“Bubba!” he responded. We thought that was an appropriate nickname for my vivacious grandmother who moved from Long Island to Texas in her late 80′s. She moved to be near one of her daughters, and got a bonus in the shape of her other great-grandchild Abby, who was born in Austin few months after Izzy was born here in Chapel Hill. Grandma Vickie established her painting studio in the garage of her new home (it was in the attic when she lived in New York) and even resumed teaching oil painting lessons as she had done for decades.

This week, she was felled by an infection that her 91-year-old immune system just couldn’t beat. My grandmother was a fabulous woman, and she loved to entertain. Here are pictures of her after I was born in 1971, and dancing at my wedding in 2006. A longer slideshow is at http://www.flickr.com/photos/tags/vickierakoff/show/.

Rinse and repeat for 4 or more hours.

Update: Brian made a short video of the trip. It’s a good compliment to the photos.

Read on for a quick list of what we did and selected photos of our week.

Wednesday

- traditional English breakfast at Porridge in Maida Vale
- nap
- visited Westminster Abbey to see the grave and memorial of Sir Isaac Newton

- dinner at a very old French place with ornate design and authentic rude French servers
- saw a play in the West End: a remake of Hitchcock’s “The 39 Steps.” Very creatively staged and hilarious.

Thursday

- ate at a cafe overlooking the Thames
- went to the Design Museum, featuring exhibits of Iraqi woman architect Zaha Hadid and avant, anti-consumerism graphic designer Jonathan Barnbrook. (my pics)

- walked along the South Bank and rode on the London Eye (see large photo above)
- ate at Rasa (off Oxford Street), still probably the best Indian restaurant I’ve ever been to

Friday

- lunch at Celadon in Maida Vale – a nice simple Thai place with yummy “vegetarian won ton soup”
- Tate Modern! Including the “Dali and Film” exhibit and “Global Cities” an installation about cities and development and social equity

- dinner with old friends who also happened to be in town

Saturday

- got up early to drive to Gloucestershire for the Third Annual Party on the Hill

- camped on a hillside with a stunning view of Gloucester and the surrounding area

- drank Pimm’s and watched my dad play bass with a variety of musical folks

Sunday

- packed up in the rain
- drove back to London
- walked down Abbey Road and took photos at the infamous zebra crossing

- had dinner at Harry Morgan’s, a kosher diner in St. John’s Wood

Monday

- visited Brick Lane, home of a hundred south asian eateries and shops
- randomly selected a restaurant called Chillies, scored a great lunch

- walked around and saw some of a grad student art show and great street art

- searched for and eventually found Freedom Books and the Whitechapel Gallery, which turned out to be next door to each other, but the latter was closed. Bought radical books at the former. Also visited a cool store called Magma on the way home.
- dinner with dad and stepmom, whose hospitality made this entire trip possible and worthwhile

It’s amazing we did so much considering we rarely left the house before 1pm due to jetlag. Next time (ie: things we would have liked to do but didn’t): Avebury and Stonehenge, Hyde Park, Portobello Road or Camden or Islington, canal tour, more museums. Whew!

Here are some highlights…

Grandma Vickie making latkes for Hanukkah


Nice views from Mount Bunnell

Hauling hay at the Y-Not Ranch, where my aunt raises miniature cattle and donkeys

We observed the longstanding Jewish tradition of Chinese food for Christmas (note the mooonlinght tower in the background)

My mom dancing with a very nice Harley-riding tractor salesman in a blues bar (he was a good dancer, but she did not give him her number)

After my friend Caroline went to Kenya in 1992, she gave me a Swahili nickname, and I’ve been trying to remember it since I met Ndesanjo yesterday. After some searching I finally found it: kiongozi.