MORE OF LONDON

No visit to London is complete without a Theatrical Treat in the West End....

and thus we Cardinals found ourselves at the Apollo Theatre, enjoying a wonderful musical production:

Yes, Michael Crawford, returning to the stage in 'The Go-Between',

and with that wonderful voice as enjoyable as it was years ago when he starred in Phantom of the Opera.  The play was intriguing, and we loved every minute.

We have been to the Wallace Collection, a glorious historic London town house full of Eighteenth century paintings, furniture and porcelain.

Who doesn't love 'The Swing' by Jean-Honore Fragonard (1732-1806)?

More in a later post...

Piccadilly Circus

Been to Liberty...

and met a long-time bloggie friend, Patricia, of A Place for Everything.

I bring good news: Patricia is returning to Blogland after a break.

We found we have soooo much in common - Twins!
Can't seem to link to Patricia's blog on Mr C's laptop, but there she is over on my sidebar.  Do pop in and say hello...

Been to Trafalgar Square and the National Gallery...

'Mr and Mrs Andrews' Thomas Gainsborough 1750

The Covent Garden markets..

Charing Cross..

and Benjamin Franklin house nearby.

St. Martin in the Fields..

and the British Library, right by the amazing St Pancras Hotel..

The weather has been very hot, then rather wet, cold and dull.
But there are always flowers at Covent Garden...

xxxx

LONDON

Hello

Here I am in Merrie Olde England, en route to our son's wedding in Ireland, and a fine time we are having.

That castle is Hampton Court Palace, where we trod the path of King Henry VIII and his many wives....

Our flight from Australia was interesting.  Since we came over in 2014, the situation in the Middle East has led to changes in flight patterns.

I come from a family of map-lovers, (I know, weird), and spent most of the flight from Dubai to London studying the flight path screen, and noting it on the little map in my travel diary.  For the record, Qantas now flies directly across to Iran from Dubai, follows Iran right to the north, then crosses to Turkey along its border with Armenia.  I looked out the window and think I saw Mt Ararat, which I know can be seen from Yerevan (seen the photos at the QAG).  We were flying right past Yerevan, so what do you think:

A short time later we crossed over the Black Sea, my first sighting of it.  Previously, we flew much further south.

Shoreline of the Black Sea, which was white on the day...

A cheerful cushion greeted us in our hotel in South Kensington

Never ones to let jetlag cause a delay, we headed out on day 1 to the Victoria and Albert Museum.

I will do some detailed posts when we return home, time being short, and I find it difficult using Mr C's laptop.

Sunday found us at the gorgeous Cathedral of Westminster (not Westminster Abbey), listening to the most glorious choir singing the Latin Mass.

Beautiful marble and mosaics...

Later we took the lift to the top of the Tower for some great views of London.

We made it to Buckingham Palace, to see the State Rooms and the Collection of the Queen's dresses over the years.

It was wonderful...

There was a strict no photography rule, but I will write about the tour at a later date.  The State Rooms are very beautiful, and I enjoyed the gowns so much.

The Wedding and Coronation gowns were fabulous creations, so worthy of a Queen.  I enjoyed the line of dresses she has worn to royal weddings over the years.  The outfit worn to the wedding of Princess Alexandra in 1963 was my favourite (and that of many others).

Google image

A most delicate shade of Eau de Nil, with tiny silk lily of the valley flowers.

Exquisite...

After our tour we enjoyed tea at the Cafe overlooking the Palace Gardens...

And on to the Shoppe:

Yes, Reader, I bought it!

My own replica of the Queen's Wattle Brooch, presented to her by Australia during her 1952 tour, and often featured on the Blog...

I  am thrilled with it, the perfect addition to my outfit for the wedding..

Off to the Theatre tonight...

more in a few days...

xxxx