Day 3 Tower of London and Spamalot

Continuing on with Day 3 brought us to the Tower of London. We had driven by this during our Sunday morning tour and we were really looking forward to this tour. The weather was cold, but not rainy.
Tickets in hand we entered the Tower and right away got on a Yeoman's tour (aka Beefeater). The yeoman was fantastic. He was so personable and had a loud booming voice. Did you know that in order to apply to be a yeoman, you must have at least 22 years of military service, have reached the rank of warrant officer, and have been awarded the long service and good conduct medal? It takes months of mentoring before a yeoman candidate is allowed to conduct tours on their own. Like I said, ours was fantastic.

Our first stop on the tour were the gates that led to the Thames River. The gates in the picture shown are at the top of about 8 steps that led into the water. Prisoners for the tower were brought up the Thames to this gate (Traitor's Gate), led up the steps, and led to the tower. Anne Boleyn came up these steps.

From here we were led across the tower grounds to the public beheading place. There is a memorial to those who were beheaded here. The Memorial read "Gentle visitor pause awhile where you stand death cut away the light of many days - here jewelled names were broken from the vivid thread of life - may they rest in peace while we walk the generations around their strife and courage - under these restless skies." All of the executions took place within a few yards of each other and included Jane Boleyn, Catherine Howard, and more. Following the stop here we headed to The Chapel Royal.


Sitting in this beautiful chapel, we were quite surprised to learn that buried beneath our feet were many of those who were executed. The reasoning for this was that the king did not want these people to be made into martyrs so after they were beheaded, they were carried into the chapel and buried so that the public couldn't get to the bodies.


In the center of the chapel was a very large sarcophagus. We were all expecting to hear that someone important was buried there. That was not the case. It turns out that during the middle ages when looting was rampant, the huge gold fountain that currently is in the back of the chapel was "buried" in the sarcophagus. Unfortunately, the keepers of that secret all died and it wasn't until the chapel was being renovated in modern times that they learned there wasn't a body in there at all but rather gold.


This was the end of the yeoman's tour, but there was still quite a bit to see. One thing that really amazed me was the suit of armor made for Henry VIII. Let's just say that he went out of his way to protect something he obviously felt was his "biggest" asset. It was almost pornographic in appearance.

We also saw the Crown Jewels and many more signs of opulence and wealth. We walked along the walls and took pictures of the Tower Bridge (quite an awesome sight). We also toured the room where in 1483 Edward IV's sons 12 year old Edward V and 9 year old Richard were taken by their uncle. The boys disappeared and their uncle was crowned King Richard III. It wasn't until 1674 that the remains of the princes were found. To this day, mystery still surrounds their disappearance.

We finished up the Tower visit with a snack of hot fish and chips and sat outside the tower overlooking the grounds.
After awhile we made our way back to the hotel and rested before a quick dinner at a nearby Chinese restaurant and a train ride to the theatre to see Spamalot. Awesome show - loved it, loved it, loved it.

Day 3 - Packed full of fun

Day 3 we were up fairly early and headed to the restaurant for the continental breakfast (same food as Days 1 and 2 but filling). We walked around the corner to Victoria Station and took the train to Monument Square. From there we walked across the bridge to the Globe Theatre replica. There was a nice museum about Shakespeare and the history of the Globe Theatre. When our tour was finally called, we toured the theatre. A group of school children were there performing a Shakespeare play. We learned a lot about the theatre and how fire destroyed the original one - a cannon shot during a performance met up with thatch roofing and destroyed the building.

While it was nice to see this, I think it would have had more of an impact to see an actual performance onstage. Unfortunately we were there during the off season and no performances (other than school children rehearsing) were taking place.

After the tour we walked across the Millenium Bridge and caught the train to Tower Hill where we would visit the famous Tower of London.

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.

London - Day 1

Okay, so after a 7 hour red eye flight from Newark to Heathrow, we were a bit tired but still ready to go. It took us about 40 minutes to get our transfer to the hotel, but it was plenty long for me to caffeine up on a Starbucks frappicino. It was just what I needed. The ride to the hotel was nice, but Larry and I both agreed it would have been way to much for us to find our way there. The streets went on every kind of angle and you felt that you were going in circles. Anyways, we check into the hotel and have 2 rooms, both smoking with 1 king-size bed in each. I was not happy as we had specifically asked for non-smoking, 2 twin beds for each room. Larry didn't mind as he decided to take a nap while I went to haggle with the front desk. They found 2 other rooms that sort of met our specs (one was non-smoking, the other wasn't as we later found out and I had to deal with that) and agreed to let Larry continue sleeping in the current room until we returned later. So the kids and I went off exploring.




First up was Westminster Cathedral (not to be confused with Westminster Abbey but impressive as well). It was a lovely church and we walked around the interior for quite a while admiring all of the various chapels. My favorite was the Chapel of St. Patrick which was done in all green marble and had all kinds of Irish symbols around it. From the Westminster Cathedral website:

Chapel of St Patrick and the Saints of Ireland

St Patrick (387 - 461) took the Christian faith to Ireland, and is venerated as their patron saint.


In the Chapel, which awaits completion, green is the dominant colour, with much of the marble originating in Ireland. Celtic designs are inlaid on the floor and at the foot of the altar. The image of the shamrock (used by St Patrick to explain the Trinity) can be seen throughout the Chapel; on the rear wall, in the marble screen beside the nave, behind the altar, the wooden furniture, and even in the candle-stand outside the Chapel.


The snakes which curl around the altar recall the legend of St Patrick driving the snakes out of Ireland.

Above the altar is a bronze gilt statue of St Patrick, in the style of an ancient celtic carving. Nearby is a mosaic of St Patrick, unveiled in 1999.

Around the Chapel walls are the badges of Irish Regiments that fought in the First World War. In a casket by the

Irish regimental badges are mounted on the Chapel walls. In a casket by the altar are inscribed the names of 50,000 Irish soliders who died at that time. In 2001 the President of Ireland, Mary McAleese, prayed in the Chapel and laid a wreath to the dead commemorated here - a visit also made by President Mary Robinson in 1996.

Outside the Chapel, a mosaic commemoriates St Oliver Plunkett, Archbishop of Armagh. St Oliver was the last person in England to die for the Catholic faith, and was executed at Tyburn, London in 1681.


St Oliver Plunkett is shown in mosaic.
Lord, we ask your blessing
upon the people of Ireland,
And upon Irish people
throughout the world;
We pray especially for peace
in Northern Ireland
And reconciliation among
its communities.
May they reach out across
ancient divisions
In trust, friendship, and forgiveness.

Next on the Day 1 Tour - Buckingham Palace.

Day 1 - Newark to Heathrow

Our flight was scheduled for 9:55 pm out of Newark on Friday. We had a car picking us up at 6:30. Luckily I was able to get off of work at 2:30 and have plenty of time to finish getting things done. Greg had school and tennis and didn't get home until 5:30 pm. We had a quick dinner and headed to the airport. The stupid limo company sent a town car with little trunk space for all 4 of us and our 4 big suitcases. Larry had to ride with a suitcase on his lap. We were very insistent that they send the limo for us when they picked us up on the return.

Anyways, at the airport, we exchanged $ for pounds and euros (at a terrible rate I must add) and the flight left on time. We flew British Airways and I have to say that it was very comfortable. The food is actually very good and the movie choices were good. I watched Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (with Johnny Depp) twice and really enjoyed it. Casey was sitting behind me on the plane watching the same movie and I could hear her whooping it up at times. I slept just enough so that I wasn't too exhausted when we got to London. The coffee frappucino at the airport helped me stay awake.

After arrival at Heathrow we went through customs got our baggage and waited for our hotel transport. The guy that took us to the hotel was very personable and talked quite a bit. If we all weren't so tired, it probably would have been even more interesting. That's what happens when traveling at night and not being able to sleep on the plane very well.

More to come!!

European Vacation

I can't believe it's been over a month since my last blog update. I guess all of the excitement leading up to our spring vacation and the actual vacation kept me pretty busy. Well, the trip is over and all of my nervousness of leaving the country was unfounded. We had a lovely time and the critters were all safe at home. The basement didn't flood either so that was a break. Casey's back to school for a tough term, Greg has started the tennis season, and Larry and I are back to work. However, I can feel that spring is just around the corner and that makes me happy. I'm going to try to get some seeds planted this weekend (lettuce, spinach, peas). I may also buy some pansies to brighten up the porches.

Stay tuned for a travel diary of our vacation.

Sunday-Sandy Run-Shopping-Snow

On a whim today we decided to have lunch at the club and then go to the new outlet mall in Limerick PA. We lucked out and got to the club in time for Sunday brunch - lots of yummy food. After a relatively fast lunch, we stopped in the pro shop and then headed off to Limerick. What a novel idea - put a big outlet mall at the base of 2 nuclear reactors! As you can see from the pictures, we were right there by them. Good thing no alarms went off while we were there.

Greg scored quite a bit there, mainly because there was Adidas, Nike, Reebok, Lids, and other sporting goods apparel stores. I got 2 pairs of jeans and we picked up some cereal bowls to match the pfaltzgraf dishes we put away over the holidays. We are bringing them back up to the kitchen because they offered more flexibility than the ones we were using.

Anyways, it was a lot of fun and I was thinking how lucky we are that Greg still wants to spend the day with his parents even though he is 15. We got home with plenty of daylight left and kitty, Greg and I spent some time outside in the snow. Yes, that is snow on the ground. We got about 3-4 inches on Friday and a layer of ice on top. It makes it hard for kitty to walk as she isn't heavy enough to crunch through the ice layer.

Have to include a Sydney and Crosby picture too. They love to sleep curled up in each other's paws. It's so cute!

Painting

This post is mainly for Casey. The wallpaper in the family room is finally gone. After a little over a week of work we have finally taken our family room out of the early 90's wallpaper period. The walls are a beautiful sage green that look perfect with the sofa and carpeting. We still have to repaint the ceiling but that can wait.

At the same time, Larry decided to paint the lower half of the dining room. I picked out the paint color and I have to admit it looks fantastic. It is a blue-green paint that picks up the color of the rug in there. I can't believe that he finally agreed to paint that room as he has always liked the color white. Having this project list for him for the year has been a very good idea. It's amazing how much he accomplishes when he has a list posted. Next up is to have the trees taken care of that were damaged by the winter storm. Hopefully we won't lose the willow tree.

Finally, we try so hard to keep cats off of the kitchen counter. It's just taking a little longer for the kittens to follow the rules.