early morning - leaving Scotland
We drove back to London. My mother had a conversation with a Scotsman about his kilt
Scotsman
Scotsman in his kilt
and one of the sheep in Scotland ate some of our picnic lunch.
sheep in Scotland
sheep eating our lunch
unfinished sculpture of ram - sculptor died
We stopped for a couple of photos at Gretna Green.
Aug 1, 1950 - Gretna Green
Gretna Green was the place just over the border into Scotland where couples could run away and get married at age 18 without their parent's consent. You could marry on the spot, in a simple 'marriage by declaration', or ceremony, only requiring two witnesses and assurances from the couple that they were both free to marry.
Gretna Green
Sign
I think my mother was particularly interest in this - not because she wished to elope but because her father was a Justice of the Peace known as the Marrying Squire. At that time in Pennsylvania there were similar marriage laws - you had to have a blood test which took a couple of days and if you wanted to be married younger than 21 you had to have your parent's consent. But you could go over the border to Maryland and be married at 18.
Sunset in Scotland
We after we drove back from Edinburgh we spent some time in London and the vicinity before we got back on the ship to sale home. We obviously saw Big Ben
Big Ben
Big Ben at night
We went to Westminster Cathedral and my mother showed us Poets Corner- I have spoken to my sister about this - both of us were completely underwhelmed by this visit, but my mother was an English Lit major so I suppose that explains it.
Westminster Abbey
Sign above door
London Bobby
London Bobby with Mother, my sister and me
- Next entry in the series 'Visiting Europe - 1950, 1964, 1992, 2002, 2015': Buckingham Palace and the Tower of London- 1950 - post 25
- Previous entry in the series 'Visiting Europe - 1950, 1964, 1992, 2002, 2015': Edinburgh 1950 - post 23
