The Tudor Tour

 Rebekah was in the UK on a girl's trip with Nyla, Nancy and  Marsha. I was home with the kids. We had just finished our history lesson's for the school year. The final chapters were on Queen Elizabeth, Shakespeare, and the East India Company. It seemed like the perfect time for us to head over to London for our own field trip. We booked a hotel next to the Tower of London, and the Katherine Docks. 

 They were having a car and boat show. Weston was in heaven with all the exotic cars. 

The first night, while waiting to join a walking tour,  we explored our local area, to include the Tower Bridge, the Tower of London, and even the Roman wall still visible by the underground station (and a local park).

 Then it was time for our tour - the Jack the Ripper Walk.  I felt the kids were finally old enough. Plus, as it stays light for so long in May, it did not feel as scary. 

 We had a great guide. Weston, as usual, took center stage, asked lots of questions and volunteered whenever anyone was needed. 

 We learned a number of interesting facts, including some new words the kids had not encountered before.  Words like 'Prostitute'. That was fun to explain.   We ended the night at a local, delicious, WhiteChapel fish and chip shop named Poppies.  Jack the Ripper stories always make us hungry. 

 The next day we traveled to Greenwich to explore the Royal Naval Museum, the Royal Observatory, Planetarium and the famous Cutty Sark clipper. The kids studied these things in Science class this year, so it was perfect. 

 It was great to see and touch things we had learned about. William Herschel's telescope...

 The Prime Meridian, the dropping Red Time Ball the set clocks around the world..

 Halley's telescope 

 and the official clock, and measurements that set the standards for the British empire (and eventually America).  The Metric system makes so much more sense? At least we did not adopt the crazy and illogical money system; Farthing,  Penny, Shilling, Crown, Threepence etc...  What were they thinking?  

 The nautical museum had a gigantic floor map. We found our future home (Mauritius), our current one in Dublin, and where we were at the moment (London)

 We took time to just watch people on this trip. We were rarely in a hurry. This included a number of great street performers. There are so many in London. This one, named 'Man with big balls',  was at Covent Gardens. 

 We decided at the last minute to go see a play.  We selected Charlie and Chocolate factory (as it is the 100th anniversary of Roald Dahl's birth - plus it is an amazing story).  It was a charming show, despite the fact we had the worst seats in the house. However, it is a classic and historical theater (The Theatre Royal Drury Lane), one of the oldest in the City.  

 We continued our tradition of stopping by Wok to Walk for a pre theater dinner. We were not disappointed. 

 On another afternoon, after visiting Saint Paul's cathedral, we took time to explore Postman's Park.  More specifically, we went to G.F. Watt's memorial to Heroic Self Sacrifice.  This is a small memorial to people who gave their lives to try and help others around the turn of the 19th century. 

It was a touching place, and nice to see and remember that there are (or at least were) selfless people in the world. 

 As we read about young children who died saving siblings and elderly parents, or people trying to help strangers, it allowed for a number of thoughtful and poignant conversations.  It was a peaceful and reflective 40 minute break, amid a well kept and intimate park. Worth it. 

 Then it was across the Millennium bridge for a tour of the Globe Theater. Shakespeare's old stomping ground. 

 They were preparing for a performance of a Mid-Summers Night Dream. I was told this version was not really suitable for kids. 

 In the basement they were offering free sword fighting lessons and demonstrations. We do not know the women in blue?  

After that it was a long walk to the London Dungeon tour. The kids were a bit nervous, but did okay. They only opted out of one ride (a 35 foot drop)

 With that, we ended our time in London, and rented a car. We drove out to Hampton Court to explore the country palace of the Tudor's. 

 There was a heat wave on, and it was a weekend. These factors combined to ensure the place was packed! Luckily it was immense. 

 Shaynie used her Latin skills to explain that one of the gigantic wall tapestries in the Great Hall depicted the prophet Abraham paying tithes to Melchizedek. Seemed like an odd choice for such a  prominent feature. These were commissioned by Henry VIII!

We enjoyed some live performances of Shakespeare in the Great Hall, exactly where people like King James I would have enjoyed them on occasion. 

 We wandered the gardens, and had a small picnic. 

 The weather was unbelievable. 

 This huge Wisteria mush be ancient. I know it is right next to the world's longest Grape Vine, which is over 240 years old. 

 We spent some time in Henry VIII's kitchen.  Actually it is number of connected large rooms (kitchens). I suppose that is how it goes when you have sumptuous feasts for your closest 100 friends. 

 They let weston help roast some beef knuckle (sirloin tip) on a spit. The entire process takes six hours, and was done each day when the king was in residence. We were not offered any!

 The next day we arrived in Stratford upon Avon; birth place, home, and death place of Shakespeare.

 The world celebrated the 400 year anniversary of his death the weekend before we arrived, so the town was still full of festivities. Weston took some time to talk to him in front of the Royal Shakespeare Theater.  

 We enjoyed another walking tour, with another great guide. One stop was the Harvard house, where John Harvard's family lived, and who the famous University is named after (thanks to his donation of books and money). In fact, many people believe it was Shakespeare who first introduced John's parents in London.  Poet and match maker? Small world. 

 This is the school Shakespeare likely attended until he was 14. He did not go to University. 

 The house he bought after making his money in London, and were he eventually died,  is just up the street 1/2 a block. 

 Speaking of his death, we also visited Trinity Church where he, and his family are buried. They even have the baptismal font that he would have been baptized in as a child.  Crazy. 

 After the tour, Weston decided we should enjoy a nice picnic in the park by the river. He wanted Fish and Chips.  We then spent a lazy afternoon reading and drawing in the park. 

 Oh yeah, we also visited a few more sites, like the house where Shakespeare was born, and likely lived as a newly wed. 

 We also went to the house of his daughter, who married a famous doctor in town. 

 The garden was breathtaking and in full bloom.  Shaynie was in heaven just sitting and sketching with her new set of color pencils. That is all she wanted to do on this trip. Draw and write. 

 That left me to try and entertain Weston - who was not as interested in writing and drawing. 

 I gave it my best shot, but often came up short. Story of my life. I did convince them all to write a mother's day card, in prose, to Rebekah. That ate up some time, and put us in a Shakespeare state of mind.

 We had lots of time to kill. We were waiting to attend a performance of Don Quixote that night at the Royal Shakespeare theater.  As an added bonus, Rebekah, Nyla, Nancy and Marsha were coming as well!  It was fantastic and funny, and worth the wait (on all accounts- including hanging out with  Mom)!

 Unfortunately, the girls did not stay, and drove directly back to the Cotswolds after the show.  Thus it was with heavy hearts that we said good bye, and prepared for our own departure the next day. 

 As a final stop, we visited Bletchly Park on the way to the airport. We did not give ourselves enough time. It was a wonderful, interesting and interactive museum. The kids loved it. But it was rushed. We were able to learn about the Enigma, encryption, codes, ciphers, Alan Turing, world war II, code breakers and the top secret machines that made it all possible, and were in fact the first functional 'computers' ever invented. 

 As we left the museum, with its many bunkers, huts, and one large mansion, we realized we had come a long way from the time and of the Tutors and Shakespeare. Yet this was a great example of the power that words and communication have played in our collective history, be it prose or encrypted weather reports. We truly owe much to the giants that came before us. England sure produced more then her fair share of giants.