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| Walking through Golders Green, London - April 6, 2023 |
Originally, we thought we needed to be out of our Airbnb by 11 am, so I set the alarm to give me enough time to pack since it always takes me forever, but then I got a message from our hostess, Laura, that we could take our time, so after Rebekah came back from her yoga class, we relaxed and had a nice breakfast together. I'd purchased at Jungle Electric, the vegan coffee house, some vegan breakfast pastries and also some vegan sausage rolls, so it was nice to just relax and eat the food I'd purchased and drink coffee that morning.
I made sure the Airbnb was left spotless: I made all the beds, hung up the towels, put all the dishes away, swept a bit, and put the furniture back the way we had found it. I wanted Laura to return to her home ready to enjoy.
We didn't want our cousin Deborah to have to wait too long for us, so I think we left the Airbnb around 12:15 or 12:30 so we could be at Deborah's home by 1:30-2 pm.
Finally, we got our luggage (mostly mine!) down the stairs and put the key in the lockbox and then called an Uber. It didn't take long at all for the Uber to arrive and off we went to Golder's Green where our cousin lives. She lives quite near the Golder's Green Tube station, but we couldn't take the Tube because of all of my luggage. In order to take my scooter on trips, I pack it in an inexpensive duffel bag from Walmart and then put my skates in the same bag and put coats and shoes and other things are it and that works quite well.
Rebekah was actually concerned that all of our luggage wouldn't fit in the Uber, but fortunately it all fit.
The ride to Deborah's and Golder's Green was very pleasant. I tried to take photos and videos of the scenery on our way.
I think the ride only took about 45 minutes and I recall arriving a bit early. Passover was about to begin and I noticed right away that we were in a Jewish neighborhood.
Once we arrived at Deborah's we were immediately greeted by the dogs she was watching! How delightful that was!
Deborah was so very gracious. She showed us around her flat, took us into the garden (US equivalent is backyard) and let us play with the dogs. I took a lot of photos of course.
Then, Deborah made us a wonderful lunch. And.. after that we looked a photos and memories of our mutual relatives.
Rebekah was very amazed and so was I at a letter sent from one of our relatives during the Holocaust. The letter made me realize what had happened was so very personal.
Deborah and Rebekah and I took a walk to the grocery store near the Tube station in the afternoon so that Rebekah could get some flowers to bring to the Seder. I sure enjoyed the walk even though it was raining hard. I decided not to unpack my scooter since there was not a lot of room to spread out in Deborah's home and I had everything already packed so nicely. It was already April 5 and I was flying back home to the USA April 7.
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| Rebekah and Deborah |
After our walk, Deborah suggested we get into her car without bothering the dogs so we could see the area she grew up in. The area was Hamstead, London.
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| This is the house our cousin Deborah grew up in |
After a time of rest, eventually we got dressed for the Passover Seder we were going to attend with our Wald cousins and family at Deborah's brother's Harry's home.
It was so good to go in Deborah's car to the Seder since Rebekah and I really had become weary of trains, buses, walking, cabs, and Ubers.
The Seder was the best! It was fun to get to know so much of our extended family too. And...wow..the food was so, so good! I wanted to try everything but mostly ate vegetables and salads.
We got back to Deborah's place quite late after the Seder. Rebekah was scheduled to leave in the morning so it didn't take long for all of us to go right to bed.
Thursday, April 6 was my last full day in London. After hugging my sweet daughter good-bye, Deborah walked Rebekah to the Tube station, and I went ahead and got dressed. Deborah provided breakfast pastries for me which was wonderful.
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| I took this photo not knowing that the Golders Green Hippodrome historic building was in the reflection! |
Then, I began a walk through the neighborhood. I didn't want to unpack my scooter, so the walk was very pleasant. I first went to one of the local synagogues for a morning Passover service, but didn't stay long and just decided to explore and walk around the area. I just loved every part of that walk too! My favorite part of the walk was to a park in the area.
After a few hours, I was concerned Deborah would wonder what happened to me, so I returned to her flat.
We'd planned to do some walking and site seeing, but I was so exhausted, that I spent the rest of the day just enjoying Deborah's home, visiting with Deborah, and enjoying the dogs she was caring for. Deborah was scheduled to go to another Seder, but I could not go since my plane was leaving quite early. So..I ordered some Japanese food via Uber Eats and visited with Deborah over my dinner.
After Deborah left for her Seder I headed off to bed and thought about my incredible trip to the UK.
The next morning I woke up around 3:30 am, got dressed and completely packed and then set up my Uber ride to Heathrow airport. Deborah was so helpful since the Uber arrived faster than we anticipated. We hugged one another and I was on my way.
Everything at the airport went smoothly. There is just so much to do before an international flight but soon I was through checking in and security an inside the terminal. I think it is interesting that there is a huge food court and that the gates are far away from the area where flights board. I relaxed a bit and enjoyed the muffins that Deborah gave to me.
It took a bit after that to find my gate but soon I was on my plane that headed back to the USA and Seattle. I didn't have the best seat: I was in the center, in a center seat, but I was between two Americans which meant we talked to one another a bit. I watched a lot of movies and slept a lot too. My plane landed at about 11:30 am on Friday morning April 7 even though departed on Friday morning!
Once we landed in Seattle, Customs took a bit of time, so I arrived at the gate for the plane headed to Boise just about at boarding time.
The plane flight to Boise seemed so short and it was great to hear friendly Americans visiting with one another on that flight!
Once I arrived in Boise, I secured my luggage and waited for my son Joel to pick me up. Once he arrived, it felt so nice.
We finally loaded up the car and headed back to Sun Valley. Wow... what a wonderful and memorable experience!
