Good news today, our IPad was located in the UK and we’re going to have it sent onto Montepulciano in Italy. So, the post for Yorkshire will have to wait until after October 21st since it’s sitting ready to go on that device.
Our last stint in the UK involves visiting friends South of London. We make a flying, and long overdue, visit to Allister and Marisa, friends since high school, and with their grown Son Sam, go for dinner at the historic King William IV pub in the scenic hills near Fetcham, Surrey. Most of the evening is taken up with intense discussion of Brexit, the orange muppet dictator who shall not be named and the general slide towards global totalitarianism. Harrowing dreams ensue.
With a bit of free time the following day Abby and I take a hike through the Surrey Hills, starting and finishing at the village of Godstone. Hiking, aka rambling or hill walking, is a different game in the UK compared to the States. Most routes cross private property using rights of way that go back to the Middle Ages, some even well before that. 
Consequently, very precise directions are needed to avoid ending up in someone’s backyard, being chased by a bull or, in general, getting totally lost. Still, even though you might not always end up at your targeted destination, there’s nearly always a rustic pub waiting for you at trail’s end, and so it was on this occasion.
Next up is meeting up with Brother Des again, this time in the burgeoning metropolis of Bromley, Kent, very close to the Beckenham of Bowie fame and the home of the Bromley Contingent, who helped define punk fashion in the 70s. Wednesday is open night at the local, which happens to be a Fullers Brewery pub, the favored brewery of my youth, so an excessive amount of beer is consumed, topped off by the relatively deadly bottle conditioned “1645” weighing in at a feisty 6.4% alcohol. Luckily, we can walk home, but I’m not feeling so lucky the next morning.
Des has to work the next day so Abby and I head into Central London and investigate the massive complex in the East End that is the Olympic Park and surrounding neighborhoods. One hell of an investment for sure, and great when there’s an event on, but I can see it would feel a little desolate at other times. They did do a great job resuscitating the old canals and river of the area and are putting more money into the nearby neighborhoods such as Hackney Wick, which now has Camden-esque lock side bohemian cafes and craft beer emporiums equal to the most precious found in Portland, Oregon. Such is progress.
Friday is gig night i.e. Run for Cover and Glamstar, Des’ bands at the Elm Tree in Beckenham. RFC for classic rock covers and Glamstar for a recreation of that 70s phenomenon primarily limited to the UK typically comprising Ziggy Bowie, T.Rex, Slade, Alice Cooper, Mud and Susie Quatro plus others who tagged along for the ride. The band dons full glitter gear for the latter of the two bands, platform boots and all things that are shiny. Lots of fun.
For our final weekend our destination is Chris and Caroles’s country manor, the Druids, and we’re in for a rare treat as there is a barn dance on at the Rusper Village Hall on Saturday night. Live electric English folk band and enforced participation! Abby and I give it a go but I, and many of the guys, are hopeless at remembering the sequence of steps but, even so, a happy chaos results.
Sunday is a trip to the Royal Horticultural Gardens at Wisley and, if you didn’t know already, the English are master gardeners and that place is one of the prime examples of their work. In fact, the UK is loaded with places such as this, and others run by the National Trust. Combined with the epic trail network, including a number of long distance bad boys, and other protected areas such as National Parks, and the UK is, actually a great place to get outside as long as you don’t mind getting wet and don’t expect to see much wilderness.
We’ve had an excellent time in Ireland and the UK seeing friends and family but it’s now time for just the two of us to get on a plane at Gatwick, get over to Poland and encounter new territories.
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