London, Baby! Part 1.

Friday afternoon, Daniel came home from work and after locking up and loading our bags, we were off for Bush Intercontinental! I can't explain the excitement and anticipation we felt. We've been looking forward to this trip for such a long time. Funny enough, Barbara and Roger were on their way to the airport to pick up Mel and were kind enough to give us a lift to our terminal so that we didn't have to ride the shuttle. 30 minutes later, our bags were checked and we were through security - no problem.

Our beautiful plane. Thank you, Lord for a safe flight!

We're all smiles and all ready to go.

Woohoo! A little drink at no extra charge.

Thank goodness for these little tvs. There were plenty of good movies to keep us occupied.

8.5 hour flight, and we're loving it! There's so much to look forward to on the other side. The flight wasn't easy, don't get me wrong. We popped a Tylenol PM and tried our best to sleep. Daniel didn't have as much luck as I did, and my sleep was more like a frequently interrupted four hour nap. Too bad we flew right past London and landed in Paris. We had a quick turn around, found our gate and were back on a plane. By mid morning, we'd landed in London and were facing customs...super rude woman greeted us so we traded her and all her questions for a man who spoke very little and had a lot less attitude. We found our bags easily, and began wandering around looking for the train. A nice lady gave us more specific information and we found the proper line to purchase tickets and get on the platform. A few noisy girls in togas helped us make a switch from the Picadilly Line to the District Line and we were headed to the Victoria Coach Station.

The train was a great means of transportation, but it really isn't intended for heavy luggage and it certainly isn't feasible for more than one bag per person. We unloaded and I was disheartened to see that I had two flights of stairs to climb with my big suitcase. A sweet young man accidentally stepped on my flip flop and seeing what trouble I was having lugging my bag up, he picked up the bottom end of my suitcase. Thank you, stranger! The streets of London were hustle and bustle around the station. We knew that we were close to our hotel, but had no idea what direction to head in .

I approached a family in this bar and a great guy named Paul offered to help us find Ebury Street. He insisted on pulling my bag around town... NOTHING says tourist like a life sized bright fuschia rolling suitcase. We accidentally went 10 minutes the wrong way and had to back track, but eventually it was time to say goodbye to Paul and we were walking towards The Lynton Hotel. We checked in, showered and changed clothes before hitting the town. We weren't willing to waste any daylight, but after being awake for almost 33 hours, our eyes were burning.

It was defintely time for a coffee! There were Starbucks on nearly every street corner. Yay!

Feeling somewhat refreshed, but needing something more, we were on the hunt for lunch. Plane food was not phenomenal at all. See the above sign outside The Shakespeare...every single sign read fish, chips and peas. Seeing as how that appeared to be the staple in London, we entered a pub and braved it. Woah, not even worthy of a photo. Let's just say that I am not a fan of fried cod. Oh well. Time to see the sights! We left the pub and followed the signs down Buckingham Palace Road, feeling sure that we would find something worth looking at.


The outside of the Royal Mews, quite protected as you can see. This is where the state vehicles are housed: both horse drawn carriages and motor cars. Also found here are the stables for the working horses that are used for royal ceremonies.

Before I knew it, I had rounded the corner and was staring Buckingham Palace in the face. Wow! The building itself isn't overly elaborate, but is still beautiful. The palace gates are adorned with gold. I loved the crosses and the fleur de lis.

Buckingham Palace has served as the official London residence of Britain's sovereigns since 1837 and today is the administrative headquarters of the Monarch. This place has 775 rooms!

The cypher of King Edward VII. Anyone know what the R is for...is this something they retained after Queen Victoria Regina died?

One of the mermen on the fountain under the Queen Victoria Memorial.

The Queen Victoria statue placed at the center of the Queen's Gardens in front of Buckingham Palace.

Victoria...she was lovely, was she not?

We LOVE walking around London.

Some guy that is part of the Victoria memorial. I like his lion.

The Mall, opposite of Buckingham Palace.

For my Daniel.

We walked Diana's memorial walk through St. James Park.

A few treasures...

Because we were in the city of Westminster, but I wanted it to stand for Wilson.

Woohoo! A traditional double decker bus, London style! I love that this one is old fashioned.

Daniel loves the Royal Guards, too bad we didn't see one in this getup in person!

The Guard's Museum.

Part of the Churchhill Museum.

The 20th Century Martyrs on the entrance to Westminster Abbey. These 10 statues represent people from all continents who die due to persecution.

Unfortunately, we took too long eating, walking, looking and Westminster Abbey was closed by the time we were there. Of course, the next day was Sunday so we wouldn't be able to see the inside at all.

Good thing the ouside is INCREDIBLY GORGEOUS!


Houses of Parliament, Palace of Westminister


BIG BEN!


I love this flag.

A shot from Westminister Bridge. Beautiful!

Daniel took me for a ride on the London Eye...the largest ferris wheel in Europe. The view was breathtaking.


Daniel was so sweet and carried my backpack all around Europe. I owe him big time!

We could see all of London! Here's the River Thames.

Big Ben and lots of governmental buildings.

We walked along the river and saw lots of funny street people.


We headed back across the Hungerford Footbridge towards Trafalgar Square.

Our walk had an official name. I love these beautiful emblems in the street.

Trafalgar Square... King Charles I, Nelson's Column and the National Gallery.

One of four large, bronze lions at the base of Nelson's Column in Trafalgar Square.

The National Gallery

King Charles I.

Nelson's Column

St. Martin in The Fields

A view of Big Ben from Trafalgar Square.
Time to walk back towards the hotel and find some dinner. We're soooo ready to crash.

More monuments. King George IV.

Captain James Cook.

Mounted Policemen

Admiralty Arch.

Love the old cab with the modern day police truck behind it.

We found a brand new monument...it wasn't even on the map we were using!

King George VI and Queen Elizabeth . Beautiful statues.





Taking a break! We're beat!

The star is our hotel...all the circles on the left side of the river are places we walked. My feet hurt!


Walking back to the hotel...for whatever reason, all the red phone booths were covered in grafiti.

Check out his weapon! Guards stood all along the mall.

They certainly don't walk like marines...they swing those arms around wildly, pull their knees up to their waist and stomp their feet. Oorah, anyday!
After being awake for over a day, walking lots of miles and having eaten a terrible lunch, it was time for dinner. We made our way back to the Victoria Coach Station where we found normal looking restaurants. Garfunkel's it was. We shared garlic, cheese ciabatta bread that we both loved. I had a coke with ice - yay! and chicken parmesan while Daniel had a beer and garlic and herb flavored chicken with mashed potatoes. GREAT dinner after a long but great day. Time to retire to the room. Goodnight, London!