British Museum and British Library

On our last day here in London we spent our time visiting the British Museum and the British Library. Both of these have exhibits that could take several days to see completely. The British Museum is used by the local schools for field trips to teach students. It was very funny when you read the signs in the museum that read, "Do Not Touch Exhibits" and then you see all of these grade school age children climbing up and looking into several thousand year old sarcophagus expecting to see a mummy. It was very funny to see their curiosity in action.

The British Library is also spectacular. It is a wonderful collection of ancient documents like the Magna Carta and original manuscripts by Shakespeare, Leonardo da Vinci, and Milton as examples.

We will be headed home early tomorrow with fond memories and wonderful photos of our visit to England. Click on our Web Photo Album to see our photos.

The London Eye

This scenic London ride is a wonderful way to get spectacular photos of downtown London. The views of the River Thames, Big Ben, and Parliament are just a few of the spectacular views. It was a great morning break. Click here to see a short video of the view

Cynthia had to visit Abbey Road where the Beatles made the famous cover photo for their Abbey Road album. It is amazing how we are learning how to easily get around London in just a few days. We even know where the best public toilets are.

London's Shakespeare and Dickens

Today we joined a London walking tour about the places known and visited regulary by Shakespeare and Dickens in their different life times. Of course, it also included many old former London pubs and historical locations. These tours cost about 7 pounds ($10 to $13) a person and usually take about 2 hours to complete. There are many different walking tours scheduled at locations through out London where you just meet at a pre-established time and are greeted by your local tour guide. The tours are moderate paced walking jaunts in and out of alley ways and narrow streets as you hear wonderful historical stories and see famous locations. This was a very special treat for us both. We recommend them for anyone visiting London.

Their web site can be located by clicking on http://www.londonwalks.com

Hyde Park and Covent Gardens - London

Today was a bit rainy, but we managed to make the best of it. We walked around Hyde Park and enjoyed the fall scene in this beautiful London park near Kensington Palace. We also visited Covent Gardens which is a combination of an open air market and boutique shops of all kinds.

Since Cynthia is a Mac user, we found the London Apple store and had to visit it and play with all of the new Apple applications. You can really feel the beginning of the holiday season here with all of the special lights and displays going up.

I have discovered that you can buy cell phone company sims cards here that make calling anywhere in the UK and back home to the U.S. much cheaper than using your own cell phone. It just requires you to have an unlocked cell phone and you're in business. UK rates are as low as 8 to 10 pence a minute locally and 4 pence a minute for calls back home to the U.S.. Cynthia has also been using Skype to make free Internet calls back to her mom in Kansas. Technology has been our friend on this trip.

Tomorrow....more fun playing tourist.

Liverpool

We took a Virgin train from London to Liverpool on Monday and spent the day with cousin Keith Speed seeing the sights around Liverpool. Keith is English and has lived his entire life in and around the Liverpool area. Liverpool is a fascinating city with a rich history of maritime commercial trade and innovative port development. Of course, it is also the home of the Beatles. There are wonderful, open pedestrian malls for walking all around the city and public transportation is an easy and inexpensive way to get around. Liverpool architecture is bold and shows the successful port economy enjoyed by Liverpool for the last 300 years. Thank you, Keith, for a wonderful day in this beautiful area of England. The trip by train is only about two hours each way from London.

Saint Paul Cathedral - London

Today, we spent some time riding around on the Tube getting acquainted again with the Underground. We visited the London Museum, Saint Giles without Cripplegate (a church dating back to 1200 ad), Saint Paul's Cathedral, and the Tate Gallery. Because it was Sunday, we also had the opportunity to hear a wonderful church and choral service at St Paul's Cathedral. The sound was absolutely amazing in that very large cathedral. Today all over the UK, they celebrated "Remembrance Day" in honor of all veterans who served Queen and Country. Poppy wreaths were seen all over London.

Tomorrow we take the train to Liverpool to see the sights in that famous Northern City where the Beatles got their start.

London

We arrived in London after a four hour delay leaving Houston, but the flight on Continental was uneventful with no further delays. The day in London was beautiful. We spent a fun afternoon in Burroughs Market near London Bridge and had a great sandwich there. This is an outstanding combination of farmer's market and eateries. We walked around the area and then decided to turn in early and get up on Sunday for a full day.

Welcome

Cynthia and I will be sending regular posts along with photos while we are on our trip to England (London and Liverpool) starting November 7, 2009. We are looking forward to sharing our trip with you. Check out the Google map to see where we will be staying while in London. It is the Cleveland Hotel. Click on the link below.

Google Map

During this month of October 2009, Cynthia and I also visited Albuquerque, NM to see the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta. Click here to view our video of the Fiesta on Saturday, October 10, 2009. Click here to view our photos taken at the Fiesta.

Chuck and Cyn