"There's nowhere else like London. Nothing at all, anywhere."
Vivienne Westwood
July 4th Day Twelve
Highlights of the Day!
Items listed in blue are things we did with the group. Day Twelve: Train to London Visit to British Library Bus tour of London Guided tour of Westminster Abbey Tube orientation to Leister Square Theatre to see Top Hat
The bus tour of London was fun. We got to see areas that we hadn't explored before. Plus we got up close to Buckingham Palace!
We really enjoy going to the theatre in London!
British Library
Sometimes it is nice to see things a second time! We had visited the British Library on the London tour last year. However there is so much to see here that it was lovely to get to see it again!
Westminster Abbey
At the end of the tours, our brains are so full of history and knowledge that sometimes it is hard to remember what was what. The tour of the Abbey was a perfect round up of all that we had learned the past few weeks as many of the memorials touched on people and places we had learned about during the tour. Plus, we got to see Ben, the vicar, who is now famous for doing cartwheels down the aisle of the Abbey after the royal wedding!
July 5th Day Thirteen
Highlights of the Day!
Items listed in blue are things we did with the group.
Visit to Hampton Court Palace Platform 9 3/4 Last dinner with the Group!
King's Cross Station is fun to visit, specially if you are a Harry Potter fan!
Platform 9 3/4 is the place for muggles and wizards to visit!
Hampton Court Palace
The rest of the tour group was visiting the Tower of London, which we had seen on our last trip. So we decided to spend the day exploring something new to us, Hampton Court Palace. This was the home of Henry the VIII, among others. Tom had given us excellent advice about how to get there on the train and what we might enjoy seeing. There is so much to see at Hampton Court it would be impossible to see it all in one day. We enjoyed the special exhibit, "Secrets of the Bedchambers." Be sure to pick up the audio guide when visiting, it was excellent!
The gardens are gorgeous and huge!
Henry the VIII was even strolling the Palace!
July 6th Day Fourteen
Highlights of the Day!
Items listed in blue are things we did with the group.
Good Bye Breakfast with Tom (The end of the tour!) Walked and explored London Picnic in the hotel room
Our free day in London...
We felt like we were almost London experts since taking the tours! Thanks to Rick and his guides, we were very comfortable using the Tube, exploring the streets, and being a temporary local! We had several thoughts of things we might do on our last day in London. However, we ended up not doing any of those things! The temperature was very warm, and London was very busy! We spent the day walking around, stopping into interesting stores to cool off, and then making our way back to our hotel! We had a room picnic for dinner, took our shoes off, and relaxed! We needed to rest because our adventure was not over yet, in the morning we were taking the Euro Star train to Paris.
Thank you, Tom!
I could go on for days about how wonderful Tom was. He had us laughing everyday. Not only was he fun and interesting to chat with, but he was so knowledgeable with the history and facts of the places we visited. He tried to make everyone feel special and a part of the group. Thank you, Tom! We are really glad we got to experience England with you!
Rebecca is a HUGE Harry Potter fan! So this trip was magical for her.
The maze at Hampton Court was a fun challenge!
We had seen so many statues, Rebecca decided to try it out!