Friday, 31 March 2017

Bob's Your Uncle!


Well we are here safe and sound in London. It was a good flight and are now feeling well rested having mostly adjusted to the time change. We went to bed around 9:00 pm and were wide awake at 1:15 am which rather perplexed us but eventually dozed back off to sleep for almost six more hours so feeling confident we now have things sorted out. 

On arrival into the big city we had already made arrangements to have a driver meet us at the airport to take us to our hotel. It was a long drive in with a very nice gentleman who was more than welcome to share his local knowledge of all of the sites. We had forgotten just how incredibly large London is but we were quickly reminded by the traffic if nothing else -- it took one and a half hours to get to our hotel - in non-rush hour traffic.

Showered up and refreshed we met up with the DJs and took off on foot to explore the area around Tower Bridge. We met up with Little P and Mamma and Daddy P outside the HMS Belfast. When Little P saw the DJs she came racing down the pier, jumped into D's arms and gave her such a warm and welcoming hug. It's always nice to have been missed. 
The flowers and foliage really are out in full bloom already. 
We weren't quick enough with the camera, but Little P got right into the flower bed to get the full experience of the beautiful daffodils. 

We loaded up our tube Oyster cards and ventured out with the young people to Abbey Road. It was a good chance to get out and try to understand the transportation system. Lovely neighbourhood stroll from the subway station to the Abbey Road site.  It seemed so unusual to see all the flowers and trees in bloom already with palm trees lining the gardens on our walk as well. 



Abbey Road where we tried to get a photo of the infamous Beatles' cover but alas the site was under temporary construction. Mamma and Daddy P did their best though at getting the stride out. 

We made our way off of Abbey Road down to the Oxford Circus area of London by bus transit which was a pretty convenient way to get around. Then we meandered our way through the five storey Hamley's Toy Store and were completely overwhelmed. It was rather like being at a circus or carnival with all of the carney workers vying for our attention with their newly released products. We all agreed we collectively prefer the quiet sedateness of a traditional toy store, or even yet, perhaps a small independent bookstore (yes, Meg's bias is coming through). 

Sir IF, Little P and D couldn't resist the opportunity for a picture with the queen (and yes, she is crafted entirely out of lego pieces).

Our hotel has a pretty good view of the Thames River and Sir IF and his buddies got to spend most of the evening checking out all of the ships, barges, cruise ships, and tour boats gliding up the river. A significant number of police boats and helicopter activity were also a constant reminder and sign of the times. 

Sir IF relaxes after a full evening taking in the water views. 

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