We’ve been in Schwerin for a few days now, and the Internet is dodgy so posting is difficult. We’ve met Klaus’s family and a couple of Michael’s Camino friends rolled into town for a short visit. The weather has been grey – missing my Manitoba sunshine – and cool but we managed to see the castle, the market square and some gardens.
So we arrived in Schwerin and contacted Kelly & Klaus by email as we couldn’t figure out what part of their phone numbers we no longer needed. We waited a bit, figured we wouldn’t see them until after work so we set off to a nearby mall. We went the wrong way and ended up running into Kelly who had some time between classes!
We went for coffee, picked up some groceries, then to the Hotel Fritz where Klaus showed up.
We popped over to a car rental and Michael is once again behind the wheel of an Opel.
All of us went to Wismar and wandered through the streets to the harbour. We also toured the Dom of St Nikolas and went up into roof for a tour. Kieran decided the height was too much and scurried back to the yard.
Later we ended up at Jack the Ribber where we tried to eat several animals’ worth of ribs.
We’re sitting in the pub of The Mad Hatter, having one last drink before a day of travelling. We managed to find the Imperial War Museum (London) about 11 this morning. It is a phenomenal museum with displays from WWI and up. Seems the wars never end. There an amazing trench recreation form the Great War – it even reeks – and because of the Battle of Britain anniversary, there’s a couple of exhibits from WWII home front. There’s a heart rending exhibit called The Children’s War which documents the kids in the cities, evacuated to the country or Canada, or just dealing with the end of the war. A quote is “Mummy, there’s a soldier outside with his kit. I think it’s your husband.”. They have guns and planes and tanks in the main hall. We also went into the Ministry of Food exhibit – showing those who stayed at home how to add to the table.
We noticed the rain here is very fine, and figured all the pollution filters it out on the way down. London is very dirty – you have a greasy feel at the end of the day, and I must say I am looking forward to Germany.
I had a couple stressful moments this afternoon when Kieran who was supposed to come back from the museum just after us had failed to appear two hours later. I, of course, went into considering what hospitals to phone while Michael, sensing my stress, headed out to hunt him down. He was still at the museum. So, after a couple glasses of wine, I am finally peeling myself off the ceiling.
We went for supper at the Pizza Express beside the Globe Theatre. Circumstances prevented me from going in (sore legs) but it seems quite a crowd gathers outside of it. There was also quite a view from the river side.
Today was a little harder – Michael woke up with a very sore throat, and low energy. We had planned a number of outings but we had to downsize our day. We walked over the bridge to see Big Ben, the Parliament buildings and Buckingham with the Australia and Canada Gates.
After the gawking, we headed over to find the Sherlock Holmes Museum (and Gift Shop!). It was a replica of what a boarding room would look like in the 1890s. Not a nice as Dalnavert, but still a lot of fun. Along the way we found a Beatles Shop and Aleksander picked up a poster and badge – as he wanted, bought in London, and hopefully heading home in one piece.
We did try Covent Gardens but Michael faded just as we got there, so they watched a street performer show while I scurried about, looking for cool stuff.
We grabbed a bus, then hopped on the Underground, then strolled over to The Mad Hatter, our hotel. It’s humid and grey here – hope it gets nicer. I think it’s warmer than it was in Oxford.
We just finished up supper in a cheaper cafe around the corner and then found a very expensive bakery/cafe for lattes and treats. Kieran had a sour cherry cheesecake and Aleksander had a brownie.
London is dirty, noisy and huge. Tomorrow we hope to decide which sites to see. The Globe Theatre isn’t far away and I think the Tower of London would appeal to the boys. We’ll see…
Last full day in Oxford! We ran around to the Museum Natural History and up the Carfax Bell Tower to listen to the noon chimes. We took a little trip on a boat down the Isis (Thames) and watched the rowers and the pretty houseboats.
At the museum, there’s a folded and wax-sealed note to a professor (photo below), written a few hundred years ago and only recently found when floorboards were pulled up for repairs. AND THEY HAVEN’T OPENED IT. Really! There could be something really interesting in it!
Michael and I finished up some small beers at King’s Arms, The Isis and The Head of the River and possibly a couple more, as my memory fades… There were some nice ales and lagers.
Carfax was a nicer tower for the height-phobic however the circular metal staircase was positively claustrophobic. The view was lovely. We also realised there are a number of fields with sheep, cows and horses around the colleges.
Today we went to a couple museums – the Ashmolean and the Pitt Rivers Museums. It was education day! I thought I was a pack rat, but the Pitt Rivers collection is amazing. It seems to be a combination of “I love travelling and exploring the world” and “a post card won’t do”. It would take weeks to go through it and we had a few hours – mostly because the boys started fading. Even with shrunken heads! Not theirs, the ones in the cases…
We also hit a couple of the oldest pubs in Oxford and tried a few new real ales. There was The Eagle and Child where Tolkien and CS Lewis hung out for brews, and The Turf Tavern which sits at the base of the old city wall (read: keep the rowdy drunk students outside these walls). Turf is named after Turf Accountants (read: bookie).
We also went up the bell tower of St Mary the Virgin Church. Wonderful view of the entire city. Kieran jammed out at the top when his fear of heights kicked in.
