London

Leaving Paris we took the Eurostar thru the Chunnel to London. Traveling by train was so much fun!! The station was a little hectic as a revolutionary group marched around beating pots & pans while blowing whistles directly in every one's ears (extremely painful). I think they wanted to elect a king??? Maybe not. From Paris to London was only an hour, we grabbed a taxi & made it to the Royal National Hotel just in time for the rain! This hotel had a few more amenities (a real door, wireless ect.) although the shower curtain was still not weighted at the bottom, so it billowed its' moldy self around your legs while you showered. Our first nite we ambled around trying to get our bearings, not very easy, since Brent was getting us completely lost. We ate dinner at Cagneys, Brent & Brandi had the best deep fried chicken stuffed with cheese & ham ever....according to them!!!
London seemed so much easier to navigate then Paris. We hopped on a Big Red Bus and saw tons of the London must sees. Big Ben & Parliament, Westminster Abbey, Buckingham Palace, the Tower Bridge (which I thought was the London Bridge), St. Paul's Cathedral, Hen & Chicken Court, the Eye of London (worlds largest ferris wheel), and a cruise on the Thames. During our exploration we discovered the joys of meat pies & pasties. yum!
We booked a day tour thru our hotel to see Windsor Castle, Stone Henge, & Bath. The castle is one of the queen's official residences & filled to the brim with art, weapons, & history. You can also visit St. George's Chapel (cooler then the castle) where Queen Elizabeth II & Henry the VIII are buried. There is a changing of the guard ceremony that is accompanied by a swingn' military band.Stonehenge just blows your mind. Maybe because I have seen so many pictures of it, seen it in movies (look kids, there's Parliament), but to actually be there was so completely surreal. The sky was incredible & added to the overwhelming sense of magic that ran like a current through the air. This was my favorite site of the entire trip and the source of my best photos.

Jane Austen had an apartment in Bath, Nicholas Cage has an apartment in Bath, now I want an apartment in Bath (not to mention the Romans built a huge hot tub here). We didn't get to spend too much time, but if/when I come back to England I would love to stay here. Cute little shops, cafes filled with tea, chocolate & pasties, and of course 100's of years of interesting history!!

Our Jack the Ripper nite tour (thanks brento!) made me want to read every Jack theory out there, apparently there are hundreds. The killing spree occurred in the late 1880's & still today no one knows for sure who the Ripper was, only that he was from hell! Of all our travels, England was my favorite. I hope to go back soon enough that I will still remember some of the history I learned on this trip. With my memory I better start planning another trip real soon!