Day 2 Wimbledon

From the time we decided to go to England, it was always planned that we would do everything we could to get to Wimbledon. I knew that Greg would be thrilled to see it, but I have to admit, it was something that I really wanted to see as well. So after our morning bus tour around London, we decided to catch the Underground out to Wimbledon as it wasn't too far outside of the city. Casey wasn't feeling well so she decided to have a quiet afternoon in the hotel.

Greg, Larry and I boarded the train at Victoria Station and headed towards Wimbledon. We weren't quite sure which stop to get off at because there were 2 Wimbledon stops. Larry asked the man sitting next to him who was part of a large contingent of "football" (soccer) fans heading to a match. As we was trying to figure it out a very nice woman sitting across from us told us to get off at the station before the Wimbledon station and walk up the hill. We were amazed at how helpful the English were.


Anyways, the footballers all got of the train 2 stops before us and we got off and walked up the hill towards the complex. We arrived at the complex and headed into the gift shop where everyone gathers for a tour. The tour was slated for an hour later but we had the chance to go through the Tennis Museum. This was a really nice museum and very well thought out. Greg loved this part of it just as much as the actual tour of the complex.
Finally it was time for our tour and we ventured out into the cold, windy, rainy England afternoon. We didn't get to go into Centre Court as it is under construction - a roof is being added to the stadium. However, we did get to see most of the outer courts, the BBC media room, the player interview room, the locker rooms, and the players entrance. We also went inside one of the larger court stadiums.


It was amazing to me to see the outer courts and how little room there is between the courts. It looked as if there was only room for one or maybe two rows of folding chairs. The picture with the 2008 on the grassy hill is what is affectionately called "Hinman's Hill" in honor of Tim Hinman, England's only chance to win a Wimbledon title in previous years. This is the hillside shown on tv where people take picnic lunches and watch the day's matches on the big jumbotron tv.

Another cool site was the row of tennis figures dressed as ancient chinese soldiers. The statues were really large and a very good representation of the players. We were told that the soldiers will be leaving this year and going to the actual player. There was Andy Roddick, Roger Federer, and more.


These pictures don't really show how cold it was, but it had to be about 40 degrees with driving wind and rain at times. After the last stop which was inside Court 2, we headed to the restaurant for steaming mugs of hot chocolate and chocolate muffins.

Following a quick snack we walked back to the train station to head back to the hotel. Two stops after getting on the train, all of the footballers joined us. The soccer match was over (they lost) and everyone was heading home.

We met up with Casey who enjoyed a quiet day of reading and resting. That night we had dinner at Big Uns. Casey and I had fish and chips. They were just okay. We would have better ones the next day at the Tower of London.

Day 2 - Bus Tour Around London

Our bus tour around London continued with a drive through all of the sides of London. We drove past St. Dunstans church which is the oldest church in London. There is a statue of Queen Victoria in the niche. The picture isn't the greatest because it was pouring down rain and we were on the bus.




We also stopped at St. Paul's Cathedral and it stopped raining enough for us to take some pictures. St. Paul's is incredibly beautiful from the outside. We were unable to go in because it was Palm Sunday and mass was being said. St. Paul's was designed by the famous Christopher Wren.


We continued driving around London and crossed the London Bridge and went past the Tower of London (more to come about that on Day 3). Again it was very rainy and very cold but most of the morning we spent on the bus. Our last bus stop was Buckingham Palace and it was there that we decided to walk back to the hotel and get ready for our afternoon trip to Wimbledon.

Tennis Season is Underway

Well the season is well underway and the weather is finally warming up for some nice days watching tennis. Greg is playing 4th doubles on varsity and the team is 4-1 only losing to Lower Moreland (always the powerhouse). Greg is 4-1 as well only losing to Lower Moreland. He is having a blast.


It's fun to watch him play as he really gets into the match. His partner is very quiet and it seems like Greg is the one who has to keep up the momentum. In his match the other day, the kids from Holy Ghost kept saying the wrong game score. Greg caught them on it every single time. The last picture is Greg and Alex talking with Coach A after winning the first set. On the far left is Greg's friend Ivan who plays first singles.

Day 2

We woke up fairly early and headed down to breakfast before our 8:30 am London sightseeing tour. Breakfast was a cold breakfast and because we were trying to save money on meals, we filled up on cold meat, croissants, cheeses, fruit, juices, and cereal. It was raining and cold as we boarded the bus for our tour.

Our first stop was the Prince Albert Royal Hall - the scene of many concerts and events. This was across from Kensington Park and the statue of Prince Albert that Queen Victoria had built following his death.
From wikipedia - "The Royal Albert Hall is an arts venue situated in the Knightsbridge area of the City of Westminster, London, England, best known for holding the annual summer Proms concerts since 1941.

The Royal Albert Hall is one of the UK's most treasured and distinctive buildings, recognisable the world over. Since its opening by Queen Victoria in 1871, the world's leading artists from every kind of performance genre have appeared on its stage. Each year it hosts more than 350 performances including classical concerts, rock and pop, ballet and opera, tennis, award ceremonies, school and community events, charity performances and lavish banquets.

The Hall was originally supposed to have been called The Central Hall of Arts and Sciences, but the name was changed by Queen Victoria to Royal Albert Hall of Arts and Sciences when laying the foundation stone as a dedication to her husband and consort, Prince Albert. It forms the practical part of a national memorial to the Prince Consort - the decorative part is the Albert Memorial directly to the north in Kensington Gardens, now separated from the Hall by the heavy traffic along Kensington Gore. The Hall also accommodates the second largest pipe organ in the UK (Liverpool Cathedral regains the title with the addition of the Central organ), and is the home of The Proms."



The statue of Prince Albert is at an entrance to Kensington Park. This statue was erected by Queen Victoria following his death from typhoid in 1861. The monument has only recently been restored and it is beautiful. It was raining that morning and we only saw it from afar, but a few days later, we walked through Kensington Park and were able to get an up close view of this beautiful monument. From what the guide said and various readings, Prince Albert would have hated having this monument in his honor.

Day 1 - A very long day

After Larry's nap and another room change (3rd for Casey and I), we headed out again. We walked along St. James park to Big Ben. In Parliament Square we saw Westminster Abbey, Big Ben and the beginnings of a huge peace rally. To the left of Big Ben when viewing from the Thames is the British House of Commons. We walked across the Thames in search of food. None of us had eaten since the plane ride and we were all quite hungry. We found a quaint little Italian restaurant (Locale) and ate lunch outside.

While sitting outside eating, I noticed a building that was called General Lying-In Hospital Under the Patronage of her Majesty and her Royal Highness The Princess of Wales. Standing in front were 2 London bobbies.

After a pretty good late lunch we continued walking along the Thames toward the famous London Eye. I wouldn't go on the London Eye, but everyone else would have however it was very expensive. We decided to start back to the hotel and as we were crossing the Thames, the peace rally was crossing the other direction. It was a huge rally and very well behaved, all different nationalities with signs and loudspeakers. I got a kick out of the street cleaners that followed the rally to clean up after them.


We walked through St. James park again, stopped at the grocery for some food stuffs and headed back to the hotel for a restful evening. Early to bed, but time to watch some cricket on tv. It was the England/New Zealand test.

Travel Journal

To be continued - but for your viewing pleasure:


see more crazy cat pics

Day 1 Buckingham Palace

Continuing on our exploration of the area around the hotel, we found ourselves at Buckingham Palace. There was quite a crowd around the palace so we knew we were at the right place. The size of the place is amazing (not quite Versailles but very big). We were walking around the fence trying to get a good look at the palace and found a spot where we could see the guard. We didn't get to see the the changing of the guards but while we were walking around the area, Greg and I spotted some horses off in the distance. We found Casey and rushed to see the guards on horseback go by. They were quite amazing. I think I found out later that these were actually the house guards. They paraded around the circle in front of the palace and headed towards the back of the house.



I loved the statue of Queen Victoria. This statue was immense. There were also huge stone lions surrounding the statue in front of Buckingham Palace. After a bit of time at Buckingham Palace we decided to walk through a nearby park. It was St. James park and was very pretty. There were pelicans that were completely comfortable with all of the people in the park and lots of swans and ducks. I loved that London has a number of beautiful parks in the city.

The day is still not done. More to come.