Queen Elizabeth's Diamond Jubilee, Day One

This morning we walked over to the Saturday market and got og veggies, British pasties and eggs from hens who supposedly spend their days in an orchard nibbling soft fruit and tasty bugs. Last Saturday we went to the Portobello Road flea market instead but regretted missing the local market so today it was at the top of the agenda.

Wild Country Organics, great greens!

After bringing everything home and putting it away we took the tube to central London. Our first stop was a Salvation Army store Kathy read about online. That's M. Lee's mom. The three of us are traveling together. She read that people from the nearby College of Design and Vogue Magazine offices check the place early and often with good results. She's like a bloodhound when it comes to these things and actually did dig up a treasure, a fabulous cashmere top coat for £75 that would sell new for about £1000 but it turned out to be a heart breaker. Too small.

Sleeping Venus by Paul Delvaux on display at the Tate Modern

But no matter. We went to a nearby park and ate our sandwiches. I couldn't help but share a tiny bit with the pigeons but very much on the down-low as there's a £500 fine for such things. After lunch, we took the tube back to London Bridge then walked along the Thames to the Tate Modern. Wow. What a great place. Like the other museums we've visited in London, we saw only a fraction of what's on display. We'll try to make it back again before we go.

Borough High St. street party

Today is day one of Queen Elizabeth's four day Diamond Jubilee Celebration. I hear she went to opening day at Ascot. On our way back to the Tube and home, pub and street parties were well underway. I'm not sure people were celebrating anything in particular, just having a good time. Tomorrow we'll do our best to catch a glimpse of the historic Thames Jubilee Pageant. The Queen will travel in a flotilla of up to one thousand boats for what is expected to be a seven and a half mile long water parade and largest fleet of ships to be assembled on the River Thames in 350 years.