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I have started to neglect my blog so it is time for some major updates...
I will start with our London activities. London was the first place we arrived fresh off the boat (plane) and for the first few days we were your typical tourists.......
Day one began as many of our days have, with a Sandeman's walking tour. Our guide was enthusiastic, informative and witty as we traipsed through Westminster City and took in all the sites. Buckingham palace was our first stop and the raised flag informed us that Her Majesty was indeed in residence, many photos were taken and much oohing and aahing over the changing of the guards. The story of how Buckingham palace became a royal residence was very amusing, basically some lord decided to build the largest house in the land and invited many people to come and admire his beautiful home, the King showed up unexpectedly and the lord was very proud to show him through his home. At the end of the tour the King most graciously said your house is better than mine and I am the King so I am officially making your home mine. Poor lord man. Moral of the story is.... Don't build a house bigger than the King or he will steal it. Next stop was the awe inspiring Westminster Abbey. Built in the early 12th century and of course most famously the site of Will and Kate's recent betrothal. We did go into the abbey the next day and it is well worth parting with your pounds to see. The Houses of Parliament and 'Big Ben' were our next port of call. A fun fact that I didn't know is that Big Ben is not the clock on the side of the parliament building, it is in fact the 13 tonne bell in the clock tower you can hear tolling on the hour. You learn something every day.
Two hours of ticking London's site seeing boxes on foot really works up an appetite so we took the tube to Leicester Square and found a random wee cafe where, I kid you not, I had the BEST milkshake I have ever had. I can't remember the name of the cafe or where exactly it is, so unless by some weird twist of fate you find it you can never have one, sorry.
Our second day in London involved us visiting another major tourist attraction, The Tower of London. Lovers of British history will be overwhelmed by this amazing place where you can view the Crown Jewels (very sparkly), the tower green where the infamous Anne Boleyn's head was parted from her body and old suits of armour amongst many other things. We, along with most tourists, wondered along with audio guides so that everyone trundles along with a look of deep concentration on their face, nodding their heads now and then. It really is a must do if you ever find yourself a tourist in London.
Tiring of buildings and history, we decided a visit to Oxford street one of London's main shopping streets, was in order. As Mr DS was in need of a few necessities, TopMan was our first stop..... And it turns out our only stop as the crazy crowds meant that after finding him a pair of jeans, a couple of t shirts and some swimming shorts we were both exhausted and in need of a much earned drink. We met some friends in convent garden and sat on a balcony in the sun (yes london does sun every now and then) and watched buskers try and woo the crowd.
The next few days involved more box ticking, we visited the Tate Modern and looked at art we didn't understand, we sat in a square and watched Wimbledon on a big screen tv in a deck chair, we ate fish and chips with vinegar and mushy peas, Mr DS watched NZ beat England at 20/20 cricket live, the British museum wowed us with its ancient Egypt and Greek displays and much to my delight we went to the Hummingbird Bakery in shoreditch and had a red velvet cupcake.
So with London almost complete, I finished our stay by breaking my friends washing machine and then heading off to Glastonbury Festival.......
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