Monday at the Tower of Power

See the full gallery on Posterous

Here's my replay from yesterday.

Monday was our visit to the Tower of London and our first trip on the London Underground, more commonly known as "the tube". It appears to be a rather complex system; so many lines and transfer points. It was a little overwhelming at first. The station names were clearly marked and the audio cues were very clear so we were just fine.

The Tower was packed, as expected, so were we glad that we purchased our tickets in advance. After a few pics, we shot down to the entrance and joined an in-progress tour. The tour guide was quite knowledgeable and humorous. He could have went on for another hour! The one downside to our visit was that we didn't get to see the crown jewels. The exhibit closed early due to construction.

We picked up some coffee and a croissant and got back on the tube to head over to Piccadilly Circus. By this time it was rush hour and the tube was on fire! Wow! I thought DC and NY commuter trains were "fun"...

After narrowly escaping a London stampede, we made it to the Prince of Wales theater for Mama Mia. The show was incredible! The cast and the crowd had great energy! I especially loved the song and dance numbers that they did for an encore.

We walked around Piccadilly Circus for a bit after the show. We couldn't believe the amount of activity on a Monday night.

The White Tower at the Tower of London

Hanging Out at Piccadilly Circus

Mama Mia at the Prince of Wales

When In London...

See the full gallery on Posterous

You know it had to be done. We stopped for these shots on the way back to the hotel.

Checking In & Eating Out

See the full gallery on Posterous

After a trip not unlike So Cal rush hour traffic, we arrived at our hotel. i was pretty surprised that WiFi wasn't complimentary. And after purchasing access, I was a little disappointed that the further we moved away from the lobby the weaker the signal. It's virtually nonexistent in our room.

So off we went to the neighborhood internet cafe. This was a pretty cool experience since we've pretty much never had to do so at home. (The nearest internet cafe to our home is the public library.) Afterwards, we walked a bit about the immediate neighborhood and found our first pub!

Our server was a young Italian lady who had been in London for only two months. She was incredibly friendly and offered great suggestions. Of course we had to do the fish & chips! It was also interesting that we had to pay for our food & drinks up front before it was served.

It's a small, small world.

See the full gallery on Posterous

As LaVees and I walk up to a hotel shuttle desk, we strike up a conversation with a young man in the "queue" behind us. Rico is the founder of a non-profit in LA that focuses on the intersection of sports and education for inner-city youth. He was in London to meet with folks from the Mandela Foundation to plan an event for Nelson Mandela's birthday.

A short while later, up walks his Uncle Gus, who came to assist in the event planning. Turns out Uncle Gus is on the board of directors for a San Diego non-profit that puts refurbished computers into the homes of low income families.

Uncle Gus is also an alumnus of the U. of San Diego, where our eldest child has just been accepted.

We ended up sharing a shuttle to our respective hotels as we laughed at how all roads led to Heathrow.

Back Online

Where to begin? Have had spotty connectivity since the last post and So much has happened since then. The next few posts will be flashbacks until I get current. Needless to say, I obviously HAVE NOT adjusted to the time difference, as indicated by the timestamp.

One cool aside is my new vocabulary! Here's what I've picked up so far:

pop = put (just pop it under your chair for now)
queue = line (the queue is way too long; let's go to another store)
love = friend, darling, etc (thanks for your help, love)

De Plane, Boss!

All tucked in on our plane! Ready to take off! Next stop, Heathrow!

Going to London

Sitting at LAX Gate 23 awaiting to board our flight to London, England! First trip overseas with LaVees. We're very excited about what we'll learn and discover. It's especially cool for her, being a British Lit teacher. As I type this post I'm overhearing a conversation between a So Cal girl, a Southern Belle, and a gentleman from China. They're discussing art, language, education, and the speed at which their devices charge.