My sister, Margie, and her husband Robbie arrived today! They are visiting us for the weekend at the front end of a three-week holiday in in Europe. We picked them up at Reading station and quickly fed them before they got any more famished than they were. They took a quick (well, not as quick as they intended) nap and then we all walked up to the New Inn for a pint. I didn’t know Margie was a fan of cider (must be in the blood) so she is in for a treat here in England. We enjoyed the music of an organ grinder drifting across from the school fair next door. At 4 Robbie played a round of golf – a valiant effort of 12 holes before succumbing to the jet lag.
For dinner we headed across the countryside to Hambleden, and the Stag and Huntsmen. It was a beautiful evening and we sat outside. Our mains were excellent (pork loin and steak and ale pie). Margie and Robbie then ordered the apple and cinnamon crumble which was incredible. Rich and buttery, not too sweet. Margie gave me a bit before they had their first bite, good thing because they polished the whole thing off in about 90 seconds.
I forgot to mention that while we were eating the yummy food it happened to be the time that Margie and Robbie’s MBA graduation was occuring in Houston. A little ceremonial humming of ‘Pomp and Circumstance’ was provided by Steve and I before being asked to stop by an embarassed Margie.
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Saturday brought Lowell’s last day on English soil. Everyone had a late night on Friday so we had a late start to the day. Lowell packed up his things and we headed into Reading city centre for lunch. It was a beautiful day and we sat outside on the high street with some Cornish pasties.
Next stop was Jackson’s department store. It is a wonderful time warp of a department store. The clerks still write up your sales slip by hand. My friend Wendy blogged about it shortly after I moved to Reading and from that first exposure I knew mom would go nuts over this place, and she did. After much deliberation she purchased a couple of small rugs for her bathroom and some embroidered cloths to sit on top of some side tables. I’ll have to make a separate post on Jackson’s sometime soon.
After practically dragging mom out of Jackson’s we hit the road. We dropped Mom and Dad off at Windsor Castle and dropped Lowell off at Heathrow for his flight home. Steve and I returned to Windsor where we had a drink and a bite to eat to pass the beautiful afternoon while Mom and Dad explored the castle. Their luck is not as good as Linda’s, as they did not see the Queen.
Around 5 we joined Mom and Dad at the castle for evensong. You may line up outside the main gate and attend evensong without paying the (quite high) admission fee to the castle. This is handy to know if you just want a taste of Windsor.
Evensong was fabulous. The choir was clearly excellent – as one might expect the Queen to have the best choir in her home chapel.
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