All leading up to this trip we kept being asking, “What are you guys going to do in London?” To which we have answered, “Pretty much what we do anywhere.  Walk around, look at things, and eat stuff.” With this as our stated goal, I feel we are off to a great start.  Sometimes it is just nice not to have an agenda, you know?  

This morning we waited around until 7 AM when we could eat breakfast in the hotel cafe. We both enjoyed our complimentary omelets, as well as the buffet. Then we walked around. We saw the Monument, St. Paul’s Cathedral, and strolled across the Millennium Bridge, spotted Shakespeare’s Globe, and continued along the South Bank to the London Eye.  We crossed back over the Thames towards Big Ben. Covered in scaffolding from top to bottom it is not much to look at at the moment.  So that will be something to take a gander at on a future trip. We walked up to Westminster Abby, but decided to pass on spending £60 for the privilege of entering. 

We took a rest in St. James park on a bench and found a vendor selling cold beverages. I chose apple and then realized it was sparkling, so it tasted like Martinelli’s. From there we walked through the park to Buckingham Palace, where crowds were already gathering for the changing of the guards (although it was more than an hour and a half till this would happen). Not wanting to stand in the sun that long, we continued on through Green Park to Picadilly Lane. This took us to Picadilly Circus, where, despite Jaynie’s warnings, we managed to avoid being stood there with a pigeon on our head. We instead checked on ticket prices for shows in the West End. Feeling we could do better buying same day tickets elsewhere, we continued on. 

Next stop was the Lego store in Leicester Square.  It was by far the most impressive Lego store we’ve ever been in. They had tons of huge things built out of Legos for tourists to take pictures with. We played our part. It was there that we saw what I am referring to as Better Ben (Big Ben made out of Legos, and not covered in scaffolding). After that fun stop, we started to feel hungry and began to look around. We found a TGIFridays which has become something of a tradition on our adventures, so while we waited for it to open, we checked the prices for same day tickets. They look much more reasonable, and we fully intend to take in a show while we are here. 

 Our server at TGIFridays was diligent about making sure what I ordered was safe for my milk allergy. I ended up with some chicken tacos that were delicious and a nice change of pace from the heavy food last night. As he brought us the bill he noticed us playing Pokémon Go and told us his sad story about how he had played for two years and now his account doesn’t appear to exist anymore. We told him we were sorry for his loss, and left the friendly gentleman a $2 bill as a tip. Hopefully he will be amused. 

Feeling much better for having eaten and slurped down icy beverages (with free refills!) we headed in the direction of the British Museum next.  But before we had gone two blocks, we found our favorite gelato chain beckoning. We gladly walked into the Amorino and ordered up chocolate and strawberry rose-shaped cones. These are beautiful, delicious, and bring me much joy. Ah... vacation!

The collection at the British Museum is more than impressive. As Bryan said, “I don’t feel like I need to go to Egypt. They’ve got all of it here. What would be left?”  I politely didn’t mention the pyramids themselves. But he makes a good point. We saw over 25 mummies today! And the Rosetta Stone, and all sorts of ancient treasures. 

By the time we were so warm and tired that we had stopped caring how historic the items were, we took our cue to leave.  Not having spent any money (the museum is free to the public) we didn’t feel the need to push through and try and see it all. We found the nearest tube station and headed back to the hotel for a much needed rest.