we even had some sunshine.

Thanks J and N for make my first day so special!

Enjoying the sights on the way to St. Paul Cathedral