Kevin and I arrived in London around 12:30 pm. After checking-in to the hotel and freshening up a bit, we went out to get some Dinner. Come to find out, this is not a simple task at 4pm. Everywhere we went was either closed or only serving drinks. Finally we stumbled upon the George Inn, which to our surprise was featured in Charles Dickens’ “Little Dorrit.” It was a great place to grab dinner and a couple drinks before we crashed. I had full intentions of exploring the city a bit before falling asleep, but we did not prevail. We fell asleep around 6pm and woke up at about 10:30. Instead of tossing and turning in the hotel, we went out to Piccadilly Circus and had some more food! The trains stopped running at about midnight, so we had to walk back to the hotel. It was only about 2 miles and it was neat to see some of the buildings all lit up!
The London Eye all lit up. We passed this and the Houses of Parliament on our walk back to the hotel.
Sunday, July 18
We hopped on the train to Harwich and worked for most of the day (actually most of the day was spent traveling on the trains). Got back into the city around 6pm and went for a walk over to St. Paul’s Cathedral. Then we had a fantastic dinner at a really fancy Thai restaurant near Trafalgar Square. The food was soooo good! I think we will definitely try to return there!
Waiting at the train station in Harwich
In front of St. Paul's Cathedral
Trafalgar Square
Monday, July 19
Kevin planned the whole day for us! I had no idea where we were going and it was so fun! The first stop of the day was at Harrods Department Store. Kevin likes to refer to this store as Macy’s on crack. It is huge! This is truly one-stop shopping – it has everything that a normal department store would have, plus fresh produce, a wine cellar, a full bookstore, toys, and much more. If you are interested in learning more about it, you can Google it. Our next stop was lunch which consisted of some great Dim Sum! I never thought I would enjoy Thai, Chinese, and Indian food so much! While we were at lunch I got the notice that Mom had landed at London Heathrow and we made plans to meet up with her a little later in the day (this way she had a chance to freshen up and unpack). So in the meantime we went to the Museum of Natural History and the Science Museum. They were both very fun, but certainly don’t compare to any of the Smithsonian Museums. It was a great way to spend the afternoon though! We met up with Mom around 4pm and went to The Shakespeare’s Head to grab some Beer, Cider, and food! This is where Kevin and I enjoyed some great Indian curry to add to our Eclectic tastes. Before going our separate ways for the evening, we took Mom around Piccadilly Circus to give her a feel of the night life! It was another great day, and I am so excited to have this experience with my mom!
With the Harrods bear!
Kevin at the Museum of Natural History. That is one big dinosaur!
In the pub. One of the few photos of us together!
Can't go to England without one of these photos!
Tuesday, July 20
After taking the morning a bit slower than the last couple days, Kevin and I planned to meet my mom and Julie (a friend from Colorado Springs who joined us on the trip) at Westminster Abby at 11:30am. After waiting for about an hour for them to join us we decided to go into the Abby without them. Come to find out, they got lost in the tube and then tried to get into The Houses of Parliament instead of the Abby, making them quite a bit late. Needless to say, we all still enjoyed the beauty of Westminster Abby separately. An audio guide was included in the price of our ticket and it was a great addition to the self-guided tour. It was a great way to learn and understand the history of this beautiful building! Kevin and I left Westminster Abby and went up to the British Museum, with the thought that Mom and Julie would meet us later, but they were so jet lagged and tired, they decided to go back to the hotel and relax instead (can’t say I don’t blame them). We spent about an hour at the museum and before heading to the last event of the day, we went up to King’s Cross Station and visited platform 9 ¾ from Harry Potter. Now, you would think that this platform would be between Platforms 9 and 10, but it wasn’t. So, Kevin had to ask for directions, which was quite hilarious! “Excuse me. Can you please tell me how to get to Platform 9 ¾?” Very funny! The day culminated with Shakespeare’s “Comedy of Errors” at the Globe Theatre. The theatre was so cool because it had an open roof and looked just like you would imagine a Shakespeare theatre would look! It was such a neat experience to see Shakespeare in London! And the tickets were only 5GBP (about $7.50)! Kevin and I went back to our hotel after the show so we could pack up our things.
The clock tower - aka Big Ben attached to the Houses of Parliament.
The entrance to Westminster Abby. Unfortunately, we couldn't take photos inside.
The mummy exhibit at the British Museum.
The Rosetta Stone which helped translate and understand Egyptian hieroglyphs.
Platform 9 3/4. There used to be a trolley stuck in the wall, but someone must have stolen it.
Inside the Globe Theatre.
In front of the stage. We stood through the whole show, but I thought it was totally worth it! The show was hilarious (Kevin begs to differ)!
Wednesday, July 21
Kevin flew back home to Colorado in the morning, so I left the hotel with him and moved my stuff over to Mom’s room. We left the hotel around 11am and went to see the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace. We got to the Palace just before the ceremony started and it was so packed we couldn’t see a thing. We snapped a few photos and then went to sit in St James’s Park. Kim and Johnny (good friends of mine from high school who now live in England) met us at the Palace and then we walked up to the tube station and went to the Tower of London. We had lunch at a pub and then Mom and Julie went into the Tower while Kim, Johnny and I stayed at the pub and chatted. When Mom and Julie were finished at the Tower of London, we left the pub, Kim and Johnny went home and we went to London’s West End to see the musical Priscilla Queen of the Desert. The show was about 3 Australian drag queens traveling through the outback. The music was straight out of the 80’s and so much fun! I can’t wait until this show comes to Broadway!
The guards at Buckingham Palace!
Guards on their horses.
In St. James's Park with Kim!
Julie and I in front of the Tower of London.
Mom and her tour guide at the Tower of London.
All of us in front of the marquee.
We were forced to get an earlier start today because we went on a bus tour to Windsor Castle, Stonehenge, and Bath. The tour left around 9am and dropped us off at Windsor Castle around 10am. We had about 1.5 hours to explore the castle on our own before heading for the next stop. The castle was beautiful and is still a location that the Royal Family uses regularly. Because our time was limited we only had a chance to see the exterior of the castle and the State Apartments. The State Apartments were incredible! Again we had an audio tour and it was fascinating to hear all of the details about each room and how each room is still being used today! I would love to go back there in the future and have some more time to explore! The second stop on our trip was Stonehenge. It took us about 1.5 hours to get there, but the drive through the countryside was beautiful. Our tour guide gave us some history before arriving and then we had 45 minutes to explore. One of the coolest aspects of Stonehenge, is that it is in the middle of nowhere! In the middle of the English countryside there is this exquisite man made masterpiece. This is a work of art that seems nearly impossible to have created over 4,000 years ago and it is still standing today! It was mystical! We had lunch at the Stonehenge Inn and then drove another hour or so to Bath, England. Bath is a town that was created by the Romans in 43 AD as a spa resort. The Romans built a resort around the hot springs, which are still present today. The building around the baths has been rebuilt; however the ruins they found are incorporated into the new building and museum. It was incredible to see history so old and beautiful! We had about 1.5 hours again to explore on our own and then we got back on the bus and drove about 2 hours back to London.
In front of the Round Tower at Windsor Castle. It started raining as soon as we got off the bus! The one day I didn't bring my rain jacket!
We got to see the Changing of the Guard at Windsor Castle. We had a much better view than the day before!
The exterior wall of the castle.
Mom and I at Stonehenge!
Just me!
In front of the spring overflow and the source of the hot spring water.
Mom and I in front of the Great Bath.
You can see the steam rising from the Great Bath!
Friday, July 23
We started this day with a visit to Abbey Road. Mom was a huge Beatles fan and actually got to go to a Beatles concert when she was younger! It was so special to experience this moment with her! The next stop in our day was to Notting Hill and the Portobello Road Market. Notting Hill is a neighborhood in London that was the setting for the movie “Notting Hill” with Hugh Grant and Julia Roberts. The Portobello Road Market is a street with shops full of antiques, fresh produce, t-shirt shops, and more. It was a great way to spend our last afternoon in London! We topped off the day and the trip with the West End production of Oliver! I thought it was rather fitting to see this show in London of all places. The show was great and our seats were incredible. Mom got us tickets from TKTS in the Prince’s box! When Prince Charles, Henry or William watch a show at the Royal Theatre, they sit where we sat! It was awesome and for a discounted price!
No explanation needed!
Mom crossing the famous zebra stripes! I think she looks a little like "Where's Waldo".
Julie and I in the crosswalk. That pose is very difficult to master!
Mom signing the wall in front of Abbey Road Studios.
In Notting Hill, there was this store - Jessie Western!
The Portobello Road Market.
This is the Travel Bookshop that Hugh Grant works at in the movie "Notting Hill".
Such a great show! It was interesting however, to not know any of the performers! The guy who played Fagin was a very well known British star, but we had never heard of him.
You didn't think you would get through this whole post without this famous photo did you!?!
