England was a blast. After all, how can you lose when you are staying with friends who are happy to see you?
We arrived at Luton Airport (North of London) late on Friday evening. We rented a car and drove about 1½ hours to our friends’ home in Blundston at the tip of the Cotswolds. Mark did a superb job navigating the roundabouts and the motorways all on the opposite side of the road.
James has known Mark since their early days in the Corps. His wife, Sarah, is British and James is a Tex-Brit. Courtney, 16 and Jeremy, 15 have grown up a lot since our last visit two years ago. Tegan, the newest member of the family is a beautiful four-footed mix-breed girl. Mark was in his element. He and James biked both mornings through the beautiful countryside and villages while we were there. Sarah took me to a fabric sale—what beautiful pieces she purchased. She has taken to making lavender sachets, three of which she gave me for our packs. She knows my passion for lavender! Thanks, Sarah!
On Saturday, while the men were biking Sarah and I picked up her daughter in Cirencester, a lovely town in the Cotswolds. The warm sunshine made this beautiful, quaint Cotswold village absolutely divine. That evening James treated us to a delicious BBQ after which we went to the local pub.
 |
| A view of Pound Farm in the distance |
Sunday, with Sarah and James in tow, we headed to Pound Farm to visit my friend Louise James and John Jenkinson. Louise proudly showed us the farm that John’s family has owned since the mid-17th century. It is beautiful land not far from Bath and Bristol. The renovations they have made to the farm along with all the work necessary to keep the farm operational are impressive. We toured the house, the farm and the church in which many of John’s ancestors are buried. Most of all, it was great to reconnect with Louise, a dear friend from our days in Hawaii. We hope our paths cross more frequently in the coming years.
 |
| Sarah, James, Louise and John |
From the Cotswolds, we headed South and East to Eastbourne to spend a few days with our English/Mercer Island friends, Linda, Andrew and Alice Redfern. I met Linda at my first event with the Mercer Island Women’s Club. We became fast friends. After a three-year stint in the States, they returned to England and settled in Eastbourne, a little over two years ago. Since then, their daughter Alice has completed university, received her certification to teach English as a Second Language and will head to South America on 1 November for six months. Linda is now pursuing her English as a Second Language certification while Andrew is adjusting to retirement. We enjoyed exploring Eastbourne, Pevensey, and Lewes. We enjoyed Eastbourne’s historic boardwalk. In Pevensey we saw the place where William the Conqueror landed in 1066, a fort nearby that had been occupied by the Romans and later the English, and the Church of St. Nicholas built in 1216. Lewes boasts one of the oldest English castles dating from the time of William the Conqueror, and the bar Thomas Paine frequented before he came to America. There is so much history on this side of the big pond. However, for me a most memorable event was the ladybug landing on Linda’s arm moments before she received a call from Alice who announced that she had passed her driver’s test. Lucky ladybugs!
 |
| Mark, Linda, Andrew, Alice and Carol enjoying the pub |
In order to avoid a hassle getting to the airport, we spent the last evening at a hotel near Heathrow. The hotel was a disaster but we had a lovely evening catching up with Faith, PJ, Jordan and Jared Johnston. We even had the pleasure of being there for Jordan’s 17th birthday. It is great to see their family reunited. We wish them all well in their life together.
 |
| Jordan, PJ, Faith and Jared Johnston |
It’s on to Istanbul where Europe and Asia meet on the Bosphoros.
No comments:
Post a Comment