We flew Etihad on 25/4/19 with a short; less than 1 hour, stopover in Abu Dhabi which meant a total of 23 flying hours. The views from the plane between Abu Dhabi and London over Irag and Iran; I think we’re amazing

We planned to arrive in London and Stokes Poges in the afternoon so that we only had to get through the evening and then sleep to try and manage jet lag. This morning that theory seems to be working but we will see…

Stokes Poges is a beautiful village not far from either Heathrow or Windsor and David and Doreen, friends of Rob’s very kindly picked us up. The only delays were check in with Etihad in Brisbane; 1.5 hours and Border control; 1.0 in London.

After tea and Doreen’s excellent scones, David took us for a lovely walk to see Thomas Gray’s (poet) memorial as they have an Arbor; one of several that were built in the area around Thomas Grays original property, in their front garden.

We walked through side streets, public lanes, fields and then a road to visit the St Giles Church and Thomas Grays resting place.

Rob and I are already blown away by the history and age that you find at every turn and my first impression of England is that the air is the same, the sky is just as blue, people are friendly, it’s cooller and very green and pretty.

Oh and I found bluebell’s blooming… white ones too.

PS. Now sharing via Fb so it’s easier for everyone to see my posts too. 😀