Mom and Dad got to our house last Friday at around 9:30am. Despite the fact that they were exhausted, we powered through and headed to Borough Market, where Jim met us for lunch. After eating our way through the market, we strolled over to Tower Bridge and then made our way to the Tower of London. Below are Mom, Dad, and Jim standing in front of the Thames and then at the Tower of London, where we had a tour with one of the Beefeaters (yawn) and then climbed to the top of the White Tower, where Henry the VII's armor was displayed. We were fascinated by the large size of his armor--he was HUGE! I feel sorry for the horse he rode. We also were amused by the historic cup attached to the crotch area of his suit of armor, which was very prominant and protected his family jewels.
The next day, we headed to Frommagerie (I probably didn't spell that right), a great wine and cheese store which also has breakfast. Unfortunately, next to us was a man named Trevor, who was alternately trying to grope a young lady to his left and talk to my parents about politics and books and everything else that he was a know it all about. Jim and I, not being as charmed by the English personality and also not wanting to get into a discussion about our president and terrorism and religion, just focused on our eggs and cheese. Mom was incredibly restrained, and Dad was very friendly and managed to talk to Trevor all by himself for the entire time we were at breakfast. After breakfast, we ran into Trevor again on the street and he finally gave us a useful piece of information, which was that there was going to be a total eclipse of the moon on Saturday night and that the moon would turn red (all true, up and down our street were people gaping at the moon and total eclipse parties in upper balconies). After that, we dodged Trevor (who just kept popping up everywhere) and ducked into the tube station to head to Kew Gardens. But, just for entertainment purposes, here is a picture of Trevor talking to us about the eclipse:
Kew Gardens is about to burst open with flowers. We caught the very beginning of the budding, which is marked by a carpet of crocus on the lawn of the Gardens as we walked in. The Palm house was so humid and warm that we couldn't last long, but we enjoyed strolling around the gardens outside and if I still don't have a job in a month (likely), I might go back and see them again when things are in full bloom.
Jim, Mom, and Dad in Kew Gardens:
Jim poses with a dragon:
Mom in front of the daffodils:
Dad matched the blue flowers:
Jim in front of a tree filled with orchids:
After Kew Gardens, Mom and Dad got a good taste of what the tube can be like, as we waited for almost an hour for our tube to arrive and then had to switch lines because a train had broken down on ours. The experience was so horrible that Jim got sick and couldn't join us for dinner.
On Sunday, Chef Jim whipped up some delicious French Toast in honor of Mom's birthday. Dan and Meg joined us and we had a champagne brunch!
Then we instant messaged with Kate and got all the details about the gifts she received at her lingerie party:
Monday was the most action packed day of all (I think). We started the day off at the Tate Britain and then took a boat from Tate to Tate (Modern) down the Thames. It was a great way to see part of Central London. At the Tate Modern, there are very tall slides set up (an exhibit of some sort, I think). Dad and I slid down from the third floor and then from the fifth floor (pictures coming soon). We also enjoyed the art, although Mom was scandalized by how expensive the gift shops were and also by the fact that she didn't get to see the top two floors because we had to rush off to Covent Gardens. At Covent Gardens we refreshed ourselves with coffee and then shopped until we almost dropped. Dad headed back home to have dinner with Jim while Mom and I went to the Royal Opera House for the ballet. We saw Apollo and the world premier of Children of Adam, which was very sexual and sad. The third act was another more traditional dance and they were all really wonderful. Even though we were in the nosebleed section, we had a great view of the stage.
On Tuesday, we visited Jim in Canary Wharf and got to stand in the lobby of where here works, after having to go through several levels of security. He has great views of the city. After lunch, we headed to Greenwich, our old hood, where we walked along the Thames, visited the Maritime museum, and then trudged up the hill in Greenwich Park and stood on the Prime Meridian.
And finally, yesterday, Mom and Dad ended their trip with a 10 mile walk in the country along with the American Women's Club ladies. It was a beautiful day and they were great sports and didn't complain at all (see previous blog about the Winchester Walk complainers). Here they are in action and then at the pub where we stopped for lunch:
Sadly, today, Mom and Dad had to go home and relieve Aunt Sue of pet duty, so after a hearty breakfast at the Dawson House Hotel, I waved goodbye to them as they drove off in their mini cab and trudged home...alone again. :-(
