Jeff, Heather, Cole and Kelsey arrive

Monday, October 8, 2018

Friday (October 5) morning, Jeff, Heather, Cole and Kelsey, hence forth know as the Crandalls, arrived at Heathrow Airport from Detroit.  Despite leaving Detroit an hour later then scheduled, they arrived in London only 20 minutes late and breezed through passport control and customs without any problems.  We whisked them onto the Tube, the London Underground subway system, and took them to our rented apartment. A few words about our apartment.  It is located in Kensington in the western part of London.  London residents would call it the posh end of London. We are located no more then 100 yards off of Kensington High Street, the main thoroughfare through Kensington that runs directly into Piccadilly Street. Our apartment consists of three floors. The ground floor contains the master bedroom and a bathroom.  The second floor has a kitchen and lounge (living room) and the 3rd floor has two bedrooms and a bath.  The Crandall's are located on the 3rd floor, we are on the ground floor. While not posh, the apartment has plenty of space and is clean and comfortable.  The only problem we have had is that the apartment has been cold and it was finally on the last evening that we figured out the boiler was set for hot water only, not hot water and heat. Tim blames this on our host. This is probably the first Airbnb that we have rented that did not come with a complete set of instructions for anything that we might need.

We gave everyone 30 minutes or so to get settled before starting our exploring.  We thought that with the Crandalls being tired from an overnight flight, a bus route that took in some of the major sights would be the best way to go. However, the first order of business was lunch.  Tim had found a nearby pub that would be a great way to start the Crandall's culinary trip through England. After everyone enjoyed their first pub lunch we hopped on a bus that took us past Kensington Gardens, the Royal Albert Hall, Hyde Park, a bit of Piccadilly Street, and Trafalgar Square.  We exited the bus by Charing Cross Railway Station and took a short walk to Covent Garden. Originally Covent Garden was a major market for that  section of London. Now the building that originally housed the market has an eclectic mix of shops and restaurants.  Interestingly, in the market was a display of mannequins dressed with flowers.  The public was invited to vote for their favorite.  Kelsey was quite taken with this display and was the only one of us who actually cast a ballot. The street that encircles the market building is now a pedestrian only area. Throughout this area there are buskers (entertainers) putting on short shows.  We watched one magician who was very good.  By this time the youngest two Crandalls were fading quite noticeably so we headed back to the apartment and called it a night.

The Crandalls in Covent Garden

Dress of flowers

We awoke Saturday to chilly temperatures and overcast skies.  The original plan was to attend the changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace and then have lunch.  After lunch the women were going to Hamley's, a famous toy store, and the British Museum while the guys attended an English football (soccer)  game.  Due to the weather, the changing of the guard was canceled, so we headed immediately to Hamley's much to Cole's delight.

Cole has been playing soccer for several years and really enjoys it.  While watching one of his games last spring Tim had a moment of inspiration and asked Jeff what he thought about taking Cole to a soccer match when we were in London.  Jeff thought it a wonderful idea.  The English Football league consists of four divisions with the top division, the Premier League, being the soccer that is seen on American TV.  A quick google search showed that the cost for those games was very expensive.  However, the next division down proved to be affordable.  The men attended a game at the Millwall Football Club. The stadium holds about 20,000 people and was at least three quarters full for this match.  Our seats were in the third row from the field at what would be considered approximately the 25 yard line at an American football game.  In other words, great seats. We had a fabulous time. Up close and in person the game was much more entertaining then watching on television.  The fans were every bit as entertaining as the game. They sang and cheered throughout the game. There was no marching band to lead them in the singing.  The opposing team, Aston Villa, had one end zone full of their fans. Early on when Aston Villa took an early lead, their fans were every bit, if not more, as boisterous as the Millwall fans. Once Millwall tied the game and then took the lead, the Aston Villa fans could not be heard. One funny occurrence that can only happen in England.  Tim listened to two older people at the concession stand during half time complain bitterly that there was no hot tea.  The fact that it rained throughout the entire match did nothing to dampen the spirits of the Crandall men.  The miserable weather did dampen the spirits of the Crandall women.  They gave up on the British museum, returned to the apartment and took a nap.

We awoke Sunday to abundant sunshine. Once we got everyone moving, no small chore considering the long day the Crandalls had on Friday, we took a bus to Kensington Garden which leads to Hyde Park.  It was a spectacular morning for a walk which was highlighted by seeing the Peter Pan statue and the Princess Diana Memorial Fountain.  Cole and Kelsey also enjoyed watching all of the dogs that had brought their masters to the park. 

Kelsey, Peter & Cole

On our first trip to England in 1984, we stayed at the Kensington Green Hotel that is situated just across the street from Hyde Park.  From the park we walked past the hotel and down the little alleyway next to it that contained little shops, restaurants and cafes.  Jeff reminisced with his family about his remembrances from that trip. It was just a short walk onto Harrod's, maybe the world's greatest department store. The Food Hall at Harrod's  is incredible and the first place we take any visitor.  As with all things, Harrod's has changed and the Food Halls now seem to cater more to people sitting down to eat then to the savvy, well to do shopper looking to take food products home to prepare themselves.  Though Lynda and Tim noted the change, Jeff, Heather, and Cole were still suitably impressed. Kelsey not so much.  After leaving Harrod's we walked to Tattersalls Tavern, a pub we have visited just about every time we come to London.  On our first visit it was a beautiful, traditional independent pub that morphed on succeeding visits to a gastro pub that no longer had a traditional feel.  It is now back to the more traditional style but is, unfortunately, owned by a large brewery with the same menu as all of the other pubs owned by that brewery.  Still, they were serving a traditional Sunday Roast and we were hungry.  After a leisurely Sunday dinner, we took the tube to Parliament Square to see Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament.  Westminster Abbey was nearby.  We knew before leaving the states that Big Ben had been shut down for much needed renovations.  What we did not anticipate was the fact that the tower was so completely covered in scaffolding that it was totally unrecognizable.  Heather and the kids had to take our word for it that that was Big Ben.

Big Ben (supposedly)

 Like many of the great Cathedrals of Europe, both St. Paul's Cathedral and Westminster Abbey charge a hefty admission to gain entry.  However, attending a church service is free, so we took everyone to Westminster Abbey for the Evensong service.  Evensong is a service in the late afternoon that is mostly sung by the choir and the celebrant.  If one is there early enough they are allowed to sit in the choir stalls of the church.  We were there early but were not admitted because of a family gathering and a small number of bishops visiting.  However, just before the service began, an usher told Lynda there were two seats available in the choir.  She offered them immediately to Jeff and Heather but they declined so we took them.  This is the third or fourth Evensong we have attended and they are always stunning.  The sound of the Choir of Westminster, containing both men and boys, is heavenly, and the setting sublime. Jeff and Heather enjoyed the service but said it was hard to understand the words the choir was singing from where they sat.  Cole managed to take a nap!  After Evensong, Tim and Lynda returned to the apartment while the Crandalls took the tube to King's Cross Railway Station to see Platform 9 3/4 of Harry Potter fame.

Off to Hogwarts!

On Monday we enjoyed another day of fine weather as we took a Yeoman Warden, one of the "Beefeaters",  led tour of the Tower of London.  These tours are fun for young and old alike as the Beefeater presents important historic information about the Tower of London with a humorous twist. Everyone was also in awe of our tour of the Crown Jewels  and the Regalia used when a monarch is crowned.  After lunch we took a ferry boat down the Thames River to Greenwich, home of the Royal Observatory and the location of the Prime Meridian. When back home planning this trip to Greenwich we forgot two significant details. 1. The Royal Observatory sits atop a high hill. 2. Our only other visit was by car where we parked beside the Observatory in the car park.  After a long, arduous hike up the hill, we did enjoy spectacular views of the Thames River and the East End of London.  We also got the de rigour picture of the Crandalls straddling the Prime Meridian.  Kelsey is presently studying longitude and latitude in school so she enjoyed the section of the Observatory Museum that explained those things. She is hoping to get bonus points in class when she gets home.  Upon leaving the Royal Observatory we again split up with the Crandalls heading to the British Museum to see the Rosetta Stone which they were unable to get to before closing time and Tim and Lynda heading to a pub to determine where we would all meet for our last dinner in London. We picked an OK Italian Restaurant just off of Leister Square in Central London.  The highlight of the evening was walking from Leister Square to Piccadilly Circus with all of the spectacular lights leading our way.  Two places of note that Tim and Lynda had not ever visited in London were M&M World and Legoland. On one of the floors of M&M World you could buy M&M's by the pound in just about any color of the rainbow.  Tim pretty much hyperventilated his whole time in the store.  Legoland was across the street from M&M World and had a replica of Big Ben that stood 12 to 15 feet tall, was made entirely out of 80,000 legos, and had a working clock in the bell tower. One of the store employees told us that this was the only fully functioning Big Ben in London right now.  Piccadilly Circus is one of the iconic squares in London.  There are huge lighted billboards above the entrances to the stores on the square that almost make the square as bright as day.  These lighted billboards have been in place since at least World War II.

Tuesday morning while Tim went to Heathrow to collect our rental van for the rest of the trip and Lynda packed, the Crandalls made a quick trip back to the British Museum where they finally saw the Rosetta Stone. They were also impressed with seeing a section of stone that contained part of Hammurabi's laws, the first known written laws as well some Roman and Egyptian artifacts.  We checked out of our apartment and drove  around Oxford on our way to the village of Bretforton located in the middle of the Cotswalds.  You will have to check back with us Sunday night to find out about the Cotswalds and what we saw on the remainder of our trip.

Cheers!