I’m a bit late in getting this out as things have been crazy busy and I’m also working with wonky sleep patterns as I’ve been dealing with some jetlag. However, since I am a bit later, I’ll be adding a few more photos. 🙂 I arrived in Halifax, NS on Wednesday late afternoon, leaving my car with my cousin, John, and we drove out to the airport. I got through the check-in and security with no problems and then waited a few hours before boarding time. The flight was pretty uneventful aside from my right knee occasionally bothering me.

Thursday, 18th July

After arriving at Gatwick Airport, I got through Passport Control without problem and met up with my cousin, Pam, and we went back to hers for a bit to relax, take some pictures of her side gardens upon request. This is one of the shots I took. 🙂

Pam’s garden, Epsom, UK. © J. Lynn Stapleton, 18th July 2013

A bit later on we poked around town a bit when we went to pick up her sister, Jean, then in the evening for supper out at The Rubbing House restaurant at Epsom Downs. We had a lovely meal, dessert and company, and I got a chance to see one of the horse races. This photo is one of them heading up to the starting line.

Epsom-Downs race track, Epsom-Downs, UK. © J. Lynn Stapleton, 18th July 2013

Friday, 19th July
Either due to heat or jet lag or both, I hadn’t slept well, but I was looking forward to heading out to Brighton a bit later in the day. It was another glorious sunny day, and was warming up nicely. The drive down to Brighton was quite nice, and actually by the time we arrived there the temperatures had increased quite a bit to about 26C. We walked along the waterfront, heading towards Brighton Pier, taking a look at the views and the various vendors along the way.

Brighton Beach, Brighton, UK. © J. Lynn Stapleton, 19th July 2013

Brighton Pier, Brighton, UK © J. L. Stapleton. 18th March 2013

Me on Brighton Pier. © J. L. Stapleton. 18th March 2013

Brighton Wheel, Brighton, U © J. L. Stapleton. 18th March 2013

Aftwerwards, we ventured over to Harry Ramsden’s for fish & chips before heading up through some of the LGBT area of the city and poked through a couple shops, and I found this wonderful painted rainbow mural on a brick wall.

Pride flag

We then ventured up to the Royal Pavilion. It’s a beautilful building and surrounding grounds. We didn’t really have the time to go through the building then but it’s something on my bucket list of things to do during another trip. I did get a chance to take a quick run through a little of the Brighton Museum and Art Gallery, which is something else I’d love to have more time to do on another trip.

The Royal Pavilion Park Entrance. © J. L. Stapleton. 18th March 2013

The Royal Pavilion, © J. L. Stapleton. 18th March 2013

The Royal Pavilion, © J. L. Stapleton. 18th March 2013

We also took a walk up through Brighton Lanes shopping district, where I found a lovely pair of purple shoes at the Doc Marten’s store.

My new shoes

By this time we were rather overheated and decided to head back to the house, so we took an alternate route due to potential backups on the motorways due to accidents. We went up to see Devil’s Dyke at Summer Downs and the beautiful scenery of the area.

Devil’s Dyke, Summer Down, UK, © J. L. Stapleton. 18th March 2013

View from Devil’s Dyke, Summer Down, UK, © J. L. Stapleton. 18th March 2013

Saturday has been a rather quiet day. See you again soon!