Wednesday, February 18, 2009

We left the hostel at 6:30AM to take the Tube to Heathrow. We had explicit instructions from the person at the hostel desk to be quiet walking through the neighborhood. Apparently people are still asleep at that hour. Whoda thunk?

It was mostly dark!

One last time: Mind the gap

DD was so tired! And me before coffee. I'm surprised I was smiling.

Happy travelers heading home.

We left so early that there was no one at the desk at the tube station to get group tickets from. The attendant told GB to take care of it at the other end. When we got to the other end there was no one at the window. So GB told the attendant what happened at the first station... he wound up just waving us all through. Thank you Mr Tube attendant.

After checking in and going through security we ate breakfast at the airport, which was far better than breakfast we would have had at Globetrotter. The girls got juice and muffins. I had grapes, a yogurt parfait and a latte.

DD was definitely more awake after eating and I was sure glad to have that latte. It was delicious. It was in terminal 3 and from a place called EAT.

After we were through eating we were able to go to our gate and board our flight.

It was a super long walk to the gate and of course we were at #22! The kids played cards while they waited.

Our amazing leader. It was nice to see him really relax once we reached the gate and everyone was accounted for. He's such a great person, I know I've gushed about how incredible he is, but he is!

Farewell England, you've been good to us.

When I packed, I decided to bring along my cashmere pants. They're super comfy, more like pajama bottoms than anything. They took up so much space in my suitcase and I questioned myself several times why I brought them. All that aside, they were perfect for flying in! So comfortable. I'm really glad I packed them. Kicked off my shoes and enjoyed the ride as best I could. Flying isn't my favorite thing to do. And of course, my friends MB and TG were either behind or beside me. Good times.

The flight home had some turbulence and was more full than the earlier one. We weren't able to stretch out quite like we did on the way over. It arrived about 20 minutes ahead of schedule though!

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Going through customs and immigration was relatively painless for DD, LJ and I. We all had the same agent that just asked the usual questions and stamped us through. The 2 girls traveling without a parent had a jerk of an agent assisting them. He yelled at me when I was waiting for them at the end of their queue. I explained that I was with them and he told me that didn't matter to him and to go downstairs. I complied and thankfully the girls weren't held up. GB had to go through different immigration as he's a UK resident, but we met up after he was cleared. I get the immigration officer was doing his job, but don't be giving 11 and 13 year old girls a hard time!

GB was an amazing guide, we could have not had anyone better. His knowledge and enthusiasm was vast and he planned everything perfectly. Giving us a lot of substance without overwhelming us. I can't believe how nervous I was about going, it was truly the best week of my life. There's no way I would have ever done anything like this on my own. I'm so glad it worked out the way it did, and so, so pleased that LL1 and her kids went too. They're all awesome.

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And we got to sleep in a castle. How awesome is that? I'd go back to that place to stay in a heartbeat.

Our rides in the van provided some of the best laughs of the trip. MB, TG and I referred to ourselves as the Berumuda Triangle, we turned some really weird stuff into some big jokes. We shared many a laugh with some really bad cow jokes and what do you call a man with no arms no legs doing _____________ jokes (What do you call a man with no arms, no legs and hangs on a wall? Art.) And if anyone says “You wanna buy a chicken!?” around TG she will giggle for hours on end. I will look back on those rides with fond memories. We were a loud and happy bunch and I hope AW1 wasn't too overwhelmed with the noise, we made a lot of it.

I wish I'd thought to bring a pedometer with us. We covered miles and miles that week. I can't speak for everyone that wears them, but I want to be buried in my Danskos. They proved themselves to be a terrific walking and touring shoe.

Tuesday, February 17, 2009

We had breakfast at the hostel, traditional breakfast, cold cereals and yogurt. I had granola with yogurt and grapefruit on the side. And coffee. All of the hostels but the Globetrotter featured fair-trade, organic coffee. I'm not sure exactly what Globetrotter had, but it reminded me of that g-d awful stuff known as instant coffee. While it will do in a pinch it's not something I want to make a habit.

I think the one thing I really liked about this hostel were there were so many families there- I saw lots of preschool aged children and several toddlers. And although GB said there were 90 other people staying that night, it never felt crowded.

We drove a short distance to Warwick Castle.

This was my last opportunity to ride in the front seat of the van before returning to London, so I did. It was weird being on the wrong side of the road. I know there are stories out there about Massachusetts drivers, but we've got nothing on the Brits. They're crazy! I did not want to be up front when we drove to London!

AW1 did a magnificent job getting us around. At the end of each ride we all applauded him. He very graciously put up with the humourous triumvirate of TG, MB and I. There were moments that we were LOUD!

We got to the castle a little before opening and had some time to kill. Our school kind of has a reputation of being full of tree huggers. Well, there ya go, someone's right, because the kids are too.

If you have seen the movie Shrek and are familiar with the scene where Shrek and Donkey visit Duloc, well, that song was what kept going through my head during our visit. After being at castle ruins, and then going here, it felt a little bit of a let-down. I'm glad this was the last stop of the week because it felt so scripted. Now I'm a huge fan of WDW and how they do things, but this place I just wasn't feeling the theming love. Don't get me wrong, this place was gorgeous, and meticulously maintained, but it was just so different from the ruins. And up until the 1970's, it was actually used. .

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It was kind of odd though, how the displays bridged centuries of use. I'm just not sure what to think. I'm glad I went, but am not sure this is a castle I'd go back to. I can't put my finger on why, though.

It was a “working” castle, with costumed employees and displays with wax mannequins. It is owned by the same company that owns the famous Tussaud's museum, and they were of very high quality. (Going to Tussaud's in London would have been great, had we had the time)

I'm not exactly sure what this was, but it was very long and looked like it may have been used to light the outside toches/gaslamps. I loved how it has weathered away the stone by being moved/blown in the wind for years.


We walked up along this hillside to the towers

and saw a gigantic trebuchet down below,

and a victorian boat-house.

See what I mean about centuries being bridged? It seemed like an odd combination of things to have near one another.

There was also a sword in the stone that some of the kids tried getting out.

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Even teamwork didn't do it.

LL1 and I were walking through the Kingmaker exhibit and she said “some of these look like they could just come to life at any time.” And a few minutes later we were startled by an actor/guide that blended into the mannequins and started talking to us, letting us know it was ok to touch the items in the room. I imagine it was part of his gig, he seemed to enjoy himself! I didn't take pictures inside, but wish I had. LL1 and I got to make our own coins, as they may have back in time.

Walking up to Guy's Tower was a challenge.

The sign at the bottom said it was 530 steps. Going down was as challenging as going up, and felt scarier to me. A touch of dizziness going down.

(LL1 photo)

But the view from up there was amazing!

From there you could get a good view of the great hall and state rooms. What it must have been like to be a warrior and have been like to be in a situation and have to quickly move up/down those stairs is incomprehensible to me. I thought some of the other spiral staircases we climbed earlier in the week seemed hairy, but this one far surpassed it.

We visited the conservatory and Peacock garden with LL1 & LL2 and LJ. There were peacocks everywhere and the gardens were lovely- traditional knots and topiaries.

LL1 looked very much at home in the conservatory.

DD looking like she's going to fly away.

LL2 and LJ really enjoyed one another's company that week.

This ornate carved bench was near the chapel area, it was facing the window.


We got to meet Maggie, a peasant cook and she was a hoot to talk to! She was making porridge, which is what we would call a stew here- beef and whatever vegetables you have on hand. Including acorns! When we arrived she was slicing up leeks. We learned from her that coriander is helpful if you have a cough.

We were also able to tour the Great Hall and State Rooms, where the majority wax mannequins were on display.

What a luxurious and beautiful place to have lived, if it indeed looked as it was represented. And the ceilings were so awesome! I didn't use my flash so the pictures aren't that great, but wow. The one with the circle/sky is from the room where the first bed with the pink coverlet is.

Some of us (whole group) had lunch at the castle. The smell of the cooking burgers was enticing. Oh how we were fooled! They were dreadful. They were so lean it was like eating cardboard, and tasted awful. Don't waste your money on burgers at Warwick.

Before departing, we saw the actors doing an exhibition of swords and weapons. They were very entertaining and funny.

Headed back to London before rush hour. Thankfully we stopped for gas and I was able to get some snacks (apples and yogurt drinks) for us to make up for the lunch that really wasn't.

Glaxo Smith Kline. I'm not sure what compelled me to take a picture of their building!

I saw these phonebooths with graffiti in the van, near the hostel. The ring-ring cracked me up. Clearly it doesn't take much to entertain me. What was even funnier is later that night when the girls were getting ready for bed, either DD or LJ left a very wet and drippy washcloth on the sink. And I'm like "girls, wring! wring!" And TG screeches "hello?!" And she, MB and I fall into peals of laughter. Guess you had to be there.

This is the street sign near our hostel.

We stayed at the Globetrotter again.

The neighborhood from our room. We could also see the tube trains.

The night-time view

Our roomies were the same as they were the first two nights, MB, TG/JG, LJ, DD and myself. Oh, MB, TG and I had so much fun in the van together, little did I know those first couple of nights in London what good friends we'd become. MB and I have known each other for years (her DD's used to babysit DD when she was little) but we never really did much together. She's a lot of fun and I'm so glad she decided to go on the trip! MB is a substitute at our school and does tutoring, as well as a zillion other things. She also does newspaper writing for a couple of local papers and after doing articles on the trip a few years back, decided that the best way to write about a trip is to do it. So she did, and I'm thankful.

I loved the plaque on our door- it was suitable for our week past.

LJ's uncles and cousin brought her out for dinner. DD and I walked through the Chiswick High Road neighborhood with LL1, LL2 and DL. We ate at Firezza Pizza, surely the best pizza I have ever had, and believe me, I've had a lot of it in my life. DD chose spinach, which also had fresh basil, mozzarella, feta and tomatoes on it. The crust was thin and crisp. We drank San Pellegrino Limonata. There was another pub we checked, but they changed the menu recently, but had not changed the one at the door. The old menu seemed a lot better and had a greater variety. We were bummed about that, but it turned out to be a blessing in disguise, as the pizza was so delicious and the men working at the pizza shop were sweet and gracious.

There were so many restaurants to choose from- Thai, Vietnamese, Indian, Greek and Italian. I would have loved a good curry, but DD is not a fan and I'm not super picky. GB said that the Thai and Vietnamese restaurants in London aren't that great in his experience, though the Indian ones are. We have a great local Vietnamese place here, and whenever I go it's filled with natives, so I trust that it's a good thing.

This sign on the street caught my eye. Apparently it caught the eye of MB, because when she returned from dinner she exclaims to me, "I have to show you this picture!" And I said I have one to share with you too. And we took a picture of the same sign. Which of course made us laugh and laugh even more. See, vodka really does go with everything, though I don't really drink that much of it at home. Ok, even away from home I had what 4 of them the whole week? Not a big deal.

This was our cloudiest day, but no rain beyond a few sprinkles first thing in the morning. The weather all week could really not have been beat. What a week it was!