Buckingham Palace….or Black Friday Shopping……
As you all know, we arrived in London several days ago and have been out and about exploring what this great city has to offer. It should be noted that I wasn’t really interested in coming to London (I have more interest in other European cities), but Matt wanted to add it to our stop, so we did. I knew things were going to be interesting when we decided to rent a car, well, because according to Matt, folks in the U.K. Drive on the wrong side of the road. Ha! It wasn’t but just within 2 minutes of getting our rental car (and not even out of the Enterprise parking lot yet) that Matt starts to make a traditional right hand turn into oncoming traffic. I hope this gets better because otherwise this is going to be a long drive from Heathrow to Westminster. We made it to our hotel safely (after Matt figured out how to drive on the right hand side of the car, shifting with his left hand, on the left side of the street) and began planning out what the next few days would look like. Our plan was to stay in central London for the first few days and then take the car and venture out to Stonehenge and some other destinations several hours from London.
We ended up walking to most everything (this would amount to about 8-10 miles a day), as London is a much more walking friendly city than other big cities we’ve been to. Our first stop was to go to Buckingham Palace to watch the changing of the guards. In winter, this is not done everyday, so this was one of the days they were doing it and we were free, so off we went. We arrive 45 minutes early, looking to get a good spot, and let me tell you, this crowd was worse than any Black Friday situation I’ve seen. Hundreds of people pushing and shoving to get to a “good spot,” to see the events happen. Let’s just be honest, there isn’t really a good spot, unless you call smashed up against the railing for two hours good, then so be it. Matt and I split up and tried to get video and pictures of different things, because at 5’2, I’m not taking any photos over anyone’s head, I can guarantee that. The place was packed, the bands and horses/carriages came in and presented their musical show (which included very modern music, which I was intrigued, yet disturbed by all at the same time-I thought this was supposed to be a very traditional ceremony? Maybe The Queen likes Bruno Mars-who knew? Regardless, it was fun to see, and worth a trip if you are in London, just be sure to check the schedule at it varies greatly when they do it.
The rest of the next few days included many trips to different pubs and restaurants for fish and chips (sadly their beer is fairly flat and slightly warm here on draft), meat pies, traditional English Breakfast, and sticky toffee pudding. We did all the regular tourist stuff, such as Tower Bridge, the London Eye, Parliament, Big Ben (under construction), Trafalgar Square, The Tate, etc. My favorite though was the tour through Westminster Abbey, which is both stunning and chalk-full of history (and dead people). We spent several hours there just walking through all the areas, seeing the monuments, the architecture and beauty of this place. You must go when you are in London. Now, when Harry and Meghan get married this year there, I’ll have my wits about me and know where all the action is taking place since we have now visited! Every time I turn around in this city, I say to Matt, “that must be some important building,” when in fact, it’s not, they all are just so beautiful and have such amazing architectural detail you can’t not fall in love with them. London is a great city, the weather (although great for some) is just too dreary for me. I need sunshine in my life on a regular basis. I’d come back here for sure, maybe in the summer when I could enjoy all the green space they have to offer.
After days of walking, eating (everything), navigating public transportation, and visiting all the great city sites, we headed out towards Stonehenge, which is about two hours outside of the city center. We drove out there to spend the afternoon. The monuments are pretty neat to see in real life, but sometimes I think my fantasized experience of seeing some things, is sadly intercepted with the reality of the situation. Although intriguing, it seemed a bit smaller than imagined (I had this same experience with Cadillac Ranch in Texas and Mount Rushmore, too) and it is truly just sitting out in the middle of farmland. I know there is much controversy of how these rocks got to where they are, but however one believes that happened, it’s definitely a sight worth seeing. We couldn’t leave England and have not visited this official World Heritage Site.
As mentioned we ate a lot of great food, but I want to make special note about the Rules restaurant. This is the oldest restaurant in London and it took us three days to get a reservation, which was then only available at 9:30 at night mind you, once we got in. The bill was a bit outrageous, but it was worth it, as the experience and food was phenomenal. The place itself is such a showstopper, all the decor, but for me, just thinking about all the amazing people who have come through these doors in over 200 years to share stories, drinks, and experiences. Oh to be a fly on the wall at various times here. Go check it out if here, just plan on spending a pretty penny for the experience.
Matt will catch you all up on the last few things we did while in England during the last few days, as they mainly are things he is interested in, so things with wheels and wings. I’ve enjoyed our stay here, but would like to venture more out to the Wales and South England area the next time we visit.
