Day 0.5 London to Paris (James)

Woke up early again today to enjoy the complimentary breakfast offered at our hotel.  Honestly, I was just after the tea.  There was just something about having sugar cubes available that kept me interested cup after cup.  I guess sugar packets just don't do it for me.  

I took advantage of the quiet to update the blog, look over maps, and come up with a few options to present with the girls when they eventually stumbled downstairs.  We discussed the possibility of doing a load of laundry, visiting Abbey Road, and heading out towards the Eastern portion of London.  Although they were torn, they decided to forego the laundry and head off northwest 3 miles through Regent Park (unfortunately we can't visit the zoo.  Did we mention that London is expensive?).  Abbey Road and the famous Beatles album cover was the destination and a big draw for Deija.  It was tough for her to pass up.  The walk through the park was really pleasant.  Kids in their school uniforms ran around playing cricket, folks were out walking their dogs, and occasionally a runner or cyclist would over take us, but generally we had the paths to ourselves.  As we headed towards Abbey Road, it became increasingly clear that the crossing was going to be anything but quiet.  Traffic zoomed in both directions and we watched as earlier Beatles enthusiasts dodged traffic for the coveted photo at the crosswalk.  It literally took us five whole minutes before we even had a chance to cross and even then they had to jog the last little bit to avoid impatient locals who were undoubtedly tired of the whole idea of having confused tourists take pictures of themselves in the middle of a busy street.  We already had a tough enough time looking in the correct direction when crossing a street, much less staying out there for any length of time.  What turned out to be a more pleasant activity was signing the wall outside the studios.  It looks as though they paint over every year to allow for a new slate of admirers to jot down their name, year, favorite lyric, or really anything they want.  An "I was here" sort of thing.  I dug a pen out of my bag and handed it over to Auna who after writing the inquiry, "Who are the Beatles?" relinquished the pen to Deija.  Deija found possibly the only spot on 300 square feet of space  where she could write something big and went to work.  She did this by leaning in and reaching her long arms through the gate.  Hey, maybe they won't paint over that part next year.  

We were running out of British Pounds, but I figured we could ride the tube once more into the city center to put us in a better position to see more.  Up until this point, we made an effort to walk to everything.  This was partly due to the fact that we needed the exercise, but also because I didn't want to miss the "in between" London.  I didn't want to miss those kids playing cricket in the park, or bicyclists heading to work, or the random storefronts and street signs, litter cans, and back alley streets, all the stuff you miss when you bounce from one highlight to the next.  It might have been tiring, but as we sit here on the Eurostar train to Paris, I believe we got a sense of the city in a way that we couldn't have otherwise if our mode of travel had not been by foot.

It was refreshing to pop up in a different part of the town, though, especially with our tired feet, but we put the boots to the cobblestone once again and traced the Queen's walk along the river.  We sat for a bit admiring views of the HMS Belfast, London Bridge, and the London Tower.  We took the latter to get back to the northern side of the Thames and took a peek at the castle.  Again it was really cool to see Auna and Deija take an interest in the history.  When a reader board details how the king kept lions and other exotic creatures near the moat, how can you not be interested?  

Much of the area we were now walking had been destroyed during the war so many of the buildings were new.  The throngs of tourists we saw yesterday at places like the palace were replaced with businessman in suits and ties.  The pace of life seemed a bit more frantic.  Whereas everyone else seemed to be speeding up, we were slowing down.  Under the shadow of The Monument, a colossal 202 foot monolithic structure built for and not long after a fire nearly destroyed the entire city in 1666, we napped.  We began to move again an hour or so later and paid a quick visit to the grounds of St. Paul Cathedral.  Absolutely gorgeous.  I wish we had the funds to go in, but unfortunately we have to be smart with what we have.  We have a long walk ahead of us and it's best to be conservative now.  

As I mentioned earlier, we are currently on the train from London to Paris.  We haven't quite reached "the chunnel" part yet.  Just rolling English countryside as the sun sets.  I am going to hand over the reigns a bit to the girls tomorrow.  We have a full day in Paris and I want to let them follow their noses a bit.  Of course this means they will also have to look over maps, buy tickets, plan for food, etc, but I am hoping this will better allow them to own their experience.  

Plus, I look forward to not having to think so much.

James