This year marks the 60th anniversary of Her Royal Highness, Queen Elizabeth's accession to the throne. There have been numerous events held throughout the seven countries in the commonwealth to celebrate this momentous event. Here are a few links with more detail.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diamond_Jubilee_of_Elizabeth_II
http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Nl1/Newsroom/Features/DG_WP200687
http://www.thediamondjubilee.org/
On Thursday June 1, the kids had a Diamond Jubilee Tea Party at School. They all painted special ceramic plates with a Jubilee theme in preparation of the big event. The Tea Party was held outside on the playground with all the goodies provided by the parents.
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| Ryan with his classmates |
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| Some of Mandy's Classmates |
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| More of Mandy's Class |
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| Ryan and his Best Bud Tom |
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| Jayden, Rory & Tabitha |
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| Isla and Kathryn |
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| Molly, Jada & Mandy |
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| Even Aiden was in on the fun |
On Sunday June 3rd, Mandy and I braved the crowds and ventured into the city to see the Diamond Jubilee Flotilla. We waited an hour at the train station in Richmond before we were able to get on a train, definitely an indicator of what was to come. We finally arrived at Westminster Station and when we surfaced from the "underground", we were blown away by the amount of people. All along the river, people were packed in trying to get a view of the boats as they passed by. Despite the massive amount of people, the atmosphere was very celebratory and people were very polite and kind to each other. Many of the roads were closed and were lined with BIG screen TV's to broadcast the entire event. Mandy and I tried our best to sneak through the crowd to get a view of the river but it was hopeless. We were just about to head back to the train station when we decided to try one more time to try to get a peek at the river. We met this wonderful family, Kate, Peter and Paul, who helped put Mandy up on my shoulders so she could get a view. Kate sat up on her father's shoulders and used my camera to get some shots of the boats and the queen as they went by. Over 1,000 vessels participated in the Flotilla on the Thames from Battersea to Tower Bridge. It was one of the largest Flotillas ever assembled on the river, with rowed boats, working boats and pleasure vessels of all shapes and sizes. The highlight of the flotilla was the Royal Barge, Spirit of Chartwell, which was decorated with over 10,000 flowers and carried The Queen, The Duke of Edinburgh, the Prince of Wales, the Duchess of Cornwall, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry. Even though I was unable to catch a first hand glimpse of the Queen and the Royal Family, the energy and the experience of partaking in this event was a memorable one for Mandy and me!
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| The Crowd watching the big screen. |
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| Prince Charles Arrives |
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| There's Camlla |
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The crowd went WILD when William and Kate
appeared on the screen |
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| Queen Elizabeth brought about quite a cheer as well |
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| A look at the crowd |
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| Mandy & the BIG screen |
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| Boats in the Flotilla |
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| Flotilla Boats |
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| Ready for the fun! |
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| Boats representing the countries of the commonwealth |
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| Flotilla Boat |
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| The Spirit of Chartwell |
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| Queen Elizabeth |
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| The Royal Family |
The following day, our neighborhood closed down the street and we had a big party! There were face painters, a DJ, a Pims stand, a candy floss machine, games for the kids, a street dinner and later in the night a full on dance party! It was a lot of fun meeting our neighbors, (after 2 years!) and seeing how many kids live on our street.
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| Dinner in the street! |
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| Gotta love the strawberries |
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| Our England born little man waving the Union Jack Flag |
Overall a great weekend to be part of. The festivities, the history and the grandeur of the Royal celebrations...awesome experience!
