Mama & Kate have crossed the pond for a week long visit. I am so happy to have them here -- our first visitors!!

Not a whole lot in the way of a travel plan just enjoying each other and soaking up London life.

Day 1 (10 Sept): Mama & Kate arrive!!!

We walked to Hampstead Village and around the old cemetery. Several weeks back I "bumped" in to Billy Bob Thornton in front of the church across from the cemetery. Returning to the scene was a little bit lackluster...Billy Bob has moved on leaving just a bunch of stiffs under the ground. We payed the due respects and then moved on to the local public house (The Holly Bush). What good fortune to arrive just as the kegs were being delivered! We sat outside with a pint and interacted with some of the regulars.

Day 2 (11 Sept): Tourist Central -lunch at the National Gallery & theater (Noel Coward's Brief Encounter at the Haymarket Theater)

We jumped on the Jubilee Line around noon and headed to Leicester Square in search of halfprice tickets. When we surfaced from the underground we encountered the hustle and bustle of the city--mostly tourists but all friendly and excited to be in London. We queued for tickets at the Half Price Ticket booth and in doing so received a lesson in queuing properly...the direction of the queue matters! With tickets and TimeOut guide in hand, we went in search of a place to have lunch. Inside the National Gallery, we found the National Gallery dining room where we had a proper 2 course lunch with a glass of Kir. Our waiter was a charming Albanian man who sympathised with our sticker shock. In doing so, he brought us extra bread and biscuits (aka cookies) which we put in our bag -- laughing at how far we have come and reminiscing about the little old ladies who would go to the Larchmont Blvd. street fair and fill their purses with free cookies and candy. A proper lunch lasts a long time so by the time it was over, we had a little time to hop on a bus and head down to St. Paul's Cathedral. We arrived just as the worshippers were arriving for the Evensong program -- why not! It was a strategic decision to sit and participate -- get the "local" experience as well as rest our feet (and eyes). Todd met us at St. Paul's so we all got a brief nap before our evening of theater. After the evensong, we hopped on another bus and toured around the city for an hour before the start of the show. It was a wonderful production in an intimate theater. The thought of jumping on another bus to get home made us queasy so we hailed a cab. ahhh....the luxury of travelling by car! the taste of independence and ease would linger all the next day....

Day 3 (12 Sept): Borough Market and the bus ride from h-e-double hockey sticks

Not wanting to subject ourselves to the London Underground we decided to jump on a bus and head in to the city. Unfortunately, we did not anticipate how long the journey might take. After nearly 2 hours on the bus, I lost it and pulled the plug. Back down under the city we would head so that we could make it to Borough Market before sundown! And before closing time at 6pm. What do you know but when we arrived, we saw a sign that said, "Sorry for the inconvenience but Borough Market is closing early today...3pm" I look at my wrist and see the digital image: 14:59. In US time, that is 2:59. Oy vey! All was not lost, some of the traders rebelled against the early closing time and kept their stalls open for a little longer. So, eventhough the olive stall was closed, we found tomatillos (WOOHOO!!!) and skirt steaks for fajitas. Todd met us in the market and joined us for a pint before heading back to Hampstead. We had one more round with the Tube and the Bus. It sealed the deal -- public transportation is not the desired mode.

Day 4 (13 Sept): Renting a car and roadtripping to Tonbridge Wells

Deciding the public transportation is better suited for short trips, we rented a car for the remainder of the visit. MUCH BETTER!!! The city is fantastic for driving on the weekends; most of the tourists are on the public transportation and all of the londoners are in the country. We drove through town and hit some of the major sites on our way out of town (Buckingham Palace-hello to the Queen; Downin Street-byebye cuzzin' Brown; Trafalgar, Regent's Park, Big Ben, Parliament). We decided that this is a much better way to travel. Once out of the city, we got a taste of countryside before reaching Tonbridge. According to one source, Tonbridge Wells is trying to become a UNESCO site...we are left scratching our heads as to why this would be. Not quite on the scale of San Gimignano or Tinmal Mosque but they did redeem themselves with a wonderful pub (Compasses) and the BEST fish and chips in England just across the street from the pub. It was a nice slice of life. Very friendly regulars sitting outside on a (rare) sunny Saturday afternoon--we shared lots of laughs and accomplished our goal of soaking up life.