Day 17 - London

What a day, what a day, what a day!!

We got to ride 'The Tube' today. After breakfast we headed to the light rail station and took the light rail into London where we switched to the underground system. You would have been so proud of how well everyone did with getting on and off the tube all day - even during rush hour!!

We made our way to Westminster Station and walked to Buckingham Palace for the Changing of the Guards. We made our way by Downey street and then a stroll through St. James park. At first we were not sure if it was going to happen, but the sun came out just in time. We got our group into position at the steps of the fountain out front as it was already packed right by the gates. The pomp and circumstance began promptly at 11:30. It was difficult to see everything as it is behind a gate now, but it was still an awesome sight to see. Such precision.

From there, we made our way back to the tube to go to lunch near the Tower of London. Upon arriving at the Banquet Hall, we were greeted by King Henry VIII and we were served our meal by wenches. The kids seemed to really enjoy the meal of roasted chicken, roasted potatoes and parsnips and pasta. King Henry even brought out a birthday pie to Cody!!

After our feast, it was off to the Tower of London. The students explored many parts of the Tower and learned a little of the history of the Tower of London. Many of the students decided to go see the crown jewels - AMAZING!!! One of the septors actually has the world's largest diamond in it 0 talk about BLING! We also were able to see where many lost their heads, including Anne Boilyn and King Henry VI (I believe). We walked through White Tower which had displays of the different armor through the ages and weapons and even had the chance to vote on who we thought killed the Princes of Wales or whether or not it was a conspiracy. All very interesting stuff.
Then it was off for a cruise on the River Thames. A relaxing view down to the river with a very informative guide pointing out different points of interest along the route that might otherwise have gone missed, such as the building that was once owned by the OXO company, that managed to get free advertizing for itself by putting the company name in lights on the windows that lit up red at night.

After docking, it was back to the tube and onto China Town for dinner. We had a delicious meal of chicken and broccoli, sweet and sour chicken, beef and peppers and vegie chow mein.

The evening ended with a night at the Theatre. We went and saw "Million Dollar Quartet" which is about the night that Johnny Cash, Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis and Carl Perkins got together. The music was great and everyone enjoyed it. We finally arrived back at the hotel a little after 11. Everyone is tucked in soundly and hopefully dreaming of another great day tomorrow, our last day in England. Can you believe it is almost time for us to be coming home??