The Thames Diamond Jubilee Pageant

03 June was the day of the big Thames Diamond Jubilee Pageant—a massive flotilla made up of 670 boats, travelling along the River Thames in honor of Queen Elizabeth’s Diamond Jubilee celebration! Around one million people—including yours truly—braved the frigid rain in order to see what Guinness World Records has since proclaimed “the pageant [that] set a new world record for the largest parade of boats, surpassing the previous record of 327 in Bremerhaven, Germany, [in 2011].”

However, before the flotilla began its journey with the Queen, I took some time to wander amongst the people. I took the tube to the Victoria Station, near Buckingham Palace, and wandered slowly from there toward my ultimate viewing spot, just shy of Tower Bridge.

Along the way I got to hear Sir Tom Jones rehearsing live, and I watched as Prince Charles and Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall, departed their Clarence House residence in order to meet up with the Queen and Prince Phillip.

After waving off the Prince of Wales and Sir Lobster Tan, I continued on my walk, passing the Horse Guards Parade, 10 Downing Street, and Westminster Palace. And people. Thousands and thousands of people. Seriously, I’ve never seen so many people in one area in my entire life.

And they were all seemingly having fun, despite the rain and the cold. And what’s more, they genuinely seemed to be demonstrating feelings of affection for the (highly problematic) institution of the monarchy, as personified by the grandmotherly Queen Elizabeth II. It was an extraordinary thing to watch!

Finally, I reached my viewing area, with help from an uber-friendly female police officer who allowed me to sneak into an area that had already been cordoned off because it was at-capacity. Shortly thereafter, a long boat carrying “eight specially-cast Jubilee bells [went by], with churches along the river bank returning the peal as it passed” (ibid) and the maritime march began…

The boat with a specially-built tower to hold the Jubilee bells.

About halfway through, just as the rain was beginning to pelt significantly harder, the Spirit of Chartwell meandered by, carrying the Queen, Prince Phillip, Prince Charles and Camilla, Prince William and Kate, and Prince Harry.

Hard to see here, but from left to right are Prince William (blue), Kate (Red) Harry (black top and white hat), the Queen (white) and Prince Phillip standing between the poles. Prince Charles and Camilla are blocked by the lamp in the foreground.

After passing us, it stopped just short of Tower Bridge a bit farther downriver, mooring at the Tower of London itself, where the Royal Family watched as the rest of the procession happily.


As for me, I ran-sloshed to the opposite side of the Tower in order to snag some photos of Tower Bridge raised, which I was very pleased to see for the first time.

Waterlogged

The pageant over, I started making my way back to KG and MM’s but it took forever because of all the people trying to cram their way onto the trains. I distinctly recall thinking to myself in those moments: THANK GOD I WON’T BE HERE FOR THE OLYMPICS!!!

And so, another day in London was done—after being out in the cold and rain for so long, I didn’t do much that night other than starting to pack for the return journey home.

Hampton Court Palace

I’m back with another belated entry!

On 28 May 2012, EN and I made a trip to Hampton Court Palace. This trip was important for me, as people who know my fascination with the monarchy have always asked if I made it there during mine and Nic’s first trip in 2008. We did not—instead, we went to Hatfield House, where Elizabeth I learned she was to be queen following her sister’s death, on that trip. So, this time, it was imperative that I visit one of the primary residences of King Henry VIII.

Me, standing outside the Main Entrance into the Base Court

Map of Hampton Court Palace, courtesy of the palace itself.

Originally built in the early 16th Century for the infamous Cardinal Wolsey, after the latter lost favor it was turned over to the king. The front half of the palace is reflective of Tudor construction, and closely resembles the other remaining palace from Henry’s reign, St James’s. 

Today, visitors to this section of the palace are able to walk through the former king’s kitchens and apartments, as well as undertake a ‘tour’ of the young Henry’s life.  

Regarding the kitchens, it was interesting to see how meals were turned out for such a large court, including the line of massive roasting spits and fireplaces, and the seldom considered offices belonging to the bureaucrats in charge of monitoring the incoming and outgoing (read: consumed) stores.

One of a line of four or five roasting fires, each of which could accommodate 7 spits.

Even more interesting to me than the kitchens, however, were the king’s apartments. 

I took a lot of photos of the Great Hall in particular. Aside from being simply gorgeous, it was also the last medieval hall of its type built for the English monarchy. 

The Great Hall, near the King's Dais and Table

We were also able to enter the Great Watching Chamber (a large room, complete with medieval board games and a bathroom), which is positioned just outside the king’s private rooms, and where courteous would hang out in hopes of catching a moment of Henry’s time. 

From there, we moved into one of two long hallways. The first features the adjoining room where paiges slept and awaited orders, and the second leads to both the King’s Council Chamber and the special room overlooking the Royal Chapel reserved for the sovereign. 

This King awaits his advisers in the Council Chamber

The Royal Pew, overlooking the Royal Chapel. (It's crooked because we weren't allowed to take photos directly.)

Now, one of these hallways is supposedly haunted—in fact, it’s referred to as the Haunted Gallery—but I can’t recall exactly which. Maybe both? I’m pretty sure the audio-tour suggested that it was the former, but I’ve also heard that the supposed ghost is that of Henry’s ill-fated wife Catherine Howard, and that she lurks near the chapel. (You can read more about the Haunted Gallery here and watch a brief video about other haunted happenings at Hampton Court here.)

The second distinctive section of the palace—an add-on, if you will—was built in the Baroque style at the behest of Queen Mary II and her co-regnant, King William III, almost 100 years later. Within this section, guests can visit the private apartments of the aforementioned, as well as the Georgian apartments.

The W&M section--you can see the edge of the Tudor section near the top of the hedge on the left.

Queen Mary’s apartments had been transformed, owing to a exhibition titled ‘The Wild, The Beautiful, & The Damned’—basically, paintings of upper-class women and kingly mistresses who modeled for risqué portraits during the Stuart era—so there wasn’t much to see there, sadly. King William’s apartments, on the other hand, were gorgeous. 

After ascending the stunning—nay, magnifispeldant (because magnificent and splendid on their own don’t do it justice) King’s Staircase, visitors cross into the King’s Guardchamber, where his protectors…well, basically hung out and showcased their hardware. 

A King ascends the King's Staircase

The King's Guardchamber

From there, guests move through a series of receiving chambers, many with corresponding canopied thrones and one which—as we saw at Windsor—was the official bedroom used for bidding the king goodnight before he retired to a private one. 

How dare they put a rope up to keep me from the throne!

I've informed Nic that I want our bed to look like this.

Eventually, we crossed through the king’s real bedroom, his private office, and even got a peek at the more intimate…ahem, throne. (That’s right, I’m talkin’ about the Royal Loo.)

Not splinters for the sovereign when he sits!

Sadly, we weren’t really able to tour the Georgian apartments—those used by Kings George I and II—because we simply ran out of time. But EN and I did run through that section, so we could at least say we were there. 

It was actually a bit creepy, as it was entirely deserted—even the docents were missing—and we both experienced an eerie ‘we’re not alone’ vibe about the whole section. I actually kind of wish we had seen a spook, as it would have added to the memories, but alas we only had the feelings to go by.

The Cartoon Gallery

Having discussed the interior of Hampton Court Palace, I want to take just a second to address the other thing it’s primarily known for: the gardens and grounds. They were beautiful! That being said, two things of particular note to be found there are the Hampton Court [Hedge] Maze—which I successfully navigated my way out of before EN, who challenged me to a race—and the ‘Great Vine’, which holds the Guinness World Record for being the largest grape vine. (If you’re wondering, it was planted in 1769, still produces a crop of grapes annually, and had at least one branch that was 246’ long as of 2005.)

The Great Vine

So, that’s the gist of mine and EN's day at Hampton Court Palace. It’s a bit expensive to get into—less so if you have a student ID, buy your tickets online in advance, etc.—but certainly worth the trip if you ever find yourself in London with nothing to do (as unlikely as that is)!

Barbecue, Gardens, and People of Iron

What an exciting, fun week it’s been! 

In the last 7 days I have visited France, Belgium, and The Netherlands; spent two delightful evenings and one lovely afternoon with various friends; and proudly watched from afar as my sister graduated from MC to UMBC, my parents celebrated their 33rd wedding anniversary, my partner competed in and conquered his very first Iron Person race, and my Aunt Peggy celebrated her 50th birthday!
 

I’m positively exhausted!

I’ll speak more about my travels anon, but for now I want to focus on a few of the things I’ve done in the London area this week, specifically yesterday.

In addition to being my parents’ anniversary, yesterday was Nic’s big race! I knew I would go stir-crazy if I just sat there refreshing the athlete tracker all day, so I decided to try and keep myself as busy as possible. (This was a wise choice on my part since the stupid tracker stopped doing its job after the 56th mile on the bike.) 

So, after starting my morning off with a 5 mile run—don’t forget, I’m training for my own big race (and still looking for sponsors to help me raise $440 by July, which you can learn more about here)—I took my ever-generous host / flat-mate MM up on his offer to go walk around Kew Gardens, where he works. 

I had been meaning to do this for a while now, but with the recent weather it hasn’t really been an option before now. MM and I spent most of the afternoon there—it’s such a lovely park—but my camera battery was low because I forgot to charge it after I got back from my trip, so I didn’t get many pictures. 

Highlights included seeing: Kew Palace, where King George III lived for part of his reign (and which is featured in the film The Madness of King George); some wonderful sculptures hewn from dead trees and created by Kew’s artist-in-residence, David Nash; and, seeing the amazing greenhouses like Temperate House, which is the largest surviving Victorian glasshouse in the world!

The backside of Kew Palace

Temperate House

By the time MM and I returned from Kew Gardens, it was almost 6:00 PM—yet, with the time difference, I knew it would be another 9 or 10 hours before Nic was done with his race. This meant I needed to find something to pass the time last night as well.

Fortunately, my friend TvH invited me to join him, LD, and KS for a night of frivolity at my favorite London club, Heaven. Since Heaven doesn’t open until 11 PM, though, we had some time to kill and went to Lupo first.

————

I’m going to stop talking about last night for a second, and jump back to Thursday.

On Thursday afternoon, TvH and I met up for coffee at LJ’s so we could catch up on the respective trips we had both taken the previous weekend, while enjoying delicious coffee and amazing (albeit messy) caramel shortbread thingies.

Around 5 PM, we set off for Village, where we were to meet-up with LD for cocktails—and just a few at that, because I was determined to avoid a repeat of the prior Thursday’s sloppiness! Unfortunately LD was denied entrance because he forgot his ID and so, after TvH and I finished our wine, we headed someplace where LD knew he could get in: Lupo.

I had never been before, even though it was right down the street. It wasn’t bad, though most of the clientele seemed to be yuppy straights who didn’t quite know what to make of the three of us, bouncing around flamboyantly on our bar stools to the music. On the flipside, the bartender—a lovely Melbournian named Dominica (Dom, for short)—seemed to adore us, and it was in large part because of her that we wound up staying there as long as we did.

Lupo--we sat at the bar. [NB: This image is not mine!]

Eventually, our bellies reminded us that we were famished, and so we set off in search of food. We finally found this barbecue place called Bodean’s. (BTW, check out that website—it's awesome!)

It. Was. AMAZING! 

Seriously, it was some of the best barbecue I’ve had—far better than most of the stuff I’ve had in the US, even! I swear, they must have imported their sauce from the Carolinas, or Memphis, or some other similar place known for its BBQ! (My mouth is watering just thinking back on it…)

Anyway, back to last night…

————

So, I joined LD and TvH (and later KS) at Lupo. Our lovely bartender from Thursday was on-duty again, and provided us with a series of killer drinks and shots! 

Finally, around 11 PM, it was time to head over to Heaven, where the four of us spent the remainder of the night dancing our little queer asses off. We even made it into the VIP area before the night was over (though I didn’t think it was so great, personally—at least compared to the main floor).

All the while, though, I kept a close eye on the time!

I knew I wanted to be home by around 3:30 AM, as that was Nic’s ‘best case’ finish time, and with the inevitable drama that plays out on London’s night buses travel frequently takes longer than expected. Sadly, despite my careful attention to the time, the buses nearly thwarted my plans last night. 

The bus that would have had me home in plenty of time was too full so I wasn’t allowed on, and the next one—20 minutes later, which would have been cutting it close but still an option—never showed. (I can only assume there was drama aboard and it stopped somewhere until the situation resolved itself, as the drivers are wont to do.) 

Finally, I managed to get on a bus at about 3:13 AM. Since there weren’t many passengers, the trip took a lot less time than expected, and I found myself walking in the door at about 4 AM—happily, I returned just in time to learn of Nic’s successful completion of his race as it was happening!

Whew! What a day, not to mention week—but more on the rest later!

The Queen and I Open Parliament

In November 1951—nearly 61 years ago—King George VI and his Queen officially opened the new session of Parliament. Having just had his left lung removed less than two months earlier, the sick King was forced to listen as the Lord Chancellor delivered his speech for him. Less than three months later, the King was dead.

That was the last time the official State Opening of Parliament was carried out by both a King and a Queen. In the years since, this important ceremony has been presided over by Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II, and her lesser-ranked husband, Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh. 

That all changed today, when this King joined The Queen as she opened Parliament…well, sort of. 

I was in the crowd, rather than riding with her in the Australian State Coach. And I wasn’t actually allowed into either Buckingham or the Palace of Westminster. But I was there in spirit!

I arrived at the St James’s Park tube station at around 9:50 AM. I knew the procession was set to leave the palace circa 11 AM, and I wanted to make sure I had a good spot staked out. As luck would have it, I got stopped briefly on the wrong side of Birdcage Walk while a group of guards marched toward their assigned places further along the procession route.

No matter, as a few minutes later I was allowed to proceed. I crossed St James’s Park quickly, and made my way to the northeastern side of The Mall. From there I moved closer to Buckingham Palace, grabbing a spot near where Constitution Hill meets The Mall.

Photo courtesy of my Oregonian friend.

While waiting for the festivities to begin, I made conversation with the woman next to me—a lovely Oregonian visiting London for the first time, and who didn’t realize the significance of the day until she arrived. 

At approximately 11:30, the first part of the procession began. 

There emerged from the palace gates a black-and-gold coach, escorted by Members of the Royal Household. Within this coach were three of the most important Crown Jewels: the Imperial State Crown, which weighs more than two pounds and is set with 2,969 diamonds, 273 pearls, 17 sapphires, and 11 emeralds; the Sword of State, a large broadsword bearing various symbols of the Royal Line; and the Cap of Maintenance, a further symbol of the Monarchy which—like the Sword—precedes The Queen into Westminster during the ceremony.

The Crown Jewels in their own Coach.

About 25 minutes later, the procession carrying The Queen finally set off! 

Accompanied by Prince Phillip, Queen Elizabeth was taken from Buckingham Palace in the Australian State Coach. Since she was not wearing the Imperial State Crown, she wore her famous George IV State Diadem—which has been used by Kings and Queens alike since 1820—for the short ride to Westminster Palace. 

Also part of this procession was The Queen’s only daughter, Anne, the Princess Royal—though, as with her brother Prince Charles, I didn’t recognize the Princess until I was reviewing pictures later.

Princess Anne (red plume)

With The Queen et alia off to the Palace of Westminster, I set off myself. 

My intention was simply to snap a photo of the Royal Standard being flown over Parliament—a relatively rare occurrence, to be sure—but then, after a bit of inquiry, I realized that I could possibly get another view of The Queen on her return journey.

The Royal Standard Flying Over Parliament

So I found a relatively comfy spot, pulled out my new Game of Thrones book, and whiled away the next 30 minutes or so. Sure enough, I soon thereafter found myself bearing witness to the Australian State Coach riding by for a second time.

The Queen and Prince Philip Returning to Buckingham Palace

All together, it was such a delightful morning! 

When I first came to London, I didn’t realistically expect to see The Queen. Then, when I learned that seeing her was a much easier ordeal than, say, seeing the U.S. President, I counted myself lucky to catch a glimpse of her even once. I never dreamed that I would see The Queen twice in one day—my second and third time seeing her all together—let alone glimpsing her riding in an official procession and wearing the State Diadem. 

Until next time…

Windsor Castle (Part IV): The State Apartments

Let’s finish with my trip to Windsor Castle, shall we? (Especially since I plan on having many more photos to discuss over the coming weeks!) After visiting St George’s Chapel and Queen Mary’s Dolls’ House, I made my way—alongside EN and AT—into the main part of the castle.

The top of the Grande Staircase

We climbed the Grand Staircase—which is filled with glistening arms and armor, and dominated by a statue of Queen Victoria (that I was sadly not able to photograph due to palace officials)—and moved toward…

THE STATE APARTMENTS

Suffice to say, these Apartments are a bit grander and more formal than mine and Nic’s tiny studio apartment. In fact, you could probably fit our entire building in some of these rooms. But, such size is necessary given the functions they hold (e.g., a cozy dinner for 162 of The Queen’s closest dignitary friends). And as far as beauty goes, the Apartments house works of art by the likes of da Vinci and Rembrandt, and armor once worn by the likes of King Henry VIII.

Visitors to Windsor are allowed to visit the following State Apartments (whose names are somewhat deceptive at times):

The Waterloo Chamber: Built to honor the defeat of Napoleon, this chamber was once an open courtyard. Today it holds many famous paintings, the largest known seamless rug in existence, and is used to stage concerts and other private performances.

[NB: This image is not mine!]

 The King’s Drawing Room: This room features many works of art, and a clock from 1730 that still plays music!

[NB: This image is not mine!]

 The King’s Bedchamber: Though there is a bed, the Sovereign does not actually sleep here. Rather, it is used for formal ceremonies (i.e., telling the King goodnight—formally—before he goes to bed elsewhere).

[NB: This photo is not mine!]

 The King’s Dressing Room: This room has served as both the Sovereign’s private bedroom and, later, as a dressing room. Now it holds a collection of Italian Renaissance paintings.

[NB: This image is not mine!]

 The Queen’s Drawing Room: Like the King’s Drawing Room, this chamber features many impressive works of art, including royal portraits of various Tudors and Stuarts. Also in this room is the famous Portrait of Charles I in three positions by Van Dyke. 

[NB: This image is not mine!]

 The King’s Dining Room: Located between the Queen’s and the King’s Apartments, the room served as the dining room for King Charles II.

[NB: This image is not mine!]

 The Queen’s Ballroom: As its name suggests, this long room was used for dancing (though I have a hard time imagining so many large gowns in such a narrow room!).

[NB: This image is not mine!]

 The Queen’s Presence Chamber and Audience Chamber:  The former is essentially an anteroom used by visitors before they are brought before Her Majesty in the Audience Chamber. (NB: Given that they are open to visitors, I doubt the current Queen actually uses these rooms for this purpose—though I could certainly be wrong!)

[NB: This image is not mine!]

 The Lantern Lobby: This room marks the spot where a private chapel once stood. It is also the spot where the 1992 fire broke out, which is commemorated with a large plaque.

[NB: This image is not mine!]

 St George’s Hall: This room is ginormous! At 30’ x 185’, this room is used for State banquets—a 175’ long dining room table is brought in which can seat up to 162 guests. There are also panels on the ceiling and elsewhere that are inscribed with the names of various knights. According to one source, the plain white shields mark Garter Knights were have been disgraced by crime or treason.

[NB: This image is not mine!]

 Also on display in St George's Hall is the black armor used by the King's / Queen's Champion from the time of King James I through George IV. It is this figure's role to act as the champion of the new Sovereign at their coronation, in the (unlikely) event of a challenge to the throne being issued. It was required of the Champion that (s)he ride, in full armor, into Westminster Hall during the coronation banquet and await any challengers. (NB: The Sovereign—by virtue of rank—could not face his or her challengers in single combat.) 

A purely ceremonial position today, Queen Elizabeth II's current Champion is Lieutenant-Colonel John Lindley Marmion Dymoke, Lord of the Manor of Scrivelsbry and the Manor of Telford—he acted as Standard-Bearer of the Union Jack at Her Majesty's coronation ceremony in 1953.

Moving on... since The Queen wasn’t in residence, we were also allowed to visit some of the...

SEMI-STATE APARTMENTS

These Apartments were created for King George IV in the 19th Century. Today, Queen Elizabeth II uses them for entertaining. These rooms are made up of the Green and Crimson Drawing Rooms, the State Dining Room, the Octagon Dining Room, the China Corridor, the Grand Reception Room, and the Garter Throne Room.

This last one is the one I’m most interested in. Before being converted, the Garter Throne Room was actually two separate rooms, the King’s Presence and Audience Chambers. Today, it is where The Queen conducts investiture ceremonies for new Knights and Ladies of the Garter prior to their installation in St George’s Chapel on Garter Day.

The Queen's throne is the white chair in the distance.

[NB: This image is not mine!]

Now, you may be asking yourself, ‘What is Garter Day, and who are these Knights and Ladies?’

Well, this is the highest order of chivalry that one can be invested with in England, and its doling out is entirely at the discretion of the Sovereign. Membership is limited to the Sovereign, the Prince of Wales, and no more than 24 others at any one time (meaning that new members have to wait an existing knight or lady vacates their position). The emblem is a blue garter with the motto ‘Honi soit qui mal y pense’ (‘Shame upon him who thinks evil upon it’) embossed in gold. The Order was founded in 1344 by King Edward III.

In addition to Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Charles, other current members include: Prince William; the Princess Royal; the Dukes of Kent, Gloucester, York, and Wessex; the Kings of Spain, Sweden, and Norway; the Queens of Denmark and the Netherlands; the Emperor of Japan; former Prime Ministers Margaret Thatcher and John Major; and Baroness Soames (the only surviving daughter of Winston Churchill).

[NB: This image is not mine!]

[NB: This image is not mine!]

 Well, that’s all that I have to say about the interior—especially since we (obviously) couldn’t visit the section cordoned off for the Royal Family’s private Apartments. 

(However, you can see them from the outside in the photos below of the Upper Yard. The wall farthest away is where the private Apartments are located, and the wall running along the right-hand side is for official guests of Her Majesty. The entrance seen in the middle is the exterior entrance to that section.)

I hope you’ve enjoyed this little play-by-play of my trip to Windsor, and that you haven’t minded too much my geeking out!

Until next time…

Windsor Castle (Part III): Queen Mary's Dolls' House

Time for part three of my trip to Windsor Castle…

If you’ve been following along, it should be abundantly clear that I have a fascination with the various Queens who have reigned from Windsor over the last 175 years: Victoria, Alexandra, Mary, Elizabeth (the Queen Mum), and Elizabeth II. Well, this particular entry is devoted to an object bearing the name of the middle figure, known also as Queen Mary of Teck.

Queen Mary [NB: This image is not mine!]

The object in question—promoted as one of Windsor’s biggest ‘attractions’—is…

QUEEN MARY'S DOLLS' HOUSE:

This idea for this magnificent piece of craftsmanship is credited to the queen’s cousin, Princess Marie Louise. You see, it was well known at the time that Queen Mary was fond of collecting miniaturized objects (e.g., Fabergé animals). So, following a pleasant visit with her cousins Mary and George V, during which time they showered her with hospitality, Princess Marie Louise decided to create the dolls' house as a token of her gratitude. After gaining The Queen’s permission, the princess began consulting with the eventual designer of the not-so-tiny dwelling.

Queen Mary's Dolls' House

 According to the Royal Collection website (which is fun and interactive, and allows visitors to explore the dolls' house in great detail),

Queen Mary’s Dolls’ House is the largest [built on a scale of 1:12], most beautiful, and most famous dolls’ house in the world. Built for Queen Mary, consort of King George V, by the leading British architect Sir Edwin Lutyens between 1921 and 1924, it includes contributions from over 1,500 of the finest artists, craftsmen and manufacturers of the early 20th century. From life below stairs to the high-society setting of the saloon and dining room, a library bursting with original works by the top literary names of the day, a fully stocked wine cellar and a garden created by Gertrude Jekyll, no detail was forgotten—the Queen’s Dolls’ House even includes electricity, running hot and cold water and working lifts. Each room, is fully furnished in every way, and waiting to be explored. (Royal Collection Website) 

The Saloon (top), The Dining Room (bottom), the Storage Room with tiny crowns (middle-left)

 The level of detail, as noted in the detail above, is incredible! 

Designed to show how the Royal Family lived in the 1920s, the dolls’ house has tiny wine bottles filled with the actual vintages on the label, replicas of famous books and paintings (some of which have been skillfully created by the original artists), and even miniature toilet paper rolls in the bathrooms. 

The Library

 

And, as noted, the plumbing (with hot and cold running water) and electricity actually work—once every year, the close the exhibit and flush the system to keep everything going!

Following its completion, Queen Mary’s Dolls’ House was put on display at the British Empire Exhibition (1924-25) to raise money for the Queen’s myriad charities.

It truly is an amazing piece of artistry, and worth seeing if you ever make it to Windsor!

Until next time…