London Vacation 2019

I wrote this on the way back from our trip to London, but I am just now getting around to posting it and adding pictures. Enjoy. 

I’m sitting on a British Airways flight with about 5 ½ hours ahead of me to kill. We just took our first international family trip to London, and it was wonderful! It was a little busy, but for the most part, we enjoyed everything we did, and realized quickly that we were only going to be able to scratch the surface of all that London and surrounding areas have to offer. While it’s still semi-fresh in my mind, I’ll document each day.

Day 1 – Monday

We arrived in London after an 8 hour flight at about 8:30am, which was 3:30am Tampa time. None of us slept well on the plane, but the girls got a couple hours, and the adults at least tried. Lee and I even got special inflatable pillows that let you rest forward, rather than the neck pillows, which never looked comfortable to me. If I could have slept, that’s how I would have, but between the lights and sounds around me and my restless legs, I just couldn’t. There were lots of media options, which was fun, so I watched Mary Queen of Scots to get in the mood for our trip. 

Sweet sleepers on the airplane.

When we landed, we made it through the long “passport control” line, only to find out that they don’t stamp the passports – something we’d talked up a bit since the girls were using their passports for the first time. Oops! We rented an airbnb flat, but it wasn’t going to be ready until 3pm, so we took our time getting out of the airport and stopped for breakfast there. This was our first lesson in differences between American and English cafes. Lee and I both wanted oatmeal, so we both ordered it separately, and neither attendant understood us (both thought we said “oat milk,” which is funny that they understood that before oatmeal – we’d soon learn that the cafes have several alternative milks, often including oat milk). We both figured out that it’s called porridge, and it’s pre-made with milk, so it’s more mushy. We also realized soon enough that there is no such thing as just “coffee” – all the coffee drinks are espresso-based, hence the drink, Americano. Now I understand why they needed a name for this drink, for all the Americans asking for coffee, which to them is just water added to espresso. Evie had a ham, cheese, and croissant sandwich (not exactly new, but the first of many we’d see), and Eleanora had mini muffins. Gabe wasn’t hungry (we all ate generous meals on the flight, though they were heavy on the bread, pasta, and cheese). 

Looking out the back window of the bus.

We made our way to the train station to go towards London, and Gabe pretty easily figured out how to get us to where we were going. First, we changed out some of our cash for English pounds and got our Oyster cards, which we could use for the Tube (subway) and buses. We had about a 30-minute train ride, on a nice clean train, and ended up at the train station where we’d transfer to a bus. I didn’t realize that all the buses in London are the red double deckers it’s famous for, but that’s exactly what we rode. It was pretty nice – we eventually went upstairs and had the whole second floor to ourselves. It was a great way to start to get oriented with the city, though it was hard to tell what was what. We got to our stop at Baker Street, just to get near our flat. We could check in at noon to at least drop our bags off. There was a large park nearby, Regent’s Park, so we walked over to it to kill time until noon. It was beautiful. The day was partly cloudy and it was slightly cool, maybe in the high 60s. We hung out by a little pond and bridge for a bit and watched the numerous ducks and geese (and single swan) until it was time to go drop our bags off. We met up with our contact, who gave us the keys, and we got to peek at the flat, though it was not yet cleaned. It was smaller than the pictures made it look, but otherwise the same – airy and bright. At first I wondered if I would be comfortable there, a feeling I always get when I am somewhere new, but that feeling soon went away and we all ended up being happy with our choice.  

After dropping our bags off, we went to get some lunch. Some of us were still struggling from the jet lag and lack of sleep, but really, I was impressed with how the girls managed. We found a little chain called Itsu, which has Asian fusion foods like sushi, rice bowls, salads, soups, dumplings, and bao, so we all found something we were happy with and ate at the little table with chargers in the middle. Chargers were everywhere – on the plane, train, cafes – so we didn’t have to worry much about our phones dying. 

We finished up and headed back to the park to find a playground. When I say park, I mean a huge area with several sections, including the London Zoo, a large garden area, several playgrounds, ponds with paddle boats, and probably more (think Central Park). We found a playground for the girls to play on, and it was representative of other playgrounds we’d see – lots of natural structures like long logs stacked at angles to climb on, trees arched together to create a path, and several other interesting climbing and play structures. The girls were having fun exploring until several school groups came through – each with children wearing uniforms and bright yellow safety vests – and it seemed like they took over. The girls observed and noticed their accents – some French, some English – and thought it was interesting to hear kids speaking with a British accent (their babysitter is English, and she’s the main one they’ve heard, besides Peppa Pig). 

Enjoying the gardens. 

Eleanora wanted her own picture.

It was finally time to go back to the flat, so we came in to a nice, clean one this time, and we all crashed. Eleanora fell into an unwakeable sleep at around 5pm, and Evie soon followed. So Gabe and Lee figured out how to order in while I started to doze off too, and we ended up having delicious Greek food for our first night. We woke the girls up so they would be able to have dinner, but that made it pretty rough. They weren’t happy at all, and I wonder if we didn’t wake them up if they would have slept all the way through until the morning. But we all survived. Gabe figured out how to order groceries online (through Amazon Prime, actually), so we ordered some staples to be delivered in the morning. Everyone took showers and/or baths, and crashed again.

Day 2 - Tuesday

The tube stop across from the Tower of London.

We ended up sleeping in and needed to take our time in the morning. We planned to go to the Tower of London, which the girls had read about in a couple books (Evie learned that both Queen Elizabeth I and Queen Mary – “Bloody Mary” – were both imprisoned there). We took the Tube for the first time, and it was fairly easy to navigate. We could see the Tower(s) of London across the street from the stop we exited at, so we picked up some street food (sweet roasted almonds), and took some pictures. There was also a huge sun dial (which was pretty useless because there was no sun), and it had a timeline of the history of London all around it in metal relief. I knew there was a plague or two and a fire or two, but I didn’t realize how many of each and how much of the population was wiped out, over and over again. It’s amazing that London exists at all. We made our way over to the Tower and got our tickets. It had begun to rain a little at that point, and knowing it would, we all came prepared with brand new rain jackets. As much as it rains in Florida, it was odd that we never had rain jackets, so we all marveled at how well they worked, and how we didn’t need umbrellas (or “brollies” as the Brits call them) at least for light rain. The Tower of London is really a series of towers, and various historical events have taken place there. It has operated as a fortress, a castle, and even a zoo, but it is most famous for being a prison. William Wallace (a.k.a. Braveheart), Anne Boleyn, and Guy Fawkes, to name a few, were tortured, beheaded, or hanged there. We saw numerous towers, and learned of historical figures that were only vaguely familiar to me who stayed there, some who seemed to have a comfy little space for their imprisonment, like Sir Walter Raleigh who lived there with his family, had a little garden plot, and wrote The History of the Worldduring his time at the Tower. Apparently there is a dungeon, though, which we did not see, and I’m assuming this is where the serious bad guys went. There were ravens and other animals, and many of the Crown jewels, but there was a huge line to see them, and we didn’t have much of a tolerance for long lines, so we called it a day after seeing as much as the girls would probably absorb, and had a nice little lunch right outside the Towers. Evie was the first (and only) to have fish and chips. Eleanora, of course, had pasta, and I found myself having chicken, while Lee and Gabe (who is newly nearly vegan, at least for now) both had nice salads. 

Tower Bridge - NOT the London Bridge.

One of the palaces inside the Tower(s) of London.

Evie's fish and chips (with mayo on the side, also for the "chips"). 

Walking across Tower Bridge to get groceries.

We realized we needed a few more groceries, and we wanted to see a proper grocery store since there were only mini versions around us, so we crossed the Tower Bridge to find one. Tower Bridge is what is on any post card or souvenir item, and it’s beautiful and colorful, and everyone thinks it’s the London Bridge (as in the title and topic of the nursery rhyme), but it is actually not. At any rate, we walked across it, passing over the Thames River, around which London is oriented, and took some fun pictures. We found a Tesco (one of the main grocery stores) and picked up some food for dinner and other staples. I told the girls they could get some candy, so Eleanora picked out “Randoms,” which were like fruit gummies, and Evie got an Aero bar, which is a chocolate bar with air bubbles. We got some interesting cold packaged vegetables – stewed red cabbage and apples and cut broad beans – along with some salmon and salad ingredients, and made it home through the rain. We took the Tube again, and this time it was rush hour on a weekday, so we were crammed in like sardines. That was in addition to the particular line we were on being about 10 levels below ground. If anyone has bouts of claustrophobia, this would have brought it on. But alas, we made it home and had a nice home-cooked, healthy meal, and cleaned up and went to bed to get rest for the next day.

Day 3 - Wednesday

Enjoying a double decker once more.

The next morning, we were going to go to Buckingham Palace, first to see the changing of the Queen’s guard, and then to tour the palace, but there were no available tickets for the palace, so we decided to go see the changing of the guard anyways and then find something to do in the area. We tried to take a bus to the stop near Buckingham Palace since we liked it so much the first time, but the bus was taking much longer than it was supposed to. While we were waiting, we met a nice American who was working in London, and he was going the same way and let us know it could take a while sometimes, so we trusted him and chatted while we waited. He also gave us some suggestions that were really helpful for our trip. After the bus came and we arrived at our stop near Hyde Park, we had to book it to the Palace to see the ceremony (they happen on a regular schedule), but it was packed with tourists already, so we couldn’t get a good spot to see, even with the girls on our shoulders. There happened to be two of the tallest teenage boys I’ve ever seen standing in front of us, so nobody under 6’5” could see over them. But we could see enough around them and through the heavy black iron bars. It was mostly ceremonious – lots of commands and formations we couldn’t understand – to signify the retiring of the guard that was previously on duty and the taking over of the “new” guard for the day. There were guards in the red jackets and tall black hats like we see in movies, and some in black uniforms, and some who were members of a royal band. Everything was very serious until, after the end of the ceremony, the band started playing songs like “Livin’ on a Prayer,” “Take On Me,” and “Shut Up and Dance with Me” (there may have been a traditional English or Scottish song thrown in as well). We started laughing at the change in tone, but it was pretty fun. After the guard marched away, along with the horse guard that had changed at another spot down the street, we took some obligatory selfies in front of the Buckingham Palace entryway emblazoned in gold and decided to head to Westminster Abbey since it was nearby.

Members of the Queen's Guard up close.

What the changing of the guard looked like to us.

In front of Buckingham Palace - good enough for us.

Westminster Abbey.

It was a bit of a walk, and Eleanora was already starting to have a hard time, so she ended up on my back a lot, which I much prefer to carrying her on my front, which she is just too big for (though she still asks for that first). After walking through busy streets and tall buildings, we realized we were right in front of the Abbey, which is beautiful and striking for its gothic architecture. Just walking along the outside of the building is a treat, with so many details to appreciate, like figures thrown into relief everywhere, gargoyles, and pointed, stepped archways. But we did go inside, too, and I took one picture before realizing there were no photos allowed – oops! The Abbey is a site of great royal and historical significance – from coronations, to weddings, to tombs. As we walked along the path inside, we saw probably hundreds of statues and carved figures, many of whom we didn’t know, but again, several sounded vaguely familiar from past history lessons. I do remember standing on the spot where Charles Darwin was buried, and I was pretty happy with just having done that since he’s a bit of a hero of mine, being an anthropologist and all, but we almost walked right past it – it was impossible to read all of the inscriptions! There was a special room for Elizabeth I’s tomb, and it was pretty remarkable. A figure of her likeness was carved (probably in marble) lying down in rest. A lion was at her feet, and Lee pointed out that all the statues had their house or country’s representative animal at their feet (Lion for England). Her sister Mary (not Bloody Mary) was said to be buried under her, though there was no figure of her. It is also worth noting that there was a large tomb (which is really just a part of the floor) with roses around it as a rectangle boundary called the “Tomb of the Unknown Soldier,” and it is the only one you cannot walk on. It is apparently set aside as a reminder of the many men (and women?) who have sacrificed their lives to protect their country, and to bestow an importance on it that the ornateness of the others cannot convey. Evie was doing a great job with her audio guide and kid’s tour book, but Eleanora was pretty much at her limit with walking around and observing, so we headed out for lunch. 

Detail of the architecture in an archway.

As we left, we learned that our friends from Tampa who happened to be in London, too, were coming meeting us there (Gabe and our friend had been coordinating). What a small world, right? We have known Mike since our early swing dancing days in ’99, and we have kept in touch regularly, not really through dancing, but because he is a barber and the only one Gabe likes to cut his hair. We all have accompanied Gabe to “Mr. Mike’s” on numerous occasions while he gets his hair cut, and the girls always like to get a dum dum afterwards. At any rate, Mike and his wife, Jessica, and their son Giovanni, who is 7, were on week two of their UK vacation. So we all went together to another Itsu since we all agreed they had good food. We managed to eventually cram all 8 of us around a little table and fuel up before heading out in the rain to find a playground in Hyde Park called the Princess Diana Memorial Playground (I mean, who wouldn’t want to go to that just by the name?). We were able to walk to a bus stop and let the driver do the awful work of navigating the traffic, and we landed at the park in time to play for about a half an hour. It was another really cute playground with several little sectors to explore. There was a big pirate ship for climbing around, a more traditional playground with swings, a wooden playground with connected bridges, a teepee area, a little hidden music area, a garden, and other fun spots. It was rainy, but the kids played anyways. We couldn’t stay long because our family had reservations for afternoon tea. We parted ways with our friends and found our way to the Tube. 

The music nook at the Princess Diana Memorial Playground. (That's Evie and Eleanora in case you couldn't tell).

Eleanora became the family photographer.

After what already felt like a long day, and a somewhat grueling walk in the rain to tea, we found our shelter. We weren’t necessarily in the brightest of moods when we sat down, but we soon perked up when we got our tea (we each picked different ones, except for the girls who shared a pot of berry tea). Gabe got a lemongrass tea, Lee got a roiboos, and I got jasmine. The girls liked putting the little sugar cubes in theirs and stirring them until they dissolved. Our scones, sandwiches, and cakes came soon after, and this perked us up even more. We had sandwiches of “egg mayo,” which is like egg salad, but mostly mayonnaise, which they apparently love over there, avocado sandwiches, and tomato mozzarella. The scones were what I was looking forward to the most, especially with clotted cream. I’ve loved English scones ever since I did a project in an anthropology class in college with an English food store in St. Petersburg, during which I frequently brought home scones. I’ve also been to a couple tea houses in Tampa (and even had my “sprinkle” for Eleanora at one), so I was excited to see how it would compare. The place we chose was traditional, but it wasn’t quite as fancy as the ones in Tampa, which are probably that way to be extra quaint, and there are more formal ones in London, but they also cost about 70 pounds a head, so we were fine skipping out on that. They asked ahead if we wanted any vegetarian or gluten free options, so I said yes since some of us lean that way. Both arrangements were delicious, and while I prefer the traditional scone, the gluten free one was actually good. They seem to be used to people requesting gluten or allergen free options, and they actually have good alternatives, unlike many places in the US (so far, at least). Anyways, there were also several options for “puddings,” including cupcakes, almond cakes, and French macarons, and they were all delicious. But alas, with the English palate of heavy breads and creams (and sweets), we could only finish some of our tea snacks, so we packed up the rest and nibbled on them throughout the week. As we got home, we crashed again and awoke in time for a small dinner of leftovers, as we were all still full from afternoon tea. After that, it was bubble bath time for the girls, and off to bed for them after being up later than normal. Then finally, relaxation and sleep for us.

Lest she not be included in the photos. There was a series of about 20 of these with different expressions.

Day 4 - Thursday

We decided to venture out for breakfast rather than having cereal and porridge at home (though Lee and I were enjoying going out and getting coffee around the corner each morning to bring back to the flat). Lee found a cute little French bakery/café that had lots of healthy and delicious options, so we sat down for a European breakfast. Despite vowing not to have another sweet sconey meal, I saw a spelt and quinoa scone with blueberries and currants served with ricotta cheese, and couldn’t pass it up. Evie got a ham and cheese croissant, Eleanora got a waffle (like the sweet, dense kind) with chocolate sauce, Gabe got a beautiful rendition of avocado toast with super seeds, and Lee got a lovely breakfast bowl with veggies, quinoa, and eggs. We had been promising the girls that we’d go to the London Eye, which was a huge Ferris wheel-type structure overlooking the city that was built to commemorate the new millennium, so we got tickets online ahead of time and headed over after a breakfast. I should mention that we had thought of other day trips, like Stonehenge and Brighton, but we already felt like we were going non-stop, and those would take over an hour by train (which was also getting expensive), so we decided to cut them out and stick to local options, of which there were more than enough. As we exited our Tube stop, we quickly saw the enormity of the Eye. It is 443 feet tall, and it can be sickening to look at if you are afraid of heights (I’m not, but I could understand that feeling). We were put at ease to see that the seats are not actually like Ferris wheel seats, but large enclosed capsules that hold about 15 people. The whole wheel revolves only once per ride, but it goes very slowly – about a 30 minute ride, so you hardly feel like you’re moving at all. We plastered ourselves against the clear glass wall of the capsule and tried to identify some of the sites we knew. Someone recognized Big Ben (which is actually the bell inside the tower, while the tower’s real name is Elizabeth Tower), but it was under construction so even the tower wasn’t very visible. We saw some palace-type structures, but only later realized they were Buckingham Palace from the back side and Westminster Abbey. It was a nice ride, and we took a fun faux-scared face family selfie when we got to the very top of the ride. When it ended, we went to a little playground right nearby called Jubilee Garden and let the girls burn off some energy for a while. 

Our first view of the London Eye - it looks like a Ferris wheel here but it is much bigger.

Our "scared" selfie from inside a capsule at the very top of the Eye.

They loved climbing and hanging around.

The playground at Jubilee Park in the Southbank area near the Eye.

  

Eating market food on the street.

Next, it was off to Borough Market, which is a street market that runs Thursday through Sunday, and it just so happened that we could walk there. We were enamored with it right away, and I bought some truffle mustard from the first stand I saw (because everyone needs a little truffle mustard, right?). We got some fresh sliced prosciutto for the girls, which they love, and I got some orange/honey almond bark and a slice of the best banana cake I’ve ever had. We explored a little more and eventually found lunch food for all of us. I got cheeseburgers for the girls, and the rest of us got Mediterranean food, of which there was a lot in the city. I realized that zucchini is called courgette, and eggplant is called aubergine. So I got my courgette dip, lentils and rice, and “vine” leaves (grape leaves), and Lee got a similar combination, while Gabe got a falafel wrap that he said was the best he’s ever had. The girls also picked out some Turkish delights, which look like little square marshmallows but are more dense and jelly-like. I passed on those. After stuffing ourselves, we found the actual market stands, and picked up some veggies, sea bass, and wine to have dinner at home. After resting for a bit at the flat, Lee and I went shopping a little, or tried but didn’t really find anything, and Gabe took the girls to Regent’s park across the street to find another playground. I eventually met them over there while Lee stayed back to enjoy an afternoon coffee at a café, and then we all met back together for a healthy, market-fresh dinner.

Lee and I wanted to go out sans kids one night (I thought it would be nice since she’s not actually obligated to be with the kids, but was generous enough to share her time with them the whole trip, and probably wouldn’t want to go out alone). We found a sort of swanky bar, similar to Austin Powers style but also sophisticated. There was a constant mix of Londoners who were dressed up and some who were casual, though it wasn’t surprising to see men in suits and ladies in dresses and hose. One day we saw tons of people dressed in fancy hats and suits in the train station, some carrying bottles of wine or Champaign – we figured there was a derby going on or something. We just wanted a simple evening with a glass of wine, so that’s what we had. The wine options were slightly different, in that there were a lot more French and Italian options than we typically see at home, and hardly any cabernets or merlots, which are probably overdone in the States. They also served mixed nuts and veggie chips, which was interesting. We enjoyed our bonding time, and then walked home in the crisp evening weather. Gabe and I also intended to go out one night while Lee watched the girls, but it ended up not working out with our schedule and just plain exhaustion. 

Day 5 – Friday

They love each other, they really do!

Our next trip was Windsor castle, one of the day trips we stuck with. Windsor castle is another home to the royal family, and Prince Harry and Princess Meghan got married there, which was noteworthy because the recent tradition was to get married at Westminster Abbey. At any rate, it was a Tube ride and then two short train rides away. The girls were getting adept at navigating the Tube lines, or at least Eleanora was getting good at dashing up and down all the stairs and looking back and grinning at us while Evie read the signs and determined which way to go. It was a beautiful sunny day – the warmest yet of our trip, in the high 60s. We knew that Windsor was at least a palace and had a little shopping area, but we didn’t realize it was a whole quaint little town. There were beautiful old streets with modern shops lining them, and charming brick buildings all around. We arrived just in time to see people gathering for the exit parade after the changing of the guard (which took place inside the castle, which we weren’t in yet), so we hung around the main street to watch. Afterwards, we struggled through the long ticket and security lines to enter the castle and were rewarded with a beautiful opening to the courtyards of the castle. But importantly, on our way in, we stopped at the “toilets,” which were really just like portables, and Gabe was informed by someone who worked there that those were the very same toilets used by the guests of the royal wedding. So apparently we went in the same toilets as Oprah and George Clooney! Back to the castle, it was really just amazing to be walking around the same place that royalty had convened for centuries. The castle was originally built by William the Conqueror almost 1,000 years ago, and then most major monarchs since then have occupied the castle and built on to it. Aside from the beautiful courtyards and building we could see in the outside open spaces, there wasn’t a whole lot to it, aside from a lovely chapel, the statehouse apartments, and Queen Mary’s Dollhouse, which we would have loved to see but it was closed. This is where we did get a picture of the girls next to a guard, and then I felt bad afterwards because he seemed to be more of a prop than anything, really. The real “guards” are the police with their semi-automatic weapons they constantly have their hands on. 

Tita and Eleanora outside the Castle.

Evie outside the Castle gates.

A panoramic of Windsor Castle - it's hard to represent it the way it looks in person.

Anyways, we walked around a lot, and I wanted to see the apartments, but nobody was in the mood to wait any longer because it was past lunchtime, so I stayed behind while everyone else found a lunch spot, Wagamama, that was actually recommended by Eleanora’s teacher, and I joined later. I made it into the apartments and instantly regretted not getting the free audio guide. Nothing was labeled or explained, so I didn’t learn a whole lot. The apartments were more like little rooms of a museum of Renaissance art, which was impressive in itself, so I did appreciate soaking in some art. Some of the rooms were also set up in historically accurate fashion, like the King’s chamber (bedroom), so that was cool to see. I didn’t spend too much longer before heading back to meet the others for lunch. We decided to shop around a little, and we ended up getting most of our souvenirs in one of the shops there (and a few things for ourselves). Knowing we had a bit of a trip ahead of us, we left in the afternoon and took our train and Tube rides home, and crashed (which means that the adults took naps and somehow the girls stayed up playing and dancing on their pull-out sofa bed). 

Just walking inside a famous historical castle.

View of inside the castle walls.

Lush landscape and gardens.

The obligatory Queen's Guard picture - I told them not to smile.

We had gotten tickets for a river boat ride along the Thames, so we contemplated getting dinner beforehand since it started at 6:45, but it was just too much to cram together, so we decided to go for a later dinner like the locals. After we rested as much as we could from our castle traipsing, we headed back out to the Southbank area via Tube, which is where we went on the Eye the previous day. It’s also an artsy area with theaters and shows, but we didn’t a chance to see anything while we were there. We got there just in time, and waited in yet another long line, and almost made it to the cutoff to be on the top part of the boat, but were just short, so we headed down below deck and took front row seats. There were huge windows and some were open, so it was almost like being on top (but not as cold). Evie and Eleanora stood at the front most of the time while we relaxed in seats. We really enjoyed having a guided tour, and a lot of things we were curious about were answered by our tour guide, who was quite charming and funny. She knew when to poke fun at her town and when to point out intriguing facts. I highly recommend doing tours – I don’t care what people say about them, there is no way you can gain as much general and inside knowledge in a short amount of time by just figuring things out for yourself. I remember more from the tour than from the books I read ahead of time. At any rate, it was nice to have a relaxing 40-minute ride as the sun went down and learn more about the city we had grown so fond of already. I had made reservations at an Italian restaurant, so we had just enough time to walk over to it from the river boat. It turns out it was on the top floor of the tube station – the tube and train stations are really nice and have high quality shops and stores. They have their dirt, too, but we were all pleasantly surprised at how nice they were. We had a cozy table and a nice meal. I got risotto with peas and radish, which was a splurge for me with all that cheese, but it was very good. Lee got a nice beet and squash dish, Gabe got vegan meatballs, and the girls got pasta with red sauce and meatballs. We finished it off with tiramisu and a piece of blueberry polenta cake, and headed home for much needed sleep before our final full day.

Day 6 - Saturday

They played on this for about 90 minutes straight.

We wanted to take it easy on our last day, so we didn’t commit to venturing out anywhere early in the day. I made my last morning coffee run to a place called Saint Espresso that I really liked and got an Americano (which they called a “long shot” there). Lee went out for a solo breakfast and we munched on whatever cereal, porridge, and fruit we still had plenty of at the flat. After doing a little laundry (in a single washer/dryer combination unit, which was interesting), assessing our packing and souvenir needs, and relaxing a little, we finally went out to one more shop down the street for any last minute gifts or fun things to remember our trip by. Then we headed back to Regent’s park, where we went on the first day to find the bigger playground the girls liked so much. The plan was just to have free time without a real schedule. So Lee and I took the girls to the park while Gabe hunted for lunch to bring for a picnic. After a few misses (I was trying to get fish and chips “take away” from a pub, but it was only eat-in), he found some healthy deli food and we picked our perfect spot in the gardens at Regent’s Park and had our picnic. 

Family picnic in the park!

The grass was so low and soft we didn’t even need a picnic blanket. And we were near a beautiful water fountain and lots of flowers, so it was very ambient and scenic – a perfect way to remember London. The girls wanted to play a little more after lunch, so we went back to the playground and Gabe found a barber shop to get his hair cut since he had a work in London after our trip and would be staying on for a few more days. After going back to the flat and resting for a decent amount of time and packing up a bit, we decided that we were up for one more trip to another area, so we found a restaurant in Notting Hill. We happened to get there at the tail end of a market, so we did just a bit more shopping. The area was a little different than we thought (you know, based on the movie). We went to the Portobello Street Market, which was lively and had several different artisans as well as nice English wear (I almost bought a pink and gold sparkly tweed jacket and had my eye on several fancy hats, but I wasn’t sure I’d really be able to wear them to anything, so I begrudgingly passed). The girls found silicon slap bracelet watches that they loved, and they had gotten some English pounds from their babysitter, Debbie beforehand, so it was a nice treat to spend it on. As we walked towards the Moroccan restaurant we’d be dining at, the area did become a little more quaint and charming with tree-lined, hilly streets and upscale shops. We found our restaurant tucked away in a corner. Someone had recommended to me that we get Northern African food while we were there, so I was glad we got a chance to do that. We were served a generous portion of hearty bread with olive oil, olives, and a spicy sauce that only Gabe had (and devoured). We got a couple appetizers – one was roasted, spiced aubergine (eggplant) and the other was goat cheese in phyllo dough, which was delicious. We all got tagines for our main meal, which are dishes cooked in clay pots. Lee got the vegetable tagine, Gabe got the fish tagine, I got a chicken, apricot, and almond tagine (which was delicious!), and the girls shared a lamb and cheese meatball tagine. All came with copious amounts of couscous, which the girls ate up (they were less impressed with the lamb meatballs). Then we splurged with a Moroccan pancake soaked in butter and honey and an assortment of pastries, which were at least different and interesting, if not delicious. Lee and I also got cinnamon coffee, which was supposed to be decaf, but after being up until midnight last night, I’m not so sure. Regardless, it was a wonderful, unique, and tasty meal to finish off our trip. We caught a bus home, and the girls had an extra bubbly bath, and we packed up as much as we could before getting up early the next day.

Our last time on the tube at our Baker Street stop.

Day 7 - Sunday

This one doesn’t count as a real day (unless you count the 9-hour flight), but I may as well mention it. We got up early to leave the flat by 7:15am. The girls were rather grumpy at first, but we tried to feed them some dry Cheerios until we could get some proper breakfast. We made it through preparations, but didn’t have to worry too much because Gabe was going to come back to the flat after accompanying us to the train station. We had one mode of transportation we hadn’t taken yet – a classic black taxi, so Gabe ordered one to take us to the train station rather than having to go through the hustle and bustle of the Tube with our luggage or wait on an unreliable bus. So we said farewell to our Baker Street flat and hopped into the taxi, which is much more accommodating than US taxis. It’s like a modern version of a carriage inside, with two rows of seats facing each other and space in between. We just fit, with the girls riding on the fold-down jump seats (and they didn’t need car seats!). We boarded the train to the Gatwick airport, and although I thought he didn’t need to come, I was glad Gabe was there because the girls weren’t as keen on dragging their suitcases around this time as they were the first time (we have already decided to upgrade them both to four-wheel luggage – it’s so much easier!). Gabe dropped us off at the family security gate, and we said goodbye. 

It was quite a hassle getting through, and everything, including suitcases needed to go in bins, and they were very strict about liquids. Both the girls’ suitcases had to be examined – one because all the souvenirs were squished together and some had sharp edges, and the other because I accidentally left a bottle of spray conditioner in their bag – after painstakingly putting all our liquids in the little baggies so that we could check our bags. But we made it through without any scolding. The four of us made our way to a little breakfast café and sat down for something real to eat. The girls finally got beans for breakfast – a plate of sausage, beans, toast, and eggs. Pretty traditional English, if you ask me. Lee and I had avocado toast with eggs, which is pretty much everywhere in London. We also had tiny coffees (or Americanos), so we picked up one more coffee and some pastries to go, and a few more tiny things from shops and finally went to our gate. And good thing, because we realized that the long line we found was for our plane, which was already boarding, earlier than normal. At that point, I rearranged my luggage to pack all the baggies of liquids away, and I realized I didn’t have my boarding pass! When you buy things at the airport shops, they scan your boarding pass, and I realized I must have left it or not gotten it back at the last shop. I freaked out at first, and then Lee reminded me I had it in my email as well, so I crossed my fingers and hoped that would be good enough, and as it turns out, it was. We hopped on the plane and headed to our seats in the rear, barely fitting our luggage in. We settled in for a long daytime ride with lots of food and snacks. I mean seriously, they give you food constantly. On top of our pretzels and gigantic lunches, they handed out Magnum ice cream bars, coffee, tea, and juice service a little later, and sandwich boxes shortly before landing. 

They were the good ice cream bars, too!

That is where I end now. We have one hour and three minutes left in our flight, so we will make it! It will be about 3:30 when we get home, which will feel like 8:30pm to us. The girls are supposed to start a gymnastics camp tomorrow, and I’m supposed to be fully back to work (eek!). But I’m okay if we aren’t fully sorted out tomorrow…or the next few days. 

This trip was a dream of mine for a long time, and though I did it differently this time than I would have a long time ago, it was perfect, and I really enjoyed it. I know we are so privileged to be able to do this – I didn’t travel internationally (outside of Canada) until I was 23, and I thought that was a big deal. I don’t know how much or which parts the girls will remember, but we will remember them and how they experienced everything, and that is also worth it. We will definitely have our own memories, which are precious in themselves. 

I haven’t mentioned health issues, for one because I hate droning on about them, and for another, they really weren’t that bad. I’ve been doing better lately, though a few minor things flared up here and there, but that’s not so bad considering I was in a different environment with changing weather and some dirty air (especially in the tubes), we ate different foods, and just had the stress of figuring out how to get around a big city and deciding what to do. I feel like it’s a huge accomplishment to be able to do this given that I was sort of anxious about the trip ahead of time, and I really could have stayed a lot longer. There are so many places I’d like to explore in the UK. We didn’t get to go to Kew Gardens, Brighton, Stonehenge, or any other countryside villages or castles. So those will be on my list for next time.