The Adventure Begins

I'm looking out over Victoria Station in London, the sound of the trains rattling over the tracks, loud and clear from our cramped hotel room. We were going to switch rooms because of the noise but now I like it - it's so London.

Our flight from Vancouver went well. Straight into a traditional black cab and zipped down to our hotel...well, almost. There is work being done right outside our hotel, so the cab driver had to let us off a block away, with our five enormous duffel bags, two roller bags and two backpacks. We found a grocery cart nearby and loaded the bags onto it, making two trips to the hotel. As Alanna said, we looked like a homeless family walking the streets of London with our belongings.

Checked in and decided to sleep for a few hours. Forced ourselves to get up in the late afternoon and went out for a bite to eat and to start sightseeing. Started by walking ten minutes to Buckingham Palace. Unfortunately the guards are posted behind the ornate gates now, right by the Palace. No opportunity to take photos with them or torment them by trying to make them laugh.

From there took a nice walk through St. James Park to the Parliament area and Big Ben. Westminster Abbey is just a block from there. Lied on the grass and took it all in. I love the history and tried to give Alanna and Craig a brief history lesson so they could appreciate it, even in their jetlagged state.

The Abbey was closed when we got there, but at 6:30pm a church service started and we decided to go to it. It was quite lovely to be there for the service and not just as a tourist, although one couldn't help but stare at the incredible stained glass, the high arches and the statues. Hopefully we will go back to explore some more of the Abbey before we leave.

Walked back to our area via Victoria Street and found that we are close to where some of the shows are playing. Decided to book tickets to Billy Elliot for tomorrow night.

I'm glad that we decided to stay in London for a couple of nights. Not just for the sights and to rest, but because it still hasn't sunk in that we are moving to India. I feel like we are travelling, not on vacation, certainly not moving for two years!