Days 6-10 Days 11-14 Days 15-19
Well, here we are! We're seated on the plane at 6:45, wondering about all the gadgets and gizmos around us. To my left is the lavatory (oh joy!) and out the window on the right I can see the wing, the wing, and--oh yeah--the wing! Our departure was delayed by a luggage problem; three bags were mismarked and had to be removed. Martine saw one of our bags come off, then get packed back on. She's very nervous and is fretting over everything going on out there!
8:00 p.m.--taxiing. It's a very long drive to the runway! We took off at 8:10, one hour late. Dinner was great. I had the salmon and wild rice; Martine had beef and green beans. I watched Chicago and The Life of David Gale.
We are now barely 200 miles from London. It's 5:20 a.m. Los Angeles time. I hardly slept because this seat feels as it if were designed by a medieval torture specialist! Oh, well, in 30 minutes we'll be there!
England was beautiful from the air. It was a patchwork of shades of green. Before I knew it, we were on the ground!
We had quite an adventure going from Heathrow to Victoria on the Tube. Kind natives helped us purchase the correct tickets, and we went on the Paddington line to Acton, then caught the District line to Victoria Train Station. There was no elevator there, so we schlepped the bags up the stairs. We were just a block from Buckingham Palace!
We walked a couple of blocks in the wrong direction, then turned back the right way. Hot and tired, we arrived at the Hanover Hotel. Hanover Hotel is part of a quaint row of hotels, bed-and-breakfasts, and apartments that are nearly identical on St. George's Drive. We chose a first-floor-up room with just a shower. It's small, but adequate for our needs.
After we freshened up, we went out to look for dinner and postcards. We ate at a bright and airy pub called The Shakespeare. Fish and chips! It came with a side of split peas. We should have shared an order, there was so much. We sat across from the Thistle Hotel, a beautiful old building, and watched the double-decker buses bustle by.
Next we walked down Buckingham Palace Blvd. We found a great place to buy postcards. I bought 30 small ones and three special ones for the scrapbook. From there we walked on to Buckingham Palace and took pictures of the impressive gates and imposing statue of Queen Victoria in front of the palace. From there we could see the London Eye and a beautifully, festively decorated boulevard closed to motor traffic.
Martine took some interesting pictures the first day: graffiti, a cab with flames painted on the side (like her Converse shoes), and a "give way" sign. She'll have an interesting scrapbook!
We were off on time to Victoria Coach Station, where we checked in, had breakfast at Burger King, and used the ATM before meeting our bus. We were on the road at 9:00 in a beautiful red bus, air-conditioned and plush. Our guide was Godfrey, "God" for short.
Our first stop was Westminster Abbey, a beautiful church full of history. We said prayers at 10:00, saw the resting places of kings and poets, and saw the coronation chair used for hundreds of years. I bought our first souvenirs.
We had to dash off to Buckingham Palace for the changing of the guard. It wasn't what I thought it would be, but I liked it still. Next we drove around a bit and saw the Thames for the first time. Then it was off to lunch at The Silver Cross pub. We had meat pies, which were very good.
After lunch we went for a 30-minute cruise on the Thames from Westminster Bridge to the Tower Bridge. I took way too many pictures of the beautiful and interesting buildings along the way.
We disembarked at the Tower of London, where we spent two hours perusing the Crown jewels, suits of armor, and the various buildings there. I was surprised to see how much land and how many buildings were included in the keep. I got my picture taken with a Beefeater!
Finally we ended the tour by dropping people near their hotels, so we got to see Hyde Park, Fleet Street, Harrods, and other points of interest.
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After a moment's rest, we headed out again. We bought Tube tickets (on the wrong line) and headed through the (wrong) turnstile. Kindly employees helped us to the right train and we were off--two stops to Parliament and the Thames. We got to take picture we couldn't have taken from the bus. We headed down Victoria Embankment in search of food and adventures. We found adventure in the form of the homeless and mentally ill (who inhabit the area after the government types go home for the day), and food at an Italian restaurant. By the time we finished eating, the lights were on along the river. We walked over the Hungerford walkway in both directions, getting some fabulous pictures. |
We reluctantly headed back toward Victoria, where I refused to go the rest of the way without ice cream. One McDonald's stop later, we headed back to the hotel.
We were awed by the Queen's stables. I found myself wondering what her house must look like if her stables were so grand! Her horses wear more expensive outfits than my wardrobe for my entire life!
Besides the horses' gear, there were carriages as well. The one used in the coronation was awesome! It looked small on television, but it is quite large. We got some great pictures.
After the Mews, we finally got started on the day's plan: walk down the Mall past St. James' Park and Palace to Trafalgar Square. I had planned to go to the National Gallery, but I was tuckered out and they didn't have any of my favorite artists. We rested in Trafalgar Square, but the fountains were turned off for repairs. We bought a Tube pass and went to Piccadilly Circus. Here there was a younger, more unconventional crowd. There were many American establishments there: The Gap and the Disney Store to name two. We ate a very inexpensive lunch at OnAnon that was surprisingly good. I had beef on a baguette and Martine had a cheeseburger.
We walked down Regent's Street looking for a post office, but instead found the Disney Store. After a purchase there (how could we resist?) we were back on the Tube to Harrods.
I was disappointed that we couldn't take pictures in Harrods, but it was great to see the Egyptian Hall and the Food Halls. I was pleased to see that I could afford many things there. We walked, we looked, we used the loo; we even bought something!
After this I was exhausted from hauling my bag around, swollen as it was with souvenirs and an umbrella that chased away the rain, so we took the Tube back to the hotel. We lightened our load and rested our feet while we looked for something else to explore. We had Zone 1 passes, but we found that most of the points of interest we hadn't seen yet would have been closed. We were also pretty tired out, so we took the bus to a Subway sandwich/internet cafe we saw by the station. The plan was to eat dinner and check our e-mail, but the credit machines were down. We ate and waited for someone to fix them, but no one did. Many potential customers walked out.
We gave up and headed for the bus stop, detouring to hunt for ice cream. We found a little shop in the station that sold ice cream bars. I tried a Galaxy bar, and it was really tasty! Now back to the hotel to rest up for tomorrow's tour.
Today we had another bus tour, this time to Stonehenge and Bath. We set off shortly after 9:00 and crept through the city traffic. Our guide pointed out places of interest along the way and imparted bits of trivia that were interesting and fun. It seems that four-poster beds with canopies were the invention of housewives who didn't want the detritus of birds and rodents falling into the open mouths of their husbands from the thatched roof above! Driving on the left originated in the days when a man might have to defend his woman or goods from robbers, so he kept oncoming traffic on his sword/club/pistol side. (Everyone had to be right handed, because lefties were "evil.") In some Edwardian-era buildings, some windows were stoned up to reduce the tax burden, since taxes were assessed per window.
The countryside as we passed through the Salisbury plain was exquisite. There were patchwork fields in varying shades of green, with an occasional field of yellow ripening grain or red flowers. There were hedgerows and dry stone walls (no mortar). There were cows and sheep and pigs.
As we approached Stonehenge, the guide passed around an artist's rendering of what it originally looked like. With a pattern of depressions around the outside, a ring of capped stones, then an inner ring of arches, it really resembled a crop circle! Coincidentally (or not), a crop circle appeared very close by in recent years, and they appear all over the plain, especially in July.
Stonehenge is a marvel of engineering that was built at a time when the local people didn't use the wheel. I took a picture of one rock that looked very odd: at the bottom some rock had been chipped away, but underneath, the rock was rectangular and a different color. It reminded me of a Disney rock, where under the "rock" there is a steel post! It was very cold on the plain and threatening rain, so I was glad to go in the gift shop and buy some postcards. Then in the bus again, and on to Bath!
Bath is in a hilly area, so the green fields and hedgerows were even more striking. The local limestone is honey-colored, and a decision was made long ago to use it throughout the town for uniformity. The architecture was stunning. Mostly Edwardian, it had soaring heights, lovely windows, and beautiful gewgaws adorning the walls.
Bath is rife with history and trivia. The first postage stamp--anywhere ever--was issued here. (English stamps don't state the country name because they were the first; other countries that copied the practice had to name the country of origin on their stamps.)
Bath was once a magnet to overweight, middle-aged, hypochondriac women and, consequently, quack doctors. The quacks prescribed patent cures and pampered their well-to-do clients out of their money. Here was invented the first wheelchair, a wicker chair with wheels, called a Bath chair.
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Of course, before any of this could happen, there were the Romans, who discovered and developed the hot spring only the Celts had seen before. The ruins were impressive; so were the restorations made by the Victorians. They built directly on to the ancient ruins the Edwardians hadn't known existed. The style matched the Roman in some ways, such as having statuary around the main pool. They did not, however, enclose the roof as the Romans had done. |
Another trip to the gift shop, and I was on my way into the village to find (all by myself) the Jane Austen Centre. To understand the implications of this, you must remember that Martine has been serving as guide and pulling me out of the path of thundering coaches!
Despite myself, I found the Centre and made a quick purchase. I walked back through town, crossing streets successfully, and arrived back at the baths.
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Next to the bath stands a beautiful Abbey. It has delicate architecture and tiny-pieced stained glass windows. I gulped down a quick lunch, then just made the bus in time for the 2+ hour trip back to London.
Traffic was heavy in the city, unusually so according to our guide, so we walked several blocks to Victoria station. We were able to use the internet cafe this time, so we quickly checked our e-mail and went in search of a hot meal on a cold evening. |
We ended up back at The Shakespeare, the first pub we tried, but this time ordered the scampi. It was delicious, and with some hot tea, warmed us up nicely. On the way back to the hotel we tried unsuccessfully to buy some postage stamps, but we did finally get a line on the location of the nearest post office. Now off to bed: another big day tomorrow!
This was our most ambitious tour yet, and I'm glad we saved it for last. We went to Oxford, then Stratford-on-Avon, then Warwick Castle. We dashed out and picked up film before heading to the coach station. We gulped down a quick breakfast before boarding the bus. To our surprise, the guide was Godfrey again, so we spent another day with "God."
We headed out of town into the beautiful countryside. There were high clouds, and the hills were varying shades of green. After more than an hour on the road, we entered Oxford. What a beautiful old city!
We learned that Oxford first became a university when scholars were evicted from France. They went to the monks at Oxford to continue their education, which took 7-10 years. Over time, new colleges opened and pushed the town farther out of the center. There were violent clashes between the townspeople and scholars from time to time!
Sir Christopher Wren designed some of the buildings, but they are all quite beautiful. The town was resplendent with flowers. All too soon, we had to get back on the road and visit Stratford-on-Avon.
We toured the house where Shakespeare was born. His own house was destroyed by a later owner who got tired of being bothered by tourists! It was incredible to walk the same floorboards as his family and to see how they lived.
The garden was so beautiful. I don't know what it is about English gardens: they appear unplanned and even overgrown, but they are so enticing and charming! I wanted to see River Avon, but we couldn't walk that far in the time we had. We gulped down a sandwich and hopped back on the bus.
On the bus trip between destinations both days we saw historic and interesting sights. Yesterday we saw Jane Seymour's castle and Windsor, where the Queen is this week. Today we saw where Bill Clinton, Margaret Thatcher, and J.R.R.Tolkien went to school in Oxford.
At length we arrived at Warwick Castle. It is now owned and run by Tussaud's. They have done a wonderful job turning it into a tourist-friendly and educational venue. They had set up medieval-themed games for visiting schoolchildren. They allow visitors to handle armor. They have set up wax figures to illustrate the life of the castle at varying points in its long history. It was fascinating. They had a figure of Diana, Princess of Wales in the dining hall. I had my picture made with it. It looked to lifelike and real--the skin was amazing. She was truly lovely.
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After we toured the dungeon, medieval section, state rooms, and 1980's vignettes--oh, and the Ghost Tower--we climbed the lowest tower and took spectacular pictures of the surrounding area. Back to the Ghost Tower: it relates to a previous owner who stabbed by a servant who feared he was was being eliminated from the master's will. It took the lord a month to die from his wounds! The Tower wasn't all that spooky, but I was in great fear for my life as I descended an ancient spiral staircase in extremely dim light with no handrail! |
Again, too soon it was time to reboard the bus for a 2-hour ride back to London. We couldn't help but nap after our busy day. We had dinner at another Italian restaurant. I treated myself to a sumptous dessert!
When we got back to the hotel we called home to wish Meg a happy birthday. Now I'm off to wash my hair. We move at our own pace tomorrow, thank goodness!
