Taking the ferry from France to the UK was a great choice. The weather was beautiful and
we could see the cliffs so clearly...no fog or clouds! We were so happy to hear people speaking
English around us! After three weeks of hearing foreign languages all around
it gives your ears a break to hear something familiar.
Being out in the English Channel is a great way to see the cliffs. They are so beautiful.
Objects are larger than they appear! These cliffs are huge.
The ferry dock in Dover.
Dover Castle sits up above the cliffs.
Great way to travel! There were hardly any pedestrian passengers, mostly cars.
We had a hotel for 2 nights in Dover. And a great view from our room balcony!
We had a teeny tiny room, but we overlooked the water and the ferry dock.
We were there on a bank holiday Monday and the locals said they couldn't
remember weather this good ever on a summer bank holiday.
We were there on a bank holiday Monday and the locals said they couldn't
remember weather this good ever on a summer bank holiday.
We had yummy fish 'n chips for dinner out in front of the hotel.
We walked out on the pier and watched semi trucks come off this ferry for at least
a half hour. Dover is a very busy ferry port.
Another picture of the castle from out on the pier.
We enjoyed resting up and relaxing by the water in Dover.
We didn't have to be back to the temple until September 1st so
we went to London and stayed a few days before heading back.
It was an one hour train ride from Dover. It was 90* that day and our train
had no A/C. It was Hot. We were glad to be back in London.
We walked around a bit in the evening and had some chicken wings at Greenwood.
We went on a tour through Buckingham Palace. They give tours when the Queen is gone for the summer. You can't take photos inside, but it was really interesting and beautiful.
With special displays celebrating Queen Victoria's 200th birthday.
We walked through the State Rooms, Throne Room, Ballroom and more.
The thrones looked kinda worn...they must sit there alot!
The thrones looked kinda worn...they must sit there alot!
Haha, that is us with the Queen at her birthday celebration
Trooping the Colours!
After the tour you exit through the back gardens.
There are 42 acres of park back here with a lake and grass and lots of trees.
It is really beautiful. There is 2 1/2 miles of walking paths...Queen Elizabeth is a walker.
It is really beautiful. There is 2 1/2 miles of walking paths...Queen Elizabeth is a walker.
We had an ice cream cone out in the gardens as we walked to the exit.
We also had a tour of the Royal Mews. This is where the horses and carriages
are kept. The interesting thing back here is this is where the staff lives and many
of the queens staff has been employed there for generations.
It is used at coronations and is pulled by a team of 8 Windsor Grey horses.
Wednesday evening we ate dinner at The Stoke House.
On August 29 we took the Tube to Westminster, walked across the
bridge and walked along the Southbank following the Queen's Walk.
It was a little cooler, but we found benches in the shade along the way
and enjoyed the street artists entertaining whoever would stop on the walkway.
We crossed the Thames River on the Millennium Bridge. It is a footbridge that crosses over at
St Paul's Cathedral. That is the cathedral behind us as we stood on the bridge.
St Paul's Cathedral. That is the cathedral behind us as we stood on the bridge.
St Paul's Cathedral is beautiful. We weren't sure what to do next, so we walked back across the bridge and sat and listened to some singers. We got online and saw that Westminster Abbey
had Evensong at 5PM, so we walked back across the bridge and hopped on a bus.
Going to a service at the Abbey is a great way to get in. No queue out front!
It is very beautiful inside and we enjoyed the service.
That evening we were tired from all our walking, so we had room service pizza!
On our last day in London we got on the bus and rode to Hyde Park and got off at Marble Arch.
Marble Arch is a 19th-century white marble arch that was designed after the Arch of Constantine in Rome and the Arc de Triomphe in Paris...both of which we just saw!
Across from the arch in Hyde Park is Speakers' Corner. It has been a place of public speeches and debates since the mid 1800's. It was here that Gordon B Hinckley stood on a soap box as a young missionary and preached to the unruly crowds. Some were interested, some heckled him, but he came to enjoy sparring with some of those individuals.
We walked in the park to The Reformers' Tree. It was a oak tree which became the focus of protests by the Reform League. During one of the protests it was set on fire and burned. They put in this mosaic to commemorate the tree. It was after this that they set up Speakers' Corner for debates.
We walked along the Serpentine and watched boaters and runners and people
enjoying the beautiful day. The little building across the way has food and drinks so we walked around over there and had a soda. After our drink we started walking towards South Kensington.
We walked right past Hyde Chapel.
Just up the street from the chapel is the Natural History Museum. The building itself is amazing.
It was completed in 1880. It looks like Harry Potter could have hung out here!
The website says they have 80 millions items...it is really big.
They even have a wolverine!
After walking around a bit, we walked to South Kensington. We had
read about a seafood restaurant and decided to try and find it. We are glad we did!
They had a specials until 6PM...we had oysters and lobster!
It was a really good special and really good food.
Next morning we finished our trip by boarding the train to Lingfield Station and headed
back to the London Temple. We cannot believe what a blessing it was to be able to take this trip.
Visiting the temples in Rome, Bern and Paris will be something we never forget.
It was good to get back home, even if it was back to room 61 in the Accommodation Center.
We will only be here a few more days here until it is moving day over to the Lodge!
Sunday we attended Crawley Ward and had a break the fast potluck with the missionaries.
September 2-6 we had family history classes.
The first 3 days the area Temple and Family History Consultants taught the class.
It was very good and we learned lots of new things.
Thursday and Friday we had a couple other workshops and everyone
worked on applying what we had learned the first 3 days.
On September 6th we got to move into our flat #15.
We love it.
We have a nice kitchen.
A king size bed, and nice bathroom...
A laundry room with a freezer and a nice size storage closet.
But the best part is our view of the temple out of all our windows.
It really is the best.
We had Saturday, September 7th off so we headed back to London
to go to the Borough Market near London Bridge. It is an open air food market with tons of
veggies
and fruit
and bread
and cheese
and fudge
just about everything edible available. It was so crowded and so fun.
We walked across the London Bridge
and sat and enjoyed the day for a while. We walked along the Northbank of the Thames River.
There is this Monument to the Great Fire of London that started 2 September 1666.
It is huge. You can climb the stairs to the top if you are feeling ambitious, we were not.
This is the base of the monument, for some reason all the wording engraved
on the monument is in Latin.
We walked all the way along the river to the Millennium Bridge and over
to St Paul's Cathedral. For some reason there was a trapeze set up across the street.
Now this is taking street entertainment to a whole new level!
The week of September 8-12 we were back in the temple working.
Only this time it was to dust and vacuum and clean up after all the repairing and painting and carpeting was finished. We dusted crown molding, walls, baseboards...you name it we dusted it, twice. We vacuumed and wiped and dusted and cleaned.
We worked every morning, but were excited because on Wednesday we got to watch the engineers lower the big chandelier over the staircase and we all helped take off each crystal and
clean them and hang them back up.
It is an experience we will not forget. As they raised the chandelier back up all the missionaries sang, Jesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam, The Lord is My Light, and I Know That My Redeemer Lives.
It was a very unique and spiritual experience, and one we feel blessed we got to participate.
On Thursday evening we had a BBQ out on the grounds in the shadow of the temple.
We just love this photo we captured as President and Sister Otterson
left the BBQ. Their service is over in October. We will miss them dearly.
The Historic Dockyard is a part of the Royal Navy Base that is open to the public.
It has several historic buildings and ships and museums.
The HMS Warrior was built in 1860 and was the first iron-hulled warship built.
She was steam and sail powered and was an answer to France's first ironclad ship which
began a arms race between France and Britain.
She has 40 guns, but never had to fire a shot.
The HMS Victory launched in 1765. Has 104 guns and is best known for her role at the Battle of Trafalgar against the French and Spanish in 1805.
The water taxi takes you across the harbor to the Royal Navy Submarine Museum and
the HMS Alliance. The Alliance was completed in 1947.
The museum also has the first submarine commissioned by the Royal Navy in 1901.
Also included with your Historic Dockyard ticket (which is good for a year) is unlimited
rides on the Solent Cat. It is a harbor cruise and we might have taken it more than once!
It is always so fun to be out on the water.
Next the Historic Dockyard is the Gunwarf Quays.
It is on the location of HM Gunwarf. It was an ordnance yard established in 1706 where cannon, ammunition and other armaments were stored, repaired and serviced.
Now it is home to over 90 outlet stores, a cinema, and dozens of restaurants.
This is The Spinnaker Tower, it has observation decks up on top.
We love the Cornish Bakery, good thing there isn't one closer to us!
They have fantastic pastries including these meat pies.
And amazing cherry almond croissants.
There is a small marina.
These are some of the restaurants lining the marina.
Our favorite...a bench! You can sit and watch the ferries coming and going.
They have ferries to Isle of Wight and also ports along France.
The Millennium Promenade is a seafront walkway that connect Historic Dockyards and Southsea.
Much of the walkway is on old military fort walls and moats passing by old guard houses and towers.
The views are fantastic of the water and the Isle of Wight.
We walked along this path several times.
When we got to the Isle of Wight after our long 10 minute ride,
we got on the Down Breezer, a hop on and off bus that goes around the island.
The views were beautiful. You could see water on all sides.
We got off the bus at Sandown. It is a small beach town that has white cliffs and a sandy beach.
We had a fantastic salmon lunch,
walked in the sand,
listened to the waves,
and totally enjoyed our day. We had our first Kelly Cornish ice cream and
caught the last bus back to the Hovercraft.
Sunday we attended church at the Portsmouth Ward.
Now the big long six week temple shutdown break is over and we
are anxious to get back to work in the temple!
Seeing all these anchors have reminded us of a favorite scripture, words from the Prophet Ether:
"Ether...began to prophesy unto the people,
for he could not be restrained
because of the Spirit of the Lord which was in him.
"For he did cry from morning, even until the going down of sun,
exhorting the people to believe in God unto repentance
lest they should be destroyed,
saying unto them that by faith all things are fulfilled--
"Wherefore, whoso believeth in God
might with surety hope for a better world,
yea, even a place at the right hand of God,
which hope cometh of faith,
maketh an anchor to the souls of men,
which would make them sure and steadfast,
always abounding in good works, being led to glorify God."
--Ether 12:2-4
President gave everyone Friday off, so that meant we had a 4 day weekend.
We decided to go south to Portsmouth which is about 1-1/2 hours south of here on the train.
It has several historic buildings and ships and museums.
The HMS Warrior was built in 1860 and was the first iron-hulled warship built.
She was steam and sail powered and was an answer to France's first ironclad ship which
began a arms race between France and Britain.
She has 40 guns, but never had to fire a shot.
the HMS Alliance. The Alliance was completed in 1947.
rides on the Solent Cat. It is a harbor cruise and we might have taken it more than once!
It is always so fun to be out on the water.
It is on the location of HM Gunwarf. It was an ordnance yard established in 1706 where cannon, ammunition and other armaments were stored, repaired and serviced.
Now it is home to over 90 outlet stores, a cinema, and dozens of restaurants.
They have fantastic pastries including these meat pies.
And amazing cherry almond croissants.
They have ferries to Isle of Wight and also ports along France.
Much of the walkway is on old military fort walls and moats passing by old guard houses and towers.
We walked along this path several times.
We rode the Hovercraft over to the Isle of Wight.
It only takes 10 minutes.
we got on the Down Breezer, a hop on and off bus that goes around the island.
put our feet in the water
and totally enjoyed our day. We had our first Kelly Cornish ice cream and
caught the last bus back to the Hovercraft.
Now the big long six week temple shutdown break is over and we
are anxious to get back to work in the temple!
"Ether...began to prophesy unto the people,
for he could not be restrained
because of the Spirit of the Lord which was in him.
"For he did cry from morning, even until the going down of sun,
exhorting the people to believe in God unto repentance
lest they should be destroyed,
saying unto them that by faith all things are fulfilled--
"Wherefore, whoso believeth in God
might with surety hope for a better world,
yea, even a place at the right hand of God,
which hope cometh of faith,
maketh an anchor to the souls of men,
which would make them sure and steadfast,
always abounding in good works, being led to glorify God."
--Ether 12:2-4