Rosalie and I enjoying falafels at Borough Market. It was sad to see so many of the old vegetable stands and farmers replaced with trendy espresso stalls and Gucci-clutching shoppers...I suppose all things must change.
Grand Old St. Paul's. I slipped in for Evensong - having the chance to regularly listen to the choir and organ there make the idea of grad school in London extremely compelling...
Loitering at St. Paul's. I love watching people who don't know they're being watched.
Every Sunday morning at Hyde Park a hearty rhetorical battle ensues between, well, everyone who shows up.
Among the rules of engagement are "No Physical Contact." Now I understand why...
Rosalie walking in Hyde Park
Jill, Megan, and Ty met up with me so we could reminisce about India and gawk at the cleanliness of England. We even walked about in the grass barefoot...pure joy.
Jill, Megan, Peter Pan, and me. Unfortunately Megan is part of a generation of Americans for whom Peter Pan has been replaced by Barney, so she had no idea who she was visiting.
View of Wray Castle across Windermere in the Lake District. I left the city to catch my breath in the countryside and found myself never wanting to leave. (The water is as cold as it looks!)
No, I didn't photoshop these shades of green. The world really is this beautiful.
Meadows north of Ambleside. C. S. Lewis had his "Golden Valley" in Herefordshire - I have mine here, I suppose.
View of Rydal Water on the walk to Grasmere. Rambling about lost in the rain by oneself can actually be very pleasant.
All day long the mist rises and falls over the valleys and lakes. Dad, you would love the constant weather change here.
Doesn't it make you wonder who lives there? (And how you could get to know them...)
After a day on my own, I was sitting on the top of a double decker bus when I realized I was missing two of life's absolute essentials:
a decent cup of tea...
and a friend! (Not necessarily in that order, though they usually come together.) James on the hike up Helvellyn, with Ullswater in the background.
Sailboats on Ullswater
One point on the hiking map named "Hole in the Wall" turned out to be just that. For some reason when we saw it, we were surprised it lived up to what it actually was! (Who builds solid stone walls directly up steep mountain sides? really?)
Striding Edge was our choice for ascent. I want to return in winter sometime, but it was still a stunning walk along the ridge in the summer.
Wind blowing mist over Striding Edge
Looking down from Striding Edge
The spine of Striding Edge vanishing into the fog
James on top of the world!
The landscape isn't exactly friendly...
And at the summit we saw...something!...for thirty seconds
"Boulders" in the mist. Also known as sheep and goats.
Red Tarn lies in the glacially-carved bowl under Helvellyn's summit. Why it has its name we could not guess.
Peat! Read about it for years, never seen it. It's like showing raspberries to villagers in India - everyone (meaning me) becomes excited, points, talks loudly, and takes pictures.
And then, once we left the peak, the mist cleared. It's not bad luck...I bet the view over the country and sea is terrible, anyway.
One of many reasons to stroll very slowly through the British Museum.
In my collection of faces, this one from an African shield makes me feel most like pulling out crayons and construction paper again.
Truth at Holland Park
Why do the sweetest things in life cross your path when you're lonely and on your way home? Maybe that's just the time I see them.
