I landed at London Heathrow and then waited an long time in line to go through customs. A long time. But its all good. Finally made it through and headed off to adventure. Not before finding many pamphlets for their west end theatre shows. Yes, I will be going to as many of those as possible. I hoped on the tube and headed to Victoria station. Before getting on my next train I went up and explored a bit. I found Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, and of course the Wicked theatre. And I headed into Victoria station. It was a very hot day. Especially since I just came from Iceland, where the high had been 15°c. Double that and you got London's weather. I just missed my train when I got there, then it kept getting delayed and cancelled. I was becoming a grouchy bear, especially since I had my heavy back on. Finally after waiting 1 1/2 hours I got on my train to head to my friend Nefer's house. In the village of Billingshurst. She gave excellent instructions and once the train arrived (another 1 1/2 hours, due to delays) I headed to her house. It was so good to see her again. It has been many years since we graduated high school and saw each last. But she's such an easy person to talk to it didn't matter. We talked a long time.
The next day I slept in, seriously I am fighting this jet lag thing. On their recommendation I went to Arundel Castle. It was stunning! Arundel is a lovely little village, with the castle set on a hill. I went straight there and in I went. Because it is a ways from London it wasn't very busy. I liked that. I could take my time and take everything in. It was fascinating to see how they lived and imagine what it'd be like to be there in years past. The family that owns it still lives there, in a wing of the castle not open to tours. The Duke of Norfolk, who has been and still is in charge of coronations to this day. I saw every part I could. In the grand hall I noticed a framed picture of a dinner scene from "The Young Victoria". I asked and it turns out that movie was partly filmed there. I got kind of excited cause I really love that movie. If you haven't seen it, you should. It has Emily Blunt and its great. One of the guides at the castle actually got to be an extra in the movie. They were all proud of ole Roger. Made me smile. Anyways, all of the people there were incredibly helpful and eager to share little bits of information with me. One man showed me where a secret room was and I was intrigued. Another talked about a statue replica of the Saint of Music. Apparently the original is in Rome and I intend on hunting it down.
After exploring the castle I went and adventured in the gardens. They were breathtaking! I got so caught up that I didn't realize they closed. So a worker took me down the hill in a cart, just to ensure I didn't get locked in. This castle was definitely bigger than Downton Abbey. If you ever get the chance to visit, I'd say take it!
I then set to explore the village. It had a giant cathedral, and luckily it was still open. I was all by myself in there, so I sang. Quietly cause I wasn't sure if it was allowed. But I did it anyway. And it made me happy. Incredible acoustics. I continued around the town, and got lost. Even though this little place its easy to find your way back. I got fish and chips and went and enjoyed them by the river. Absolutely a perfect day!
I went back and enjoyed visiting Nefer again and this time meeting her cute little daughter Larena. We had fun reliving lots of mission stories and stores from High school. Good ole days.
Thursday July 2, Nefer suggested I visit Brighton since my flight to Italy left at 4:35, I didn't have a full day. I thought it was a great idea, and off to Brighton beach I went. They have no storage containers, so I had my big backpack on the whole time. But I emptied some of it out back at Nefer's, cause Italy is supposed to be very hot while I'm there. I liked seeing the ocean and all the fair like things on Brighton pier. It reminded me of Coney Island. Except instead of sand the beach had little pebbles. Which made for a fun sound whenever the waves were retreating. I had enough time to grab lunch and head back to the train station. Then I was on to the airport and off to Italy!
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