What a wonderful day we had last Saturday, May 17th! An 'elite eight' boarded an executive coach at H.S.L. for a visit to the Drapers' Hall in London. Leaving at 10.a.m.we chatted away until we had our coffee stop. School had very wisely prepared some sumptuous 'snacks ' to while away any hunger pangs. The organisers had thought of everything!
I was sitting with Muriel Jeremy at the very back where we had a table and a view for miles. Although Muriel and I meet up every 2 or 3 months we still found lots to talk about, We had both lived and worked in London many years previously (me in the very early 50s! yes, it was in the pound, shilling and pence days) and found the final hour and a half of the trip from the Chiswick Fly-over full of controversy (Is it better to go along the Cromwell road or to try Knightsbridge?) until we turned right at the Embankment when we said together "Well, I wouldn't have come this way at all !!" back seat drivers!
We arrived at Drapers Hall at 3 p.m. Oh, it is a beautiful place with such a history, of which we at HSL , are a part. Welcomed by members of the London Branch of the Hywelian Guild we sat at 'mixed member' tables to enjoy our tea . Vanessa Yilmaz gave a resume of some of the social activities that have taken place and then Sally astounded us all by a breakdown of the school 's academic achievements and, amazingly, what was planned for the future! Definitely a ' Watch This Space ' moment!
We had a short tour of the Hall, gazed at the many portraits , saw the great 'coffer' in which Thomas Howell had kept the Ducats that eventually set up the school for 'the orphan maidens '- not many of those left! And for those of you who are film 'buffs' a little reminder that parts of the film "The King's Speech" were filmed here.
After fond farewells to our host, the London Branch, we boarded our coach (I did mention that it was an EXECUTIVE coach !) we made a much swifter safe journey home.
