Day Seven: Making Ourselves at Home in England

We settled in for a long journey on the Eurostar train to England from France yesterday; which we quickly learned was not at all necessary; we were there in less than two hours.

Arriving in England from France

Travel Tip: If you can afford to pull it off, go business class on the Eurostar and do not go to the dining car and purchase bagged food, otherwise, you will end up like The McGehee's Abroad and eat two meals in less than an hour. First we shared sandwiches, pasta, and soup; and then business class was served full meals (quiche or chicken, with side dish, bread and mousse). But do use the restroom in business class because it is roomier than your hotel room in France (according to James); and then take a stroll from business class to coach and see how narrow and tight the quarters are and be thankful you were able to upgrade on this leg of the journey even though it wasn't necessary (thanks, Dad/James!). Now you know coach (from going to Belgium and back) and business class (from going to England).

Before you even get out of the train station, enjoy watching your husband find the perfect shoes since he bought you the perfect bottle of parfum in France:

James' Shoes from Dune London

Travel Tip: Don't be afraid to travel with a group of five to London; the taxis all carry five to six people. Love the fact that the payment is made by credit card in the taxi, quick and easy, no fumbling with bills and coins.

It was dinner hour when we arrived at our hotel in SoHo. We are staying at The Strand Palace. The hotel is lovely and spacious, more formal than France, but less quaint. No one here will know us from one day to the next. They won't ask how our day trip was or check to see if they can call you a taxi; not because they aren't friendly here, but because this hotel feels like a Las Vegas hotel with many employees who are trying their best to be professionals. In France, the closet-like hotel we were in and its employees had become our home and our family. When we came back from Belgium and there was a different person at the desk than we were used to, we asked for our room key and he asked how Belgium was as a courtesy. This is what we will miss about France. But, for this week, The Strand Palace is our home and it feels good to be here.

Being in England, after going through two countries that speak foreign languages, is like seeing an old friend and catching up after twenty years: familiar but a complete stranger all the same.

More than once, before leaving the states, I had been told that the food was bland in England and to be prepared. I will have to disagree. Perhaps we have found some real gems for eateries, or maybe we were just so sick of French food (not our favorite--cheese is not that interesting anymore) that we feel like the food in London is like a home cooked meal in one respect (meat pies, bangers, mash, gravy, fish, chips) and a trendy, foodie paradise.

On the first night we shared meat pies, mash and beans: (And the Coca-Cola tastes more like American Coca-Cola than the French or Belgium Coca-Cola).

Meat Pies and Mash, SoHo, England 2017

And on the first day, we had lunch by the tower bridge where they served fish and chips on faux newspapers:

Perkins Fish and Chips, London 2017

Both meals were packed with flavor and were just right (no cheese).

However, if you've been away from home for over a week, you will still be looking for a bit of America in the food you crave. Tonight for dinner we ended up at the first of twenty locations of Wahaca near the hotel which serves designer Mexican foods.

Cheers! The first full day in England was a success!!!

Sharing food is a great feeling.

And you won't feel bad about straying from some kind of traditional British food because you had a traditional English breakfast at the hotel in the morning and you are doing your best to keep sugar out of your Earl Grey and English Breakfast teas, plus, remember, you and England are long lost friends; not complete strangers. After all, last night you just watched the British version of Shark Tank (Dragon Den) and forgot you weren't at home in bed on a regular night. Travel Challenge: If you are also trying to find a matchbook to satisfy your travel scavenger hunt challenges, it will seem like no one hands out matchbooks anymore until you end up at the Wahaca restaurant, and they hand out matchbooks which are actually Serrano pepper seed growing kits. Enjoy how excited your kids are to scratch this off their list of hunt items.

Day One England:

We've been using Rick Steve's Pocket London book plus our own travel itinerary to get around England. Travel Tip: At the back of the book there is a map of London. The night before, coordinate your itinerary to achieve certain tasks that are located closest to each other so you are not going from one area to another unreasonably. England is not like France or Belgium, everything you want to see is not within walking distance.

We grouped our Tower of London and Tower Bridge Skywalk Tour together. Buy your tickets online for both events. We didn't buy Tower of London tickets until the night before and printed at the hotel, either way (weeks in advance or the night before doesn't matter), just buy them in advance and then plan on going close to the opening of the Tower of London first. This is where the crown jewels are located. It takes about 2 hours to walk around the Tower of London, but seeing the crown jewels could take you up to 45 minutes longer. People in Europe, so far as we can tell, do not get up early in the morning. This attraction is very busy around lunch time. So, if you get there in the morning, you will walk right in to see the crown jewels without any wait.

This is the line you didn't have to stay in because you woke up early to see the crown jewels

Travel tip: You cannot photograph in many areas of the Tower of London. Your photos of the crown jewels may look similar to ours:

Best Possible Pic of the Crown Jewels: Tower of London

But, you can get other great pictures in and around the Tower of London that will make up for it:

 You will have some fun taking pictures with your kids at the Tower of London. Madeline will convince you girls don't need a night in shining armor; just a horse, a cell phone, and a couple of friends.

 The boys will not be able to stop laughing when they come upon the armory and Henry VIII's armor.

 Each of you will take turns posing in medieval doorways. You will think you can pull off sexy, but then not be able to keep a straight face and then realize later you like just being yourself listening to the audio guide:

Travel tip: Your oldest son will see Ravens eating dead mice in cages from where you are on the walkway above and then beg to go below and see them up close. You will be like, "We came to see the castle not a bird eating dead things." And then you will eventually go and see the Ravens (because this child will otherwise annoy you for the rest of the day if you don't) and then go, "Duh!" Because the Ravens are part of the castle tour. So, go there, see the Ravens, and find out what they mean to the castle. It's a must!

After the Tower of London, you walk over to the Tower Bridge and stand in the longest line of your trip so far (15 minutes). Why 15 minutes only? Two reasons: you bought your tickets online. And, you are walking the stairs to the skywalk, not taking the lift. Travel Tip: Pay two pounds for a cup of hot caramelized nuts and then proceed to the bridge. Travel Challenge: See how many times your boys laugh at the word "nuts" and how many times they use "nuts" in a sentence and laugh; then see how many times your daughter rolls her eyes at them.

Travel Tip: There are two sections of the glass skywalk. After the first one, you can get a sticker for walking on it from an information lady. (Travel Challenge: Keep one for your journal, and then watch the kids stick the others to each others backs and see who can go the longest without knowing it's there). The other walkway is less crowded and leaves room for more picture taking. Don't forget to go to the Engine Room down the street by the gift shop, it's interesting too.

Don't forget to get a view of the Thames river from small windows on the bridge:

Even though you've just completed only two monuments, realize that it took you all day and you've walked about five miles throughout the day and you're tired. Reward yourselves with a nap back at the hotel before dinner. Realize, you're still several days away from the end of your trip.