DAY 12 - London II

Sunday, 1 May 2005

We saw Phantom of the Opera last night in London. Great performance. I had seen it many years ago with Michael Crawford and Sarah Brightman but I was surprised how much of it I had forgotten.

The train system in London is nuts, people absolutely everywhere. We did brave the trains though. We had a great late lunch at the Orangery near Kensington Palace. We saw the London Tower, British Museum and visited Picadilly Circus and ate near Covent Garden. It's a bank holiday this weekend in the UK so there are a lot of people about.

We tried to get into Westminster Abbey yesterday but they closed early. In fact, they close a lot of the touristy things early. Al & I were not happy about this. We catch a boat to France tonight.

Tower of London
The last time I was in London, I got off the tour bus and followed the wrong people...my mom and her friend enjoyed this attraction while I had to wait by the bus. :( So, I obviously was more than energetic to make sure we got to this attraction. We got here early and purchased our tickets via the vendor in the train station – allowing us to bypass the ticket lines that were already forming. What's interesting about this place is that it is a castle within a castle. Built in the 11th century after William the Conqueror (from Normandy) took over England, this castle definitely has a medieval look and feel to it that is common among the English castles.

But, the highlight are the royal jewels... yes, the same ones that the Queen used when she went thru her coronation in 1953. Though for security reasons the real ones are not displayed, the copies look just as good. Some neat armory is in the interior castle and one set of armor was especially appealing...because it had a 6" appendage to the crotch area that made it look like a woody. Everyone who first laid eyes on this display chuckled and a few of the girls even screamed in delight. On the grounds were Beefeaters/Yeomans who were very gracious with the tourists. We also got a close-up view of the changing of the guard on the Tower grounds, which was a great precursor for another attraction later in the day.

Tower Bridge
Closed for renovations for the week we were there – bummer! But, I got a great picture and that's the best I could do. Also, most folks confuse this bridge with the more famous London Bridge...that bridge was dismantled years ago and is now sitting across the Colorado River in Lake Havasu, Arizona.

Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace
After racing thru the Underground and walking quickly towards Buckingham Palace, I realized that the ceremony had already started and we would miss just about all of it (11:55am-12:05pm). Just as we got to the bridge outside of the palace, I remembered that the guard had to march back to its barracks. So, Locke and I planted ourselves in the shade and within one minute we had a parade in front of us...with hardly anyone else on the street! Yes, the rifle line was incredible – although they were not spinning or throwing tosses like our own Renegades colorguard, I was still impressed and happy that we just got here in the nick of time.

Kensington Gardens at Hyde Park
As Locke already mentioned, we have lunch & tea at the Orangery by Kensington Palace. If you have to do afternoon tea, stay away from Harrod's overpriced $100 price tag. I found about the Orangery and this abfab place is a great alternative to Harrod's for good English food and tea at a moderate price. Afterwards, Locke and I stroll the park and head for the Prince Albert Memorial. What I thought was a small monument turned out to be incredibly enormous and even gold-plated – wow! History lesson: Prince Albert was the husband and Prince Consort to Queen Victoria, the longest reigning sovereign on the English throne during the heyday of the British Empire. He was also well
liked so a whole district is dedicated just to his legacy. Across the street is the Royal Albert Hall – the place to stage England's glamour events. Cool and elegant way to end our visit to London, we then head west towards Windsor.

Windsor Castle
Oh those bloody Brits! Overpriced attractions and early closures to boot – ugh! We get there at 4:10pm...10 minutes after they stop lettting folks in. Mind you, the place doesn't close until 5:15pm...so many of us were upset that this was not advertised. Like Westminster Abbey, I had been here but was disappointed for Locke.

Brighton Diversion
We were supposed to head for Stonehenge, but it would close and we would have to view it from afar. So, Locke options for Brighton Beach on the south coast. We have some time to kill before getting on the ferry, so it seems like a good plan. Except when you take the wrong exit on the Motorway and with exits many miles apart it takes forever to turn around. Plus, lane closures during rush hour creates snarled traffic. Thus, what started out as a leasure roadtrip, turned into panic as we had very little time before the ferry. So, we raced thru Brighton without stopping and head straight for Portsmouth.

Brittany Ferry
After getting off the exits for the Isle of Wright ferries (instead of the English Channel ferries), we go thru town praying for the darn red lights to turn green (they never do when you're in a hurry). With our luck, we get to the dock at 8:10pm (8:30pm departure) with 5 minutes to spare. We are literally the LAST car to make the boat...whew! Locke and I dump our stuff in our overnight cabin and head for the bar...I need a beer to relax and count my blessings – twice now! :)

-- Al & Locke