William Morris to Henry VIII

The trek and "great" it was....2 buses,a train and a taxi (4 hours in all...the librarian(this proves what good people they are) helped me hire a cab as they seemed to be all booked out and Lechlade,the end of the bus run, was only a tiny Cotswold village) to Kelmscott Manor in the Cotswolds was sure worth the trouble and expense (£48 for a 1 hour return train ride). It was the most beautful house I have ever been in and of course William's amazing eye for colour and talent for design made it so enticing (and familiar) and you could just tell what a great bloke he was. It was as if he, Jane and the girl's had just stepped out for a stroll..if only! His coat was even still hanging behind the door. I also managed to visit their graves in the tiny church yard just a stroll from the manor down a lane little changed in 4oo years. The house receives no government funding so is run by an army of very proper English ladies and they do a great job....the memory of that day will stay with me forever....and still 2 William Morris sites to go but they will have to wait until I get back to London after my time in the north.

Yesterday it was Henry's turn...as Marion and I went to Hampton Court Palace in Surrey....a great Tudor pile with massive English baroque additions by Christopher Wren on behalf of William and Mary.
The extensive gardens looked after by 40 gardeners and of course in full summer glory (winter by now a distant memory)...the rose garden was massive and the scent overwhelming....we hooked up with a very absorbing garden history tour and managed to observe the gardeners hard at work trimming the topiary(of which there is tons) and yes I seem to be correctly trimming my own (which now looks rather pathetic).

Dinner last night with Ben and his Australian friend Louise at a wonderful quirky restaurant in Portabello Road called First Floor (opposite the travel bookshop from that movie with Julia Roberts and Hugh Grant).. and realised yesterday that I had been walking past a Banksy on my way to the station!

Steeling myself for the onslaught of the tube today as I head to the Tower of London and it's grim history.

Hope the Julia/Tony show is not getting too silly or tedious (although without a doubt it is)....

Kath

KL TO KENSINGTON

Arrived tired and relieved to be off the plane and out of airport terminals..the 2 hour delay at Kuala Lumpur Airport in the middle of the night was very tedious...it did not help that the bloke in the front of us had 3 seats to himself and slept the whole flight in a prone position and could not help himself but to gloat over his good luck.
 It was a great idea to break the flight up with 24 hours in Kuala Lumpur and at least get a good night's sleep in a BED....KL not at all what was expected.. they seem very taken with high-end capitalism and conspicuous consumption and the throngs of young Malays at the nightclubs belie the fact that Islam is the dominant religion.

 LP descibes as the last bastion of Malay culture in the CBD  Kapmpung Baru where we manged to have a great meal of Goreing for $2 and not a touristor chandelier in sight...hope it manages to hang on.

Still here were are....Ben managed to get us through the labyrinth of the underground and thousands of commuters running you down....It was great to see him looking so well and happy in London...and it only felt like yesterday since I had seen him last not 2 and a half years!

Despite the lack of  sleep we went to St Pauls and climbed to the top for a breathtaking view of London and then to the crypt ..a very opulent homage to the glory of The Empire and all the men and one woman (Florence Nightingale) who helped get her there...Horatio's tomb was particularly over the top....The mosaics adorning the walls are pretty stunning...even this athiest was impressed..
Then orf to the Museum of London...with so much stuff that had been dug up it took your breath way and made all those broken bits of pottery and tile that Time Team go gaga over look somewhat pathetic...

Another bad's night sleep but it's all a few tube stations away so up and out into the fray.....

Cheers
Kath

 PS George Orwell's house just around the corner and I have to pass it on the way to the tube...as is Portabello Road (such a hardship it all is!)