Monday, July 18, 2005

Off to Buckingham Palace

Back from London after a heat filled day at Buckingham Palace on Thursday July 14. If you haven't heard, Graham was invited to the first Garden Party of the season due to his efforts in the flood last year. He was the first emergency officer on the scene and called in the other rescue services. I was invited to tag along too.

There were around 8,000 people there so we didn't get to actually meet the Queen or any of the other royals but we had a nice look around a couple of rooms in the Palace and a rather teetering (for me in highish heels and with a dickie knee) walk around the Palace Gardens. It was incredibly hot and the papers reported that about 40 people fainted and had to be Red Crossed back to health. Graham was in his black Coast Guard uniform so he was almost one of them.

I've attached a photo of us in our glad rags on the way to the Palace. We weren't allowed to take photos while there. We have a lovely photo of Gerald Gardner at the gates when he went to a garden party in the early sixties which Graham wanted to replicate but it wasn't to be. Nice to follow in the old chaps footsteps though!

While in London we also popped in to Atlantis Bookstore to say hi to Geraldine, then on to the British Museum to check out John Dee's scrying mirror in the Enlightenment Hall. We were most amused when, later that evening, after an excellent meal in a central London restautrant, we had to be evacuated due to a fire in the building. We had to make our way through some rather acrid smoke as the restaurant was downstairs so we were extrememly pleased to get to fresh air. Do you think we're disaster prone??

The next night we were in a pub, looked up at the television and what should be on but yet another repeat of A Seaside Parish. Graham's fuzzy face was emblazoned across the screen along with those pictures of the flood. Most disconcerting!

Anyway we're back now and lot's of new items have arrived for sale in the museum shop. Steve Patterson has made some dark mirrors and some amazing witchposts from wood salvaged from the museum after the flood. The duplicate books are selling really well as are the miniature brooms. We've also had a delivery of some stunning athames and wands.

To answer a query re Graham's Landrover, yes he will be having a witch logo painted on the side. Until next time........

No comments: