The weather over the May Bank Holiday was unfortunately rather miserable. Nee Chen was over for a few days so we went walking in Kensington Gardens and round some of the shops as well as visiting a couple of markets. The birds having chicks, these ones are at Victoria park.
I have now booked my flights back to Sydney, here are the dates in case anyone feels like joining me for part of the trip.
I finish my work contract on the 27th of July. 30th July I have booked a flight to Venice, am planning to head back to London from Rome on the 6th of August. 8th of August I fly to Beijing, China. 22nd of August I fly to Seoul, Korea. 27th of August I leave Korea to arrive back in Sydney on the 28th of August.
It was a cold, grey, wet weekend in London. I went rambling on Saturday, saw a 12th century Abbey and then walked through a park in Ilford ending up with a pipe organ concert in a church. On Sunday I went to the Victoria and Albert museum for a couple of hours. The Islamic art was interesting and the shop has alsorts of interesting stuff.
Australia has decided to let me become a citizen after all. I applied last year thinking that it would be good to be guaranteed access to Australian health care. However the Bureaucratic process took considerably longer than I anticipated and as you are required to go to a ceremony within a set period which was going to expire in a month, anyhow they have reconsidered and I am now able to go to a ceremony on the 28th of September. Now all I need is little out fit in green and gold, (think I will always be a Kiwi for the national colours if nothing else)! Black is so much more flattering.
Stockholm is really pretty, I hadn't realised that the city is made up of a series of islands. On Saturday I arrived at Skanska airport that is about an hour and a half out of Stockholm, we passed through pretty farm land and forests on the way. I booked accommodation through a "rent-a-room" agency, it is with a retired woman in quite a good location, quite cheap and interesting decor.
I went to the Vasa museum which is a museum that contains a ship that sunk on its maiden voyage in 1628, and was raised from the sea bed in 1961 and then went through extensive renovations, it was largely intact providing a facinating look at a ship from that time. The museum has a film about the discovery, raising and renovation of the ship, and the personal belongings that they found. The museum as well as having the ship has information and displays on life at that time some skeletons that were found on board and about what they have been able to deduce from the personal belongs and bones on the person's life and position. I then walked along the edge of the water to the old city on the island of Gamla Stan. I went to one of the oldest konditorei (cafe) in Stockholm and had coffee and a "Sarah Bernherdt" a great combination of macaroon, chocolate granache and chocolate. I then did as you have to in Sweden and had meat balls for dinner.
Sunday was beautiful so I went to the Modern Art museum in the morning and then caught a ferry to Vaxholm which is a small island in the archipelago about an hour from Stockholm.
On Monday it was raining so went and had a look around the shops, lots of funky stuff, not cheap though. As you can see from the food hall picture you can buy elk and reindeer meat. Quite a few of the underground stations have art in them.
I took quite a few photos, there are a few here and quite a lot more on Flicka, click on the link on the right to "My Photos".
The weather over the May Bank Holiday was unfortunately rather miserable. Nee Chen was over for a few days so we went walking in Kensington Gardens and round some of the shops as well as visiting a couple of markets. The birds having chicks, these ones are at Victoria park.
The world's most famous zebra crossing. A little further a long is the recording studio that has a fence that is covered in Beatles graffiti.
The Tower Bridge was opened on Saturday so a replica of an old Swedish ship could enter
Australia has decided to let me become a citizen after all. I applied last year thinking that it would be good to be guaranteed access to Australian health care. However the Bureaucratic process took considerably longer than I anticipated and as you are required to go to a ceremony within a set period which was going to expire in a month, anyhow they have reconsidered and I am now able to go to a ceremony on the 28th of September. Now all I need is little out fit in green and gold, (think I will always be a Kiwi for the national colours if nothing else)! Black is so much more flattering.