This blog is born out of an effort to be occupied and to resist the tendency towards boredom. A plan to visit the British Museum this afternoon was foiled with the realization of weekend repairs and maintenance on the train tracks into the city. Am not up to navigating London via different routes esp by bus.
Am currently staying in Harrow and was warmly welcomed as usual by my friend Carol. It has been over a week since I arrived back in England's green and pleasant land and I am sure I don't know where the time has gone. Four hours after I landed I was invaded with British germs and have battled a cough and cold all week. Jet lag is behind me and the enjoyment of long, light nights is ahead. The weather has not been exactly very summerish but it is warm enough to wander out without a hat and coat on, in between the rain that is!
It was great to see my son, Scott, again; enjoyed a pub meal and shared past highlights and concerns.I had a bad moment on the way back to the Underground when I sickingly realized I had left my travel purse back at the pub along with passports. Oh! the relief to see it lying there under the table was profound. Nearly kissed the barman!
My big adventure of the week was to go to the theatre in the west-end so ended up seeing Billy Elliott, mainly 'cause I loved the movie but also to reconnect with my roots in Co Durham where the story originates.
Fortunately, I have long got over doing things solo but I seem to have lost the skill of managing time on my own and stumbled into my seat seconds before the last call. My seat was square in the middle of two lovely English ladies who took every chance to tell me how great the show is and I must go see The Lion King. I reckon the theatre was built in the days when people were five foot nothing as even at five feet two I still had to bend my knees sideways to fit in.
Billy Elliot is set against the background of the British miners' strike of 1984/85 and charts the fortunes of the striking men alongside Billy's personal struggle to become a dancer in a world of hard hats and boxing gloves. The story is also mirrored by the young actors who play Billy, whose own true-life experiences of coming from obscurity to command the West End stage are an inspirational demonstration of the power of dreams.
That I have no memory of this significant event in the history of my origins from the north-east of England (though I do remember something about the mines being closed - thanks to Prime Minister Maggie Thatcher) only seems to reinforce the reality of how entrenched I must have become in my new life in Australia. However, I still well remember the stomp of the miners' boots coming down the hill from the mine past my house as a little kid and I'm pretty sure my granddad was a miner or at least one of my Dad's uncle's was one. Somebody in the family was a miner, I'm sure!
I still feel some sadness leaving Aus behind but hopefully the fruit of the financial benefits will make it worthwhile and the opportunities to reconnect with friends and family and a planned trip to Scotland in September is something to look forward to.
 |
| Harrow School founded in 1572 during reign of Elizabeth I, began with one recorded pupil, then settled into its gradual growth towards fame. Famous old Harrovians include Lord Byron, Winston Churchill, and King Hussein of Jordan |
It was great to see my son, Scott, again; enjoyed a pub meal and shared past highlights and concerns.I had a bad moment on the way back to the Underground when I sickingly realized I had left my travel purse back at the pub along with passports. Oh! the relief to see it lying there under the table was profound. Nearly kissed the barman!
My big adventure of the week was to go to the theatre in the west-end so ended up seeing Billy Elliott, mainly 'cause I loved the movie but also to reconnect with my roots in Co Durham where the story originates.
Fortunately, I have long got over doing things solo but I seem to have lost the skill of managing time on my own and stumbled into my seat seconds before the last call. My seat was square in the middle of two lovely English ladies who took every chance to tell me how great the show is and I must go see The Lion King. I reckon the theatre was built in the days when people were five foot nothing as even at five feet two I still had to bend my knees sideways to fit in.
Billy Elliot is set against the background of the British miners' strike of 1984/85 and charts the fortunes of the striking men alongside Billy's personal struggle to become a dancer in a world of hard hats and boxing gloves. The story is also mirrored by the young actors who play Billy, whose own true-life experiences of coming from obscurity to command the West End stage are an inspirational demonstration of the power of dreams. That I have no memory of this significant event in the history of my origins from the north-east of England (though I do remember something about the mines being closed - thanks to Prime Minister Maggie Thatcher) only seems to reinforce the reality of how entrenched I must have become in my new life in Australia. However, I still well remember the stomp of the miners' boots coming down the hill from the mine past my house as a little kid and I'm pretty sure my granddad was a miner or at least one of my Dad's uncle's was one. Somebody in the family was a miner, I'm sure!
I still feel some sadness leaving Aus behind but hopefully the fruit of the financial benefits will make it worthwhile and the opportunities to reconnect with friends and family and a planned trip to Scotland in September is something to look forward to.
No comments:
Post a Comment