london: day 4

tuesday: july 1, 2008
all the queen's horses, and all the queen's men...

9:30am: the wake-up call this morning is just as alarming, and even more so, it's a half-hour late! i wake up francis, in the pitch black room, and throw back the curtains: it is bright and sunny and a glorious day in london. we rush downstairs to pile a breakfast on our trays just in time; they're already clearing it away as we sit down.

we check out, and leave our luggage at the hotel. the clerk is an elderly gentleman, who is tickled pink by francis and his exclamations, and starts chatting him up about castles, which is so cute, but unfortunately, we are rushing to try to catch the changing of the guard, so i have to cut it short.

at the russell square tube station, there is a crowd of people waiting to get into the tiny elevator, so i instinctively head for the stairs. we did not know that there would be sooo many stairs! luckily, it is all downhill, but still, i think we went down 7? 10? 12? flights of stairs! i had no idea the underground was so far underground! francis is in giggle fits of exasperation...when ARE we ever going to get to the bottom?





finally, the bottom. and we ride the tube to victoria station, and walk quick the many blocks to buckingham palace. it is very very warm already, (only 11am) and i'm too hot in my jeans. we are 10 minutes late and the fence line is entirely crowded, but we manage to worm our way to the front. we are on the side fence, not the front, so they are far away, but still. we get pictures, and francis can now say he saw the changing of the guard. it lasts a long time, and it is a little boring for kids, i think. (adults, too?) we have expectations of spectacular, but this is slow and methodical; this is tradition and ritual. there is honor in being the guard of the queen (even if it seems you're not doing much.) they conclude by marching out of the gates of the palace, past the victoria's memorial roundabout, and down the main street, which has been closed off to traffic. they do this every day? traffic must stop for the marching of the guard every single day?





we, of course, follow them, with the other tourists, and take pictures. francis is utterly fascinated. then we find a piece of shade in the grass and have a snack of buttered rolls (from breakfast). francis is falling asleep sitting up. another morning of rushing around.

we hit the gift shops and do some souvenir shopping. we head back to the train station to use the toilets (30p!) and then get egg salad sandwiches, apples, chips, chocolate, and smoothies at the store, and take it to a nearby park to eat lunch in the shade. after trying to figure out our afternoon plan, i decide the best bet is to head to ruth's for tea-time, to catch up on email and laundry, and to rest up a bit before our big night out on the town: catching shakepeare's "a midsummer night's dream" at the Globe! (a replica theatre)

back at the train station, i figure out a bus back to the british museum. (success!)unfortunately, it was a painfully long slow ride thru downtown london, and it was not a double decker bus, so we did not get much of a view. but still, we got to rest, and passed by picadilly circus, chinatown, and soho. this older lady was sitting in the row next to us, and chatted up francis the entire time. older people just really are delighted by francis, i don't know how, he just has this way about him. he will talk to anybody, (and keep on talking!)





we get off at the british museum, and walk the now familiar route back to our hotel. we stop in russell square one last time for francis to splash in the fountain, then back to the hotel to pick up our bags, then back down the tube station to get to ruth's by 5pm. we have tea and snacks and rest, waiting for ruth to get home from work. francis takes out all his souvenirs and lines them up on the table (in true francis-fashion.) ruth gets home, we have pesto pasta for dinner, and before you know it, we're rushing off to the tube station again, to get to the Globe theatre.

we get off the tube at Bank, and still have a bit of a walk to go, across the bridge, across the Thames. francis is absolutely bursting for a toilet. this is the financial district and everything is closed. no restrooms in the tube stations. no ubiquitous starbucks on every other corner. not even a fast food restuarant. dang it! all that tea and ribena! what do the brits do when they are bursting for the loo? does cold weather and lots of tea make their bladders stronger? ruth's advice was to "walk faster"; i was ready to let him pee in an alley, if only i could find an alley! francis was near tears, waddling as fast as he could, and i was very sympathetic to his pain. we finally made it there, and more importantly, HE made it, and was very much relieved!

while we were in the bathroom, ruth discovered that the Globe was sold out for the entire month of july, and that the long line outside the door was for people waiting for last-minute tickets to be made available by no-shows! but since we walked straight in to use the toilets, we bypassed the line and were already in the foyer when a lady decided to sell her tickets. so, hidden by the chaos of all the people, and the show starting in 5 minutes, ruth managed to get us exactly 3 tickets for the "poor people in standing room only" which are only 5 quid each. (following the tradition of the actual Globe of the times, poor people stand, rich people sit!) so yay! we got in!

and then stood. for three hours.







it was a long night, the roof was the open sky, with a floating suspended ball gradually illuminating as the moon. it was a warm and balmy evening, after being so hot today; we didn't even need our layers we had brought. the performance was amazing, and francis did really great. he is so full of wonder. it really is something special to see something like that live. the comedy kept him laughing, and he could actually, in spite of the old-fashioned speech, keep up with most of what was going on. (with me filling in a few blanks now and then.) the only bummer of the evening was a large group of teenagers behind us, a school group of foreign kids, who could care less about the performance, and chatted the entire time. the frequent "shhh!"'s from various people did not deter them, so at the intermission(francis called it "halftime") we decided to move to a spot right up against the side of the stage, which ended up better, as now francis could see perfectly with no heads in front of him. sometimes he got tired and wanted to sit down, which he did, but his curiosity of what was going on above his head (what were people laughing at?) would get the better of him, and he would stand up again to watch. i was amazed by how into it he was. by the end of the evening, he said that although his feet hurt, the show was good and he had fun. it's an event not to be missed and worth every penny, er, pence! (thanks so much, ruth, for making it happen!) if you are ever in london, make sure you make time for a trip to the Globe.







we came out to a dark night, people festive in the street, cafes along the water. we walked a non-rushed pace this time, across the millenium bridge, and got our sights in of st. paul's cathedral, lit up by night. francis steered the conversation to WWII, a favorite subject of his, but was a bit puzzled when his america-bred knowledge was not the same as a Brit's! world history and politics is not what i want to debate, not with a 10 year old, and not with a Brit! i tried to explain briefly the huge toll Britain weathered because of WWII. it happened on their soil. london was bombed. thousands of their men died fighting. it is a much more sensitive subject to them than it is to us. so out of respect, let's not go there. right now. it's ok. you can learn more. grow a little older... (and then question everything.) we changed the subject, and caught a bus back to ruth's, where, even though it was late, i quick caught up on email and laundry.

dad emailed to say that greg's Lufthansa flight was delayed (because of a strike in germany) and he's worried greg will miss his connection to london tomorrow. please, please, let him not miss it! (we need to fly to italy, at 6am thursday! not much room for delays!)

also, ruth looked at the weather report for tomorrow: it is supposed to rain...

london: day 3

monday: june 30th, 2008
francis and i take on the city, or try...

9:30am: we've become so used to the tinny bling of cell-phone rings; we hardly ever hear the grating ring of a real land-line phone anymore. well, i heard one, right next to my ear, blaring like a fire-alarm, at 9:30 am, jolting me out of sound sleep. alarming! francis, on the other hand, not only didn't even blink, i could not rouse him. so i went downstairs to acquire our breakfast and bring it back up on a tray.

he was still hard to wake, and slow to rise. i realized we weren't going to make the 11am changing of the guards, so we slowed down a bit and decided to enjoy our meal and not rush it. i made tea, and we ate our breakfast of cereal and rolls with marmalade, and blackcurrant jam (francis' new favorite.)

we decided to hit the british museum first, only a stroll thru russell park and a few blocks away. the building itself is amazing, -huge, crowded, and daunting. the inside foyer alone, i could look up and stare for hours. i said: pick your favorites, we can't see everything. we spent a good two hours staring and gaping, francis full of wonder at all the ancient egyptian relics, truly fascinated, and taking pictures of everything.



we wandered the surrounding neighborhood, got a sandwhich to go, and i tried to figure out the bus system, determined, but, hot and frustrated, could not, so we ended up taking the tube only 2 stops (which, when i told ruth later, she had a good laugh about it. apparently, it was only a ten minute walk!)



we took the tube to charing cross for trafalgar square, only to find out it was closed off for a canada day celebration. so we sat down on the steps, hot, tired, and blank. where shall we go now? i looked down at our map to get our bearings and realized we were only blocks away from the thames and parliament, so we decide to walk down the thames. we passed a tesco (grocery store) and popped in to buy a snack: smoothies, bananas, and smarties (like m&m's), and then sat on a bench along the river to rest and watch the world go by.

we spent the afternoon in a slow meandering crawl, enjoying the sunshine and the sights. we crossed the jubilee bridge, with views of the london eye (ferris wheel) and big ben and parliament. francis wanted to sit and watch a street performer, (which we did) and he watched him, mesmerized for ages. then he saw a playground, and wanted to swing, so i rested for awhiled longer, while he played, a kid still, even when you're a tourist in the heart of london. i was glad to give him that time, because all we've been doing is walking and looking, for days. it was nice to just be somewhere, instead of going somewhere, and watch everyone else about their day.







we crossed back over the thames, this time by way of westminster bridge, to gape at big ben and the parliament buildings. i told francis the story of guy fawkes; we talk about government and the queen.

we looped back along the river to where we started, and beyond, to covent garden, to meet up with ruth for a dinner of fish and chips. i thought it would be a long walk, but this is where i finally realize it only took us minutes, and how close we are to our hotel. it was only a 10 minutes walk back, with ruth leading the way, and we sat in russell square for the sunset, and let francis play in the fountain, while we talked.



finally, cold to the bone, and francis wet thru, we parted ways: us to our hotel, ruth to bike home thru the streets of london, before it got too dark.

9:30pm: a much earlier night. no tv. baths. figuring out tomorrows plans. tidy up for checkout tomorrow (back at ruth's for 2 more nights), journal, bed...

francis can not wait for wednesday, for meeting up with greg.
neither can i!

london: day 2

sunday: 29th june, 2008
in which we take a trip to see a castle...

we wake at 9am: showers, breakfast, emails, but again, we are rushing. literally running, all the way to king's cross station, to catch the tube to paddington, to catch the train to windsor (changing at slough.) we just missed our train and had to wait a half hour for the next one, but i didn't really mind. we got to wander paddington station, show francis paddington's statue: "please look after this bear", and i tried to get cash out (failure, and on-going snafu and frustration) and also, i desperately needed the toilet (another failure: cost 20p and i had no coins!) i decided to wait for the train, but once on, discover to my dismay: OH NO! NO TOILETS! (sigh) bursting and miserable, i just have to hold it 45mins and wait...

on the train, francis is tired and slouchy. he keeps bumping knees with the man in front of him (seats facing together.) the more i correct him, the more exasperated and slouchy he becomes. (sigh) i miss greg...

we finally get to windsor, and i finally get to pee! ruth and i get lattes, and head for the castle. francis is gobsmacked as soon as we walk out of the station, because there it is, windsor castle, sitting right in front of you. something that i always marvel at in england, and europe: ancient sites may have the age-old respect of not being torn down, however, modernity didn't keep its distance, and crowds up right next to it, utilizing every inch of space. old...shoulder to shoulder with the new...





there's a queue, and a security check, and the guards now hold guns. we finally get inside, but somehow, it is already almost 2pm. and the castle closes at 5. oh well for our "early start"...

francis can't walk 10 feet without taking a picture. he is truly excited to the core seeing a real live castle! i decided this is HIS day, and let him stop and take all the pictures he wants. i've already been here. i am determined to not rush him.

windsor castle was built in 1165, and is one of the great surviving medieval castles, and not only that, has housed the british royal family for over 900 years, and still does, to this day. we asked a guard if the queen was in. he replied: " i can not answer you that. the queen is in residence when her flag is flying." we looked up: the flag was flying.

only too soon, i must confess, i am bursting for the toilet again. (damn that latte!) i inquire to discover there is ONE set of public toilets, and they are on the far other side, so there we trek. it's a blustery gray british day, and there's not too many tourists. guards march by, with stern faces, and real guns, and francis is overjoyed and takes about 300 pictures in one fell swoop. (we haven't gotten around to editing his yet, but mine i've started to narrow down to a few dozen a day: you can find the rest on my flickr.)



we succumb to the touristy must-see, and join the queue to see "queen mary's dollhouse", which is frankly, quite impressive, but what francis really wants to see is: the armour, the weapons, the coat of arms...it's so huge inside, it takes us 2 hours to tour the state rooms, and that's even without francis taking pictures (he was very sad they were not allowed. i, however, did not mind it.)

when we finally emerge to the light of day, we are famished, and crash on a bench to eat our packed lunch. i'm already guessing that we'll miss out on tea-time again, today. and i am right.



we find st. george's chapel closed, because it is a sunday, but discover you may attend an actual service, at 5:15pm, after the castle grounds close. i think that would be fantastic, and ruth agrees, so we stay: for church, in the castle chapel!quite an experience! beautiful ornate chapel, intricate stained glass. the service was sung by a boy's choir. francis reprimands me for sneaking a few pictures with my cell-phone...probably not a good example for my boy who obeyed the rules back in the state rooms.



with the castle now closed, and the rest of the shops in town following suit, (it is a sunday in england: shops close) we decide to head back to ruth's for supper, and to pack up; francis and i are heading to our free hotel for two nights, courtesy of a british airways special offer.

but by the time we get back, between packing up, emailing greg, etc...we don't get out until well past 10pm, and this is still without supper! we say good-bye to ruth, who is off to the pub with friends, and we head to the tube, for russell square. no mapquest. just an address and a london city map.

the station is clamouring with football(soccer) fans whooping and cheering, and i find out spain just won the euro cup. they're running, yelling, waving flags, and a whole group of them cram on the train, pushed up against us. we were standing just inside the doors with our luggage, as we only had 2 stops to go, and just before the doors closed, about 20 people rushed in and crowded around us, still singing their victory, and jumping up and down. the conductor came back and opened the doors and yelled to be heard: "oi! you can yell all you like, but no jumping up and down. you're rocking the whole train!" they apologize and stop jumping, but continue singing at the top of their lungs. francis, small, surrounded by all these yelling grown-ups: but they were smiling at him, and i was smiling too. maybe he will remember this in years to come?

the station we needed was closed for repairs! (just like in the board game: "miss one turn!") and so we hopped off in confusion at holborn. hmmm...now to walk back to russell square, with our luggage, in the dark deserted sunday night of london city streets. i ask directions and off we head.



this whole time i had been excited for our hotel experience. i saw the pictures and read the blurbs, and assumed it was a nice hotel. originally, it had been intended to be with greg; the plan was for us to meet up with him earlier, but things changed, and we kept the booking, besides, it was free. however, when we found it, i realized why they were giving rooms away for free, and it couldn't be to attract business: after staying there, i probably wouldn't have paid to stay there again.



it was like being in a motel, except on the 7th floor, and thru such a labyrinth of hallways, that i actually got lost and had to go down to reception and ask again. i was frustrated and tired and hungry. it was past 11pm. when we finally got to our room, there were two single beds. (where would we have all fit if greg was with us?)it was tiny. BUT: francis didn't seem to notice. he was so excited. he immediately claimed a bed and said: "isn't this nice?" could i really complain? we had a place to sleep in the heart of london. we even had a bathtub. he checked out our view from the window, of the courtyard below, and when we opened the window, we could still hear football fans chanting and whooping from victory: apparently many of them were staying here. he turned on the tv and immediately found "coming to america" with eddie murphy. he asked if he could watch it. as he has seen that movie on quite a few rainy sunday afternoons with greg, i said ok. besides, i still had to go hunt us down a supper.

my search for food ended with the hotel caferteria restaurant, apparently still open for a little while longer, take-out only. i paid &6.50 for an old dry fish and chips and roll. (sigh) passing the hotel bar, i decided it would go down much better with a gin and tonic, and happily paid the &3.50. took the tray back up to our room, and we gorged ourselves, supplementing it with an apple from my bag, and ribena (blackcurrant cordial you add to water) i had brought with us.

it seemed a shame to go to bed just yet, even tho it is so late, it is vacation after all, so i opted instead on: a bath, organizing our stuff, trying to figure out what to do the next few days, and then i sent francis to bed, to catch up in my journal after he fell asleep (which was promptly), by the light of the bathroom.

somehow, in the end, day 2 was still so rushed we didn't even get tea or supper. ??
this will not do!

this is our vacation and i want us to be relaxed and enjoying ourselves.

francis wants to go to a bookstore, to spend the british bookstore coupon that ruth's mum sent him. he wants to see the british museum. buckingham palace. he asked to see a toy shop. ride a cab. to go to elephant and castle to see the imperial war museum. (which he learned about, by the way, from an old british boardgame from my childhood called "the london underground". i first had to make sure it was still there! it is.)

we have two full days until we meet up with greg on wednesday. can't wait for that!
i need to go to bed now.
i called the operator to ask what time it was (2:10am!) and to ask for a wake-up call tomorrow morning...at least there's free breakfast...

london: day 1

saturday: 28th june, 2008

it was very hard getting up this morning. i woke at 6am to the sound of the city waking, and the brightness. i used my british airways complimentary eye-mask and fell back asleep, til ruth came and got me at 10am. francis could not be wakened. so ruth and i had some lovely girl-time, catching up over coffee and pancakes, with me periodically trying to rouse francis. he could not be moved. finally, by noon, we forced him up; he was delirious. we packed a sack lunch and took off to catch the bus, for the zoo.

we got to ride a double-decker( still around in london, it was the old-fashioned "route-master" with the hop on/off the back, that was taken off the streets, --only to be replaced by what the brits call "bendy-busses" and not with fondness) and francis was so excited. we sat at the top, front row, and it looked like every time we turned, we were going to take a chunk out of a building, or knock over signposts, and every time we stopped, that we'd rear-end whoever was in front of us. it was quite a ride!



we walked thru regents park, to get to the zoo. francis, with his camera, already catching fountains, park benches, british squirrels...you get the picture. at the zoo, it got quite hot, and we were in jeans. after a while i noticed that francis kept sitting down every chance he got, and maybe the zoo wasn't the best first day choice; he was still too jet-lagged to really appreciate it. he did enjoy seeing animals he hasn't seen in our zoo, tho, like the pelicans.



by the end of the afternoon, he was a bit miserable, saying his legs hurt, he was too hot, and he wanted to sit down. poor guy! but we had a whole evening of sitting ahead of us: ruth had got us tickets to regent park's outdoor theatre, to see shakespeare's "twelfth night." we rushed home, packed a picnic supper, and rushed back to regents park, quickly thru the beautiful rose garden, found a patch of sun and green grass, and crashed outside the theatre, where brits were all about, picnicing in the grass too. we had: bread, cheese, proscuitto, wine, olives, sundried tomatoes... yes, wine! in the park! this is england!



8pm we went in for the performance, which was 3 hours long, and frankly, quite fantastic! the theatre had stadium seats, which was nice, and you were allowed to bring in food and wine, etc... but even still, francis had a hard time staying awake...he was still so tired! i tried to explain to him what was going on, and i think he understood most of it, and really enjoyed the jester and laughed outloud. i was thoroughly impressed and entertained-- it was set during the roaring twenties, with suits and long dresses and gangsters. it got chilly when the sun went down, but we had brought our layers.



back at home, tucking him in, i asked if he had fun today. he said it was too busy. i said: tomorrow we're only doing ONE thing: taking the train to windsor castle!

it feels like everything is going too fast, and it is only the first day! how can that be? so i am hoping for a not-rushed day tomorrow, and that francis is rested and enjoys himself fully.

and i would like a cup of tea...we missed ours today..

i see london (i see france)

friday: 27th june, 2008
on the plane...British Airways to london...

francis is happily watching a movie. he was happy with our seat; he said: "look at all this stuff you get for only 2nd class! i wonder what 1rst class gets!" he's loving how fancy this is: luxuries you don't see in the US anymore. each seat has its own pillow, blanket, headsets, and comfort kit: eye-mask, socks, and travel toothbrush with mini-paste. he was in awe and very excited. "would you like a full british breakfast, luv?" said the steward. you get the accent already, and you're not even there yet. i said yes, even tho i didn't know what it was. we were then served a tray each, consisting of: scrambled eggs, potatoes, ham, sausage and mushrooms, OJ, yogurt, coffee, blueberry muffin, roll and butter, and fruit. it was too much to eat! and better yet, complimentary!



i am having trouble feeling excited. i'm on a plane to london, but my stomach isn't in turmoil. i mean, i am excited, i am looking forward to it, but i don't have the physical feeling of excitement. maybe it hasn't hit me yet? i am kind of in a daze. i am not nervous, i am not giddy. i am very tired. it's hard to explain. i have not planned what to do in london for 5 days (i've been so focused on france and italy) but that doesn't bother me. we will see what we can; i am just happy to be there, staying with our friend ruth. we will be meeting up with greg on wednesday. i am content to see familiar sights, eat british food, drink tea, hang out, and show francis 'round the town. but i consult my lonely planet london guide anyways, for some ideas...



we land and go thru customs: always a hassle. but we get thru ok, and follow signs to the underground. it's about 9pm british time, but francis can't keep his eyes open. we catch the picadilly line, and he promptly falls asleep on the tube, for our hour ride. i have trouble waking him up; he's delirious. we follow ruth's directions to her flat: "when you get out of the station cross the road and walk straight ....... you pass sainsburys supermarket on your left. turn left down the side of sainsburys till you get to a zebra crossing. cross the crossing and walk straight til you hit another zebra crossing, cross it and turn left. my building is at the end of that street on the corner. my door is red and on copenhagan st. buzz the 'flat' bell. it's about a 5-7 min walk". how do you like them directions! ruth wanted me to call her when we arrived, so she could run out and meet us, but i liked the challenge of navigating the city with just those directions. i wanted to see if i could find it, and find it i did!

francis' first sight out of the tube station was a double-decker bus and he got so excited! i'm happy watching him, all these sights, for the first time. i'm enjoying stepping back into a place that's familiar, a place with memories...





we buzz the buzzer to the flat, and ruth's calls out "hello" from the third floor. she says: "that's it?" to our luggage, a carry-on size wheely bag for each of us. we wanted to travel light, but it still feels like too much.

ruth shows us to our "quarters"; the nook she's made up for us. it's so homey and like camping out. it's late, but francis wants to read before bed; he is thoroughly engrossed in the lord of the rings. we say good-night to ruth, with plans to sleep in, have breakfast, and hang out with her tomorrow.



i think i'm starting to feel excited. i'm happy to wander and be, to hear the accents, and drink tea...