It was slightly raining. On my way to the city museum I stopped by a couple of Memorial monuments trying to spot the wreaths left by the Duke of Kent the week before. Achieved.
A good number of red-ponchoed tourists were populating the waterfront streets: a cruise ship had arrived. Many of the local flags had only been raised halfway: today there was going to be a service at the Cathedral for Sir Rex Hunt, former Governor of the Islands during the conflict in '82, who had passed away very recently. The Rector, Richard Hines, had invited me to attend, during a brief conversation the day before.
Finally, after a good walk amid the cold South Atlantic wind along Ross Road, I got to the museum. It is small, yet very well distributed and upkept. It displays various rooms in the Islanders' style (a washroom, a drugstore, a Victorian living room, gowns & garment) which convey an idea of life as it used to be like a hundred years ago in these lands. Other rooms display elements about the local Guards, documents and pictures of the Royal guests in contact with Islanders (in one of which I was also able to spot Arlette Betts, Lafone House Manager, with whom I had talked the day before) and artifacts of the life in the "Camp" (the countryside). There was also space for biology and geology, as well as objects from relevant ships, and memorabilia. All, very well showcased.
My walk back underwent leaking gray clouds over my head. After a few minutes I dropped by the Penguin News office (it was Friday - new weekly edition), but there was nobody around (lunchtime). Made a quick look into the Malvina House Hotel lobby, and learned that its name was not a gesture to the Spanish naming for the Islands, as it was the name of the founder's daughter, a name quite popular in Scotland. A (historical) pity.
So I rushed my lunch. The service for Rex Hunt in the Cathedral was about to get started a 2 pm, and I wanted to turn up on time, which I did. The place was pretty packed. Richard Hines -the Rector- recognized me and greeted. There he went, towards the side of the shrine. The Governor of the Islands turned up, in full Regalia. A few military, with medals on. Words and Hymns made it for the approx 1-hr tribute. When everything finished, carefully according to programme, people left their benches in an orderly manner, starting from the ones in front, and one by one, all the way down to the ones in the rear side of the temple. Just coming out, I could meet Mr Hines to thank gim for the invitation; he said he was glad I was able to attend. And I promised to get in touch with him.
So, determined as I was, I headed back to the Penguin office. But first I entered the exhibition on the '82 War, just across the Town Hall. I could see, for the first time, an orderly display of documents, pictures, flags, paints and testimonials about what happened. I was impressed on how these things could effectively happen on a date as late as such. So, after a good half an hour there, I made it to my intended destination. There I could not only buy my sought-after weekly issue, but also had a quick conversation with John Fowler, Deputy Editor of the News.
Raindrops over my head covered me until I got to my brief raids in a couple of gift shops, before stopping by the Waterfront Hotel, to greet his Manager and chef, Alex Olmedo, with whom we had already had a couple of insightful discussions earlier during the week. He candidly shared with me his plans about enhancing the hotel he is running.
So I came back out. It was already 6-ish, and I badly needed a tea-time snack, under the threat of otherwise devoring someone's arm. Day 7 was slowly coming to an end, and I was equally feeling the need to go back home, to see my kids, after a week away. I would be flying out, if everything went as expected, the next day.
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