Fast trip to London

We are back from a whirlwind trip to London which required more walking, hauling, climbing and thinking than either of us have done in a long time.

We started out on the late morning of Saturday, 4-February with our special travel tickets which took us to Euston Station in London. This station is not located close to where we were staying or where we wanted to see a play but, undaunted, we carried on. First, we needed to find the right Tube and figure out what an Oyster (not a bivalve) card is and how to use them. They are sort of like debit cards for the Tube. There are machines that allow you to "top up" your card or buy a new card. Since our friend Kim had left two of them behind, we had the cards but couldn't figure out the "top up" business. Sadly we went to a ticket window where the most unhelpful and unfriendly person we met all weekend was working his shift. Still, we persevered, found more helpful people and decided to go to Leicester Square and get our theater tickets before going to our hotel near Paddington Station.

Oh, did I mention that London is in the midst of preparing for two huge celebrations. This summer will mark the sixtieth anniversary of the coronation of Queen Elizabeth and the hosting of the Summer Olympics. Can you say Con-struc-tion? Leicester Square is one of the busiest areas in London and the heart of the West side theater district and they have closed off the entire square with big white plastic barriers which limited what we could see. Thankfully there were a few signs to direct us to the ticket booth that weren't obscured by people. We got the tickets we wanted and headed back to the Tube to "top-up" some more and find our hotel for a brief rest and a bite to eat before hitting the Tube again.

The theater was fantastic! We saw Jersey Boys; the story and music of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons. We had great seats; the music and production was fantastic and when we left the theater, it was snowing. Oh what a night! Elsie had a great time too. A couple of short Tube rides back to the hotel and we were ready for some serious sleep on a super comfortable bed. We were not disappointed.

On Sunday, we took advantage of a two day special on the Original Bus Tour. This allowed us several choices of sightseeing rides and transportation back to Euston Station on Monday for our train ride home. We could stay out of the Tube and save our Oyster Cards for another trip.

Since it had snowed the night before, walking was cold and treacherous on Sunday so we opted to view as much as we could from the bus. London is a super old city having been originally built by the Romans in AD43 but much of it burned in the Great Fire of London in 1666. There is a monument to the Fire Brigade and the Great Fire which is the tallest isolated stone column in the world. It stands 202 ft high and is positioned 202 ft from the spot in Pudding Lane on which the Great Fire is believed to have started. So you see, it it were to topple. It would land on that very spot. Weird, huh?

The narrated ride through the narrow, crowded and busy streets was really a whirlwind of views, facts and interesting tidbits about the British culture and history. We saw most of the hot spots from the bus, I took a gazillion snapshots. It was so much fun, we did more tours on Monday morning since we were carrying our travel bags. This company, Original Bus Tours were fantastic! We could not believe the excellent advise and service we received both days.

When we got back to Hyde Park on Monday about noon there were canons going off, horses, riders and a whole lot more. This was 6-February; the sixty year commemoration of the accession of Queen Elizabeth II to the throne. Members of The Kings Troop Royal Horse Artillery fired a 41 Gun Salute to mark the official start of Queen Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee. It was a fantastic and incredibly memorable event to witness. I did take some pics but the "behind the scene" shots from MSNBC are interesting too. They are so all about pomp and this was certainly no exception.

Linda spotted an important looking chap with an impressive swan plumage hat and so she introduced herself. He was the head honcho Major General in charge of Royal ceremonies and is of course a very busy fellow. He made sure that the riders and band looked snappy for the ceremony.

When it was over, we toddled off to catch our bus back back to the train station and on to Worcester. It was quite a time. We are tired and happy and looking forward to returning to London for more theater, museums, sites and less snow.

There were many impressive buildings and statues in London that we saw but sped by them too fast to remember what they actually are. They Londoners do like their monuments. So, I posted the pics for your viewing enjoyment but don't expect any educational boost from them. However, this is pretty cool.

Be sure and check out the photos. I've also added a album for Butch fans so you can keep up with his "activities".