How quickly the last few months have gone by! I have lots to tell, but am going to do it over a series of posts, hopefully over the next few days. First, our adventures in and around London!
Cute little room!
A couple of months ago, I found a Groupon for a night at a cute little bed and breakfast in Windsor, so off we went! It was a nice little getaway and I was keen to explore Windsor castle. After our train ride from Waterloo, we settled into a sweet little room at the top of the hotel. Shortly, after check-in, I learned our hotel and the pub across the street were haunted. Not a good realization–ask John! After checking in, we explored the surrounding area, grabbed a drink, and settled in by the fireplace for a good read before dinner and bed.
Windsor Castle
The next morning, we were up early to explore Windsor Castle–home of the Queen! The castle grounds were beautiful and we had a lovely day to explore. The queen has an impressive collection of armaments and paintings. Most impressive, however, was St. George’s Hall, where all of the big events are hosted. No pictures were allowed, but follow the link to see a photo. After some tea, we got on the train back to London.
Greek feast!!! (Thanks, Anna!)
Shortly after our trip to Windsor, our friends Anna and Erik returned from a trip to Santorini, Greece. Anna’s family is Greek and the trip inspired her to make a delicious Greek feast for our group of friends. This dinner was amazing!!
Olympic Park with Sue!
Shortly after the Greek feast, my friend, Sue came to visit. I met Sue in Singapore. She goes to IBC (our church there) and made the monthly trips to the Children’s Home in Indonesia with me. We became fast friends. 🙂 Sue lived in London before moving to Asia and she introduced me to several of her friends over lunch at Harrods. Then we took a tour of the Olympic Park–so cool! It’s still under construction, but is quite impressive. The Prime Meridian goes right through it. The coolest thing though, is that it’s only about two miles from our flat. We can see the torch and stadium on the train on the way home!! After touring the park, Sue and I went to the new mall built to accompany the park for a bird’s eye view. So great to see you, Sue!!
Here they come!!!
Next, we have the London Marathon! This year (and maybe every year…I’m not sure) the London Marathon went right by our flat. From our balcony, we had a bird’s eye view! Neither of us have either been to a marathon and had no idea how much fun it is to watch the runners go by and cheer for them. The BBC had us covered, so we watched the finish line on TV and the race from our balcony! We were between mile 18 and 19, so the runners were getting pretty tired, but they just kept on going! We saw Olympic hopefuls in the first bit, followed by a much larger crowd. More than 37,000 people ran in this year’s Marathon and we saw them all, including people on stilts, with field hockey sticks and balls, and in costume. All in all, a pretty amazing sight. Especially with breakfast and tea on the balcony.
Bridgette and me at the Tower of London!
A few weeks after the marathon, one of my sorority sisters came for a visit! Bridgette Kelleher Tonnsen came to town for a conference and stayed with us. We had some lovely late night chats, went exploring around London, and ate some delicious food. So great to see you Bridgette–come visit again soon!!!
Braving the Jubilee crowds
And to top it all off, last weekend we celebrated the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee! 60 years on the throne for Queen Elizabeth II. It was a four day long celebration with street parties, formal processions, concerts, and of course, the pageant down the River Thames. John, Jeremy, Kathleen and I tried to go to the shore for a piece of the action. Unfortunately, the crowds were a dozen deep, so we couldn’t see anything. We couldn’t even get near the big screens! After an hour of walking around London Bridge, we headed back to our flat where we watched the proceedings on BBC. We ended up much dryer than we would have been had we been on the riverside. 😉
Having a Wicked good time in London!
We are truly loving London these days. There’s so much to do and see and lots of things happening–especially if this summer (I use the term summer very loosely–it’s freezing!!!). More posts to come shortly–thanks for reading!!!
John and CB's Most Excellent Adventure 
