England and Scotland for the Holidays

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We had a comfortable flight, in spite of the dire predictions broadcast back home prior to our takeoff. Airports were reported to be shutting down in England and Germany due to heavy fog. The view from the plane as we circled to land at Gatwick was clear enough to see the plots of land bordered by hedgerows. What was all the fuss about we wondered?

We made our way quickly through the crowds at the train station in the airport and picked up our prepaid tickets to Scotland by rail. Most people managed to move only a few feet forward in the time it took Edward and I to snake through an unbelievable crowd of people standing elbow-to-elbow and cheek-to-cheek. It reminded me of the time we managed to by-pass a crowd of people a block and half long, gain entrance to the Louver, pass another huge tourist group and see the Mona Lisa in record time, but that’s another story.

We proceeded to claim our rent-a-car, a little Toyota. I was skeptical at first sight. Would it hold our luggage and still have room for Elliott and Denny? We loaded up and headed to John and Sharman’s house.

Heavy yellowish-gray fog lay thick and low on the hills south of London. It was eerie, not like any fog I had ever seen. At our destination, Edward's sister and brother-in-law's house, we found the key left for us, went inside, made a cup of tea, and waited with nervous anticipation for Elliott to call. He had left for Uni in Scotland four months earlier, but for the week prior to our arrival he was in China. If he made his flight from China and connection in Munich he would soon arrive at Heathrow. Otherwise he would have been stranded in Munich as all flights out were cancelled after 9:00 AM that morning due to heavy fog.

Ring-ring, ring-ring, the English phone had an unfamiliar tone, but on the other end a very familiar voice. We hurried down to the train station. Ahhhhh, I sighed with relief. The first part of our tight schedule went smooth, in spite of the elements and Christmas rush. .

PARTY TIME:
After a warm shower and another spot-a-tea we all dressed up in our “smart” clothes and headed for The George for the long anticipated Eve of Christmas Eve dinner with friends and family down at the pub.

Alton: Next Stop
Alton, England, home of Jane Austin, is also the home of our niece, Hilary and her family. We headed to see the new baby on Christmas Eve. The village of Alton is small and charming, like so many little villages in England. Huge jugs of wine were bubbling and ferminting on Hills and Pete's kitchen counter with opening dates adhered to the outside and great expectations on the inside. Our visit was short, but long enough to play with the new baby, have dinner and a pint at the pub, and stroll past Jane Austins house as well as the huge esate which was once owned by her family. As we left they gave us a wonderful bottle of homemade wine, from their collection. mmmmm

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Photos

John
Christmas party at the pub.

Friends at The George
In England, it just isn’t Christmas till you pop the Christmas cracker, don your crown, read your joke and show off your prize. As you can see it is pretty universal and does not matter how silly you look in your hat.

Crowned
Elliott is showing off his prize, a pinky ring. Nice one! I got nail clippers. The jokes were pretty bad, but they got funnier as the evening went on.

The Estate
I believe the huge old farm is being renovated to depict life during the "Austin" time period and will be eventually open to the public.

Rabbit for dinner anyone??
A fuzzy little Christmas gift from a thoughtful neighbor. I have a feeling Pete and his friend would be right at home in Kentucky.

Hilary and Bethan
Beautiful Baby Bethan is perhaps the most easy going baby I have met. I wonder how old she will be when we next see her?