Tuesday, August 16, 2011

England Part One

Blogging is not my forte. I would rather do many other things than write...such as visiting with friends, sampling local cuisine, finding amazing chocolate, and acquiring new skills in jewelry making. So, that is what I did for four weeks in England. I arrived in London on July 11. After checking into my hotel and taking a very short nap, I went exploring. I was staying in the "jewellery" district of London and thought I should take a look around. I found my way to the Orange cell phone store to pick up a local phone. I also found out I could not get a SIM card for my iPad without a local address. Oh well. On the way back to my hotel, I twisted my foot while crossing the street. It hurt, but I could walk. Four weeks later after arriving home, I learned that it was a slight fracture instead of a sprain. So I am now sporting a lovely boot!

The next day I began my summer of learning at the London Jewellery School. I took a class with Chu-Mei Ho http://www.londonjewelleryschool.co.uk/metal-clay/metal-clay-paper-clay-class/ I had experimented with the paper clay a little, but really wanted to learn the technique of origami. It is harder to manipulate the paper clay than traditional origami paper. It was totally worth taking this class. I now feel much more confident in working with the paper clay.

My husband, Todd arrived from Germany that evening and we headed up to the Lake District with our friend Val the next day. We had been to the lake district 25 years ago and have always wanted to go back. We went sightseeing everyday and enjoyed Lake Windermere and many other lovely sights. These included a Beatrix Potter Museum, seeing the latest Harry Potter Movie, a short hike to a lovely waterfall, and a visit to the Carnforth Train Station where the 1940s movie "Brief Encounter" was filmed. We also enjoyed an outdoor production of "Merlin and the Legend of King Arthur" at Williamson Park, in Lancaster. The trip was topped off with a trip to the Preston LDS Temple in Chorley, England on Saturday.

Sunday afternoon we headed back to London. On Monday, Todd flew back to Germany for a few days, Val went to meet her sister for a day of sight seeing, and I headed off to my Soldering Masterclass with Elizabeth Bone: http://londonjewelleryschool.co.uk/silver-jewellery/soldering-masterclass/

I saw a taxi outside the hotel and stepped off the curb without looking...to find myself sprawled on the drive in front of the hotel with a new injury. I had sprained my left ankle so badly, I could not put my foot down. On the upside, I could feel no pain in my right foot anymore. I hobbled on my toes to the taxi and somehow made it to class. Fortunately we sat most of the time. After class, I took a taxi to Harrods to meet Val and her sister, Elizabeth. We met in the chocolate room of the Food Hall where you can find many of your favorite European chocolates in one place. After that we went to a favorite cafe for a lovely salmon dinner. It was raining buckets when left the cafe, so everyone wanted a cab. Val finally ran down the street to catch one before it got to the crowd at Harrods. After returning to the hotel, Val helped me ice the foot and then I took a warm bath. The next morning I could put my foot down flat. Val and I headed to Paddington Station for our train to Cornwall.



No comments:

Post a Comment