London was a very special trip for many reasons. We went just after Honeybun’s 2nd birthday and met hubby’s parents there making it our first trip with family. It was also our “babymoon” before welcoming Sugarplum: I was 36 weeks pregnant and we hit London before Honeybun and I headed back to the states to await Sugarplum’s arrival.
We flew into London’s Stansted airport and took the Stansted Express into the city and then hopped in a Black Cab to our hotel. Since we were returning home after our visit in London we had Honeybun’s car seat with us which I installed in the cab (much to the annoyance of the driver who wanted to get moving as soon as possible). It was easy enough other than the fact that we arrived later in the evening and were all exhausted.
After our not-so-wise hotel choices in Paris and Belgium and due to my exhausted pregnant body I insisted we pay a premium and stay in central London to be close to public transport and avoid unnecessary walking. We chose one of the many hotels along Belgrave Road which is lined with many small hotels located in historic terraced (row) homes. The location was great, about 10 minutes from one of the main train/bus stations and less than 5 minutes from the closest tube station. The only mistake I made in choosing a hotel was not realizing how hot it gets during the summer in London and not realizing our hotel didn’t have air conditioning!
We spent the first morning at the London Zoo per Grandma and Grandpa’s request. While the zoo is not something we would usually put on the schedule during one of our short visits to a new city, we had a great time seeing all the animals and got quite a few souvenirs we still have and use including a stuffed elephant Honeybun picked out to give the “new baby” (Sugarplum) when she was born.
That afternoon hubby, Honeybun and I hopped on the tube and Grandma and Grandpa grabbed a cab and we met at the Tower of London (we did not have Honeybun’s car seat so could not go in the cab with them). We spent the rest of the day wandering around the old palace/jail/fort. We visited the crowned jewels exhibit and explored many of the buildings and exhibits chronicling the tower’s history. Honeybun really enjoyed the sparkly jewels and spent a good amount of time chasing the birds while the adults took turns visiting different exhibits which she wasn’t interested in but was not at all interested in trying to get the guard to smile!
The next day we went to Madam Tussaud’s Wax Museum and had a great time seeing all the celebrity figures, posing with them and trying to avoid the mass chaos of tourists. Honeybun and I skipped the “Chamber of Horrors” since it is not suitable for children under 12 or pregnant women. I was disappointed to find at the end of the tour, though, where we had to wait for hubby there were only a few folding chairs. Honeybun was about ready for nap (and hungry as we had surpassed lunch time) so I took a seat on the floor and held her curled up around my belly until a staff person made me move to a chair where there was no room for Honeybun to sit on my Sugarplum-filled lap.
After a nice and inexpensive lunch at the Metropolitan Bar next to Madame Tussaud’s, we headed toward the Wallace Collection which hubby’s parents had done and really enjoyed. The Wallace Collection is the residence and personal art collection of a prominent London family. The collection is small and there is no entrance fee. Hubby and I aren’t much into art museums (unless it’s the Louvre or Hermitage) so this wasn’t one of our favorite places but it was cool and Honeybun napped so we took our time.
I did, however, find the original painting of a Marie-Anne Cupis de Camargo (she started the tutu revolution!) which is featured in many ballet history books as well as china that has the same painted flowers as the china my Gran’ma handed down to hubby and me as a wedding present.
We spent the rest of the afternoon wandering around the shops including Harrods which is the biggest department store in London. It is possible to spend hours in Harrods and we got lost more than once! We didn’t buy anything as everything is very pricey but really enjoyed wandering and experiencing the 1 million square feet.
The next day we did a tour of the British Parliament per hubby’s insistent requests. We had a few hours to wait between buying our tickets and our tour time so also visited Westminster Abbey which wasn’t on our original itinerary. I’m glad we went, though, it was cool to see the final resting places of so many British Royals including many of the Henrys, Mary Queen of Scots and Elizabeth I. The tour of Parliament was interesting and they gave a great overview of the political system in the UK. Honeybun was great on the tour and everyone thought she was the cutest. In the Commons Chamber (where lawmakers meet and debate), we were instructed no one should sit down with the exception of me and my huge belly (I was basically told I HAD to sit down!)
That afternoon we went to the Imperial War Museum which has a large collection of artillery and historic war aircraft (hubby’s favorite!). We then wandered by Buckingham Palace on our way back to the hotel to pack for our 8 week visit back to the states.
We really enjoyed London though did not have a long list of things we wanted to do. Getting around was very easy as we each got an Oyster card which you added money onto and could use on the tube and city buses. The only transit problem we encountered was a lack of elevators at the tube stations. There were many times hubby had to carry Honeybun in the buggy up and down many, many, many stairs! I also found the people polite bus less than helpful. On one train I waited almost 10 minutes before someone offered me (hugely pregnant) a seat and only once was hubby offered help carrying Honeybun-buggy up or down the tube stairs (the very nice gentleman gave me his briefcase to carry before helping hubby get Honeybun up to street level!)
