Back in the UK

Bob and I left Dallas on Tuesday, flew nine hours, and arrived in London at 9:00 in the morning Wednesday. Having a brace on a leg affords you a few advantages when flying. I had a wheelchair from our car to the plane. We had bulkhead seats which gave me the extra leg room. The flight attendant used three serving trays to keep my leg elevated for the flight. Getting off the plane in the London airport, I was greeted by a gentleman who drives those passengers in the terminal that can't make the long walks. I sat next to a woman flying from Honolulu to Greece who had hurt her knee also, but opted not for surgery. She advised me to go for the surgery. Easier said than done. Bob and I were picked up at the airport by the manager of the UK office, Tim. Driving was nice, but have you seen the cars in Europe? They're half the size of U.S. cars. Getting in and out with the brace is a trick, but one I'm perfecting.

We are staying the first two nights in a lovely, quaint village called Lindfield. It was founded in the 1300's as a medieval market village. Our inn is actually just 4 rooms above a bistro. The place is owned by a young couple. The outside of the inn is old, like the town, but the inside is very modern. The main street through the village is called High Street. On both sides of the street are buildings from the 1700's mostly. It appears that every house is named "____House" or "______Cottage." They seem to all have beautiful gardens. Everything grows here. Flowers grow even through rocks. While Bob was in the office today, I took a walk through the town. There's a pond in the middle of the town, and it is home to lots of ducks, including a mother duck and her five ducklings the size of my palm. There were two women sitting at the edge of the pond, sketch pads in hand. They were a picture themselves.

People here walk alot. They buy their "daily provisions" at the local store, which is very, very tiny compared to Tom Thumb. The village has its own butcher shop, complete with sausage hanging up in the window. Next door to our inn is a wonderful bakery that has been in existence since 1726. There was a line of people out its door this morning. Air-conditioning is rather non-existent here. Windows remain open, and there are no screens on the windows. Lace curtains in the windows are everywhere, and people seem to try to keep the original look to the homes. Not much remodeling, or refronting as they say, to the outsides of the structures. It makes for one very pretty village. Apparently Charles Dickens used to frequent this town.

I had the real English fish and chips today for lunch. Here in the UK they give you the whole fish, battered of course. I wasn't expecting that, so something new. I didn't have fish and chips the last time we were here, so I made it a point to order it this trip. I think once was enough for me.

Bob and I leave for London Friday evening. We'll be there until Sunday morning when we take a flight to Munich. We are hoping to be able to see Robyn Eubanks, who used to live in FM and now is a missionary in Germany.

So that's that from the UK. Oh, it's nice and cool here right now. Enjoying the change!