Month: January 2025

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In My Pocket Book

Aussie politicians receiving their copies on Holocaust Remembrance Day

Do you have yours?

Anthony Albanese – Prime Minister of Australia

Peter Dutton – Leader of the Opposition

Deputy Mayor of Stirling, Suzanne Migdale, and Peter Dutton

Senator Michaelia Cash

Dr Tony Buti – WA Minister of Education

Simon Millman – WA MLA

Libby Mettam – WA Liberal Leader

Our Supporters

Eli with Barbara & Gabriele

Jill, Gabriele, Esther & Gabriele Jnr

Jill, Eli, Gabriele, the Levine brothers, Gabriele Jnr & Gerhardt

Home

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London 5

30 October 2025

Imperial War Museum London

with Hannah Devenney

Imperial War Museum – Wikipedia
Imperial War Museum London

Meeting Jill’s cousin David Leboff for the first time, at Southwark Station

Leboff, David; Demuth, Tim (1999). No Need to Ask! Early Maps of London’s Underground Railways. London: Capital Transport Publishing. ISBN 978-1-85414-215-3.

Southwark tube station – Wikipedia
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

West End Theatre, Chinatown & Trafalgar Square

West End theatre – Wikipedia
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The National Gallery

The National Gallery, London
The Nation’s Gallery. The story of European art, masterpiece by masterpiece.

Halloween in Letchworth

  • Screenshot
Halloween – Wikipedia
A jack-o’-lantern, the carving and displaying of which is a Halloween tradition
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London 4

Letchworth to Kings Cross

King’s Cross, London – Wikipedia
Repurposed gas holders and canal locks at King’s Cross, with the buildings of St Pancras Square behind

Liberty

Liberty (department store) – Wikipedia
Liberty, commonly known as Liberty’s, is a luxury department store in London, England. It is located on Great Marlborough Street in the West End of London. The building spans from Carnaby Street on the East to Kingly Street on the West, where it forms a three storey archway over the Northern entrance to the Kingly Street mall that houses the Liberty Clock in its centre. Liberty is known around the world for its close connection to art and culture, but it is most famous for its bold and floral print fabrics. The vast mock-Tudor store also sells men’s, women’s and children’s fashion, beauty and homewares from a mix of high-end and emerging brands and labels.

Oxford Street

Oxford Street – Wikipedia
View east along Oxford Street in May 2016

Meeting Saul and Ivan in Swiss Cottage

Swiss Cottage – Wikipedia
Swiss Cottage is an area in the London Borough of Camden, England. It is centred on the junction of Avenue Road and Finchley Road and includes Swiss Cottage tube station. Swiss Cottage lies 3.25 miles (5.23 km) north-northwest of Charing Cross. The area was named after a public house in the centre of it, known as “Ye Olde Swiss Cottage”.

Selfridges

Selfridges, Oxford Street – Wikipedia
Oxford Street frontage

Oxford Street to Piccadilly Circus

Piccadilly Circus – Wikipedia
Piccadilly Circus is a road junction and public space of London’s West End in the City of Westminster. It was built in 1819 to connect Regent Street with Piccadilly. In this context, a circus, from the Latin word meaning “circle”, is a round open space at a street junction.[1]

The National Portrait Gallery

National Portrait Gallery, London – Wikipedia
The main entrance in June 2023

Getting ready for Halloween

Halloween – Wikipedia
Halloween, or Hallowe’en[7][8] (less commonly known as Allhalloween,[9] All Hallows’ Eve,[10] or All Saints’ Eve),[11] is a celebration observed in many countries on 31 October, the eve of the Western Christian feast of All Hallows’ Day. It is at the beginning of the observance of Allhallowtide,[12] the time in the liturgical year dedicated to remembering the dead, including saints (hallows), martyrs, and all the faithful departed.[3][13][14][15] In popular culture, the day has become a celebration of horror and is associated with the macabre and the supernatural.[16]
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London

17 October 2024

Letchworth to Kings Cross London

Covent Garden

Covent Garden – Wikipedia
Interior of the former vegetable market, 2006

The Adelphi Theatre

  • Screenshot
Back to the Future: The Musical – Wikipedia
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Embankment

South Bank

South Bank – Wikipedia
The London Eye on the South Bank at County Hall

Westminster Bridge

Westminster Bridge – Wikipedia
Westminster Bridge is a road-and-foot-traffic bridge crossing over the River Thames in London, linking Westminster on the west side and Lambeth on the east side.

Walk up Whitehall to Trafalgar Square

Whitehall – Wikipedia
This article is about the street in London. For the street in Manhattan, see Whitehall Street.

18 October 2024

Kings Cross London

Lest We Forget Train
One of the East Coast UK trains

The Changing of the Guard – Buckingham Palace

King’s Guard – Wikipedia

Walk through to Piccadilly

Fortnum & Mason

Fortnum & Mason – Wikipedia
181 PiccadillyWestminster, London, W1United Kingdom

Piccadilly – Carnaby Street – Soho

West End of London – Wikipedia
This article is about part of London, England. For the western part of London, see West London.

Tube to Edgeware

With Binnie

Edgware – Wikipedia
St Margaret of Antioch, Edgware
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Cambridge Visit

15 October 2024

The train from Letchworth to Cambridge

  • Screenshot

Walking Around Cambridge

Cambridge – Wikipedia
Cambridge

Lunch

Downing College

Downing College, Cambridge – Wikipedia
Downing College Chapel

Fitzwilliam Museum

Fitzwilliam Museum – Wikipedia
The primary entrance to the Fitzwilliam Museum

Swimwear in the Museum including Jantzen

Jantzen – Wikipedia
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
DNA “The Secret of Life” 28th February 1953
At The Eagle Pub, near the old Cavendish Laboratory, Francis Crick and James Watson first celebrated the discovery of the double helix structure of DNA. This breakthrough relied on data from Rosalind Franklin, Maurice Wilkins and other scientists. Location: 5 Bene’t St, Cambridge, CB2 3QN.

Back in Letchworth

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A Day In Ely

With cousins Ruth & Robert

14 October 2024

Goodbye to niece Natalie – see you next time!

The train to Ely – change in Cambridge. Met by cousins Ruth and Robert

Ely, Cambridgeshire – Wikipedia
Ely ( EE-lee) is a cathedral city and civil parish in the East Cambridgeshire district, in Cambridgeshire, England, 14 miles (23 km) northeast of Cambridge, 24 miles (39 km) southeast of Peterborough and 80 miles (130 km) from London. At the 2021 census, the built-up area had a population of 19,200.[2] The parish which includes the villages of Chettisham, Prickwillow, Queen Adelaide and Stuntney and the hamlet of Mile End had a population of 20,574 in 2021.[3]

The walk to Ely Gothic Cathedral

Inside the Cathedral

Ely Cathedral – Wikipedia
Ely Cathedral from the southeast

The area around the cathedral

Oliver Cromwell’s House

Oliver Cromwell’s House – Wikipedia
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A walk around the town

RBK at the Riverside

Riverside Bar & Kitchen | Food & Drink Ely, Cambridgeshire
RBK is a stunning Bar & Kitchen based on Riverside walk. Fresh exciting dining and handcrafted cocktails, with views along the riverside.

Waterside Antique store

Waterside Antiques, Ely, Cambridgeshire. Large selection of antiques and collectables
Waterside Antiques, Ely, Cambridgeshire. Large selection of antiques and collectables

Back to the train station & Letchworth

Met by Dean

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London

9 – 13 October 2024

West Harrow to Baker Street

With Geraldine and Ronnie

Oxford Street – Selfridges

Selfridges – Wikipedia
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Regent Street

Hamleys

Hamleys – Wikipedia
Official logo of Hamleys

With Geraldine & Laura

Russell Square

The British Museum

The Oldest Chess Set at the Museum

The Rosetta Stone

Rosetta Stone – Wikipedia
The Rosetta Stone on displayin the British Museum, London

The Egyptian gallery

British Museum – Wikipedia
Aerial view of the British Museum in 2015

SOAS University of London reception

SOAS University of London – Wikipedia
The School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS University of London; )[5] is a public research university in London, England, and a member institution of the federal University of London. Founded in 1916, SOAS is located in the Bloomsbury area of central London.

Abbey Road St Johns Wood

Abbey Road – Wikipedia
the Beatles

Around the West End

The British Library

British Library – Wikipedia
The British Library is a research library in London that is the national library of the United Kingdom.[7] It is one of the largest libraries in the world. It is estimated to contain between 170 and 200 million[1][2][3][4] items from many countries. As a legal deposit library, the British Library receives copies of all books produced in the United Kingdom and Ireland, including a significant proportion of overseas titles distributed in the United Kingdom. The Library is a non-departmental public body sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.

Meeting niece Natalie at St Pancras Station

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Manchester

Arrival from Glasgow

Manchester – Wikipedia
Manchester ()[6][7] is a city and metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England, which had an estimated population of 568,996 in 2022.[4] Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92 million.[8] It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The city borders the boroughs of Trafford, Stockport, Tameside, Oldham, Rochdale, Bury and Salford.

Jewish Manchester

The Manchester Jewish Community Centre
Manchester Jewish Community Centre provides religious services, educational institutions and leisure facilities, including a swimming pool.

The Manchester Jewish Museum

Manchester Jewish Museum – Wikipedia
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Old Sephardic Synagogue in the Museum

To Trafford Wharfside

Old Trafford – Wikipedia
“The Theatre of Dreams”

IWM North

Imperial War Museum North – Wikipedia
Imperial War Museum North (sometimes referred to as IWM North) is a museum in the Metropolitan Borough of Trafford in Greater Manchester, England. One of five branches of the Imperial War Museum, it explores the impact of modern conflicts on people and society. It is the first branch of the Imperial War Museum to be located in the north of England. The museum occupies a site overlooking the Manchester Ship Canal on Trafford Wharf Road,[2] Trafford Park, an area which during World War II was a key industrial centre and consequently heavily bombed during the Manchester Blitz in 1940.[3] The area is now home to the Lowry cultural centre and the MediaCityUK development, which stand opposite the museum at Salford Quays.

Manchester Wharfside

Salford Quays – Wikipedia
Salford Quays and Manchester Ship Canal (looking east)

To Piccadilly Station

Manchester Piccadilly station – Wikipedia
Manchester Piccadilly is the main railway station of the city of Manchester, in the metropolitan county of Greater Manchester, England. Opened originally as Store Street in 1842, it was renamed Manchester London Road in 1847 and became Manchester Piccadilly in 1960. Located to the south-east of the city centre, it hosts long-distance intercity and cross-country services to national destinations including London, Birmingham, Nottingham, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Cardiff, Bristol, Exeter, Plymouth, Reading, Southampton and Bournemouth; regional services to destinations in Northern England including Liverpool, Leeds, Sheffield, Newcastle and York; and local commuter services around Greater Manchester. It is one of 19 major stations managed by Network Rail. The station has 14 platforms: 12 terminal and two through platforms (numbers 13 and 14). Piccadilly is also a major interchange with the Metrolink light rail system with two tram platforms in its undercroft.

Train to London & West Harrow

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Scotland

Luton Airport to Glasgow

Luton Airport – Wikipedia
London Luton Airport

Glasgow

Our hosts, Shula & Philip Spain

Glasgow – Wikipedia
Glasgow

Train to Ayr

Ayr – Wikipedia

Meeting David Sim

A drive around Ayr

Meeting Dorrith Sim’s family

In My Pocket
elirab.au

Train to Edinburgh

Edinburgh – Wikipedia
Edinburgh (, ED-in-bər-ə;[3][4][5] Scots: [ˈɛdɪnbʌrə]; Scottish Gaelic: Dùn Èideann [t̪un ˈeːtʲən̪ˠ]) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh had a population of 506,520 in 2020,[6] making it the second-most populous city in Scotland and the seventh-most populous in the United Kingdom. The wider metropolitan area had a population of 912,490 in the same year.[7]

Edinburgh Royal Mile

Royal Mile – Wikipedia
55°57′02″N 3°11′08″W / 55.95056°N 3.18556°W

St Giles Cathedral

St Giles’ Cathedral – Wikipedia
Cathair-eaglais Naomh Giles

More Royal Mile

Edinburgh Castle

Edinburgh Castle – Wikipedia
Edinburgh Castle dominates the Old Town

The National Gallery

Scottish National Gallery – Wikipedia
The National (formerly the Scottish National Gallery) is the national art gallery of Scotland. It is located on The Mound in central Edinburgh, close to Princes Street. The building was designed in a neoclassical style by William Henry Playfair, and first opened to the public in 1859.[2]

The Walter Scott Memorial

Scott Monument – Wikipedia
The Scott Monument is a Victorian Gothic monument to Scottish author Sir Walter Scott. It is the second-largest monument to a writer in the world after the José Martí monument in Havana.[1] It stands in Princes Street Gardens in Edinburgh, opposite the former Jenners building on Princes Street and near Edinburgh Waverley Railway Station, which is named after Scott’s Waverley novels.

Back to Glasgow

Sharmanka

Sharmanka Kinetic Gallery – Wikipedia
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

GarnetHill Synagogue

Garnethill Synagogue – Wikipedia
The Garnethill Synagogue is an Orthodox Jewish congregation and synagogues located in Garnethill, Glasgow, Scotland, in the United Kingdom. Completed in 1881, the historic synagogue is considered the ‘cathedral synagogue’ of Scotland.[1]

The Scottish Jewish Archives Centre

Scottish Jewish Archives Centre – Wikipedia
The Scottish Jewish Archives Centre (SJAC) is the largest repository of items relating to Jewish migration to Scotland and life in Scotland.[1] It aims to document and illustrate the religious, organisational, social, economic, political, cultural and family life of Jews in Scotland from the 18th century to the present-day in order to heighten awareness – and to stimulate study of – the country’s Jewish heritage.[2][3]

Leaving Garnethill

To Kelvingrove

Kelvingrove Art Gallery & Museum

Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum – Wikipedia
Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum is a museum and art gallery in Glasgow, Scotland, managed by Glasgow Museums. The building is located in Kelvingrove Park in the West End of the city, adjacent to Argyle Street. Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum is one of Scotland’s most popular museums and free visitor attractions.[2]

Train to Manchester

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Rome Italy Day 3

Morning coffee

Piazza Barberini – Wikipedia
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Tour of The Great Synagogue of Rome

The Museum

The Synagogue

Jewish Museum of Rome
The Jewish Museum of Rome is located in the Great Synagogue monumental complex.

The Holocaust Centre

Casina dei Vallati – Museo della Shoah
In the ancient Jewish Ghetto, close to the Portico of O

The Ghetto

The Jewish ghetto of Rome: history, how to get there and where to eat
Some tips on how to visit the oldest Jewish ghetto in the world: find out information about the Synagogue, the Jewish Museum, the Portico d’Ottavia and good restaurants.

Around the Pantheon

Pantheon, Rome – Wikipedia
Facade of the Pantheon, with the Pantheon obelisk

From Victor Emannual II Monument to Piazza Bellini

Victor Emmanuel II Monument – Wikipedia
“Altare della Patria” redirects here. For the mausoleum in Santo Domingo, see Altar de la Patria.

Walk to Villa Borghese Gardens

Villa Borghese gardens – Wikipedia
Monumental entrance of Villa Borghese in Rome on Piazzale Flaminio

Back to Letchworth

Letchworth | Garden City, Hertfordshire, UK | Britannica
Letchworth, town (parish), North Hertfordshire district, administrative and historic county of Hertfordshire, east-central England. It is located north of London, about 10 miles (16 km) northeast of Luton. Britain’s first planned “garden city,” much copied elsewhere, it was founded in 1903 by Sir
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