The Grand Finale: Ode to the Dames Family

Thank you guys for hosting us, showing us around, and, most of all, being such wonderful friends. And thanks for sharing your neck of the woods with us. We wanted to show you what we saw of your own "backyard".

The lovely street that we walked to get to the tube station was a wonderful way to start the day and great welcome home from scurrying about the city. And you can't beat the delivery service:



Even the side streets are pretty vignettes:



I've never seen florists so lovely:



Or flowers so fresh and abundant:



And then to come home to a beautiful building:



I can't imagine how frustrating the 4-hour per load washer/dryer must be. I wouldn't want to try to get on a bus during rush hour in the rain. I can't imagine trying to drive on the wrong side of the road. But, boy howdy, do you live in a beautiful city. How enchanting. Thanks for sharing it all with us!

Day Six

Our last day proved to be our easiest. We knew where we wanted to go. We knew how to get there. We knew we had to be up at 5 a.m. (and their time changed that night, too). We knew we had to get home to get to bed early.


We finally got to use one of the cool mail boxes:



This one was right outside our friends' apartment (across the street, on the corner). You can see it from their living room, a fact that my friend does not think is as cool as I do.

We decided to sleep in a bit and then hang out at Portobello Road - a giant outdoor market with stalls selling everything under the sun. We knew it must be a humdinger when there was a solid wall of humans marching from the tube station straight to the market area. Solid. wall. Really.



And it didn't let up once the shopping began:



I was so overwhelmed that I finally called it quits so we could go look for lunch. After a bite at Pret a Manger, we went for a surprise tube ride. The surprise for the kids was that they didn't know where we were going. The surprise for me was that I couldn't find it. But we finally made it to King's Cross Train Station to find the most famous platform of all:



Then it was time for "Revenge of the Babies". Let me explain. My husband went out on his birthday eve with our host to have a pint. Our friend introduced him to "Casque Ale" which is beer, but not really carbonated (is that right?). There is some kind of pump system that is part of the experience. Unfortunately, pubs that had casque ale didn't allow children and those that allowed children had no casque ale (or so it seemed to us). While at Portobello Road, we saw a sign advertising the ale, so we knew what to look for. And on Day ?, we stopped in one to be yelled at (good naturedly) by the bar keep with "No babies!". Well, at King's Crossing, the planets finally aligned and casque ale was being poured at a pub that allowed kids. The kids enjoyed their lemonade and let mama have a quiet pint. Revenge of the babies!



This is their idea of revengefulness. I just think that the lemonade it kicking in!

Luckily it wore off in time to fall into bed in their travel togs, ready to face the long trek home.




Just enough time for one more Cadbury fill up!

Day Five

It is a sad state of our Internet affairs that I can have our vacation photos printed and in an album before I can get my blog updated. Rain and satellite Internet service just don't mix.

We started Day Five with the goal of seeing the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace. On the way from the tube station to the palace, we had a lovely stroll through Green Park. When I tried to take a picture of the serene beauty, here's what I wound up with:



Amazing what a good night's sleep will do for a kid!

When we arrived at Buckingham Palace at 10:15, folks were already 2 deep at the fences (for the 11:30 ceremony start) and it looked like it was going to rain buckets at any minute. Since the Queen neglected to come out and welcome us:



we opted for a walk through St. James' Park:



As we were leaving the park, we saw the horses arriving at the Horse Guard Palace:



My daughter got her daddy and horse fix all in one:



Before we left for London, we made a giant list of sites we might like to see. On my personal top five list was the Rosetta Stone. One of those things that I've heard about forever and have never seen. I just had to see it in person. And today was that day:



My friend was not kidding about knowing where it is in the museum because of all of the people. Indeed! When we had patiently pushed our way to the front, I snapped an awful picture of the kids with the Stone, and then I snapped this one. I almost deleted it before I realized that my son's reflection and hand are in it. Kind of cool. My kids still don't understand what the big deal was about seeing it. But isn't making your kids do things because you think they're neat the responsibility of parents? Didn't want to disappoint! But they were good sports:



And as a special treat, we hit the Tesco on the way home to stock up on junk-food souvenirs.



What's a Tesco? I have no idea. I think it is a grocery store chain, but the "Express" is like my idea of heaven. Lots of junk food with just enough milk and bread thrown in to make you feel like you are actually buying food. I was ready to fill out my customer loyalty card by the time we were ready to leave for home.

Day Four

We were rolling early on Day Four to get to the Tower of London by opening at 9. We did a great job, but unfortunately a funeral held up opening time 'til 10:30. We used the time for a snack at Eat (toffee waffles!) and to walk along the Thames. Here we posed for a quick pic at the Tower Bridge (look closely - it's my blog pictorial debut!).



We were able to see Traitor's Gate at the side of the Tower of London. Out of all the reading that we had done about the place and this gate in particular, I'd swear it never mentioned that it was a water entry. Even the kids were surprised. A nice reminder that I seldom know what I am talking about. Here is my daughter as a defiant traitor:



Finally, they let us (and a thousand others) in for a tour. I don't think that the former inhabitants smiled this much when entering:



The White Tower was the first part of the complex and was begun by William the Conqueror in 1075. That's as in almost a thousand years ago. Thousand. With a "th".



After an unexpectedly long visit at the Tower, we scrapped plans to take in Greenwich and made our way to the shopping mecca of Harrods. Dinner, souvenir shopping, and Princess Di/Dodi memorials galore later, we limped home with full bellies and full shopping bags.



And my husband wanted a relaxing vacation!

Day Three

Day Three was our first day to fend for ourselves and a milestone birthday for Team Take the Lead's leader. We started the day with a "flight" on the London Eye. Here's the birthday boy as we set off with the Parliment buildings behind him.



Then it was off to Trafalger Square for prime pigeon chasing and statue climbing. Here is the clan chilling on the base of Nelson's Column:



After lunch in Chinatown, the birthday boy spotted cakes:



but we opted to skip dessert and head for the now-open St. Paul's Cathedral. Good thing we did, because I felt every one of the 434 steps to reach the top. But we made it! Here are the kids celebrating while mom cringed against the stone walls.



To round out the day, we had another wonderful snack from the Paul cafe beside the cathedral. But first, we had 433 more steps down:

Day Two

Day Two's highlight was spending the entire day with our friends and learning about how to navigate around their wonderful city.

This is the view we had when exiting the Underground station - wow!



And a couple of blocks later - my son at the entrance to Westminster Abbey:


We made it to Tate Modern for lunch where the kids explored the Shibboleth exhibit " a long, snaking crack across the vast length" of the concrete floor.



Next up - a stroll across the Millennium bridge to St. Paul's. Unfortunately, we missed the last admission time by 25 minutes, so we headed home "early".

Can you tell from this picture that my daughter loved being on her Daddy's team (Team Takes the Lead). My son and I made up Team Walks A Lot - and we all lived up to that name!

Not bad for the first full day for four folks still trying to figure what time it was.

Day One

The only way to try to share over 400 photos with you all is to select the best of the best from each day. Sound good? Then here we go:

My son was delighted to find a Cadbury machine in the airport immediately upon arrival:



And here's the main reason for the trip - reuniting friends (adults, too!):



The kids all together:



Can you tell how excited we were? Such a fun trip - can't wait to share the other 397 pics!

Re-Entry

We made it back from London in one piece and I am trying to figure out which end is up.

Here are a few pictures to keep you distracted from my fuzzy-headedness:


Now that is some knittin'! Can you see the skirt? I'm sure she has a project in that bag. I was just happy she didn't notice me hurrying up behind her to snap this photo and whack me with it.



My wonderful friend scoped out a knitting stop for me. A whole knitting department in a multi-floor department store! Attention Macy's: get a clue! These samples were set out in such a cute display. Unfortunately, the yarns seemed mostly the same as home, but at twice the price due to the exchange rate, so I left all the lovely yarn on the shelves.

And speaking of shelves: check out the selection here:



Just PART of the giant wall of Rowan. I have never seen so much Rowan in one location. The color selection for each type of yarn just blew me away.



And now I'm off to figure out what meal we should be eating...

London Bound

We're headed back to the mother land next week and we've been busy getting ready. Recent activities have helped get us in the mood.

My daughter and her daddy tripped the light fantastic at the annual Girl Scout Father Daughter Dance. The theme: British Invasion! We continued on our do-it-yourself theme by creating a punk rock costume. Here Erin had pulled the painter's tape off of her hand-painted t-shirt to reveal the Union Jack:



All we had to add was a couple of dog collars and a surly look:



And don't forget the crazy hair:



I think we're ready! (Don't worry, Kelly, this all washes out!)

And in case we need help getting there, we found some local directions at Agecroft Hall:



Wheels up in two days!