We left on April 15 from Phoenix and flew to JFK, then London Heathrow. Once we got our luggage, we stood there wondering how to get to the hotel. I guess I assumed we would take a taxi, but we found out that would cost about 70 pounds (over $100) so we had to come up with an alternative quickly. We had seen tons of signs for the Heathrow Express train, so that’s what we did and took that to Paddington Station. Once we got to Paddington Station, I had to use the bathroom and ended up having to get some coins for the pay toilets. You don’t say “bathroom” in London—it’s the toilet or the loo. We found a taxi line and took a black cab to the hotel. We passed by Buckingham Palace and saw everyone gathering for the changing of the guard. The hotel was amazing! Everything was so beautiful, especially the courtyard.
Our room wasn’t ready, so
we left our bags and went walking to Westminster Bridge, where Big Ben is. We
walked right past Westminster Abbey. The
line was super long and all the way out to the street. I was so mad at myself for not getting out
our coats and umbrella before we went walking.
It was freezing, and it started to rain!
We finally walked into the Westminster Abbey gift shop to discuss what
we should do. Right outside there were
taxis so we took one to the Victoria and Albert Museum. The museum was amazing. There were so many cool paintings and
statues. We saw some displays of fashion
throughout the years that was really great.
When I finally found a restroom, I had to laugh when the woman in front
of me answered her phone and said, “Oh, I’m just in queue for the loo.” After the museum, we took a taxi back to the
hotel and stopped at a nearby sandwich shop called Crumpets for lunch.
The next day, we went to the trade show. The
expo was called the London Natural and Organics show. I had fun helping at the booth. I gave out samples and spoke to people about
the products. That was the first time
Wisdom Natural Brands was there, so Sweetleaf was new to everyone and they all
loved it! We didn’t have lunch and there
were no good samples to fill up on, so when it was over we went to
dinner. By the time we finished dinner,
it was already 10pm so we headed to our room.
We were exhausted and still jet-lagged!
On Monday, Michael went to the trade show and I was
able to go off and explore on my own. My
first order of business after breakfast was to walk to Buckingham Palace. It was only about two blocks from our
hotel! I got there at about 10:50am, and
it was already very crowded. A group of
men, all dressed up in fancy suits, walked by and they were let right in the
gate! They stood right by the palace to
watch the changing of the guard. It was
really cool to watch! 
After that I went
back to the hotel to freshen up and then walked to St. James’ Park tube station
to head to Brompton Cemetery to see where my fourth great grandfather William Horsfall is buried. The
cemetery was huge! When I walked in, I
wasn’t sure where to go, and there was no one to ask, so I walked all the way
down the main walkway to the other side.
On the way I met a maintenance man who told me where to find the office. I spoke to a man named Jay Roos. He told me what I had already read, but I had
to be sure for myself. There is no
gravestone for William Horsfall.
Apparently none of the pensioners had a gravestone because they wanted
everyone to be considered equal, and so that no one seemed better than someone
else as they all served their country in the military. He pointed out on the map where William is
buried, and I was also able to see the monument for the Chelsea
pensioners.
After the cemetery, I
headed to the Warner Bros. Harry Potter movie set. I had so much fun there! I purchased the audio tour, so that made
everything even more interesting. They
even had a booth where you would sit on a broom and they made a video of you
flying around in the “movie.” They
wanted about 40 pounds for it, so I didn’t buy it. I took about a million pictures so I would
have something to show the kids. I also
stopped in their café to try some Butterbeer, which tastes like cream soda
with butterscotch. It was not good. The frothy cream on top was wonderful, but I
couldn’t finish the drink.
Dining hall
Costumes from Goblet of Fire ball
Potions classroom
Dursley's home
Diagon Alley
model of Hogwarts
I spent so long looking
at all of the exhibits that I didn’t leave until about 7pm, but I made it back
to the hotel by 8pm. We decided to try
another one of the hotel’s restaurants.
This one was called Quilon, and it was amazing! It was Indian food, so I was hesitant to try
it, but I’m so glad we ate there.
Thankfully, we were already at our hotel when we were done because I was
so exhausted—again! So much walking!!!
On Tuesday we went to Tower of London. It was awesome! I especially loved our tour guide. My favorite part was when he was talking
about the executions: “Today, there are
many things to do in London. Back then,
there was absolutely nothing to do. So
when the people heard there was to be an execution, they thought,
‘Brilliant!’ They went early to get a
good seat, and when they came home with blood splatter on their clothes, all of
their friends would know what a brilliant seat they had that morning at the
execution.” His delivery was perfect and
the whole thing was very entertaining. I
especially loved seeing the crown jewels and the chapel.
We took the tube to the
Imperial Museum. It closed at 6pm so we
didn’t have a lot of time, but Michael said it wasn’t as good as the
Smithsonian anyway.
On
Wednesday, I had a hard time getting up.
Michael had a meeting and had to go to High Street Kensington. I went to the London Eye. It was nice, but not really worth the 20
pounds I paid for it. I’m still glad I
did it, though.
After that, I walked
across Westminster Bridge and did the audio tour from there to Trafalgar
Square.
Trafalgar Square
Charring Cross
I bought tickets for
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, but then had to practically run to the
theater. I made it just in time. I enjoyed the play, but it wasn’t quite as
good as I had hoped. After the theater,
I walked through Covent Gardens, past the Savoy, through the Victoria
Embankment gardens, and the to the Embankment tube station. I had called Michael and he came to meet me
there. We walked to Trafalgar Square and
ate fish and chips at Garfunkels. It
looked like a casual dining place, but the prices were still outrageous.
Covent Garden
On
Thursday I wanted to go to Westminster Abbey and ride the double decker tour
buses. When we got up, though, Michael
said he wanted to go to Windsor Castle.
We called and found out that they were closing early, but we still
went. We got to Windsor at 12:40pm and
saw a huge crowd, like they were waiting for a parade or something. We finally asked someone what was going on
and it turns out the Queen had walked by at noon because it is her 90th
birthday. Everyone was waiting for her
to come back, but there was a lady who told us she wasn’t coming back that way
and we found out she was right. We had
to wait until 1pm when they let the crowds in.
Some British ladies behind us in line were complaining about the “bloody
foreigners.” By the time we got in it
was about 1:15pm. We had to go through
metal detectors. I loved the queen’s
doll house room, the State Apartments with the China room, bedrooms, banquet
hall, and sitting rooms, etc., and St. George’s Chapel, where Henry VIII and
Jane Seymour and other kings and queens are buried. The woodwork in the quire was amazing! I wish I could have taken pictures, but I did
get a guide book. The audio tour was
great and really enhanced the experience.
After we left, we went to the souvenir shop across from the Castle exit
and had some yummy treats at the bakery on the corner.
We hopped right on the
train back, waited a few minutes for the transfer at Slough, and headed back to
Paddington. I was amazed by the
super-fast trains. An announcement would
come on saying, “The next train approaching isn’t scheduled to stop” and warned
us to stay behind the yellow line. Then,
sure enough, the train whizzed by quickly.
If you had been too close, the air might have sucked you onto the
tracks.
We weren’t sure what to
do for dinner, and so I suggested we go to Picadilly Circus. I’ve never been to New York City, but I would
imagine it is a lot like Picadilly Circus.
There were definitely many places to choose from. We ate at the Angus Steakhouse. The steakhouse was right next to a TGIFridays
and also the theater where The Book of Mormon musical was playing.
After dinner we went back
to the hotel and then we went for a
walk to Buckingham Palace. It was pretty
at night. I got some good pictures.
We left for home the next day, and we arrived in Phoenix
that evening. The kids were so happy to
have us home, but I know they had a great time with their Papa. He was able to go on Jonathan’s zoo field
trip, and even took Nathaniel to his National Honor Society ceremony.
I
feel so blessed that I was able to go on this trip. Some things I that made me appreciate
home: in London dinner takes forever
(even for them to bring you the bill), there are no street signs—you have to
hunt for the street name on a plaque on the buildings, the toilets are tiny and
if you’re out and about and lucky enough to find them you often have to pay,
there are no water fountains, and there are no
$1 bills—only coins. Things I loved:
the way they talk—“I’m in queue for the loo,” Mind the Gap,” and street signs
that say things like “unsuitable.”
This trip was a dream
come true!
