Trum's Scout Troop went to England for scout camp this year and we planned on him going with them. But several complications came up that made it not do-able for us. However, we had already purchased his plane ticket so we decided to change the dates and have our family vacation in the United Kingdom. So in June, a bit after school was out, we headed off to tour some of the UK.
We started off with a few days in London.
We took a little tour around the Whitehall area and of course, ate dinner at the Sherlock Holmes Pub. Touristy? You bet! But the food is good and it's fun!
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| Trafalgar Square |
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| The PRIDE Days parade had happened earlier that afternoon and the street lights had been customized for the event. It's possible there was some drunken singing in the streets happening as we toured around. Definitely a bit of an interesting experience for the boy. We were just like, well, this is how drunk people act. Let it be a lesson to you. |
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| Horse Guard's Parade |
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| The boy didn't understand that ALL tourists have to pose for this picture. It's the law. |
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| We stayed in this hotel that was attached to an older pub, where The Who used to perform, back in the day. Jack was Very pleased by this. |
We decided to split up for the day, I had just been to London a few weeks earlier with my sister and so I decided to skip the museums that Jack wanted to take Trum to visit. I decided to head out on the river to Greenwich for the day. I had never been there and it was fun to do something new.
I found a free walking tour online (check it out here) and once I got off the ferry I started my tour at The Greenwich Foot Tunnel, designed for the dock-men who worked and lived on different sides of the Thames, it was opened in 1902.
The tunnel is covered in white tiles and the entrances are in these two big domes. You can use the stairs or a giant elevator, big enough to accommodate several people and their bikes. But there are plenty of rules to keep you out of mischief in the tunnel!
I also stopped in the Greenwich Market, where a market has been held for centuries. I didn't have any shell fish but I did have a fabulous pulled pork wrap and enjoyed browsing through fun handy-crafts and people watching. There was a booth selling ceramics from Turkey for only 10 times the amount I would pay for the same stuff in Ankara. What a racket!
I took a walk through Greenwich Park up a hill to The Royal Observatory. It was designed by Christopher Wren and became the first purpose-built scientific research facility in Britain. The main purpose of the Observatory was to measure and monitor time and the most famous aspect of the Observatory comes from this purpose: The Prime Meridian. At 0 degrees longitude, the Greenwich Meridian marks the point where all time around the world is measured. You can kind of see the 0 degree line in the courtyard in the picture above. I chose to view it through the fence instead of paying for a closer look.
From the hill you get a great view of London as well as The Queen’s House and Christopher Wren’s Naval College.
The National Maritime Museum, located at the bottom of the park, is the largest maritime museum in the world. I only had time to wander past. Apparently they have over 2,000 model ships, I only saw this giant one that is located outside!
Down in the Naval College I stopped in to see The Painted Hall. It was designed by Sir Christopher Wren and Nicholas Hawksmoor, and was originally intended at an eating space for naval veterans to eat while they were admitted to the Naval Hospital. It was really an impressive space.
Outside, there was a sort of art's festival going on. With lots of strange and wonderful performing artists sharing their art with the public. This one was called Urban Astronaut and was awesome.
While I was wandering around Greenwich, Jack and the boy were having their own adventures.
They started off at The British Museum. This place is enormous and can be exhausting. They stuck with the Rick Steve's Highlights tour.
From there they headed out for the traditional Tesco picnic lunch in St. James' Park and then toured the Churchill War Rooms.
After WWII, these rooms, where they ran the government and the war, were just closed off, So everything is just as it was during that time. It is a really interesting place and included is a museum about Churchill that is also fascinating!
They took a double-decker bus to meet me at the Imperial War Museum. Because if there is a military museum available, these two men have to see it. Jack and I toured this about seven years ago, and it was interesting to see the changes. But where did Lawrence of Arabia's motorcycle go?? Mystery I could have solved had I been inclined to ask, but I wasn't.
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| Dressed up like a "Tommy" from the Great War. |
We spent the evening taking a LONG walk so Jack could see...
221b Baker Street!
Abbey Road Studios and the famous cross walk.
There were plenty of other nerdy tourists like us checking out the cross walk. London drivers trying to get home after work find the posing for photos here, less than amusing!
The next day we headed out on the motorway to start our travels by car.
Our first stop was in Battle, near Hastings, where strangely the Battle of Hastings took place.
This is where William the Conqueror, well, conquered England. Afterward, an abbey and cathedral were built here and the ruins of those buildings are open for touring.
They have an excellent audio guide and we had fabulous weather to enjoy the site.
Little Normans and Saxons reenact the battle.
From Hastings we headed over to East Sussex to walk along the white cliffs and enjoy the beach at Birling Gap! I love this area! So gorgeous! I had just been there with my sister but I loved it both times.
We took a drive to see the Long Man of Wilmington. The figure of a man was cut into the chalk of the hill. And people thought he was ancient but now, scientists have ruined everyone's fun and say he is probably only from the twelfth century.
In the evening we stopped off in Brighton. It's a bit run down, but for me and my love of Regency Era literature it was fun to see the Royal Pavilion and imagine Jane Austen Era ladies parading on the promenade.
For us, we walked down the pier and Jack had some excellent Fish and Chips.
We ended our day in Portsmouth. Trum and I enjoyed the quiet street outside our B&B.
We took a little walking tour around the historic district and the harbour. It was so peaceful, and only one couple from the US was out and about like us. I REALLY liked Portsmouth and it was one of many cities we visited on this trip that I plan to come back to for a longer stay.
In the morning we got up early for a visit to the Portsmouth Historic Dockyard. It is great place with lots of stuff to see, but we went mostly to see the HMS Victory.
The Victory is best known as Lord Nelson's flagship at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805 and where he died. It was so well preserved and there are plenty of guides around to answer questions. Plus plenty of cannons and that always makes the men-folk happy.
Inside one of the museum buildings they had all of these old arcade games and attractions. We spent some spare change to see how a few of them worked.
From Portsmouth, we drove over to Salisbury to tour the cathedral.
It was really amazing. Built in 1258 it has the tallest church spire in the United Kingdom.
It is gorgeous inside and out. There are free tour guides waiting to take you around when you get inside. Our's was a retired teacher and he was awesome. So many interesting facts and stories. He of course loved Truman, as that kid is the best ever! Our guide told us about poisoned rats in coffins, Elizabethan painting and made sure we saw the Magna Carta. It was great!
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| Gorgeous, modern, reflecting Baptismal Fount |
From Salisbury (another city I want to spend more time in!) we hurried over to Stonehenge to make our timed Entry. It is always fun to visit Stonehenge. Even if it is always raining when I am there. Seven years since Jack and I were here for our 10th anniversary. We still have the same umbrellas. Pretty good value!
Seven years later, still in love at Stonehenge!
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