Jet-lagged Backlog

Yes, I know ... it's been a while. Among other things (details below) I didn't have computer access in England ...nor is it readily available here at my Parents' place (they don't even have an answering machine!) So, now, finally .....

The days in Finland were beautiful for sure, and came to good conclusion. Steve and Drew left for their Father-Son campout on Friday afternoon, and Barbara took me to the Jyvaskyla train station for my jaunt to Tampere. The train was a Pendolino, which means it was clean and fast and smooth. Once I got to Tampere, I took a taxi to the airport, to the Ryanair shack ... I mean, terminal.

Ryanir is definitely a no-frills budget airline geared to commuters and short vacation travellers. While the basic airfares may be cheap, they have VERY specific baggage weight allowances and surcharges ... in the end, I paid more in baggage surcharge than I paid for my ticket. It was a looooooong two-hours in a crowded plane ... complete with screaming child across the aisle from me ... but it got me to England.

We got in to Stansted about 11:30pm, and then had to make our way through immigration. While we were in line at Passport Control, one of the passengers took it upon himself to begin loudly exhorting the immigration people to efficiency. That of course brought several (armed)guards into closer proximity while one of the officials tried to get the guy to calm down ... the rest of us just wanted to get out of there. Finally, things settled and moved along. I had been led to believe that Stanbsted was a smaller, quieter airport ... not so. At midnight the place was a madhouse. Even getting a taxi was complicated by construction outside the terminal, so nothing about this part of the trip was easy. I got to the hotel (a small place near the airport where I had made a reservation for overnight) around 1am. Checkout time wasn't until Noon, so I knew I could at least get some good sleep.

Saturday I set out for Gravetye Manor, where I would hook up with friends from Canada. Stantsted is on the far north-east of London, and Gravetye is out in the countryside, way south of London, so the transfer took a bit ... three hours, actually ... by a variety of trains and taxis.

Gravetye is an old manor house built some hundreds of years ago, turned into a hotel of about 20 rooms. It's elegant, finely appointed, very quiet, with marvellous gardens. When my friend offered to have me as his guest there, I had no idea I would be stepping into an episode of Brideshead Revisited.

We planned to go into London on Monday so I could do some sightseeing, but by the time we finished breakfast and got on the way, it was nearly Noon. Once we got into the city, I headed for Westminister Abbey. From there, I set out to see Westminister Cathedral, stopping for fish 'n chips along the way. By then, the afternoon was quickly spent, so I made way to our meeting point at Harrod's.

Meanwhile, the tube (subway)strike began ... and it was the evening rush hour. When we came out of Harrod's it was obvious that any further movement about the city, even on foot, was going to be complicated and crowded, so my friends decided it best to head back for the Manor. We managed to get a taxi to the train station, and headed for home. So much for seeing much of London.

On Sunday I had some occasional sneezes, and attributed them to something blooming on the grounds. Monday, it became increasingly apparent it wasn't a pollen problem, and by time I woke on Tuesday it was definite that I had gotten myself a very bad cold. Subsequently, I spent much of the day Tuesday in bed ... venturing out only briefly to let my friends know I was still alive, and to order the taxi for my Wednesday morning departure. Despite the good friends and fine food and drink available, it seemed prudent to lay low, so I ordered a sandwich(egg salad and watercress... it was England, afterall)sent up to the room for lunch, and a mixed green salad for dinner.

The European segment of the sabbatical may have started out with a bang (thunderstorms that kept us on the Philly runway for five hours) but it ended with a whimper (the headcold that put me in bed). That's OK ... everything inbetween made up for it.

So I headed homeward ... this time there were no storms or significant delays, and my Sister met at the Detroit airport as scheduled. Now I'm nestled in at Mom and Dad's, reclaiming bits of summer I missed while in Europe ... things like sweet corn and fresh tomatoes.

But the sabbatical isn't over yet, so there will still be things to post ... after my nap, that is.