London

June 17th: We arrived here in the U.K. on the about 9 am (on the 17th) London time. I managed to get a few very uncomfortable hours of sleep on the plane. Phil was able to get none at all! We made it through landing, customs and riding the tube in a sleepy stupor, but still managed to enjoy the pretty, green scenery that passed by. After about a 45 minute ride to our stop – Earl’s Court Station – we got off and wandered the local streets for a few hours. First priority? Finding me a bag with wheels!!!!! My duffle bag was VERY uncomfortable to tote around. Second? EAT! (airplane food just doesn’t cut it!) Third? Enjoy the town. Fourth? Find our hotel once it was late enough to check in. Fifth? SLEEP (and shower!!)

You can view our photos on our flickr site in the London set

June 18th: After some very refreshing sleep (we slept most of the night) on full bellies from this amazing Itailian place. we were ready to face some major sightseeing…after a full English breakfast, of course! We went back to the little pub down the street that we ate lunch at the day before and ordered breakfast and tea (which was delicious!). Then….we hit the tube for an all day pass and headed to Westminster!

In Westminister, we saw such wondrous sights such as the river Thames, Big Ben, Parliament, St. Margarets Church, and Westminster Abbey. We bought tickets into Westminster for a steep price ($25 each!!!) but it was well worth it! It was a multiple hour dive into the rich past history of England. We saw tombs, sculptures, paintings and architecture dating back from Medieval times. We saw the tombs of previous Kings and Queens (Edward III, Elizabeth I, Mary Queen of Scots, etc) All this was viewed with the help of a personal audio guide device, narrated by Jeremy Irons. Several hours and 4 aching feet later, we emerged into the sunlight. We scoped out any remaining picturesque spots and then jumped back on the tube.

Our next destination was Tower Hill, where resides the Tower of London. Here we were again greeted by spectacular sights and photo opportunities. We did not do the tour of the Tower of London, as it cost $70!!!!! So we contented ourselves to enjoy it from the outside. We ate lunch by the Thames, chomping on a delicious cheese and sausage sandwich from this little French bakery stand. We had a spectacular view of the Tower Bridge from where we were sitting and could not resist a walk across it, despite our weary feet. So off we trekked and actually did the unguided tour where we were free to roam the upper walkways and the steam engine room, and learn the history through some very cheezy videos. The view was amazing from so far up and it was nice to get out of the wind and cold for a bit.

As we came out we were distracted by an alley way of shops that reminded us of Diagon Alley from Harry Potter. So we explored that for a bit and then began the walk back across the bridge to the tube station. We were very glad to rest our feet for awhile. We came straight back to the hotel and collapsed into bed around 7 pm, London time. It’s now 3:19 am and I’m up blogging, trying to lull myself back to sleep!