Our three visitors from Texas arrived on 5th April and have stayed a little longer than planned because Princess Allison really wanted to stay in the UK for the Royal Wedding. They arrived with a lovely letter introducing them and each had a special request for their time in England. Minnie Lee's was easy; she wanted to ride on a double decker bus and phone home from a red phone box. Princess Allison wanted to meet the Queen and have afternoon tea, but unfortunately we're not quite on "popping in for a quick cuppa" terms with the Queen. Well, no one is, even her own family need to make appointments! We did our best with that one as you will see later. but poor Noble the Kitty Wizard got nothing except a bit of a skirmish with his ancient enemy, the dog (our puppy got hold of him and he lost his hat and his hands). He wanted to meet Merlin and all three wanted to see the Tardis. Sadly, although there is still a Police Telephone Box, on which the Tardis is based...somewhere, I didn;t know exactly and didn't have the time to go looking!
But enough of what we didn't do with them. Here's what we did!
On the first day they were with us, it was the performance of a play Hannah and the home ed drama group have been working on for months. No pic of the travellers with the cast, but they were watching.
They came to Hannah's riding lesson.
and just hung out in the garden with us!
We took them out for a pizza on our last night at home before our holiday and the next day we set off for a short break in Suffolk on the east coast of England
We stayed in this cottage, which is about 400 years old. The travellers enjoyed exploring the garden
and loved the wooden beams and old stone fireplace of the cottage
We were only a few miles from the coast, so we went to the seaside. Way too cold in April to go in the sea, but we took Hannah's metal detector and went for a walk on the beach. It was very windy though so after a few pictures we thought the visitors were best off in a bag!
They helped Hannah with some work, or at least kept her company while she worked
When we got back top London, we took them out to meet my god-daughter and her mum for a meal in Leicester Square. They enjoyed travelling by Tube and seeing all the crowds and bright lights in one of the busiest places in London for nightlife (this is where the big film premieres are held although we didn;t see anyone famous!)
Our next trip was to the Natural History Museum, Hannah's favourite place to visit. If she doesn't become a vet, her alternative career plan is to be a paleontologist.
Looking at the wonderful building, designed by Alfred Waterhouse who also designed the buildings for my alma mater!
Hannah is a member of the museum, which entitles us to use this amazing room full of odd specimens and make a cup of tea!
Then we went to look at some dinosaurs. The photos didn't come out very well, but you can just about see dinosaurs.
On Saturday, Hannah's aunties took her and the flat travellers to Greenwich Park (which is where the equestrian events for the Olympics will be held)
In between all these interesting trips we got on with our normal life, which included taking the dog for walks. We are so lucky to live right on the edge of a truly amazing city, rich in history and culture...and to be right up against an ancient forest which gives us easy access to some beautiful places to walk.
On Easter Sunday we went to see Hannah's friend Nadia perform in the ballet, Cinderella. We couldn't take pictures of the show due to copyright and child protection issues, but here they are in the theatre and with Nadia's sister, Aisha, who is one of Hannah's closest friends.
It was our intention to give our visitors one really great touristy day out seeing all the sights. It was fun for us because we never normally go to see the tourist hot spots.
Here Minnie Lee fulfills her ambition to go on a double decker bus!
Then back on the Tube to Piccadilly Circus
From Piccadilly Circus we caught an open topped tour bus and were able to show them lots of London landmarks.
Nelson's Column in Trafalgar Square, built to commemorate Nelson's victory over the French at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805
Admiralty Arch. The gate in the middle is only ever opened if the Queen's car is coming through
St James' Palace, the senior palace of the Sovereign, the oldest royal residence in London, built by Henry VIII
Marble Arch
A more personal landmark, this is the Grosvenor House Hotel, which is 5 * and often used for awards cermonies. I spent my wedding night here in 2002!
Fulfilling ambitions, Minnie Lee finds a red phone box
and makes a call!
Meanwhile the best we could do for Princess Allison was to take her to look at the outside of Buckingham Palace
After the bus tour, we travelled back eastwards on a river boat, stopping to hear Big Ben strike 2 o'clock on the way.
We saw the London Eye
The round building is City Hall, where the London Assembly sits
Tower Bridge
St Paul's Cathedral
A view of the City including the Gherkin building!
Finally we got off by the Tower of London and went home
On Friday 29th April we watched the Royal Wedding on tv
and then went to a garden party at my friend's house
We hope that they enjoyed their stay in London and had lots of fun!
