SHENANDOAH NATIONAL PARK - MAY 2021

Sunday, June 5, 2022

The Queen's Platinum Jubilee Celebrations

June 2nd - 5th, 2022 - The Queen's Platinum Jubilee Celebrations

 It was time to celebrate the Queen of England's 70 years as Queen. I feel priveleged to have seen this. Who knows if there will ever be another monarch to reign longer, but it certainly won't be for a few generations. Let's hope the monarchy lasts that long.

This weekend had been chosen to celebrate and I followed along from afar. I managed to see most of it on YouTube and some on television. My bestie Larissa was following along in Jacksonville and we compared notes along the way. It was an awesome weekend for me. 

June 2nd started the celebrations with the annual Trooping the Colour.

Here's a description of the day from Wikipedia:

"The Queen's birthday parade, also known as Trooping the Colour, which usually takes place on the second Saturday of June, was held on Thursday, 2 June. Over 1,400 parading soldiers, 200 horses and 400 musicians came together in the traditional parade.[11][356] The event closed with the Queen and Royal Family observing a flypast from the balcony of Buckingham Palace.[357] The balcony was "limited to Her Majesty and those members of the royal family who are currently undertaking official public duties on behalf of the Queen".[358] The flypast consisted of more than 70 aircraft of the Royal Air Force, Fleet Air Arm and Army Air Corps, including the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight, the Red Arrows and fifteen Typhoon fighters forming the number "70".[359]

A flotilla of 70 vessels, comprising sloops, trawlers, tugs, patrol boats and more, sailed from Hull Marina to the Humber Bridge. The event re-enacted the Humber flotilla of 60 boats in 2012 for the Queen's Diamond Jubilee, and the occasion in 1897 when watermen gathered their boats on the Humber in celebration of Queen Victoria's 60 years on the throne.[360] In Herefordshire, a giant lion puppet was paraded during Leominster Festival."

The tradition of lighting beacons was repeated across the Commonwealth. At Windsor Castle, the Queen lit the principal beacon by touching a glittering globe. At Buckingham Palace the Duke of Cambridge represented the Queen as the "Tree of Trees" was lit. More than 3,500 beacons were lit around the world."

Pictures are taken from The Royal Family website.


Firing 62 rounds to celebrate the Queens coronation and 62 rounds  for her official birthday at the Tower of London by Tower Bridge.

After Trooping the Color, the Queen, Prince Charles, Camilla, Prince William, Catherine, George, Charlotte & Louis appeared on the balcony with other Royal family members for a flypast including the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight and the Red Arrows.

In the evening,

"The tradition of lighting beacons was repeated across the Commonwealth. At Windsor Castle, the Queen lit the principal beacon by touching a glittering globe. At Buckingham Palace the Duke of Cambridge represented the Queen as the "Tree of Trees" was lit. More than 3,500 beacons were lit around the world"


I thought this was well done and I loved the way the pathway lit up and then transported us to Prince William lighting the Tree of Trees.

June 3rd, 2022
Today was the Service of Thanksgiving at St. Pauls Cathedral. It was unfortunate that the Queen could not attend but she did have a long day yesterday. I think she is amazing for her age.

Here's a description of the day from Wikipedia:

"On 2 June, it was announced that the Queen would not be attending the service as she had experienced "some discomfort" while watching the Trooping of the Colour parade the previous day."

"The service included Bible readings, anthems, prayers and congregational hymns expressing thankfulness for the Queen's 70-year reign. The New Testament lesson, from the fourth chapter of St Paul's Epistle to the Philippians, was read by Boris Johnson,[1] who, on his arrival, had been booed by the crowds.[3]

In his sermon, the Archbishop of York, Stephen Cottrell, remarked that the Queen, a horse-lover, was "still in the saddle" after 70 years on the throne and thanked her for "staying the course". He praised her as an example of "staunch constancy and a steadfast consistency; a faithfulness to God, an obedience to a vocation that is a bedrock of her life".[1][2]

The combined choir of St Paul's and the Chapel Royal was directed by Andrew Carwood, and William Fox played the organ. Other musicians were the Band of the Royal Marines, Portsmouth and the Band of the Coldstream Guards, with state trumpters of the Household Cavalry and the Central Band of the Royal Air Force.[4] The service included a new anthem, By Wisdom, by Judith Weir, Master of the Queen's Music, with words from the third chapter of the Book of Proverbs.[5] Other choral music was the anthem I was glad by Hubert Parry, Psalm 24 with Anglican chant by Joseph Barnby, and the Benedicite by Francis Jackson. Congregational hymns were Christ is Made the Sure Foundation, Immortal, Invisible, God Only Wise and Glorious Things of Thee Are Spoken. Before and after the service, the Cathedral Guild of Bell Ringers rang Stedman Cinques.[4]

The service ended with a blessing given by the Bishop of London, Sarah Mullally, and the singing of the national anthem, God Save the Queen.

After the service, Great Paul, the largest church bell in the country at 16 tonnes, rang for four hours.[1] It was the first royal occasion for which it had been rung since its restoration in 2021."

Unfortunately, the biggest discussion about this was where Harry & Meghan were sitting, across the aisle from his brother and father. 

June 4th, 2022

During the day, the Royals were at events throughout the UK. 

Here's a description of the evening from Wikipedia:

"In the evening, a concert, 'Platinum Party at the Palace', took place at Buckingham Palace.[11][356] The BBC produced and broadcast it, and distributed it via the European Broadcasting Union; like the Diamond Jubilee Concert. The public were invited to apply to attend the event.[10] The event opened with a short two-minute film, produced by Buckingham Palace, BBC Studios, and Heyday Films/StudioCanal UK. The short film featured the Queen having tea with Paddington Bear, based on the 2014 film, and voiced by Ben Whishaw. It is one of the few times that the Queen has appeared in an acting role.[375]

Drones forming a corgi above Buckingham Palace during the Jubilee concert

Cardiff Castle hosted a concert featuring Welsh performers including Aled Jones, Bonnie Tyler, the Pendyrus Male Voice Choir, and "drumming weatherman" Owain Wyn Evans. The concert concluded with a specially produced "Singing in the Reign" programme celebrating Welsh hits from the past 70 years.[376] The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, along with Prince George and Princess Charlotte of Cambridge, attended concert rehearsals earlier in the day."

Here's a LINK that tells more about it, including the stars that performed and it's well worth watching the video of the Queen having tea with Paddington Bear. 

I really enjoyed the concert including watching Prince Louis acting up as he was probably tired and bored at the end of a long day. My favorite band Queen performed, minus Freddie of course. He would have loved it and I expect he was watching from above.

June 5th, 2022

The final day of celebrations was the Queens Jubilee Platinum Pageant.

Here's a description of the day from Wikipedia:

"A pageant featuring approximately 5,000 people from across the UK and the Commonwealth took place, with circus, carnival and costumed performers parading along The Mall through an array of over 200 silk flags, decorated with images drawn by children, as a 'River of Hope'.  Actors, singers, presenters and sports stars rode on open-top buses.  The Queen and her heirs appeared on the balcony of the Buckingham Palace for the finale of the pageant, and she later thanked everyone for their "good wishes" in a statement."

There were four acts:

Act 1: For Queen and Country

"The first act, For Queen and Country, was composed of a military parade with 1,750 people and 200 horses.[5] To mark the beginning of the pageant, the bells of Westminster Abbey pealed as they did on the Queen's Coronation Day in 1953. The Mounted Band of the Household Cavalry led the Gold State Coach, pulled by eight Windsor Grey horses. The coach windows showed original footage recorded on Coronation Day.[7][8] Many units of the British Armed Forces and representatives of the armed services of the Commonwealth of Nations participated:[9]

Act 2: The Time of Our Lives

"The second act, The Time of Our Lives, showcased changes in culture, technology, music and fashion throughout the past seven decades from 1952 to 2022. Open-top double-decker buses were used to represent different decades of the Queen's reign, with TV personalities, musicians, chefs, sportspeople, designers, and artists taking part in the procession.  Onboard the 1950's bus were Katherine Jenkins, Chris Eubank, and Sir Cliff Richard, while the 1960's bus included figures such as Anthea Turner and Basil Brush.  The 1990s were represented by Erin O'Connor, Kate Moss, Charlotte Tilbury, Patsy Kensit and Naomi Campbell.  Chris McCausland, Sir Mo Farah, Sally Gunnell, Dame Kelly Holmes and Got Wan appeared on the 2000s bus.  Another bus featured children's TV and video game characters, including the Teletubbies, Peter rabbit and Pac-Man. Additionally, 300 cyclists were led by the Olympic gold medallist Sir Chris Hoy, and a collection of vintage cars and James Bond cars were paraded across The Mall.



"Act 3: Let's Celebrate

The third act, Let's Celebrate, was composed of carnival floats and featured street theatre acts and urban dance from various performer groups.  Highlights from the act included a dancer interacting with a 21 feet dragon puppet, depictions of the Queen's Beasts that were also a part of her coronation.  Asian/Bollywood wedding dances, the coronation scenes recreated with an Afro-Caribbean style, a mighty oak and maypole whose ribbons formed a picture of the Queen, depiction of past jubilees and royal weddings via dance, paper and withy butterflies representing different faiths, the River Of Hope flags featuring artworks by children, jazz music and sousaphones, a 20 feet puppet of Godiva, and a mobile circus."




Act 4: Happy and Glorious

The fourth act, Happy and Glorious, featured a performance of "Perfect" by Ed Sheeran as a tribute to the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh.[17][5] Crowds gathered at the Victoria Memorial towards the end of the ceremony.[5] The Queen, accompanied by the Prince of Wales, the Duchess of Cornwall, the Dukeand Duchess of Cambridge, and Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis of Cambridge, appeared on the balcony of the Buckingham Palace for the finale of the pageant, and everyone sang the national anthem "God Save the Queen" led by the London Community Gospel Choir and the Band of Her Majesty's Royal Marines.[17] A flypast by the Red Arrows was cancelled due to bad weather.[17] As the Royal Family left the balcony, the West End cast of Mamma Mia! performed "Dancing Queen".[20] The Queen later thanked everyone for their "good wishes" in a statement


I liked Act 2 the best as it went through the decades of the Queen's reign. I especially liked reliving the 50's and 60's. Seeing my favorite childrens characters and the hippies and flower children.

I did leave feeling that the Queen looked very frail and I really don't know what will happen when she passes.  I can't see Charles as King and I don't approve of Camilla as Queen, but I guess it will happen. I still love the monarchy but we have been extremely lucky in having the Queen reign as long as she has.
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Sunday, May 22, 2022

Summer of 22 - #1 - On the road again!!!!

May 16th, 2022

It was time to leave Mayport and head north on our summer trip, which has been drastically shortened due to fuel prices!!!  The plan had been to go north all the way to Maine but with the motorhome only getting 6mpg and prices steadily rising we decided we couldn't do it. We will spend extended time in the Norfolk, Virginia area where we can visit Ryan & Christina before heading south-west to visit Mom toward the end of the year.

Our first stop for one night was Creekfire RV Resort in Savannah, Georgia. We have stayed here before but were disappointed in the site we were given this time. It is not inexpensive and we felt crammed into our site. Sorry, I didn't get any pictures!!  I guess its time to look for another stopping point on the way north in future.  We will see!!

May 17th, 2022

Our next overnight stop was Santee Lakes KOA, Summerton, South Carolina.  This was a little better but still small sites, however a lot of them were empty!!

View from our site


Playground

Squirrel

Bryan coming back with Pizza, sold here.

May 18th, 2022
We travelled to Smith Lake Army Travel Camp, Fayetteville, North Carolina. We stayed here last year and it's not a bad campground.  This time we got a pull through site at the top. We like both areas so it doesn't matter to us where we are if we are staying a few days.
I love the Chick Fil A advertising signs, although this one isn't my favorite.

May 19th, 2022




This is an interesting museum that covers Early Airborne through to present day:
Early Airborne - "On 16th August 1940, Lieutenant Bill Ryder led the Test Platoon to become the first American fighting man to stand in the door and jump into history."

WORLD WAR II - "World War II saw the most concentrated use of airborne operations, with five Army divisions dedicated to using this new method of putting men and equipment on the battlefield."

WWII Artifacts:

Camera



and timelines.....

German MP40 Submachine Gun



Italian Mountains Campaign - July 1943 - May 1945
Operation Overload - Battle of Normandy, 6th June, 1944 (D-Day)
Operation Market Garden - 17th - 25th September 1944
Battle of the Bulge - December 16, 1944-January 16, 1945
Operation Varsity - 24th March, 1945









I only recently realized that the UK and US aimed at different beaches, which makes sense.  I always thought all the forces intermingled. 








VIETNAM

Excerpt from the museum website.
"Nearby is a Viet Cong prisoner of war (POW) camp in South Vietnam's U Minh Forest, also known as the "Forest of Darkness," due to its dense jungle.  Here the visitor will see Green Beret, first lieutenant James "Nick" Rowe held in a bamboo cage plotting his escape. After five years of captivity Rowe escaped his Vietnamese captors in December, 1968. Because of his experience as a POW, Rowe was selected by the U.S.Army to design its Survival, Resistance, and Escape (SERE) training program, which is part of the Special Forces Qualification Course."





Click the red link to read about the Black Hawk Down 61-1993 Somalia.

It was an interesting museum that covered a variety of eras.

May 21st-22nd, 2022
Our next stop was RV Resort @ Carolina Crossroads for a couple of nights. This was a good campground with pull thru sites that were easy to access. We didn't unhook the car.  We had problems with our electrics and the park handyman came over to help.  Bryan & he troubleshooted until they got back to our main plug into the sites power box. They found a loose wire in our main plug that had melted part of the plug. He had a new plug which we bought and he and Bryan rewired it. He saved us a lot of money in callout fees for an electrician and didn't want to take anything but we made sure to pay him what we thought was a fair price.  We were in the right place at the right time and someone was watching over us for sure. Phew!!!

Our next stop was Little Creek and a long stay so that we can visit Ryan, Christina, Trystan & meet our new addition Colton. Woohoo!!!!

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