Our Big Day In London

We finally decided to take the trip to London last Saturday! We debated taking the train, doing the tour buses, taking the stroller, and if we should even go considering it was the weekend before the Olympics. We decided to drive down, park outside the city, and take the tube in. We did decide to take the stroller and not to use the tour buses. We just used the tube for all transportation we needed. For the first time out here in England I can say everything went very smooth!! The drive was easy, we found the parking with no problem, and the tube was very easy to use. So glad we brought the stroller!!! We only debated not bringing the stroller if we were going to do the tour buses. Andrew loved the tube!! He thought it was so fun to watch the "train" pull in.

We made it to the Buckingham Palace first. It was fun to see in person but I guess I expected to see something a little more. Maybe the Queen or William and Kate...

How do you get to be the police on a horse? That could be kind of fun.

After that we headed over to Trafalgar Square. Along the way we passed the horse gaurd. Andrew thought it was pretty fun to see the horses.

 

We had to get a picture with the London phone booth.

Trafalgar Square

Next up was Westminster Abbey. After seeing York Minster I was really looking forward to seeing Westminster Abbey. Unfortunately we were not allowed to take pictures in the church. Westminster Abbey was bulit in 1245. This church has so many memorials! Talk about a lot of dead people in one place! This church is where all of the coronations take place. We did get to see the coronation chair that has been used since 1308. The church was nice, but I think I still like York Minster better.

Here are a few shots of Big Ben and Parliament!!

Oh yeah, and the London Eye.

We really debated doing a boat tour too, but the time just didn't allow for it. I was a little bummed about that but I think we got to see a lot on foot. We grabbed a quick lunch and headed over to the Tower of London. This castle is the home of the crown jewels! Again, you were not allowed to take pictures. This castle was used as a prison and many people we killed there. It was also used as a royal palace, an armoury, and a royal mint.

The home of the crown jewels.

The guard outside of the crown jewels. I seriously think this guard was Taylor Lautner in a disguise. Looked just like him!!

Andrew wasn't a fan of the camera by this point. This was Henry V's sword. It was 7ft 7in long and weighed over 14lbs. That is one big sword.

The Shard, Western Europe's tallest building. 1,016 ft

The London Bridge, I expected a little more than that.

The Tower Bridge all decked out for the Olympics.

The city has special Olympic lanes for the athletes to get around all of the traffic.

Before heading home we walked to Piccadilly Circus and Chinatown. It was crazy!! There were so many people everywhere and so many interesting things to see.

Random restaurant with meat hanging in the window. That definitely doesn't make me want to eat there.

Chinatown

What is up with the meat in the windows again?

After our visit to London I really wondered what life would be like in a big city like that. I don't think I could do it. I have a new found respect for my simple suburban lifestyle :)