Two go to London

Had a lovely weekend with daughter Vikki in London - even though it was tiring travelling down one day and back the next, with lots of walking in between! Can't believe how long it's taking me to catch up today - and it shows that I spend far too much time online. It was good to have two Internet-free days.

The launch of the Words with Jam anthology was excellent at Foyle's and I even met some ladies I knew from the RNA. Definitely a proud mother moment to know my daughter's story was in such good company, after meeting and hearing some of the other winners and runners-up. They put on a very good spread too! The anthology, An Earthless Melting Pot, is now available from Amazon in kindle and print.

The rest of the time, we enjoyed meandering through Covent Garden yesterday morning to the wonderful sound of classical music from the lively young group of musicians in the courtyard. I love that area and can imagine the history behind it.

Apart from the markets, one of the shops that intrigued us the most was an old-fashioned toy shop with the most wonderful Victorian stage kits, children's books and marionettes, all of which inspired my imagination and made me want to rewrite one of my short stories.

The interesting toy-maker-looking man behind the counter, in the tiny space upstairs, told us this is one of the oldest, original shops in the area.

Before getting the train home, we spent a little time in the British Museum where we headed to the ancient Egypt and ancient Greece areas - both of which I was eager to explore for inspirational photos. It's such a vast place, of course, that we couldn't cover much more in the time. It was lovely to see it lit up at night too.

Fortunately, the sun shone for most of the day and we happily relaxed in our first class train seats on the way home - it was worth the little extra for space, peace and table service!

For the dog lovers among you (although it will appeal to anyone), I'm featuring Australian tween author Charmaine Clancy on the Flights of Imagination blog today with her mystery novel, Dognnapped?, which is set in the dog show world.

Rosemary