ENGLAND TRIP: Day 3, Part 3: Return to Guild Hall/Ghost/Exhaustion!



the kind of ghost Rob wanted to see



   We first saw Guildhall at night during the ghost/history walk and wanted to get inside it, so we returned the next day. It's now a fully-functional government building, and you have to go through security to get into it. Meetings, lunches and dinners are held there.



Inside Guildhall



   Guildhall was the site where Lady Jane Grey learned she was to be executed at 15 years old, because her husband, Robert Guilford tried to usurp the throne. Queen Mary reclained the throne and executed them both.   

   BAD ENERGY INSIDE - I (Rob) felt uncomfortable in Guildhall and had all kinds of anxiety. I felt the anger of a lot of people left behind like a thumbprint inside the building. I did notice that there were a lot of nice marble sculptures of well-muscled Greek and Roman gods inside. I took a picture of one of them and thought that that was a ghost I wouldn't mind running into. hahaha. :)

  



Trials inside GuildHall



MORE ABOUT THE GHOST IN THE DOORWAY OUTSIDE OF GUILD HALL - During the ghost walk, Tom saw a man in a dark suit and a large hat, leaning against the wall of a doorway. He said the hat was large, and the man had his head down. The man's knee was bent with his foot against the wall. As Tom looked toward the door, the man was gone!  Neither Rob nor Richard Jones, the tourguide saw anything. 

ORBS IN THE DOORWAY! - When we returned the next day to visit Guildhall, we went back to the doorway where Tom saw the man standing. We took a picture and ONLY in the doorway did Three ORBS appear!  Orbs are the most simple form that a ghost can take, and appear as a round ball of light. You can tell the ghosts from reflections, dust and raindrops because ghostly orbs have a design of color in them and sometimes a face!  - The latter appear white.  

APPEARANCE -  When we got home, I quizzed Tom about what he saw, and I found a photo of Guy Fawkes (1600) dressed in a similar fashion to the man at the door. It likely wasn't Guy Fawkes (the man that tried to blow up Parliament), but it was someone who lived during the 1600 or 1700s.  Interesting how we went back the next DAY and confirmed an entity in a photo. Obviously, whoever he is, that's his corner.



Guy Fawkes



For the video report from inside Guildhall, go to our earlier posting:

http://www.rob-tom-dolly-franklin.blogspot.com/2012/05/england-trip-day-2-part-5b-ghosthistory.html

TIRED AND HUNGRY - After leaving Guildhall, we were so exhausted that we went to the first restaurant we could find, because everything closes at 5 p.m. during the week. We managed to get in a deli and get a sandwich. It was a trying experience finding an open place at 5:05 p.m., but we were so tired, we didn't want to be fussy.

Jeff and Jose's Wedding Day!

Jose trying to put the corsage on Jeff.

Saturday, June 9 at 11:30 a.m. EDT, our friends Jeff and Jose got married in Washington, D.C.

(Jeff was the best man at our

wedding in 2009, before he met Jose).

Tieing a tie was harder than "tying the knot"

The ceremony: Jose, Ed (officiant), Jeff

   They married in the backyard of Hil and Richard's house, and it was a great weather day- sunny and about 80F. There were six of us and the officiant, making for a nice, intimate legal wedding ceremony.

  The ceremony was really nice and someone in the neighborhood was playing torch songs, and songs by Adele, which actually made it pretty cool!

After the ceremony- it's legal!

  After the ceremony, we went inside and sat down to lunch (they had it catered with sandwiches and they were great). Jeff even made their wedding cake!  We brought little giveaways for everyone (bags) that looked like tuxedo jackets, filled with candy, notepad, pen and bottle of soap to blow bubbles with.

Tom & Richard in the dining room for lunch

  They did the official cake cutting and Rob and Tom brought two CDs to play, so while they cut the cake, Cyndi Lauper sang "Time After Time." (one of their favorites).  Rob also played a classic Cliff Richard song called "Congratulations."   After the cake cutting, we took a group picture outside. It was a very memorable time.

Jeff and Jose with the Marriage License

- In September, Jose and Jeff are having their reception in Maine - which will bring all of their family members and friends together. Can't wait!

  Here are some pictures from the event today.

Tom blowing bubbles at the table

Wedding Party: LtoR: Richard, Hil, Tom, Rob (seated), Jeff & Jose

VIDEO -Cutting the Cake!

ENGLAND TRIP: Day 3:, Part 2 : Sherlock Holmes Museum

Wall at the Baker Street Tube Stop!

One of Rob's favorite places during the time in London was visiting the Sherlock Holmes Museum. 

BAKER STREET TUBE STATION -  Even the Baker Street Tube (Subway) Station had silhouettes of Sherlock Holmes on the wall. What a cool introduction to the neighborhood! 

   THE SHERLOCK HOLMES MUSEUM - The museum is actually located at 221B Baker Street, London, the EXACT street location where the fictional detective lived in Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's great novels. What a cool thing that the museum was actually able to move into that very real location! 

Front of the Sherlock Holmes Museum

- The museum was set up as it was depicted in the novels. There was a sitting room with a fireplace and various objects that were "owned" by the fictional character. Sherlock's cap and pipe were on a table before the fireplace, with the two wing chairs on either side of the table. Those are just like the chairs that Sherlock and Dr. John Watson would sit in and discuss cases! 

Watson & Holmes Hats-Fireplace

Bust of Sherlock Holmes

Murder at Rue Morgue Scene and Rob

Tom and Hound of the Baskervilles!

Rob pondering driving on the left side of the street

Tom wondering where we can get dinner

THE BUILDING IN THE NOVELS -  Dr. Watson and Sherlock Holmes lived in a boarding house for 25 years (1881 to 1904) in the novels. Apartment 221b was on the first floor of the lodging house, the landlady who owned it and also resided in it was Mrs. Hudson. In the novels and in this townhome there were 17 steps from the ground floor to the first floor (we'd call it a 2nd floor) study which Holmes and Watson shared. Holmes' bedroom was at the rear, adjoining the study, as it was in the novels. The museum really recreated the townhouse as it was described in the novels. How cool!      We also saw Dr. Watson's and Mrs. Hudson's rooms. 

  On the third floor, there were various mannequins posed to depict scenes from various Sherlock Holmes stories, some of which Rob identified. Of course, the big dog head on the wall was from Hounds of the Baskervilles and Tom had to get a picture next to it! 

  At the bottom of this blog is a short video I (Rob) was trying to make - but its pretty shaky! 

  This is truly a great place to visit and a lot of fun!

ENGLAND TRIP: Day 3:, Part 1 : A Royal Adventure/ Prince Albert Memorial(VIDEO!)

Victoria Station

Our third day in London was off to an interesting start. Tom awoke with back pain and Rob had stomach issues. After a light breakfast  to get to our tour bus for a tour of the city, we started walking toward Trafalagar Square, which is east of our hotel room. We didn't know that the Queen was opening Parliament until we started walking toward Parliament (which was between our hotel and our destination). We found out that the Queen's event shut down so many blocks that it took TWO HOURS to get 30 minutes away!  

So many streets were shut down that we would up going way out of our way to Victoria Station, and had to take the tube (subway) back to Trafalgar Square!

Queen Elizabeth II. Credit: CBS News

TO SEE THE QUEEN OPENING PARLIAMENT (because we didn't!) WATCH CBS NEWS REPORT: The Queen opened Parliament on Wednesday, May 9th, and we couldn't see her but we did experience  CBS NEWS (2 min. 45 seconds): Britain's Queen Elizabeth opened a new session of Parliament in a very colorful ceremony, one of her most traditional and important roles. Charlie D'Agata reports on VIDEO. http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=7407984n

TOUR BUS FIASCO - After we finally got there, we finally found the tour bus office after 30 minutes of looking. No one knew where it was, and it turned out to be on a side street and not well marked for some reason! We exchanged our e-tickets and had to walk several blocks to get the bus (back at Piccadilly Circus) because so many streets were blocked off. (Trafalgar Square also happens to be where Buckingham Palace is located). By 12 p.m. we were on the bus, and still hadn't seen the first stop because we were stuck in Gridlock!  By 12:30 p.m. we arrived at Prince Albert's Memorial in Kensington Gardens and quickly got off the bus never to get back on it.

Tom at Prince Albert Memorial

PRINCE ALBERT MEMORIAL -  This gaudy memorial was commissioned by Queen Victoria in memory of her  husband, Prince Albert who died of typhoid fever in 1861. - I did enhance the color on the photo, though, because the skies were gray, and it rained on and off, and high temperatures were in the upper 40s (Fahrenheit). Below is a short video that we made after we arrived at Prince Albert's Memorial! 

Royal Albert Hall

ROYAL ALBERT HALL - is located across from Kensington Garden and the Prince Albert Memorial. According to the hall's website, "The Royal Albert Hall was built to fulfill the vision of Prince Albert (Queen Victoria's consort) of a 'Central Hall' that would be used to promote understanding and appreciation of the Arts and Science."

HARROWING HARRODS - We did venture into Harrod's Department store, just out of curiosity. We only saw designer clothes, perfumes and accessories for sale. Certainly nothing that we could afford, so we used the bathroom!  Well, we had to "Make our mark" in Harrods, right? :)

ENGLAND TRIP: Day 2: Part 5f: Ghost/History Walk: Roman Ruins/Ghostly Monk of St. Bartholomew's

The Roman Ruins from 200 A.D.

ROMAN  RUINS - Roman Londinium. It was amazing to see a wall built by the Romans in 200 A.D. when they lived in London, then called "Londinium." During the Saxon period, large sections of the wall fell into decay. During the 12th and 13th century, it was rebuilt in various stone.
  Around the 17th century as London expanded, the wall became useless, because the city spread out past it. During the 18th century parts of it were demolished and and by the 19th century  the wall was left in fragments. The city then protected it. It was just so cool to see it. 

Looking down into the Roman Ruins

  
The Ghostly Monk of St. Bartholomew's Church
 According to the church's website, www.greatbarts.com, "Saint Bartholomew the Great is one of London's oldest churches. It was founded in 1123 as an Augustinian Priory and has been in continuous use as a place of worship since at least 1143. It is an active Anglican/Episcopal Church in that part of London known as the City."

St. Bartholomew's Church

SEEN IN MAJOR MOVIES - The church has appeared in films such as  Elizabeth: The Golden Age, and The Other Boleyn Girl.

THE GHOST MONK - We were told by Richard Jones that there is a monk buried in the church. When his crypt was violated/opened, and a policeman stole his sandal, the monk's ghost began haunting the church.  The policeman returned the sandal after feeling guilty, but died shortly afterward.

Orb appears where Rob sensed a ghost

  Richard told us that on night, the laser beam alarm system was set off but only the beam near the monk's crypt was broken from the inside. The police reported that  no one was in the church!

OUR EXPERIENCE -    We were all standing outside as Richard was telling us the story and before he started talking, both of us had bad feelings. The bad feelings were strong in the courtyard outside of the church, and I (Rob) was compelled to take pictures at one place along the church wall.

Close up of Orb outside the church

This concludes the ghost/history walk. Next
up - Prince Albert's Memorial and the Sherlock Holmes Museum!

ENGLAND TRIP: Day 2: Part 5e: Shakespeare/Hanging Judget/Pewter's Hall

Shakespeare's Bust

The next stop on our history and ghost walk took us to the remains of a church, a graveyard and Pewter's Hall.

 Shakespeare's Bust at Saint Mary’s Churchyard, London, marks the burial place of the two men who made Shakespeare famous, John Heminge and Henrie Condell because they collected his manuscripts over 35 years and published them. They were actors and friends of Shakespeare. The monument was erected in 1896, and sculpted by C. J. Allen.

Richard pointing where ghost is seen

The Inner Temple Courtyard- no orb

The Inner Temple Courtyard- Orb!

GHOSTLY JUDGE IN THE COURTYARD - Next to Shakespeare's bust was the former location of the St. Mary Aldermanbury church. It was originally built in 1181, but destroyed in the great fire of 1666. It was rebuilt but World War 2 came along and the blitzkrieg destroyed it, leaving only walls standing.
  Nearby is "the Inner Temple" - one of London's "four Inns of Court." It was here that barristers and lawyers had offices in the 18th and 19th centuries. There's a courtyard, and that was our next stop.

   It was there that I (Rob) sensed a man's ghost  in the back of the cemetery and Richard Jones, our tour guide, explained that it is haunted by the notorious Hanging Judge Henry Hawkins (1817-1907).. The Judge has been seen walking around many times holding papers. As soon I sensed a ghost I started taking pictures, and one of them had an orb in it - it was the Judge. An orb is the most simple form a ghost can assume. You know it's an orb because of colors and designs in it - and where nothing showed up in pictures taken immediately before. The orb was only able to "power up" because we were present and supplied it with emotional energy. 

PEWTERER'S HALL (and ghosts Outside!)- This is another historic building, but has ties to the current royal family. including Prince Charles. It has Royal Charters going back to before Elizabeth I. Its located at The Worshipful Company of Pewterers, Pewterers' Hall, Oat Lane, London. We can't remember what ghosts haunt this building. But as we were walking toward it, I (Rob) got my headache that indicated there was a ghost around. In fact, there were many of them. We were standing on grass behind this building, and I asked Richard Jones, our tour guide, if we were standing on an old cemetery (no longer a cemetery, now a grassy field). I felt that our presence there ignited a number of ghosts. Richard then told me that "there are a lot of unmarked graves under our feet." Confirmation. - As for the ghosts that haunt the Pewterers Hall itself, we don't remember what Richard told us, and given the number of them that were outside, we had enough ghosts in that place to keep us busy!

For more information, visit: http://www.london-walking-tours.co.uk/secret_city_highlights.htm

ENGLAND TRIP: Day 2: Part 5d: Ghost/History Walk: Scrooge/Dickens/Harry Potter/Paratroopers!

SCROOGE'S COUNTING HOUSE - One of the cool places Richard Jones took us was to the building and alleyway that inspired Charles Dickens' setting for Scrooge's counting house in "A Christmas Carol." Scrooge’s counting house is in the  city of London, near Cornhill. In the story, Bob Cratchit ran home to Camden Town, where Dickens lived as a boy.

It was so amazing to stand in the alleyway that likely inspired one of the settings for "A Christmas Carol."   Here's a photo from that street.

A street that looked similar to Dickens' time

ANOTHER DICKENS STREET - This is another street in the same Cornhill neighborhood of London, that looks very similar to how it appeared during the lifetime of Charles Dickens. Of course, we know there were no cars during his time! :) It was really cool to see the architecture.

  

LEADENHALL MARKET AND HARRY POTTER - Richard also took us by this marketplace in London, because it was the site where one of the Harry Potter movies were filmed. It was used for the entrance to the Leaky Cauldron.

Leadenhall Market- a Harry Potter location

   It's located at Gracechurch Street and the market dates all the way back to the 14th century! It stands on what used to be the center of Roman London. We thought it was a beautiful structure and really nicely lit. Unfortunately, the photo we took of it was cut off, but you get a good feel for it anyway.
 



A UNIQUE PARATROOPER EVENT - During the week we were in London, the Royal Air Force (I think)  was performing paratrooper drills over the city. Rob managed to snap this eerie photo of the paratroopers descending in what appears to be a trail of smoke, with the large moon shrouded behind some clouds. The structure in the forefront is Guild Hall. It made for a really cool photo. 

Kids and Health Issues

Seems like human and canine kids are always getting or recovering from some sickness, and we've had our share this week already!
- SPRITE - our 15 1/2 year old Dachshund is recovering from facial surgery where 3 growths were removed. He's doing well and stitches come out next week.
- FRANKLIN - our 8 year old Dachshund got into another insect nest or something while digging and has an infected paw again (its common with him). So, it's soaking it in epsom salts, cleaning it, applying antibiotic ointment and bandaging it, and putting a sock over it, fastened around his leg with velcro. He's also on pain meds/anti-inflammatories.
- DOLLY - our 7 1/2 year old Weimaraner has had tummy trouble for 2 weeks and has been on metronidizole (sp.?) and has had some imodium and lactobacillus. This morning while chasing a squirrel in the backyard, she came back with a small gash on her nose, bleeding. She didn't get near the squirrel, so I'm unsure how it happened.
- ROB - as not to limit things to the kids, I'm going to the dentist today for a crown and an implant.
- TOM- awoke with tummy trouble, too.
    SO, as you can see, we're no different than anyone else - and all recovering today. :)
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LESSON LEARNED ABOUT PICTURES, CAMERAS AND COMPUTERS

LESSON LEARNED ABOUT PICTURES, CAMERAS AND COMPUTERS

What Rob wanted to do with the computer

    In the next couple of days I'll get back to the fun of our U.K. vacation. Right now, I'm waiting to see if our photography expert in the office can recover the rest of our trip pictures from my camera. I copied them over to my office Laptop computer, and bought a thumbdrive to save them on the next day. However, when I turned the laptop on the next day, it wouldn't boot up and gave me a "insert boot disk" problem. 

 - Nothing I did, including running 2 hours of diagnostic tests over the phone with an IT guy, worked. So, I took it in the office Tuesday and the IT folks said the harddrive was totally dead, and they were unable to retrieve anything off it, unless they sent it out to have a company painstakingly pull it apart and read bit by bit of data. That would be $2500, and my office has no budget. SO, despite losing various work files (most of everything I back up daily on a thumbdrive, thankfully) - there was no way to pay for the files. 

 - My next step was trying to retrieve the files from the camera- although I thought they were deleted (I moved them onto the laptop. A super-knowledgeable co-worker who deals with imagery daily has a software program that appeared to recover them, but they're currently on her laptop in a zipped format. I can't get them until next week. Hopefully they're all there. 

  SO... now you know WHY there's been a delay in posting the rest of the vacation adventures.

Sprite Surgery Update

SPRITE SURGERY UPDATE! 

Sprite post surgery with stitches in his forehead

  This past Thursday, our little 15 1/2 year old Dachshund, Sprite, had surgery to remove three growths from his cute little face. One was on his cheek, one on his lip and one in the center of his forehead. It happens when you get old- little growths start popping up, and they need to be removed. A larger one on his lip was tested and appeared to have some possible pre-cancerous cells, so we wanted it removed ASAP.
  Sprite can't be put totally under because  he has a heart condition, but he did really well! He came home with stitches in his cheek and forehead. Our friend Susan said she'll call him "Zipperhead." Poor Sprite!
Anyway, he came home with much more energy than we've seen him with in awhile, as well as a hearty appetite. So, he's doing well and back to normal, except for the purple stitches in his head which will come out in 12 days. 


 

BREAKING: 1st Circuit Declares DOMA Unconstitutional

We interrupt this vacation blog for breaking news, and BECAUSE I'm trying to somehow recover all of the vacation photos that we LOST when my laptop harddrive crashed. If I can't recover them, I'll post the videos we took and find pictures on-line, but some contain ghostly orbs, which are irreplaceable.

  THIS is important to us, because its a legal recognition that not having gay marriage as legal is NOT equal. (Duh.). 

BREAKING: 1st Circuit Declares DOMA Unconstitutional
The 1st Circuit Court of Appeals in Boston ruled this morning that the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) denies a host of federal benefits to gay married couples and is therefore unconstitutional. The decision is not only a win for equal rights advocates, but a near dare to the Roberts Court to take up the matter sooner rather than later.
The appeals court agreed with a lower court judge who rule in 2012 that the law is unconstitutional because it interferes with the rights of states to define marriage and also because it denies married gay couples federal benefits given to heterosexual married couples, including the ability to file joint tax returns.
It also forces states to comport other programs–like Medicaid assistance for example–to meet DOMA requirements or risk federal funding.
THE STORY FROM NPR: 


The ruling ups the ante on Supreme Court review of the controversial law, especially in light of conservatives doubling down on DOMA as a campaign point and the Obama administration’s position that the Department of Justice would no longer defend the constitutionality of the law. The opinion notes the fact that the statute was passed with minimal hearings and lacks formal findings in support of the need for the statute–two things courts often turn to in interpreting federal laws and determining the boundary where federal action must stop and state action can begin. It’s a signal the court is suspicious at best of the overall legitimacy of the statute to begin with and that, given the nature of the discriminatory impact of DOMA, a reason not to employ the extreme deference federal courts normally show economic legislation.
It’s an important albeit wonky distinction that appears directed right at the Roberts Court. Had the 1st Circuit grounded its analysis in traditional suspect-class categorization that equal protection challenges normally require the Roberts Court could easily seize on that decision as its basis of review and arguably overturn the 1st Circuit with very little controversy after decades of conservatives successfully watering down equal protection jurisprudence.
But instead the appellate court refuses the bait and relied on the line of cases following Romer that requires the government show more than a minimum justification in singling out a specific minority group for differential economic treatment. Because Congress failed to memorialize the need for discriminating against same-sex couples in the delivery of federal benefits the statute fails.
Your move, Chief Justice.

Read more: http://www.care2.com/causes/breaking-1st-circuit-declares-doma-unconstitutional.html#ixzz1wXhKVVCS

ENGLAND TRIP: Day 2: Part 5c: Ghost/History Walk: St. Bartholomew's Hospital/Viaduct Pub

St. Bart's Hospital. Cr: Wikipedia

During our Ghost/History Walk, our guide, Richard Jones took us by St. Bartholomew's Hospital and the Viaduct Pub, both which have some interesting stories. 

1) ST. BARTHOLOMEW'S HOSPITAL - is also known as "Barts." It's a functional hospital in the Smithfield area of London.  It was founded in 1123, and the oldest hospital in the U.K. still on its original site! Of course, it's been updated. London's only statue of King Henry VIII is located above a gate at the hospital.

Nurse's deadly tea/ deathinthestacks.blogspot.com

THE GHOST STORY - Richard told us that the hospital has many stories where a nurse is seen bringing patients a cup of tea in their rooms. The patients have mentioned sipping tea brought from a nurse that none of the other nurses on the floor ever see. About two hours after a patient drinks the tea from the ghostly nurse, they pass away. The ghostly nurse is still reported today. 

2) THE VIADUCT PUB, LONDON - The Viaduct Pub was built in 1869  on the site of the Giltspur Comptor, a debtors' jail affiliated to Newgate Prison. In the basement, employees can still see five of the original cells. The pub was originally built as a gin palace in Victorian style.One of the ghosts that haunt the pub lingers in the cellar. Another lingers upstairs on the first floor. The pub is located near St. Paul's Cathedral.

THE GHOSTS - 

1) GHOST IN THE BASEMENT (haunted-london.com)

In 1996, a manager was tidying the cellar one Saturday morning, when the door suddenly slammed shut and the lights went out. Feeling his way to the door, he found that no matter how hard he pushed it just would not open. Fortunately, his wife heard his cries for help and came down stairs to investigate. She found that the doors, which would not open from the inside, were unlocked and easily pushed open from the outside.

2) GHOST ON THE FIRST FLOOR -  Employees working on the first floor decided to call a male ghost "Fred." When Richard Jones was joined by a medium for a televised event, he said the medium was not told anything about the pub or any haunting. The medium said "there is a Scotsman here named Robert. Further, he asks that people stop calling him 'Fred!'" 

VIDEO FROM A U.K. PRODUCTION: "GHOSTS OF THE VIADUCT TAVERN" gives you a good tour of the Pub, and features Richard Jones! Now you can hear things he told us!