England/Scotland/Ireland Trip Report from June 2006
Aug 18th, 2006, 02:47 PM
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June 24th Saturday
It’s great to be back in London. We decided that today would be another exploring the city day, which we really enjoy doing. P and I got up early, and grabbed some coffee and cheese baguettes, and hopped on a city double decker bus to give him the London overview. I forget the bus number, but we headed west from Trafalgar, ending up in the Kensington and Chelsea area. We got stuck in traffic, so we jumped off and negotiated the tube from South Kensington to St Johns Woods station, and walked to Abbey Road. Took the obligatory Beatles picture crossing Abbey Road. It took awhile, lots of traffic and other tourists with the same idea. Continued poking around the city, we hopped on the 139 bus, but going the wrong way..we didn’t care, we got to see more of the city. Ended up taking the tube to Tottenham Court Road, and headed down to Trafalgar Square via Covent Gardens, which P was seeing for the first time.
We picked up M at the Trafalgar Hilton, and made a return trip (for me and M) to Rock and Sole Plaice, for another round of fish and chips, and mushy peas. Very good again, 40£ without tip.
Continuing the theme of exploring London…we decided to investigate the south side of the Thames. Hopped the tube to London Bridge…strolled up south side of the Thames…walked over Tower Bridge. Great views up and down the river. We took a double decker bus back to the hotel, and M and I called it a night (after what seemed like miles of walking today)! P headed out to experience the London nightlife.
It’s great to be back in London. We decided that today would be another exploring the city day, which we really enjoy doing. P and I got up early, and grabbed some coffee and cheese baguettes, and hopped on a city double decker bus to give him the London overview. I forget the bus number, but we headed west from Trafalgar, ending up in the Kensington and Chelsea area. We got stuck in traffic, so we jumped off and negotiated the tube from South Kensington to St Johns Woods station, and walked to Abbey Road. Took the obligatory Beatles picture crossing Abbey Road. It took awhile, lots of traffic and other tourists with the same idea. Continued poking around the city, we hopped on the 139 bus, but going the wrong way..we didn’t care, we got to see more of the city. Ended up taking the tube to Tottenham Court Road, and headed down to Trafalgar Square via Covent Gardens, which P was seeing for the first time.
We picked up M at the Trafalgar Hilton, and made a return trip (for me and M) to Rock and Sole Plaice, for another round of fish and chips, and mushy peas. Very good again, 40£ without tip.
Continuing the theme of exploring London…we decided to investigate the south side of the Thames. Hopped the tube to London Bridge…strolled up south side of the Thames…walked over Tower Bridge. Great views up and down the river. We took a double decker bus back to the hotel, and M and I called it a night (after what seemed like miles of walking today)! P headed out to experience the London nightlife.
Aug 18th, 2006, 02:48 PM
#42
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June 25th Sunday
We’re loving London even more, after yesterdays exploration, we feel almost like natives. We left the hotel around 10 AM, and walked up to Covent Garden for breakfast at a café. Sat outside, had scones, muffins and a ham and cheese croissant, along with mochas, tea and coffee. Very good but expensive. Scooted off to mass at Saint Patrick’s at Soho Square….then up to Hyde Park for the Sunday Speakers Corner experience. Next we hopped on the tube to the Britain at War Experience. Great film about the run up to the blitz and the aftermath. Then you enter several rooms packed with memorabilia and artifacts from the time of the blitz (for example, a recreated Andersen shelter). It ends a little cheesy, a Disney like recreation of a few London blocks just after a blitz….we liked everything about the experience except for the last part.
We split up for awhile in the afternoon. M and P did an hour long Thames cruise, they said it was very scenic and relaxing. I went to see the War Rooms and Churchill exhibition. The war rooms were interesting…restored areas such as the map rooms, meeting rooms and Churchill’s quarters. I liked the separate Churchill museum much more. Great overview of his life story, also a pretty high tech exhibit…touch screens..lots of video and audio. A great exhibit for those of us who have forgotten a lot of their 20th century history!
We met back up again, right around the time that England was winning their World Cup game (I think it was against Ecuador?) There were wild celebrations in the streets after the win, which literally spilled into the fountains in Trafalgar Square! That warranted some people watching for a bit, but dinner called. We found a local pub to grab a burger, called the Silver Cross (I think on Whitehall?) Unfortunately, this was the worst food of the entire trip. Not worth a visit, we’ll leave it at that.
P and I got a second wind and went exploring again, roamed all over for several hours…mochas on the steps of Trafalgar…walked to Big Ben and took some nice nighttime pictures..strolled along the Thames, river looks great at night..then back along the Strand to the hotel. A great London day, only one more full day left.
We’re loving London even more, after yesterdays exploration, we feel almost like natives. We left the hotel around 10 AM, and walked up to Covent Garden for breakfast at a café. Sat outside, had scones, muffins and a ham and cheese croissant, along with mochas, tea and coffee. Very good but expensive. Scooted off to mass at Saint Patrick’s at Soho Square….then up to Hyde Park for the Sunday Speakers Corner experience. Next we hopped on the tube to the Britain at War Experience. Great film about the run up to the blitz and the aftermath. Then you enter several rooms packed with memorabilia and artifacts from the time of the blitz (for example, a recreated Andersen shelter). It ends a little cheesy, a Disney like recreation of a few London blocks just after a blitz….we liked everything about the experience except for the last part.
We split up for awhile in the afternoon. M and P did an hour long Thames cruise, they said it was very scenic and relaxing. I went to see the War Rooms and Churchill exhibition. The war rooms were interesting…restored areas such as the map rooms, meeting rooms and Churchill’s quarters. I liked the separate Churchill museum much more. Great overview of his life story, also a pretty high tech exhibit…touch screens..lots of video and audio. A great exhibit for those of us who have forgotten a lot of their 20th century history!
We met back up again, right around the time that England was winning their World Cup game (I think it was against Ecuador?) There were wild celebrations in the streets after the win, which literally spilled into the fountains in Trafalgar Square! That warranted some people watching for a bit, but dinner called. We found a local pub to grab a burger, called the Silver Cross (I think on Whitehall?) Unfortunately, this was the worst food of the entire trip. Not worth a visit, we’ll leave it at that.
P and I got a second wind and went exploring again, roamed all over for several hours…mochas on the steps of Trafalgar…walked to Big Ben and took some nice nighttime pictures..strolled along the Thames, river looks great at night..then back along the Strand to the hotel. A great London day, only one more full day left.
Aug 18th, 2006, 07:24 PM
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June 26th Monday
Our last day in London. Also had a real rainy day, after great weather most of the trip. We took a taxi from the Trafalgar Hilton to the Tower of London, which M has been waiting to see the entire trip. We prepaid for tickets over the internet, and we thought we would be able to get them from a kiosk ahead of time, but no dice. We had to wait on line until the gates opened to get the tickets, so there was no advantage to paying in advance.
As suggested to us, we took the Beefeater tour, and it was fantastic. The guide was right on the money…tons of information, and something of a stand up comedian. After the tour, we began to delve into all the different parts of the site. So much to see, and M was in her glory…the combination of history, gore and medieval forensics is right up her alley. We stopped around noon for some café food….scones, sandwiches, carrot cake, tea..all quite good. Of course, we saw the crown jewels, impressive but P and I were partial to the other historical parts of the tower.
P and I left, and grabbed the tube to Parliament, but there was a 2 hour wait to get inside, so we did an about face and came right back to the tower. We visited the armor and weapons exhibits, ended up staying until closing time. M actually spent a full 7 hours at the tower.
We grabbed a taxi up to Smith of Smithfields, in Farrington, for dinner, just to see a different part of the city. Funky place but interesting. They served us real fresh bread with dipping oil to start…M had spinach cannelloni with ricotta and butternut squash…P had chicken with leeks and cheese…I had a good old 10oz burger with cheddar and bacon (to make up for the crappy burger from yesterday). We split a blueberry and sour cream cheesecake. Real good meal, about 62 £ with tip.
Grabbed a taxi, dropped M at the hotel, then back to Parliament. There was an evening session at the House of Commons, no line at all but very tight security, went through several pat downs and metal detectors. We stayed for about 90 minutes of lively British discussion and debate. Both enjoyed it, very interesting end to the day. We strolled back to the hotel, enjoying our last views of London, and packed up.
Our last day in London. Also had a real rainy day, after great weather most of the trip. We took a taxi from the Trafalgar Hilton to the Tower of London, which M has been waiting to see the entire trip. We prepaid for tickets over the internet, and we thought we would be able to get them from a kiosk ahead of time, but no dice. We had to wait on line until the gates opened to get the tickets, so there was no advantage to paying in advance.
As suggested to us, we took the Beefeater tour, and it was fantastic. The guide was right on the money…tons of information, and something of a stand up comedian. After the tour, we began to delve into all the different parts of the site. So much to see, and M was in her glory…the combination of history, gore and medieval forensics is right up her alley. We stopped around noon for some café food….scones, sandwiches, carrot cake, tea..all quite good. Of course, we saw the crown jewels, impressive but P and I were partial to the other historical parts of the tower.
P and I left, and grabbed the tube to Parliament, but there was a 2 hour wait to get inside, so we did an about face and came right back to the tower. We visited the armor and weapons exhibits, ended up staying until closing time. M actually spent a full 7 hours at the tower.
We grabbed a taxi up to Smith of Smithfields, in Farrington, for dinner, just to see a different part of the city. Funky place but interesting. They served us real fresh bread with dipping oil to start…M had spinach cannelloni with ricotta and butternut squash…P had chicken with leeks and cheese…I had a good old 10oz burger with cheddar and bacon (to make up for the crappy burger from yesterday). We split a blueberry and sour cream cheesecake. Real good meal, about 62 £ with tip.
Grabbed a taxi, dropped M at the hotel, then back to Parliament. There was an evening session at the House of Commons, no line at all but very tight security, went through several pat downs and metal detectors. We stayed for about 90 minutes of lively British discussion and debate. Both enjoyed it, very interesting end to the day. We strolled back to the hotel, enjoying our last views of London, and packed up.
Aug 18th, 2006, 07:27 PM
#44
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June 27th Tuesday
We’re homeward bound. We stayed up late, just didn’t want the trip to end…sacked out around 2 AM, and up at 6 AM, so pretty tired starting the day out. We used Justairports again, picked us up at 7:20 AM, got to Heathrow at 8. (P was staying on awhile longer in London). Easy check in and security, and our 1st class tickets to JFK got us into the American Airlines Flagship lounge. It was smaller and less crowded than other airport lounges I’ve been in, but not all that extraordinary.
We had a newer 777 with these pod like seats, they are huge. The seats can swivel to a 45° angle or face each other completely. We ended the trip gorging on all the food they serve. We had drinks and warmed nuts, then salmon and capers before lunch, and a good salad. I had chicken and M had salmon for her meal. Hot fudge sundaes and tea for dessert. We just chilled out listening to music and talking about the incredible journey we just had….none of the movies were that great anyway. They served another meal before landing, we both had beef Wellington. Left the plane stuffed again!
No wait at all at customs, but there were major screwups with several flights luggage. We had about 90 minutes wait, but we finally got all our bags, and used Dial7 again to get home, they were very good again.
Well, that’s it for our trip, a 25 day amazing journey to England, Scotland and Ireland. We loved every minute of it, and we hope some of what we reported is useful to other people planning their trips.
We’re homeward bound. We stayed up late, just didn’t want the trip to end…sacked out around 2 AM, and up at 6 AM, so pretty tired starting the day out. We used Justairports again, picked us up at 7:20 AM, got to Heathrow at 8. (P was staying on awhile longer in London). Easy check in and security, and our 1st class tickets to JFK got us into the American Airlines Flagship lounge. It was smaller and less crowded than other airport lounges I’ve been in, but not all that extraordinary.
We had a newer 777 with these pod like seats, they are huge. The seats can swivel to a 45° angle or face each other completely. We ended the trip gorging on all the food they serve. We had drinks and warmed nuts, then salmon and capers before lunch, and a good salad. I had chicken and M had salmon for her meal. Hot fudge sundaes and tea for dessert. We just chilled out listening to music and talking about the incredible journey we just had….none of the movies were that great anyway. They served another meal before landing, we both had beef Wellington. Left the plane stuffed again!
No wait at all at customs, but there were major screwups with several flights luggage. We had about 90 minutes wait, but we finally got all our bags, and used Dial7 again to get home, they were very good again.
Well, that’s it for our trip, a 25 day amazing journey to England, Scotland and Ireland. We loved every minute of it, and we hope some of what we reported is useful to other people planning their trips.
Aug 19th, 2006, 12:01 AM
#45
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kevmag:
You covered a lot of ground but am curious as to why you choose to skip the Dover wartime tunnels tour? They are well worth the time.
You enjoyed some great weather and lucky you to have so many points to cash in for your hotels.
Gatwick to London - take the train. That was an expensive taxi but you didn't complain.
Thank you for taking the time to post - very nicely done and very upbeat.
Sandy
You covered a lot of ground but am curious as to why you choose to skip the Dover wartime tunnels tour? They are well worth the time.
You enjoyed some great weather and lucky you to have so many points to cash in for your hotels.
Gatwick to London - take the train. That was an expensive taxi but you didn't complain.
Thank you for taking the time to post - very nicely done and very upbeat.
Sandy
Aug 20th, 2006, 09:46 AM
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Sandy
Skipping the tunnels was just a question of time....wanted to stop in Canterbury on the way to London, and were not sure how long we would be in Canterbury, nor how long it would take to get from Gatwick into the city
As far as the train...we never really considered that as an option, 2 of us had been on the road almost 3 weeks, we had a ton of lugagge and odds and ends we had picked up...plus it was an anniversary trip, we were 'erroring' on the side of splurging on ourselves!
Skipping the tunnels was just a question of time....wanted to stop in Canterbury on the way to London, and were not sure how long we would be in Canterbury, nor how long it would take to get from Gatwick into the city
As far as the train...we never really considered that as an option, 2 of us had been on the road almost 3 weeks, we had a ton of lugagge and odds and ends we had picked up...plus it was an anniversary trip, we were 'erroring' on the side of splurging on ourselves!
Aug 20th, 2006, 09:57 AM
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kevmag:
We will be in your neck of the woods at the end of September visting one of our sons who now makes his home in Manhattan. Have been quite a few times but haven't run out of things to see and do yet so can relate to the time thing.
Fair enough about treating yourselves to a taxi ride into the city after 3 weeks moving about during your holiay.
Sandy
We will be in your neck of the woods at the end of September visting one of our sons who now makes his home in Manhattan. Have been quite a few times but haven't run out of things to see and do yet so can relate to the time thing.
Fair enough about treating yourselves to a taxi ride into the city after 3 weeks moving about during your holiay.
Sandy
Aug 20th, 2006, 10:36 AM
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Great report. Aren't E/S/I wonderful? We did a Great Britain and Ireland 28-day trip as my retirement gift to myself, and it is my all-time favorite trip.
How did you arrange your visit to Parliament? That is something I haven't done and would like to.
How did you arrange your visit to Parliament? That is something I haven't done and would like to.
Aug 20th, 2006, 11:31 AM
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http://www.parliament.uk/visiting/visiting.cfm
If you're prepared to queue, you can take your chance on getting into the public gallery of either House when they're in session, but for major "events" like Prime Minister's Questions and for tours of the building citizens of other countries are much more restricted.
Even if you can get into the public gallery, it's a bit of a lottery whether you have an interesting debate or some of the routine business or incomprehensible procedural stuff.
If you're prepared to queue, you can take your chance on getting into the public gallery of either House when they're in session, but for major "events" like Prime Minister's Questions and for tours of the building citizens of other countries are much more restricted.
Even if you can get into the public gallery, it's a bit of a lottery whether you have an interesting debate or some of the routine business or incomprehensible procedural stuff.
Aug 21st, 2006, 01:42 PM
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Carolyn, our visit to the House of Commons was a last minute thing. We had gone there during the day, and the wait was about 2 hours, so we didn't queue up. By chance, they were having an evening session that night, and we when we went back (I'm going to guess it was around 7:30 PM??) there was no wait at all.
Like PatrickLondon said, it's luck of the drawer what you will see and hear...there weren't many members there, but they were debating something along the lines of...clamping down on radio licenses because suspected drug dealers were using the public airwaves to transmit messages to each other! (That was a pretty bizarre topic, so it kept our interest).
Like PatrickLondon said, it's luck of the drawer what you will see and hear...there weren't many members there, but they were debating something along the lines of...clamping down on radio licenses because suspected drug dealers were using the public airwaves to transmit messages to each other! (That was a pretty bizarre topic, so it kept our interest).
Aug 22nd, 2006, 09:52 AM
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Your trip report is very enjoyable, kevmag. I think that overview trips are a great way to start. We always enjoy returning to our favorite spots and adding on new sights.
I just returned last night from our 4th visit to the UK - 17 days. We will be back once or twice in the next calendar year, so your report will come in handy.
I am envious of your wife's 7 hours in the Tower. We only had 2-3 hours on our March visit, which just whet my appetite. This most recent visit we went to the Ceremony of the Keys. The Yeoman Warder who ushered us around was very entertaining once again.
In London, we attended Mass at the Brompton Oratory (beautiful choir of traditional music), the Farm Street Church (Jesuit, beautiful church, no music because of summer break for choir), and St. Etheldreda's (medieval church that has come back into Catholic use, sung Latin service - lovely.)
I just returned last night from our 4th visit to the UK - 17 days. We will be back once or twice in the next calendar year, so your report will come in handy.
I am envious of your wife's 7 hours in the Tower. We only had 2-3 hours on our March visit, which just whet my appetite. This most recent visit we went to the Ceremony of the Keys. The Yeoman Warder who ushered us around was very entertaining once again.
In London, we attended Mass at the Brompton Oratory (beautiful choir of traditional music), the Farm Street Church (Jesuit, beautiful church, no music because of summer break for choir), and St. Etheldreda's (medieval church that has come back into Catholic use, sung Latin service - lovely.)
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