Walking is Good. Taking the Tube is better.

Hey everyone! Sorry to have left you all a bit out of the loop for the past several days, but we've been busy visiting the world of England! I'll start filling you in on our escapades which continued in London for the two days following our arrival. Our first day there started in typical tourist fashion: we got lost. Thankfully Myra had set us up with a good map of downtown London, but even with Jeanette's and my good senses of direction, AND a handy dandy map, it wasn't enough to keep us from uttering those words of confusion, "Uh… where are we? And why aren't we where I think we are?" Since then, we've gotten quite good at scouting out information centers and helpful people to ask for directions. But the initial adventure of getting lost in London actually took us to a great destination anyway, because we ended up seeing Westminster Abbey (location of the recent royal wedding) and nearby Big Ben, Houses of Parliament and the London Eye.

When lunch time rolled around, we happened to be in Trafalgar Square, jumping down from lions (and subsequently hurting our feet, mine mostly!), people-watching and filming people dancing in the water. After lunch, we spent some time at the visitor's center asking questions, then we limped over to the British Museum (big draw since it is famous and FREE!) for a little bit before calling it a day and heading home. This is when we made the discovery of the week: the Tube is amazing. Especially with a hurt foot and every step bringing near-cramp pain, missing out on several blocks of walking sounded like a great plan. At first it was a bit confusing, as are most things in a foreign country, but then we realized the simple beauty of the underground train system and are now hopelessly inseparable from it.

The original fist bump. I guess it was so powerful, it broke the guy's whole arm off! Let that be a lesson to you!

Our second day in London was a late start, but went well once it got going. We headed first to the Tower of London, famed jail (or gaol), castle and royal residence. Going in right after lunch, we started out following a tour which took us by the Traitor's Gate (you can probably guess who would have been led through there) and the execution area. We then broke off from the tour for something a bit more exciting: a Knight's Tournament. Two knights would be fighting in three challenges for the honor of their ladies. The fights included use of swords, pikes, and spears. Although we could tell rather easily how choreographed it all was, it was still fun to watch and cheer for! After the fight was over, we went back inside the tower to the inner building (the Tower of London actually has two towers, the outer walls that have towers, and the inner building which is the main tower) for a walk through displays about weaponry, horses in battle, and armor.

Unfortunately, we had to slightly rush because we wanted to make it back to Westminster Abbey for their Evensong service. Not only would we hear beautiful choral hymns, but we'd also get in the building for free (and we like that!). Even though we arrived 15 minutes after the start, we were allowed in, and we enjoyed it immensely. It was really neat to see the church that my family and I watched Kate and Prince William get married in a few months ago. Westminster was followed by a walk past Buckingham Palace right at sunset for a perfect photo-op right before a delicious dinner of fish and chips at Saint Martin's in the Fields crypt.

Coming up in our next couple of updates: Leeds and Warwick castles, then adventures in Oxford, Stonehenge and Bath!