First Set of  London Pictures

We spent a few days in Chearsley, a village outside of Oxford where by local regulation if one buys a thouse with a thatched roof, you must maintain that roof forever - which means yearly repairs and complete replacement every 30 years.

Chearsley cows are pretty much like cows everywhere...

Norma and her niece Joanna, who was visiting us with her husband David, like the soft English icecream.

This was a little stone chappel we came upon while wandering near Chearsley.  The foundations date back to the 13th century, but most of the present structure was built in the 1700's.

Gotta love the graphic design, and the no-foolin'-around nature of the warning.

This was shot on the "Wobbly" Bridge across the Thames right in front of the Tate Modern Art Museum.  Behind me you can see Christopher Wren's famous St. Pauls Church, built after the great fire of London in the 17th centurey.

Self Portrait in front of the famous Tower Of London.  This is the oldest part of the city, when it was little more than a fortified river crossing.  The grassy area behind me was once a moat.

Norma and Norm, our host in Chearsley, walking in the fields outside Treetops, his country estate.  The houses in Chearsley have names rather than numbers and street addresses.

The happy couple, also walking between houses in Chearsley.

Norma and Norm in the garden of Treetops.  Norm is the Europe/Asia agent for Dyned, which makes ESL and language lab material. 

This is Norma, Joanna and her husband David in Trafalgar Square in the heart of London.

Norma and me on the Millenial Bridge, another walking bridge across the Thames, this one near Westminster and the London Eye.

In Portobello Market they sell absolutely everything, starting with antiques, but including clothers, new and used, ceramics, silver, fruit and vegetables, fish and meat, knick-knacks, art and crafts, vintage junk and new junk, snacks and candy.  This guy sold only tin soldiers, but he had a TON of them.

A pretty vociferous protest outside the Iranian embassy.

A river tour boat eith the Tate modern behind it, and a few meters of the famous "Wobbly" bridge.  Opened in 2000 for all of 2 days, it needed to be closed for the next two years while they dampered and stabilized it - it was making people sick!

 Bum? Tired worker? International traveler battling jet lag? We didn't have the heart to wake him up to ask.