Well, we had a bit of a rough start, but we're finally here. We got through security (They didn't even scan any of us - guess we don't look like terrorists.) and boarded just fine, and the pilot even told us we'd be leaving early as everyone was aboard 15 minutes early. Then we heard that there was an extra bag on the plane, so we waited about an hour and fifteen minutes while they unloaded every bag from the plane and found the errant suitcase. Oy! Lots of crying babies, but lots of food. They gave us dinner (We all chose chicken curry except VRS, who got a veg one.) at eleven Houston time. It was pretty good, though the kids found it a bit spicy. Lots of movie choices, but not much sleeping happened; we were longing for those little lounges up in first class!

We only landed about 40 minutes late, and we had to circle London several times, so the pilot must have made up time somehow. The other side of the plane got to see Buckingham, Westminster, and Big Ben. Our side of the plane got to see... Wimbledon. Twice. The London airport customs line was looong. The fellow who stamped our passports was quite jolly and told us to go visit Platform 9 3/4 and avoid Mickey Mouse in France. Then we found our bag, and the girls got a sandwich and a yummy latte. We weren't too hungry when they fed us breakfast on the plane, but that security line made us hungry.

We took the tube no problem, but got a bit lost finding the flat. There were several families with young kids passing, and one lady found it on her phone for us. We checked in, brushed teeth, read a bit of Rick Steves, and decided on his Westminster Walk. An attendant on the tube directed us how to buy our Oyster Card and Toria's single ticket, since the place to pick up our London Pass was already closed. We went walking around and saw: Horseguards, 10 Downing Street, the cenotaph, Trafalgar monument (and lions), Big Ben, Westminster, Millennium Bridge, and the London Eye. We also stopped and bought some souvenirs to keep us warm as it is awfully chilly and wet here. Imagine that!

After deciding we were all pretty tired, we headed "home" for the night. Toria had her eye on a pasty place in the tube station, but we needed milk/cereal/fruit, so we hit up Tesco, the market first. We just bought some frozen lasagna/spinach cannoli and a bag of salad. We got on the wifi, but someone has to come fix the tv tomorrow, and bring us a coffee pot. Cubs are all showered and teeth are clean, so they're ready to crash. Dad's about wiped out on their bed, so I better put everyone to bed! Not sure what we're doing tomorrow - I think Hedge wants to do the Tower Bridge first.