From my Dad's Perspective

To me, the trip was a whirlwind of intrigue, discovery and awe. I have never been so well organized (by someone else) in my life. Thank God it was only for three weeks or it might have become a habit. It was wonderful to be chauffeur driven and the Peugeot station wagon was like being in a rolling greenhouse as it had 360 degrees of window and a glass roof from front to back so you could see all around you as well as above you.

It was my first trip overseas and although I had seen many pictures of the UK, but seeing it in 3D and seeing that those pictures were not 1 in a 1000 but rather 1 of 1000's that could have been taken was an eye-opener to me. The typical calendar photos showing checkerboard fields dotted with sheep and lined with stone fences were not of the same few farms shot at different angles. There are thousands of them in the UK and I never tired of seeing them.

Old has taken on a new meaning for me. Old over here in B.C. (British Columbia) is 100-150 years. Old over there is 150 BC. I was surprised at how ingenious people were in the old days. There are incredible feats of carpentry engineering in the middle ages that make our furniture look absolutely low tech and plain. Intricate dining room tables that expand upward and downward and outward with hardly a hint that you could do so when it was in the compact closed position. Cabinets and bureau's that are carved out of one piece of wood and are intricate three-dimensional works of art. One mistake and the carpenter would have to start from scratch. And they did it without all the power tools we now have. Sculptures, carvings, jewelry, weapons, modes of transport and dwellings, all so beautiful and wonderfully designed. Maybe I don't get around much, but I have a hunch that the most beautiful things in those categories found around the world are old or ancient and put the new stuff to shame. We are high tech when it comes to electronics but we are pitiful in comparison to the artisans of the ancient world.

I'm a museum guy and being in the London museums was a dream come true. During the days that the Brits ruled the seven seas they pillaged (or should I just say "collected") the greatest known treasures of the world and they are free, yes free, to see in the many museums of London.

The food was good but I don't think the Brits are as serious about their food as I hear they are in France, Italy and some of the other countries of the world. You could easily get fat on a British diet and I'm surprised there weren't more overweight people. Maybe it's from having to squeeze onto the subway.

All in all, I loved the trip and it exceeded my expectations. Being with a wonderful wife and daughter had a lot to do with it being so great.

Frank