England 2014 Week 4

June 30:
After having breakfast in the flat we caught a Thames Clipper boat to Greenwich.  We hiked up to the observatory where we got to stand on the prime meridian (which separates the Eastern and Western hemispheres) and explore the place where so many scientists and astronomers discovered the cosmos!  After that we walked down through a small market and ate Italian flatbread sandwiches and drank fresh juices.  We made our way to The Cutty Sark, which is a Victorian era tea clipper, and explored it's many decks..  It was very interesting to hear about its different voyages.  We took a DLR train back to the flat and rested for a bit before we walked in the rain (one of the few days it rained) up to the canal and ate at The Narrow Boat pub, which was tasty but a bit overpriced.

July 1:  
Off on an another adventure!  We got up a bit early and caught a train up to Oxford.  We walked through the Bodlean library and saw some of the sites that Harry Potter was filmed and then decided to have lunch at Pizza Express - I highly recommend the dough balls with the various dipping sauces! So good!  We walked though the market and then went to the History of Science Museum.  Had a good time exploring many of the tools and instruments that scientist have used over the years.  Sadie got a scavenger hunt paper and got to find various items and mark them off.  While in the museum we met up with my cousin Brook who works in Oxford during the summer!  We walked through Blackwell's bookstore, got ice cream at the market and walked around the meadow.  It was a very nice day to take Oxford in but too soon we had to say goodbye to Brook and get back to our train.  It was a nice visit.  We picked up some chicken and fries on our way home and had dinner in our flat.

July 2: 
We ate breakfast in the flat and took our time getting up and going and then hopped on a train to Dover.  We got there at lunch time so we stopped at a local diner (the Dovorian) and then walked down to the marina.  We were going to do the 2:00 boat tour but missed it because we were trying to find a bathroom so we took the bus tour to the top of the cliffs and walked around a bit.  The day was so clear we could see across the water to Calais, France!  We went back to the marina and got to do the 4:00 boat tour.  We had a great view of the majestic white cliffs of Dover and Sadie got to drive the boat for a bit!  After the boat tour we walked along the water collecting sea shells and then ate at a local pub, Blake's of Dover, Sadie and I had cottage pie - she told me that my cottage pie was better!  After dinner it was time to catch a train back to London.

July 3:  
After another lazy morning in the flat we headed out to Hyde park.  We wondered around the Diana memorial playground (would highly recommend this place to anyone visiting London with little kids!) and then walked down to Kensington Palace.  We picked up some sandwiches, fruit, and crisps at a small cafe and had a picnic lunch under the shade of a big tree.  It was downright hot outside!  After our lunch we walked around the pond and through the park then took the tube over to Spitalfields for some last minute shopping.  We came home and rested and got ready for the symphony.  We caught a bus down by St. Paul's Cathedral and ate at Nandos and shopped in some nearby stores like H&M while waiting for the cathedral to open.  Once it did we went in and found our seats.  It was absolutely amazing just to be inside St. Paul's Cathedral - it is a stunning place. Once the London Symphony Orchestra started playing I got goosebumps!  It was a wonderful experience!  After the concert we took a bus back home. Our trip was quickly coming to an end.

July 4:  
Our last day in London!  After breakfast in the flat we went down to Buckingham Palace.  We lucked out and got there just in time to see the changing of the guard!  After that we walked through Trafalgar Square and watched some break dancers perform and then wondered over to Covent Garden one more time to do some shopping.  We stopped and ate lunch at Masala Zone and caught the tube back to our flat.  We had to pack and check into our flight home - the month had flown by!  After a bit of a rest we walked through a local park and ate at The Breakfast Club, which had an 1980's American theme.  It was a fun, quirky place. We walked around Islington (our neighborhood) some more and back along the canal  to our flat one more time.  We said goodbye to Daniel at the front desk who had been very helpful throughout this trip and called it a night.

July 5:
We left our flat early and caught the Piccadilly train from King's Cross to Heathrow Airport.  We got through security with no problems and walked around the shops with time to kill.  One more meal at Pret A Manger and we boarded our flight.  It was a long 10 hours but it was comfortable and pleasant.  Soon we were back in Austin, Texas and wow was it hot and humid!  It was a wonderful, fun, and educational trip of a lifetime that we will not soon forget!

Click here for pictures from week 4.