Dec 3 - London, England

After breakfast Gwen took me down to the London University and let me off. I spent the entire morning in the British Museum. A Fine collection of oriental art, printings and paintings. Enormous rooms of Indian relics and historical books. I merely passed through in a hurry. Had lunch with Gwen in the faculty restaurant. In the afternoon I spent three hours in Hawley's, the biggest toy store in London. Only got two out of five gifts I need. Went home at 4:30. After dinner Gwen packed up her gifts and I my luggage, and we went to Slough. Sat around talking for several hours. Brett Mildenhall, a fellow scout dropped in. Jim Shepherd's son, now with a Jim and daughter of his own dropped in for a while. At 10:30 pm, Jim suggested a night trip into Picadilly Circus. Got home and to bed at 2 am.

Jim Shepherd
165 High Street
Langley, Slough, Bucks 42260

Letter to my Uncle Bart Strong written from London Dec 3, 1968

Dear Bart,
Sorry it's been so long. I've been "on the run," you might say, last week in Paris and this week in London.

On November 16th, my birthday, and last day in Switzerland, in Geneva, it snowed on my, so I was forced to take the train up to Paris and on to Boulogne. I stayed five days in Paris, but I could have spent months strolling along the Seine, through the Latin Quarter and the curious back streets of the city.

I took the train and bike up to Boulogne, crossed over to Dover, and cycled down into Folkestone, where I stayed with a Scout I met at the Jamboree. Then I visited another friend in Sussex County, then up to London. I'm now staying with the sister of Gwen Abbot, Boot's English friend. Last night he took me on the grand tour of London by night. At midnight last night I was sitting in the British Parliament's House of Lords, listening to a debate on the budget that lasted until 4 am! We drove through the Christmas-decorated shopping streets of Oxford and Regenet streets and the always gaily-lit Picadilly Circus.

After a week here I cycle back to Brussels and Luxembourg, from where I fly home on the 19th, and I'll be in Lawton on the 22nd. See you in Norman at Christmas.

Mike