London, July 29, 2010

Our journey started with an hour's delay leaving Boston. But the flight was smooth once we were on board.

Preboarding at Logan airport

We had no trouble getting our luggage or going through customs; we bought Sim cards for our phones from a vending machine, and then we went outside to meet Robert. The weather is comfortable, and partly sunny.

Robert drove us to his beautiful home in the little village of Ryarsh. Their home was built in the later part of the 1800s, and a great family home, very comfortable and full of interesting nooks and crannies.

The four of us made some coffee and snacked on apples while Robert had a work teleconference. Mark and Becky went to lie down for a bit, and then Robert appeared. We'll see what the rest of the afternoon brings.

We took the 2 dogs - Jasper and Barney - for a walk on the North Downs. We walked through a field and then had a lovely walk through country lanes, with large old trees, and an occasional old house tucked away. We passed the Dode Church. The Dode Church was built in the Norman era. During the Black Plague in the mid 14th century, everyone in the village died except for one little girl. She took refuge in the church, and eventually starved to death there. The story goes that her cries can still be heard in the church. The church was restored and reconsecrated by the Victorians, and today there are occasionally services there, including weddings.

We also saw a few interesting signs along our walk.









On our return, we sat around in the kitchen for awhile chatting with Robert, Alec and Nell. We had a lovely rambling conversation. Alec is leaving Sunday for a trip to Thailand and other foreign ports before starting his job with Deloit. Nell just finished her first year at Oxford, and is delightful young woman.

Nell helped Robert get dinner on the table, and Laura joined us during the meal. We had a lovely dinner and conversation, and headed for bed by 10:30. It was a long day, but wonderful.