This bloom was out in the gardens at Mount Stewart as we walked.
We had many great times walking about at Mount Stewart. One of our regrets is that we are going to miss spring and all the blossoms there.
Here is Dave on the right hand side of the car headed down the road with great confidence. We have come a long way in our driving since we first arrived.
This is the P2 class at Carrowdore Primary School. I loved all the natural light - not to overlook all that green outside the windows even in January.
I spent a few hours volunteering there and enjoyed my time terrifically!
This is the P2 classroom again with their own SmartBoard. The students were 5 and 6 years old so except for the wonderful accents I felt very much at home.
The railroading side comes out in
the Gorries eventually. Here is Dave
in an old steam engine at the Ulster
Folk and Transport Museum.
A recreated train platform at the Ulster Transport Museum.
A connection with Canada and the CNR on a poster advertising for people to travel to Canada.
Here's a good view of the wall of Derry. Note the lovely green in January.
Our visit to Derry turned out to be on an historic moment for the city. 39 years ago on January 30th there was a Peace March held in the city. That day became known as Bloody Sunday as the British Forces in Derry opened fire on the marchers and shot several unarmed participants. Just this past June 2010 the British Government admitted responsibility for these shootings and the Prime Minister made a formal apology to the families of those killed that day. The families have organized a march every year since to commemorate the event. They have said that this will be the last Peace March as they have now been vindicated. So, we were there to see 40-45,000 people join in the March. People came from many different parts of the world to participate. Following the March there were speakers in the Guildhall square. Everyone we spoke with had some connection with the original day. The lady who ran the Bed and Breakfast where we stayed had been there as a teenager, and the taxi drivers all had stories of members of their families and where they had been that day. It was so interesting.
Watching the march from the city wall.
Paeder O'Donnell's pub on the weekend of the Peace March. There was a band playing Irish music but there was so much noise and so many people that it was impossible to hear the band. Too bad!
One of the signs visible from the city wall in the Loyalist area. Note the colors of the curb markers.
Closer up to the marchers.
Mural chronicling the events of the politics of Derry.
St. Columb's Cathedral within the walled city. We were surprised to find this cathedral which had connections to the Isle of Iona and the monastery that St. Columb began there.
The interior of St. Columb's Cathedral.
Our time in Derry came to an end and we headed back to Carrowdore to finish up our packing to head home. One of the things on our to-do list was a last walk on the beach at Millisle and tea and scones at Eden Pottery.
Saying our farewells to Bronagh was one of hardest things on our to-do list. She was such a gem and a terrific help and support to us in so many ways.
We set off from Belfast on a coach/bus. We rode through the day to Birmingham and then on to London. This was the view from our apartment we had rented for a few days in London. It was on Odessa Wharf and the skyline we looked at across the Thames was Canary Wharf.
James Walker came in
and joined us in London
for the weekend. We
began our Saturday
by riding the underground
to Bermondsey Market.
It was fantastic!
Here is James with Dave in one of the corridors of the market.
I had to take a photo of all the various kinds of pies that are available here. There were cornish pies and steak pies, etc. Not the most healthy part of the UK diet.
This fish stall was amazing. Not only was there amazing fish but it was laid out with such flair.
After visiting the market we wandered along the bank of the Thames and walked right past the Globe Theatre. We kept on until we got to the Tate Modern Museum where we happily spent a couple of hours.
Close to where we were staying we found a column with a James Walker sitting atop it. We thought it only right to get a photo of James with James Walker, the engineer who was involved in building the Greenland dock which we walked along several times.
After a busy day we walked past Buckingham Palace and over to Picadilly to see the lights.
On the basis of very positive reviews from some other members of the Walker family, we went to see "Wicked". It is the precursor to The Wizard of Oz and was great.
James got us to Holy Trinity Brompton on Sunday morning and much to our delight Nicky Gumbel was speaking. This is the church where the Alpha Course began and is still going strong. It was so interesting to visit and see all that goes on there.
As we wandered along the street we came to Harrod's and we wandered through the store,
just to say we had been there. It was busy!
For a Sunday in February, the streets were very crowded in the central parts of the city.
One long standing Sherlock Holmes fan standing just outside the Sherlock Holmes pub close to Trafalgar Square.
A unique sculpture along the Thames close to Odessa Wharf with the skyline in the background.
An evening view of Westminster Abbey.
We went inside to hear an organ recital.
A side view of Westminster Abbey, the site of the royal wedding coming up in April.
Big Ben in the early evening.
A view of the apartment with Dave on the deck looking at the river.
View over the Thames. It was a weekend of grey skies but the sun
came out on Monday mid-day.
Another view looking east along the Thames.
Monday morning we took a river taxi into the center of the city. This is the view from the taxi, passing under one of the many bridges.
The Millenium Wheel or the London Eye.
We went in it for a great view of the city in every direction. It moves slowly and rotates around every 40 minutes.
One view from the Wheel.
Looking over the city.
A good view over the city from the Wheel.
Looking down the Thames with lots of traffic visible on the river.
Looking down on the Houses of Parliament and Big Ben and Westminster Abbey in behind. The sun came out for a bit!
A shot of us in a capsule on the Wheel.
Looking down - yikes!
Checking out the mechanics of the Wheel.
We made a visit to the Apple store in Covent Garden and they sent us up to the Genius Bar to see about Dave's
iPhone. There was no one under 30 years old working at the Genius Bar
and every employee carried and worked from an iPad.
The Apple store was in a beautifully done old building and they just gave Dave a new iPhone and transferred all his data onto the new one in a very short time. Amazing!
There was a section of the store for workshops. Most of the participants looked over 40 and signs said "Progress in progress". We wished we had more time to stay and take in some of the workshops.
It was Chinese New Year while we were there and we came upon a part of Soho that had beautiful lanterns everywhere.
Here's another photo of the wonderful decorations for Chinese New Year. We were on our way to see Les Miserables, which was amazing! The voices of the cast were incredible and the staging was wonderful as well.
A last night view of the skyline of Canary Wharf across the Thames.
Back to Canada landing in Calgary where we got to visit with Jon and Roni before heading for Regina.
Back to winter and a quick trip to the lake to check out the addition on the cottage. Yes, there is a lot of snow but we are enjoying the beautiful blue skies and the sunshine!
