Neckties & Earl Grey Skies

Recap

My boys have been dreaming of going into the big city since we told them we were planning to move to England. Jack couldn’t wait to go on the London Eye to get a great view of Big Ben and Will couldn’t wait to visit Tower Bridge, which he referred to as London Bridge (which is completely different). We made it to London our first weekend here. We drove into Paddington Station and traveled to see the sights from there.

The London Eye is a 30-minute long enclosed Ferris wheel ride on the south bank of the River Thames, giving you beautiful and complete views of many sights in London. I recommend making a reservation, as we were able to skip long lines and hop right on. Pictured above was our favorite view of the Houses of Parliament and Big Ben.

The kids found a sweet playground next to the London Eye, called Jubilee Gardens. It was crowded on this Sunday (and again over school holiday when we came back 5 days later). It is a nice place to get some fresh air and allow for some climbing/running around between sight seeing. Highly recommend.

Shakespeare’s Globe Theater.

London Bridge.

Tower Bridge!!! We walked and walked and walked to get from the London Eye to the Tower Bridge but it was well worth it.

We climbed the 206 steps to the top and then walked across the glass bottom bridge (!).

We made it back into the city, completely by train, 5 days later when my parents came to visit. We set out to see the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace and the boys were dying to do a double-decker bus tour. I think they envisioned a thrilling, roller-coaster-type ride when in reality, it was calm, slow-moving, and extremely informative. My parents and I envisioned being able to see the guards up-close. In reality, we gathered with hundreds of thousands to not really see much.

I am not sure what the trick is yet to a better view of the Changing of the Guard Ceremony but I imagine it has to do with arriving earlier and perhaps not during school holiday. The double decker tour was (although not thrilling) a huge success. It was a great way to see the city and have live commentary about the buildings we were looking at. Highlights include Big Ben (or the Elizabeth Tower), the Houses of Parliament, Tower Bridge, Queen Elizabeth I Statue, Twinings on the Strand, St. Paul’s Cathedral, and London Tower. The first bus we hopped on was a recorded tour. The second had a live tour guide and he was entertaining and informative. I would do it again (and so would the kids!). We have much more to see in London and hope to do an overnight in the big city soon.

Lessons Learned

1. Have little to no expectations.
2. Plan better for the Changing of the Guard Ceremony.
3. Upload and have access to train schedules, underground/”The Tube” schedules on your phone.
4. Ask kind appearing people for directions when you are unsure. I asked a nice looking “mum” on the train for directions and it turns out she is a parent of one of Will’s classmates.
5. Kids under the age of 16 ride the train for free.

New Vocabulary Gems

“On Halls” – “halls” (spelled phonetically) is short for “holiday”, which is what school vacation or vacation week is called here

“Jumper” – a sweater.

“Smart” – looking clean and neat, well-dressed