Return to France

This post is a little late; I sent the e-mail a week or two ago
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Hey everybody,

I'm back. Last week was so much fun; I saw everything I wanted to see and more, I met new people, and I was able to speak English. It was a true vacation. Between the language and the British culture, it felt a hundred times more like home.

After I sent my last e-mail (Monday afternoon), I went to the London Museum, which was not all I had hoped it would be. It was just London history and nothing more. I did learn some stuff, and they had a really interesting exhibit about the Great Fire. That night, I had real English fish and chips. It came with mayonnaise, so I tried fries with mayo for the first time. It was good, until I saw that there was ketchup on the table.

Tuesday was interesting. I wanted to go on a walking tour, but I didn't see anyone at the place where it was supposed to begin, so I walked over to Buckingham Palace because I knew they would go by there, and the changing of the guard was taking place in a few minutes. I thought I had a great spot, because I was as close to the front gates as you could get, but they don't actually do anything right in front of the palace. It all takes place on the other side of the Victoria Memorial, so I saw almost nothing. I stayed there for a long time, hoping that they would walk around, but they didn't until the very end, over an hour later. I also stayed because I heard that the queen was coming out that day. Sure enough, she came out in her Rolls and waved to the crowd. I did have a good spot for that, so I guess that made it worth it. Well, I could see something tall far away from where I was (I think it was Big Ben, but I'm not sure), so I decided to walk over there. To get there, I had to walk out and around the road in front of Buckingham, and when I was out by that street, I saw the queen coming back, in a carriage, followed by King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia. That was the first of three times I saw Abdullah. I think he was following me.

Well, after I finally got to the end of this road in front of the Palace, I saw signs for Trafalgar Square, and that was on my to-see list, so I walked over there. And what should I see at Trafalgar Square, but the British National Gallery? That is a great museum. It was almost entirely painting, but there was a wide range, and a lot of classics are there. I spent hours looking around. When I came out, the sun was starting to set, and I set off again to find my tall tower, and I walked down Whitehall Road on the way. And from there, I went out to the Thames for the first time. I got some good pictures of the Eye, the Houses of Parliament, and Big Ben at night. All in all, it was a pretty good day for having no plan at all. Oh, for lunch, I had Subway, for the first time in two months. I also ate Pizza Hut while I was in London. They do have Pizza Hut in France, but I had never gotten around to eating there.

The next day, I got to go on that tour. It turns out that they just don't meet where the website says they do, but pretty close. The guide was really good, and I learned some interesting history. The tour went from Hyde Park Corner to Green Park, the Palace, the beautiful St. James's Park, by Winston Churchill's famous War Rooms, Parliament, Big Ben, Leicester Square, Trafalgar Square, 10 Downing Street, the Horse Guard Parade (where I got to see a horse guard, one of the guys who doesn't move, no matter how much tourists yell at him, poke him, and otherwise annoy him), and Diagon Alley, from the Harry Potter movies. While we were at Admiralty Arch, in front of Buckingham Palace, we saw the king of Saudi Arabia leaving. The tour group was right in the middle of the road, so we got a good look. I met several Americans and an Australian on the tour, and I went with my new Australian friend to the National History Museum, which, although free, was not that exciting at that point in the day.

Thursday, I ate lunch in Hyde Park, spent some time at Tate Modern, and went to Westminster Abbey for the All Saints' Day service. Because it was a service, I didn't get to see all of the cathedral, but I really enjoyed it. Hearing the voices of the choir echoing off the walls and ceilings was something I'll always remember. At night, I met a couple of Tony's (and Mike's friends) at dinner.

Friday I spent the day at the Tower of London, a 900 year-old castle where the monarchy used to live. The queen still has a house there, but I'm not sure how often she visits. I saw the Crown Jewels, the National Armament, and lots of history. I also had tea and scones at the restaurant there...

I had no problems getting back on Saturday. It was much smoother than the trip out there. Back in Amiens, well...that's a story for another day.

A bientôt,

Stephen