spring!

after a very cold january and february, today was incredibly warm: 60 degrees, and i knew i had to get out for a walk along the river.

only two weeks ago this was all ice and the poor geese were scrounging around for food.

chanda was babysitting . .

and i mailed my letters to the white house requesting the current administration to focus on clean, renewable energy.

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morgana helped ryan move their friend james' narrowboat and sent me a bunch of photos . . the day was partially sunny, but very chilly i think . . ryan looks quite bundled up.

 

 

they moved it rather far from central london, and had to wait a long time for their train ride back into town. they were worried it would never arrive, and they ended up not getting home until around 1 am. i think they were out on the canal for four or five hours. the narrowboats move slowly.

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before i went for a walk today, i watched a presentation about social housing in vienna. it was interesting and they have beautiful public apartments. applicants must have lived in vienna for two years before qualifying, and then you go on a waiting list, though i didn't get the impression that the wait was very long. i was impressed with how they said the architects compete to make the best, environmentally friendly design, and that social workers help tenants find solutions if they can't make their rent due to job loss or illness.

a furry creature kept me company . .

london update

in june, morgana made an excursion to hadleigh castle, east of london on the thames estuary. you can see the castle in the center of this photo, way off in the distance. according to wikipedia, it was built after 1215, during the reign of henry iii, by hubert de burgh, 1st earl of kent, justiclar of england (a medieval term for prime minister).

 the path leading to its tower . .

  it's a stone ruin now, though protected by english heritage trust . . 

 and was once a sizeable fortification to protect against a possible attack from france.

 while she was there, she came across a sign commemorating general william booth, founder of the salvation army along with his wife, catherine, and explaining the working farm they have in hadleigh. this was important news for me as i always thought the salvation army was founded in the u.s.

back on the boat: one day she called me while transporting her laundry on a cart to the laundrette. it sounded like a long way to go . . she had to cross the highway and walk twenty minutes to a place on st. stephen's road. this hike took her along the roman road (sounds very ancient and romantic), which has an open market on thursdays, saturdays, and tuesdays. unfortunately, i think it was a sunday evening.

i think these pics were taken the day after wash day. she was happy there was sunshine.

one day she received a vegetable box. 

broccoli, carrots, cabbage, onions, endive, fava beans . . 

and cucumbers . . it looks like a good meal.

mama duck and her ducklings . . 

the lymehouse mooring . . 

off to the cafe now . . 

to sit and write and drink cappuccinos until . .

 her friend deychen finally arrived for a visit.

 breakfast at a cafe directly across from the boat one morning.

 steering the boat along the canal to a new mooring . .

 museum visits . . 

 

 at the tate, i think.

in hyde park, overlooking christo's barrel pyramid which you can read about here.

a beautiful view with the millennium bridge and st. paul's . . and another haircut . .

with sami on the narrowboat

 morgana has been enjoying showing sami around london, and showing her what life is like on the narrowboat. (they did not take showers as it uses up too much water. they waited to get to their airbnb, which they just moved to.)

 she said they enjoyed a delicious breakfast this morning, while listening to the geese, loons and ducks splashing about and making quite a loud ruckus.

reeds along the path . . 

sunset on the canal . .

beautiful cornwall

 morgana has been in cornwall with my cousin and her family.

 my cousin handling some last minute work emergencies.

 morgana on the train with them to cornwall.

 posing behind a huge rosemary plant in a friend's garden.

 her delicious fish dinner . . 

 they took a friend's boat sailing one day . . 

and another day they visited mount saint michael, which has been owned by the st. aubyn family since 1650.

a selfie after climbing around and around to arrive at the entrance of the castle on mount saint michael. morgana stayed with her cousin/aunt every step of the way and they had a fun time talking together and experiencing the beautiful sea and the mount.

 cobblestones on mount saint michael . . 

 inside the mount . . 

 fencing equipment . . 

 a view from the mount . . as they were leaving the castle, a couple was coming in from the pathway. my cousin said she recognized this couple as the aubyn family owners from the portraits she had just seen in the hall! i think that was exciting.

 and another view of beautiful cornwall . . 

relaxing in a friend's garden . .

 a picnic in the garden . .

sardines?

 an english bulldog she saw on the train . . 

 back in london . . rowing on the narrowboat . . 

and the best picture yet of the interior of the narrowboat (taken by my cousin).