Yankee Invasion

Iceland air does not fly to Dublin, so we had to stop over in London. Since it is one of our favorite cities, we took an extra day to enjoy some sights and visit with friends. Besides, as the people in Iceland know, Britain is my kind of place (see sign below).


We woke up ready for a busy day, and loaded up on all the free food provided by accrued hotel stays at the Marriott.


After only a few minutes of exploration, we happened upon a play for children based on a popular bedtime story (that sadly, we haven't read) called Room on the Broom. We all enjoyed the musical.


Rebekah and I love to go on guided walks of the city.  We find them informative AND entertaining. Luckily, our kids are now old enough to enjoy them as well.  We took two walks this time.

The first Walking Tour was of the British Museum. What a daunting task with over 7 million items to see.   It was a perfect subject with a guide who pointed out the most interesting parts and told us stories and histories at each stop. The kids have been studying ancient Egypt, and thus were very excited for the Mummies. This great Museum did not disappoint...


Shayne thought this looked very "Persian."


The Rosetta stone is a must see. Weston thought he could understand some of the hieroglyphics, so we were in good hands? Apparently it talks about three bears and a small girl....



Here all four of us are, standing in front of our good friend Ramses II! We enjoyed people watching a bit as we are finally sat down outside the British Museum. The kids had claimed to be tired, yet within minutes they were skipping and running around on the lawn.


After the museum we headed to another Jackson family tradition, dinner at My Old Dutch pancake house near Holborn station. The kids recognized the dinner plates from our wall at home, and then enjoyed the savory and sweet dishes.


We enjoyed a few left over's from the holiday season, including the beautiful Christmas tree at Covent Gardens.


We stopped by Covent Gardens on our way home from an evening showing of the West End play, SHREK. The kids thought it was great. Rebekah and I were disappointed by the performance of Donkey. But then again Rebekah was in poor spirits after dropping her new iPhone in the water a few minutes before the curtain lifted. (Update... the phone is working just fine now! However, Donkey is still terrible!)


The next day was Shaynie and Weston's 9th birthday. Where has the time gone? We asked the nice staff to help us surprise them with birthday pancakes. (I think the pancake was in there somewhere.) We didn't mention anything about it being fast Sunday, as we whisked them off to church with chocolate on their cheeks...



After the meetings, we took off for a tour of the Tower of London. We arrived early and waited by the subway station for our guide. To kill time, we each took turns choreographing pictures. The first was my idea. The second was one Weston directed. I am sure other pedestrians thought we were normal, everyday Americans.


As usual the walking tour was great fun. Weston especially enjoyed it, and had plenty of questions and comments. The guide got a kick out of him as they bantered back and forth.


The Tower is an interesting place. So much history.  Medieval times sure seemed rough?  Rebekah enjoyed the crown jewels and we all smirked about King Henry the VIII's inferiority complex, as displayed by his suit of armor's 'codpiece'.


Did you know they had midget knights?  The suit of armor was really for a child King, and the one next to his was for a German warrior measuring 6'8"!


At one point the Tower has also been home to a number of animals that were given to the King and/or Queen as gifts.  This includes everything from lions to elephants.  I am sure they loved the temperate climate of England! They are now displayed in remarkable 'chicken wire' sculptures around the complex.


As always, we zipped around on the Tube from place to place, exploring the underground tunnels and walkways.



We ended the day with dinner, a birthday cake and a visit with our friends who lived near us in China.  They've moved to London,  and live directly in front of  the crosswalk on Abbey road made famous by the Beatles. In fact, the crosswalk takes you right to their building.  Abby Road Studios is still next door. Here is a completely candid photo of us crossing Abbey road?  We were not the only ones with that idea. Our friends said it is busy at all times of the day and night.

All in all another enjoyable and action packed London visit. We can't wait for our next lay over!