London for 4 days

Day 1/ Dec 14- Winsor Castle, Stonehenge, Bath

The flight was awesome from Shanghai to Frankfurt! We were on an airbus A380 (big plane) that was only 1/3 full! Cec and I split up and he stayed in the upstairs two seats we had prebooked and I went downstairs (yes there were stairs) and took a three seater row for myself. We played on our iPads, worked on the blog and watched movies. I slept, Cec didn't. It was great being able to stretch out. The toilets were easy to wait for too and the service went fast. It was great! Several movies later, we landed in Frankfurt. From there it was a long walk to the short flight to London. Thank goodness they had a gate greeter to help you find where you needed to go because there were several different shuttles and concourses. We made our flight with minutes to spare and got to the U.K. From there we cleared security, got a SIM card, exchanged money and then got tickets for the fast train. It was somewhat expensive but cheaper than a taxi and much faster than the underground. We grabbed opal cards and a quick trip down the tube and we popped out at the hotel. We checked in, showered, ordered a chicken dish to split (we were fed on the plane but both were hungry) then crashed hard about midnight.

The next morning we woke up earlier than our 6:30 alarm (neither of us has a good reason), did a quick tabata workout and then went and got breakfast at the giant breakfast buffet. Strangely we still had eggs and salad but were happy to see some cereal and yogurt for once too! Then, quick change and we got picked up to our big inclusive tour. The first stop was to Windsor Castle. The queen wasn't in but it was decorated for Christmas. There were wreaths, trees and garland all over. We spent most of the hour and a half we had at St George's chapel. The audio guide had lots of commentary. The gothic architectural along with the multiple caskets and the knights plaques gave it a very mid evil feel, like "game of thrones" Cecil said. Then we did a quick tour through the state rooms and the grand rooms full of China, paintings, weapons and furniture. Since this is a highlight tour we didn't spend enough time to get into many details. We caught the end of the changing of the guard and then a quick restroom break and we were back on the tour.

T- selfie from Windsor gate, bottom- buildings including the church and state rooms

From there we made our way the 1 1/2 hours to Stonehenge. It's in Wiltshire, England and is basically the only thing there. It's thought to be build between 2000-3000BC (5,000 years old and older than the pyramids). There are tons of stone circles but this ones have the caps/tops/lentils on them. They are brought together by ball and socket or tongue and groove connections. That and they are huge, heavy, granite-like stones. We had a great day for the trip. Sunny and not to cold. We each had a guide which used infrared scanning of a laminated map to get information. There was just enough time to see the stones, grab a sandwich and get on the bus. Two people ended up left behind (they were late and we were warned to be on time or they would leave). I felt bad for them but they need to be on time!

Pics from Stonehenge, no real explanation needed

The next, and last, stop was Bath. The town was built up around canals and the only natural hot springs in Europe. There are a ton of stories of famous people visiting, being healed and living (like Jane Austin) in the area. I was surprised at how large the town was. I expected a small town with a couple side streets. Instead we found a metro area with beautiful buildings and modern sensibility. The whole city is a world heritage site! We pretty much only had time for the museum. It was the original Roman bath complex. First off, the baths are much larger than expected. There is the main bathing area that most people think of plus several other baths (that would have been different temperatures), temple areas and other heated areas. They also are only a fraction of how large they were in early times. The romans believed a goddess watched over the baths and they were good for healing and vitality. The baths were so popular, the town was prosperous. There were many displays of art, sculptures, and other relics. I thought it was cool how they found curses. Romans would ask the goddess firstly to punish those who wronged them and they found actual preserved curses! Near the end of the baths was an area where you could feel and taste the water. It was nasty, very sulfurous (no surprise) and warm. Still, pretty cool. We had a couple of minutes so we grabbed some protein bars and went to the bus (as we really didn't want to get left behind). The only real negative was the three and a half hour drive back and they had no bathroom stops! Not cool tour company, not cool. 

 

The roman baths from above and below

     

TL- A model showing how large the baths were at the largest, TR- the bridge at night, very pretty and B- cec and I overlooking the baths

Day 2/ Dec 15- Harry Potter World & Star Wars 

 Today was another early start to Harry Potter world, but mainly because we didn't want to be late. We decided to do a quick 10 minute workout this morning and then showered and got to the breakfast buffet in the hotel. We got dressed quicklly and started our trek on the London Underground. After about an hour of riding in both the underground (subway) and the overground (train) we made it to Watford Junction, where we booked a shuttle bus to take us to the studio. We had booked 10am tickets and picked up our digital audio guides as well. We were first ushered into a movie room, and then we finally got to go in and explore the Great Hall. This was part of the original set, and was even decorated for Christmas. There were example of the different houses, and costumes from the main characters. Then after about 10 minutes, it was time to go and move on to the next area. Although the tour is designed to be one way, the next areas gave us plenty of time to mill around and see different areas of the castle, from the potions classroom, to Dumbledore's Office. We got an behind the scenes look at some of the props as well as the many different areas of movie magic, like music, casting, and costume design. We even got to fly a broomstick! One of my (Cecil) favorite areas was seeing the Ministry of Magic. Then we got to go to the cafe and grabbed some lunch, and of course, a butterbeer. Comparing this one to the one in Orlando was apples and oranges, the British version was nowhere as sweet, but still tasted good. I thought it was going to be the exact same, but I guess that just shows how different American and Britsh tastes are. Then it was on so some large scal models of Privet Drive as well as the Hogwarts Bridge and the Enchanted Car and then on to the animatronics section. We got to see how complicated the Hippogriff was and their was even one their that you had to bow to. Then it was off to a life size version of Diagon Alley, there were all sorts of detail in the dizzyingly realistic model, everything from sale signs in the window to notices at the bank. Then, finally it was an amazing model of the Hogwarts Castle, this was an amazing feat of model making and took 41 days to put together. It was used for integration into the computer graphics, and also to give the directors the scale of the castle. It took up most of the 200 square foot room, and had the footprint of many houses!

We love some Harry Potter!!

 

(R) we got to dress up a bit and even pretend to fly a broom. This photo we found so funny we had to buy it! (Ur) Cec hamming it up with the fake fire (lR) us losing in format of the model of hog warts. That thing was truly detailed and used in filming for scale shots

Then it was back to the hotel to take a little rest for our next stop. We decided to go and mail the assortment of souvenirs that we had collected in China. Luckily there was a post office 2 doors down from the hotel so we were able to mail our packages without too much difficulty. Then we had to get haircuts, because it had been 1 1/2 months for both us with traveling so much. After that we decided to head down to Leicester Square early because we didn't want to be late for our tickets for Star Wars: Rogue One. After getting out of the underground and trying to find a restaurant, there was an area that was fenced off and a lot of commotion on the other side. We looked up, and it was none other than Will Smith! Apparently he had a premier in London and was just down the street giving his routine. We then found some steak and chicken at had a good meal. We still had time before the movie so we noticed that there were some lights and festive decoration up in Leicester Square so we went and milled around the shops and holiday displays. We didn't buy anything, but there was this one booth that was selling stuffed animals that had rice filling in them so that you could warm them up in the microwave and they would stay warm. Then it was finally time to go and see the new Star Wars: Rogue One. As we made our way to the line outside, there were about 6 stormtroopers who were dancing to hip hop music. It was a group called Boogie Storm and they were awesome! Then we finally got to take our preselected seats, and there was a man playing a electric organ down in front of the main screen. He played traditional christmas music as well as some Star Wars music as well. Then the movie started. I (Cecil) thought it was absolutely terrible and I fell asleep at least twice because it was so bad. Karen liked it a bit more but we both thought that the movie fell flat of what it could be. Then it was back on the underground back to the hotel for the end of another great day in London.

(Ur) walking to the theater we got an unexpected surprise as will smith and his family were there unveiling his new movies (ur)

Day 3/ Dec 16- Tower of London, Rosetta Stone, Globe theater 

We got up late as Star Wars put us in bed at the crack of dawn. We basically got breakfast and headed down to the Tower of London. Now, when you hear Tower of London think fortress of London. It's a walled city with several towers. Most notably, the white tower build by William the Conquerer in the middle. There is a lot of history in the tower. This includes the probable murders of two princes for the crown, imprisonment of captives (even some Nazis), training and military arms, armories and treasure storages, and daily life, like games, tapestries and toys. One of the most interesting tidbits was about the menagerie of animals kept there until the 1800's. Lions, polar bears, monkeys and snakes are all examples. Apparently it was quite an attraction back in the day. They even put a rope on the polar bear and let it swim in the Themes River! The tower audio tour tried to provide a picture of what it was like to live and work there from the earliest days (where it was built as a fortress right next to the Roman wall!) to the world wars with soldier training and espionage. The tower is also the site of the Crown Jewels. Let me tell you, the Cullenen I diamond is 352 carats and looks impossibly large (it's the diamond on the Staff used in the coronation ceremony). They also have ravens on site kept by people who actually live in the tower called beefeaters (all ex military). The ravens are part of a superstition stating that if they ever leave the tower Britain will crumble and London will fall. Needless to say now they keep 8, just to be sure. It took us most of the day, including a break for a Christmas turkey lunch (first one in over a year because NZ doesn't do turkey).

We managed to find gold at the Crown Jewels (ok...gold coins, but close) Bottom is us at Tower Bridge (No, not London Bridge)

T: changing of the guard B: different view of White Tower and some really old guns in the armory

 

After the tower, we headed to the British museum for one purpose- the Rosetta Stone. We didn't have very long but we wanted to see it very much. Luckily, the museums are free so we went in, quickly saw the stone and some Assyrian works and headed out. We didn't have much time and we needed to drop our bags off and get dinner before our show.

 

L: Karen found the Rosetta Stone (she is now fluent in 5 languages) RU: Assyrian Statue RL:  hieroglyphics

We made our way on the tube from the hotel to the riverfront and Shakespeare's Globe theater. We ate dinner at the in site restaurant and had some delicious fish and pork belly with rice pudding. The show was called All the Angels, more on that shortly. The theater was tiny! Perhaps around 100 people total in attendance. The tiny band/orchestra was on the third tier above the stage. The stage had real candles as lifting including four candle chandeliers. There were giant doors for entrances as well as a trap door. The acoustics were incredible, none of the actors used microphones and they were not needed. The performance was different. It was done in that old English style and the actors were very difficult to understand. The accents were super thick and the style of speech was not what we were used to. They had singers in the performance (which were super impressive) but the play itself we didn't follow. The actors weren't the problem it was the language. The londoners were laughing and we were not sure why. Cecil was literally falling asleep in his seat, which was impressive because it didn't have a back! At intermission, which was around 9pm, we talked and decided to head back. It was going to take us a good hour and were confused and tired. We were glad to experience the theater but happy with our decision to leave.

Our seats in the Globe Theater

Day 4/ Dec 17- London City, Phantom of the Opera, London Eye 

The morning started earlier than we wanted. We keep waking up at like 5AM (uggg). Changing time zones really sucks sometimes. We did a workout, ate and then officially started day 1 of our 30 day tour through Europe. We got on a fancy bus with around 30 others and headed off touring. We drove all throughout the new and old parts of London. We stopped at St Paul's Cathedral, but they were having services so we could not go in. However, we learned that st Paul's was the tallest building in London through the bombings and a real symbol. Apparently, during the bombing it was such an important symbol people were stationed to help throw sand on incendiary phosphorus bombs that landed on the roof. At most, in one day, 29 bombs were rendered inert. Through luck or the divine a 20 ton bomb didn't go off when dropped in front. People saw it as a beacon of hope and felt as long as the cathedral dome stands so did London. Anyway, commentary like that from our guide made the flurry of information interesting.

LU: Big Ben RU: English Parliment Building BL: St. Paul's  M: Buckingham Palace BR: Changing of the guard

After watching the changing of the guard, we walked to Westminster Abbey and toured the cathedral. No photos are allowed, which is a shame. The main chapel is massive and majestic and the size chapels (aka tons of burial chambers) are interesting. You get to see everyone from Isaac Newton, Charles Darwin, several queens and kings, Tennyson and Lewis Carroll. After that expedition we looked at Big Ben and parliament now that the fog was better then headed to the theater district to pick up our tickets and some lunch.

T: Yes, that is Martin Luther King Jr. at Westminister Abbey M: Carving on the outside of the church 

What tickets you ask? Well for Phantom of the Opera at Her Majesty's theatre. Again, no photos allowed from this one. Once we had our tickets we walked up the road to a Lebanese place and split a roast chicken and some halumi. Needless to say it was delicious. As far as the show goes, was a pretty good show, although we were in nosebleed seats as we bought tickets the day before. Afterward we walked back up to the Underground station at Picadilly Square, there was one guy whose name was Jack Union dressed in a flag suit and had all kinds of gizmos trying to attract people into the souvenir store. Picadilly Square was a great mass of people browsing, shopping, eating, and just enjoying themselves.

Got the right ticket! 

After the show we headed to the London eye. We had prebought fast track tickets so we picked those up and headed for our night view. Made for a pretty viewing albeit harder to photograph. It took about a 1/2 hour to go around after about 20 minutes of waiting. If hate to think how long the normal tickets would have taken! From there we headed back to the hotel, the bus leaves at 7 AM sharp and our luggage had to be out at 5:45AM.

L I met up with a mildly patriotic Londoner who said his name was Jack Union TR: Little Cecil and Mini Karen in front of Big Ben BR: at the London Eye