Leeds Castle, Dover, Canterbury & Greenwich

It's me again. I am going to take advantage of internet access while I can, so I thought I'd give you all an update again today.

Today was the day of my tour: Leeds Castle, Cliffs of Dover, Canterbury, and Greenwich. Leeds Castle was beautiful, and the surrounding gardens were so tranquil. They had a maze there, so of course I had to give it ago .. and I was able to find my way to the middle and then down out through the 'grotto' - this was a dark walkway under the maze with statues carved in the walls. The gardens around the Castle and through the grounds were amazing and so colourful. There is lavender and roses everywhere to be seen. I met some really friendly people on the tours, some Aussies were on the tour, as can be expected.

Next we ventured to Dover to visit the famous White Cliffs of Dover. It was a fine day so the white cliffs were iridescent, making them easy to spot as we were approaching the town. High on the hill on top of the cliffs is the Castle Dover of which we were able to catch a quick glimpse of from the beach and then as the bus drove us past it. We had a quick stroll on the beach there too, there is no sand - just little pebbles, and then we were off again.

Next was Canterbury. It is such a beautiful place. It has cobblestone roads that go between the rows of 'old england' style shops, it was very peaceful strolling along admiring all that it had to offer. We also visited the Canterbury Cathedral and the gardens around it. The Cathedral holds many tombs within it and one very interesting piece of history - the oldest piece of leadlight remaining in England. It is in one of the windows as you enter the Cathedral - a picture of Adam digging in a garden. From Canterbury we headed back towards London and stopped at Greenwich to catch a ferry along the Thames and on to Embarkment where we all hopped off. The tour guide was amazing, she holds so much information in her head and was able to share so much of the history of the places we visited, and also of the places we passed on the bus ride between locations. I was able to obtain a many wonderful photos, but unfortunately I cannot share any as yet, as I this computer doesn't allow access to it.

After the tour, I decided to go for a stroll through the city thanks to the London A-Z, and ended up walking all the way back to hotel. I found a statue of Florence Nightingale (Mum - you will love that photo), and some other interesting buildings, The Big Ben and many others. I made my way back through Hyde Park and visited the Rose Garden and also the Memorial Fountain for Princess Diana.

One thing really cracked me up today, I have come across a few 'whinging poms' as they say, but the old fellow today was hilarious - we were walking through Canterbury on our way to an eatery for lunch and this old fellow goes "If you bump my f'ing leg, I will beat you" in this low dreary tone!!! And what was funniest - it was aimed at a little girl walking towards him!!!

Oh well, I might call it a day. I have been out and about for over 12 hours now and it is now 8:30pm, sun still shining, but I am hungry and ready for a shower.

I hope to be able to share some photos with you soon.

Love Haylee