Fall in England

Sycamore Lodge, Upper Broughton, Leiscester

Scotland and England are two of our favourite places and in 2009 our friends Jog and Dorothy graciously offered their home to us for two months while they were on holiday in India.  We met J and D in the 90's when our friends Wayne and Meg introduced them to us while they were visiting Canada.  Dorothy is a childhood friend of Meg who was born in England.  Since then we have visited them twice; once in 2001 and again in 2005.  This was a great opportunity for us to explore England while having a base to return to.  We decided to spend two weeks in Scotland and the balance of our time in England with a side trip to Paris.  I will post separate items on our specific travels, but more about Sycamore Lodge.  Jog and Dorothy's home is located on a country lane at the edge of the Vale of Belvoir and near the village of Upper Broughton, with the city of Melton Mowbray to the south and Nottingham to the north.  Jog spent years restoring this wonderful old house himself and today you are welcomed to the house by a long curving driveway and Dorothy's incredible gardens.

Jog and Dorothy took us out to dinner on the eve of our departure in 2005

In front of their garage in 2005

As a part of planning for our stay, they arranged for us to meet several of their friends.  As it turned out D and J left the week before our arrival so we received a very personal reception from each of them.  They (Alan, Gloria, Sylvia, Eric, Margaret and Pauline) all turned out to be wonderful folks who invited us into their homes and made us feel like royalty.  We only hope we can return the favour if they visit Canada.

Paris, France



Sidewalk cafe on Champs de Eylsee by the Arch.  It really is a
beautiful city and so much to see

During our extended stay in England in 09 we made a three day excursion to Paris via the Eurostar.  To say it was exciting would be an understatement.   Our new friends Alan and Gloria graciously offered to drop us off at the Melton Mowbray train station and made our way via Peterborough down to London's St. Pancras Station.  From there we went through customs and boarded the 18 car Eurostar.  As we rolled out of the station we could feel the speed building quickly and by the time we reached the outskirts of London we doing over 130 miles per hour.  After crossing under the channel there is a stop at Calais and then it is non-stop to Paris.  Within a few minutes we were rolling along at 180 miles per hour ( 300 kph ).  The train is well appointed and you have a reserved seat.  The train was full on our trip. 

In less than 3 hours from London we arrived at Gare de Nord train station where we caught the Metropolitan subway which had us downtown in a short time. After a short walk we were given a pleasant welcome at our boutique hotel which turned out to be a wonderful place to stay. 

The Seine has too many bridges to count

Over the next two days we walked Paris, from the Eiffel Tower to the Latin Quarter, and rode the buses when our feet were too sore to move anymore.   The city is a buffet of delights with an ever changing landscape.  I won't even attempt to describe it.  You have to GO.  I only wish we had done it 40 years ago.  Our return trip was quick, arriving at St. Pancras Station and then making the trip across the street to Kings Cross Station to catch the train to Melton Mowbray.  In the end the train ahead broke down and we rode at a slow rate into Peterborough where we were supposed to change to the Melton train.  Unfortunately we missed our connection and had to wait an hour for the next train.  Finally we were on a train to Melton and our wonderful new friends were waiting to pick us up.  Koodos to Alan and Gloria.