Now, this masterpiece, titled "Monument for a Dead Parrot," is the brainchild of the artist Jon Reardon. He came up with this avian oddity without a proper place to put it. It took a whopping two years of haggling with London borough councils before this curious creation found its cozy spot in the hotel garden, conveniently close to the National Maritime Museum.

One can't help but wonder if Reardon drew inspiration from the infamous Monty Python "Dead Parrot" sketch. You know the one, where John Cleese's character tries to convince a shopkeeper that his Norwegian Blue parrot is dearly departed (though our cockatoo here also boasts some seriously splendid plumage). 

Interestingly, the sketch was filmed in a pet shop up on Caledonian Road in London, so you might ponder why this parrot chose the more southernly Greenwich for its eternal roost. Perhaps it had a secret yearning for the Docklands – who can fathom the depths of a parrot's desires, after all.

Our departure in Sydney was not without its share of challenges, as an overheated cabin had caused us a delay with boarding the plane. We were called to the gate to prepare to board, only to be advised if the problem with the plane cooling system. So we hightailed it back to the Qantas lounge and grabbed another drink and another of that fabulous ferry floss desert.

First stop Singapore 🇸🇬

After watching many a movie. Some snacks and a bit of rereading, we arrived in Singapore for a quick hour and a half stopover. Because our flight was delayed from Sydney, our stop would be shorter. We navigated through the bustling airport to reach the oasis of the first-class lounge. There, we indulged in a much-needed wash and refresh, shedding the weariness of our previous flight. The lounge offered an array of tempting snacks that provided a welcome respite and change of scenery. However we really got our snacks delivered and had to hastily make our way back to the gate. Reinvigorated to some extent  we gathered our belongings and left to  return to the departure gate.

The next phase of our journey was rather long and boring. Drifting in and out of consiousness after leaving Singapore  I awoke to a sight I never imagined I would see. The bright shining lights of the city of Baghdad, Iraq. Flight paths for many years avoided these sky corridors, but here we were. 

With legs squashed and no room to really stretch it was a decidedly long journey and I vowed I would not fly straight through without a proper stopover again. 

We arrived at Heathrow at 8.46am and were through customs very quickly. Certainly things have been modernised at the airports. The whole customs process is much more streamlined.

We made our way to taxi rank and got a cab to Linda’s and Roys at Northolt which is about half an hour out of the city.  It was lovely to see them both we had a quick k catch up hat a cup of good old English tea and decided to have a nap which turned into a couple of hours. I think it was much needed. 

We had a quick dinner and enjoyed a wine or two in the evening and had an early night. We were ready to get started with our few days in London.