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I awoke early to the noise of the street. We could hear the shops being set up in the street. There were many people on the street very early. When we went out we found that most places were closed for Sunday. Seems so strange for us because everything is open at home. (Just like finding things in England and here closing so early, by five or six in the afternoon).

We went to the Eiffel Tower. It is within walking distance of our hotel. It was wonderful. We had to wait in line over an hour. The line was moving most of the time so it didn’t seem so long. I loved being up there looking around. We had been told to try the chicken curry served there but could not find it. However we did find find a post office up in the Eiffel Tower. It was fun sending some post cards from there. And, of course, there was a gift shop. Around the tower we saw military people carrying what appeared to be automatic weapons. We wondered if something had happened or if something was expected to happen but no one else even seemed curious.

We also visited the ecole militaire (the military academy of France). It is on the same grounds as the Eiffel Tower. This is the military academy attended by Napoleon. Out in front people were enjoying the day by walking along in family groups or playing soccer with friends.

We ate dinner at a small French restaurant. Chloe and I had frog legs which we had not had before. They were served with a butter sauce. We both liked them and would eat them again. Trista was not hungry yet and decided to wait until a little later. That was a mistake as everything had closed in just a short while and she ended up getting nothing.

We took the train and underground to the station to catch the Erurostar train to Paris. It was very stressful because we had our luggage (hard! and we had only half, or less, than what we are taking home) and our tickets had not arrived. The tickets were guaranteed to arrive and here we were not even sure if we could get on a train.

Finally arriving at the Waterloo station we went to the “immediate travel” office. A clerk in the office felt sorry for us and talked to a manager who sold us tickets at a reduced rate. Not as good as receiving our tickets but better than having to pay full price again. We went through to the waiting lounge until boarding the train. Trista and Chloe had seats together at a four person table while I was seated behind them with another woman. She was from Paris and when learning I was visiting Paris for the first time said the city was lovely and I would love it. After a while no one had joined the girls and I moved to their table. The trip only took just over two hours.

Upon arriving we learned quickly how hard it is to be in a country where we do not speak the language. We could not find the area to buy underground tickets and could not find anyone who could figure out what we were talking about. We finally found out where to buy underground (Metro) tickets. (On the bottom floor) We bought a five day pass which saved us money over daily tickets or, I am sure, trip tickets.Trista found our way to the correct train and connections and brought us to our street, Rue De Cler. It is a very nice street with lots of street markets and shops and restaurants. The street is very pretty and just what you would think of as a “Paris” street.

Checking into our hotel we found that it is good for the price. My cousins had traveled to Paris a couple years ago and the economy hotel they stayed in had much to be desired so we were quite happy. We were on the third floor and the elevator was so small it barely held one person with their luggage. We had two twin beds and a clean bathroom on the front of the hotel so we could look out onto the street.

Since it was early evening we found a place to eat on our street. Of course we chose Trista and my favorite, Italian. We ate at Caffe Vergnano. Trista and I found the food to be very good. Chloe was not as happy but Italian is not her favorite either.

After a long day we are very excited to be in Paris!

The girls didn’t want to get going this morning. Busy days and late evenings are catching up with them. Chloe and I took the train into Redhill and let Trista sleep a little bit longer. We stopped in the library to look around and bought an extra suitcase for the trip home. When we got back to the flat we left for Windsor.

We met a woman at the train station from the US. She is living in England now with her British husband. She had a baby with her and said she had a son in school. She told us that the schools were not good but mostly because the children misbehave so much. She could not wait to to move back to the states and said it would be before the baby went to school for sure. Interesting. We have seen many very young people smoking and asking for money in the streets of Redhill.

The train ride was nice and not too long. Windsor is about 20 miles west of London on the Thames river. Then it was a walk UPHILL (of course) to the castle. The queen still lives and entertains at Windsor. Windsor castle has been a royal residence for about 1000 years and it is the largest of the castles.

We got audio guides to use throughout our tour. They are used many places and they are quite good. They work very well and tell much interesting information. It was exciting to think we were walking up stairs or sitting in chairs the royals (and guests) had just used. The original artwork still displayed was wonderful. The beds are short but very luxurious. Lots of deep colors. The castle is so big it is no wonder they charge and let visitors come. It must be so expensive to maintain. We were there for many hours; they were closing so we had to leave.

Walking back through town we browsed in some shops. I must explain what happened next. I had been carrying a large manilla envelope under my arm most of the day looking for a place to mail it. I finally found a post box large enough to accept it. As we were in one of the shops I found a book about London written in Spanish that would be a perfect gift for a young friend who is studying Spanish. I stuck it under my arm so I could look in another bin. I bought a few gifts in the shop and we went on down the hill toward the train station. In a little while I realized I had that Spanish book still stuck under my arm where I was used to the feel of the manilla envelope. I could not believe it and was horrified. I wanted to return the book immediately but the shops were now closed! Trista and Chloe thought it was funny because I was so upset and I am sure will tease me about it forever!

Since everything closes so early we returned to the flat. We have a big day tomorrow.

I am starting to feel there are not enough days left. We leave Saturday for France! We did alot today. I am getting tired. It seems as if everything is up stairs!

We visited the Tower of London. We had a person take us around on a tour. He was a soldier called a “beefeater”. They have been called this for centuries because people were poor but the solders were thought to have more money and could afford to eat beef. After the tour we were free to look around on our own outside. Ravens are always kept on the grounds because they are considered good luck. Not for me! A bird pooped on my face! Luckily I had a wipe. We saw the crown jewels and the chapel among many interesting things. The tower is still considered a royal residence.

We then went to the London Eye. It was worth the long lines. It consists of several large glass cubicles on a large wheel like a ferris wheel. You can stand inside the glass capsule or there is a bench. It went over 400 feet up in the air and we could see all of London. It was wonderful.

We took the underground to Leicester Square for theater tickets again. It was very crowded. They were having the London premier for a film at the movie theater. Apparently it is a common theater for this. We were able to get tickets for the play “Chicago”. I had seen the movie before and while the play was different it was still good. My niece had not seen the movie and thought it was very good since she had nothing to compare it to. I love the theater in London. There are so many choices that are so easy to get to.

We went to Canterbury today. It was a few train changes. Once there, we bought tour tickets for the tour bus. It was a hop on and off wherever tour. We also bought tickets for Canterbury Tales (which was good!). We also visited the Canterbury Cathedral. I love these places. I know you can worship God anywhere but I think cathedrals are so cool.

Canterbury is divided into “Quarters”. We visited the northern quarter. It included “downtown”. I liked the shops and watching the people (there were lots of people). We also found the “crooked red door”. The whole area was “tipping” from ground movement. People used to come to see the buildings. The city came in and fixed them. One business owner did not want them to fix it. But, the city insisted it would only get worse. So they let the owner keep the door frame and door at the angle it had been. So, you can see how the whole street had been. The door is painted red and people come just to see the “crooked red door”. It looked funny.

Trista had been to Canterbury in warmer weather and recommends the walking tour. She was able to see many things and learn a lot about the city and history. We needed more time but had only planned one day and with darkness coming everything closed early.

We had planned to go to Canterbury today but the girls slept in so we will go tomorrow. We are going back to London. I could go to London every day, there is so much to see. First we stopped in Redhill for Trista to do a few errands.

We went to the British Museum. It is HUGE! Trista had been before so she sat in the lobby with a book. Chloe and I had a really good time. We spent several hours and did not see it all. We were just worn out. It was not just on Britain. There were exhibits on Greece, Rome, Egypt and more. The whole thing was really good. The museum was really busy but so big there were always things you could see.

We then took the underground (I love it!) to Camden to the “Market” The market is an area of open air shops with a variety of vendors. We saw many things of interest but they were closing. Everything closes early in England. However we were able to look around a little and we will go back another day.

Yesterday we walked to Redhill to church. It seemed quite a ways to me but Trista kept assuring us we were almost there! We attended Holy Trinity Church which is a different type of church from what I am used to but it was a good service. They served tea with milk during fellowship time. I drink tea regularly at home but not with milk so it was interesting.

After taking the train back to Merstham in the afternoon we walked to the launderette. We forgot our laundry tablets so had to buy new. We Americans are so used to our cars! I am sure that if we had to walk back a time or two we would be more careful.

In the evening we decided to go to a movie. The closest movie theater was in Crawley. We took the train and it was very cold and raining hard. Upon arriving by train we found everything closed up (Sunday and evening). Trista called the movie theater and learned it was probably too late to make a movie and we did not exactly know how to get there. We ended up getting on a train back to Merstham. Not much of a day.

Today we went to Oxford. It was a beautiful train ride. The countryside was wonderful. It was very cold but we really liked Oxford and could easily have spent another day there. We paid for the bus tour which worked out very well. It was a hop on and off type with someone on the bus telling about the sights. You could get on and off as much as you wanted throughout the day. It was a good system and we used it all day.

We climbed up the Carfax Tower. It said at the bottom there were 99 steps and it sounded like SO many. But I paid and up I went. It was not too bad climbing and at the top you stop outside to a spectacular view of the city. It was well worth the climb. We also visited the Oxford Tower. It had 101 steps! The first part was a guided tour followed by a self guided tour with head phones. I really enjoyed the tower. It had been a prison and it was interesting seeing how things had worked and what some people had been imprisoned for.

We really should have planned more time in Oxford. We missed so much!

We took the trains into London today. Our main purpose in going was to see the changing of the guard at the palace at 11:30 AM. We reached the palace only to see a sign stating it would happen tomorrow. They said they must have forgotten to change the sign the other day when we were there. Great!
So, we went to Westminster Abbey. The lines were huge so we walked on over to the London Eye. This is an observation wheel that goes, I believe, 443 feet into the air. The large glass cubicles are great for seeing the city. However, the line went on forever. Acturally two lines; first a line for tickets, then the line for the Eye itself. We decided to have lunch and come back to the London Eye on another day. We could not find a restaurant that would take my Visa and ended up eating at McDonalds! We were all disappointed.
We went back to Westminster Abbey but it was closed so we got in line to attend the evening song service. As we waited inside in line to be let back into the back chapel area we saw the burial places of some people. What surprised us the most was that Charles Darwin is buried there. He died in 1882 and because he was a moral man and not unfamiliar with church he was allowed a burial spot in the Abbey. Anyway becuase we were near the front of the line we were seated right by the singers. It was very nice to hear a service sung.
We then used the underground to get to Knightsbridge and went to Harrods. The store was nice but very expensive. We did have a Krispy Kreme donut. Chloe was also able to purchase a gift there. My daughter needed to consult with a doctor and there was a walk in clinic right in the store. The doctor was funny. He had a very strange, heavy accent and he said “I will look at you and I will cure you”. Ultimately, he did not.
Over all we had a good day even though we did not accomplish much. We did enjoy walking around and just looking at the sights and the evening song service was very good.

We went to Brighton today. Brighton is on the southern coast about 50 miles from London. Trista went to visit there last summer and said it was a fun and pretty place. The beach was nice with volleyball courts, basketball courts, wading pool and a fountain. There was also a skate park. However, when we went to visit today it was cold and very rainy. The wind blew so hard people were having a hard time standing up!

We walked to the Royal Pavillion before visiting the pier. It was built by King George before he was a king. He moved to Brighton when he was just 21 years old and started the building. He used the footprint of a farmhouse to start and made a huge, beautiful place. Now it is open to the public as an exhibit. We also visited the Brighton Museum and Art Gallery. It had some very good peices. I expecially liked the mummy case and the furniture from different periods (i.e. craftsman, art deco, etc.). We ate at Harry Ramsden’s fish and chip restaurant. I liked the fish and chips but it was served with mushy peas which I did not like. Why mash your peas?

We did go out on the pier even though the weather was storming. It is a very nice place with food vendors and, of course, the arcade. There were many games to choose from. With the bad weather there were very few people. Not at all like what my daughter had described from the warm months. Even with the waves crashing you could see that in better weather it would be a beautiful place to spend time.It was storming so hard we decided to take a bus back up to the train station. However the hostess at the restaurant had told us it would be cheaper with three of us to take a taxi. The taxi driver drove us around for a while (we could see some things we had passed more than once). It took us longer than it should have but it was still less expensive than the bus.

I must say I love the train and underground system in England. You can get anywhere fairly easily. Also, today I bought a family pass for the train and underground which will save us even more money. Well worth it!

Today we went to London and I was so excited I was up early! My daughter, Trista, was also excited to show us the city. It was pretty rainy for the morning but just cool in the afternoon. We spent the whole day in London and had a very busy day. First I learned at the train station that we could buy all day passes that covered all our train and underground trips. That saved us alot of money.

We rode into Victoria Station on the train. It was huge. There were probably hundreds of people. Next we walked to Buckingham Palace. I was surprised by the litter but there was no one panhandling. The area of the palace itself was very nice and even with a crowd it was calm. We did not get to see the changing of the guard because they do not do it every day and we were there on the “off” day.

Then we rode the underground to Picadilly Circus. Mostly because I just wanted to see it. My neice, Chloe, didn’t really understand why but I am a baby boomer and had heard of it most of my life. We also visited Oxford Road, the Jane Norman Store, and Selfridges. We did a little shopping along the way but not at Selfridges because it had alot of couture. That is out of my price range. We had lunch at a little Italian place called LaLocanda. We ordered lasagna and pizza and both were very good and the prices were good too.

In the afternoon we visited Licester Square, a very busy place. There were many shops in the area that we visited but the main attraction for us was looking for discount theater tickets. We found tickets to “Wicked” showing this evening at the Apollo Victoria Theater. The show was great. I wish we could afford to see many shows but even purchasing discount tickets it was a bit expensive. We had great seats where we could see and hear well. I was worried that we were not dressed appropriately because we had been out and about all day but when we arrived at the theater we found people were dressed in a multitude of ways. Some, like us, were very casual while others wore business attire and yet others wore formal evening wear.

So, we spent the whole day and evening in London. We took the train in and out and rode the underground many times. We also walked for miles! I have a blister on my toe to show for it. I would recommend London to you all.