Day 6: London

 Monday was our day at Windsor.  It was about an hour long ride to get there, and we saw these donuts at the Windsor train station. They looked delicious.

We found a place that served "American BBQ," but since it was a Bank Holiday they were still serving breakfast.  We enjoyed some chicken and waffles, pancakes with blueberries, s'mores pancakes, and banana topped pancakes.

We've enjoyed the audio tours all week.  It definitely makes your visit longer, but we enjoyed learning about each of the places and rooms we visited. 

St. George's Chapel. We almost didn't have time to visit the chapel before they closed for the afternoon, but I'm glad we were able to visit.

Of course we grabbed some donuts on our way out.  One worker at the train station made a joke about a "donut tax." I told him these were some of the best donuts I'd ever had, an he was shocked that an American said that.  They really were that good. 

Someone was a little grouchy, but forcing her to take a bite of the donut helped immensely. 

Iconic black cabs

It's hard finding places to eat on vacation, but it was pretty unanimous that returning to the Italian restaurant was a good option.  We tried a few different things, and it was all delicious once againg.

Someone wanted to try the Wispa McFlurry. Their ice-cream machines were working - imagine that!

We headed back to our rental to finish packing. We were off on the next part of our journey the next morning.  London you were wonderful!

Day 5: London

We had no set plans for Sunday, yet somehow it still ended up being a busy day.  We took the train to King's Cross Station to visit Platform 9 3/4. The store was pretty packed, but Macy and Brooke enjoyed exploring it.

We spent a few hours at the British Museum. We saw the Rosetta Stone which was the key to decoding ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics. 

Created in 1270BC, this is a statue of Ramses II - from when God freed the Israelites. 

Taking a much needed break on the stairs.

Two stewards watching over things. 

We found the cube croissant. It was filled with ice-cream and oh so delicious. 

For dinner we found a yummy Italian restaurant with fresh pasta. Everyone loved their dinner, which is always a win when traveling. 

We wandered to see where Ben Franklin lived while he was in England.

Finally, the girls practiced a little more clogging while waiting for the train. Their team was learning a new routine while they are out of town, so they are having to teach it to themselves via video. 

Our slow paced Sunday ended up being full of adventure, but we had a great day.

Day 4: London

We were up and out early again today.  We had the first time slot of the day to visit the Tower of London. 

Our first stop was to see the Crown Jewels, but you can't take any pictures. We walked right in before it got too crowded.  The picture below has a wait of over an hour to see the jewels. It was definitely worth getting out of the door earlier this morning. 

Construction for the tower started in the 1080s by William the Conqueror. 

Recreation of King Edward I bedroom from the late 1280s.

Fish and chips in England is a must eat...for those that eat fish at least.  Marc had the fish and the rest of us had the chicken and chips.  We were underwhelmed.

Next, we went to the Gunpowder Plot Immersive.  This was a fabulous experience that combined story telling with virtual reality.  This was set in 1605 when the Protestants and Catholics were persecuting each other.  The King was Protestant and there was a plot to blow up Parliament and assassinate him.  We were given the role of Catholics and actively participated in the experience.  We had to decide whether or not to share our knowledge of the plot or not. We all put this experience as one of our favorites of the trip. 

Macy enjoying a lemonade before it was our turn. Their lemonade was sparkling.  She doesn't usually like carbonation, but she enjoyed this drink.

Clogging while waiting for our boat departure time. 

We took a short, narrated boat ride down the Thames River to the London Eye.

Egyptian obelisk dating back to 1400BC

We ended the day with a ride on the London Eye. 

Another full day of exploring and learning the history of England.