London - Last Day

It is our last day in London. We visited Kensington Palace, where we took the wiggly walk and had tea in the Orangery. 

We walked to the Science Museum through the gardens, and met Floyd, a particularly friendly dog, and his owner. We also saw the multitude of birds that make Round Pond their home. 

Mike and the girls stayed in the Science Museum while I went back to the hotel to look for a place to have an English dinner. 

We went to the Grenadier for dinner. It was difficult to get in, but worth it. It is a mews pub that was created from a former officers' mess - a step above a typical pub. 

Happy New Year all! See you soon! 

London - Wednesday

Wednesday we started at the Victoria and Albert Museum. The museums here in London are huge and varied. They had a tendency to wear everyone out, even though the beauty was incredible. The above blown glass chandelier is in the entrance hall at the V & A Museum. 

The resting girl is not part of the exhibits. 

We went to a late lunch at a really excellent Indian restaurant, Moti Mahal! It is worth a visit if you come to London. 

Mike and I went to Buckingham Palace and then saw the horse guards. They were neat! 

In the evening part of the group took the Jack the Ripper tour. They saw parts of London that most tourists don't visit. The tour was terrific! 

Thursday will be our last day. Too short a visit! 

London - Tuesday

Tuesday morning we started out early to visit Westminster Abby before the crowds got too large. I kept singing "England Swings" as we headed out. I couldn't get it out of my head. "Westminster Abby, the Tower of Big Ben, the rosy red cheeks of the little children." Big Ben was impressive, as was the Abby.  I couldn't take photos inside, so had to settle for a few outside photos. 

The Abby visit wore out the girls, so they headed back to rest and Mike and I took a bus to find Liberty London, which has some of the nicest tana cotton fabric. As a quilter, I needed to visit and buy some fabric. The store did not disappoint. 

Last night we went to see a musical. We chose Wonder.land, a musical inspired by "Alice in Wonderland" and the new world of electronic devices, social media and games. It was an interesting take on today's teenagers and the things they have to cope with now. We had a great time! 

London - Monday

The Tower of London. We started out early. That turned out to be smart as we avoided some huge lines later in the day. We saw the Crown Jewels, the torture devices, the White Tower and walked the wall. The wall walk gave us great views of Tower Bridge. 

In the afternoon we went to tea at Fortum and Mason. The girls absolutely loved it!! i. We decided on the classic afternoon tea with sandwiches, scones and sweet cakes. 

It was our favorite activity! We did more walking and shopping too, as we were in the Picadilly area. Today we are heading to Wedtminster Abby, Trafalgar Square and a play. We need more time in London! 

London

We arrived on Saturday and spent the day learning our way around. The Underground is much more straightforward than ours. 

Our hotel is directly across from the Victoria and Albert Museum, which wasn't open because it was Boxing Day. 

We went to Picadilly and then on to Camden Town, a popular shopping area for young people. It was an overwhelming area. And I think we saw most of it between Saturday and our return trip on Sunday. The girls found much to look at and buy there. 

We had our first pint and fish and chips Saturday night. Sunday was our return to Camden Town and then to Harrods on our way home. 

We found time to visit the Sherlock Holmes Museum and the Beatles Shop too. All that leaves little time for posting. 

Today we are going to the Tower of London and to tea. Should be fun! 

Krakow

Yesterday we visited the Wieliczka Salt Mines in the morning. The total depth of the mines is over 1000 feet. Mike and the others walked the full depth, while Carol and I got a ride in a miner's elevator to the first level and met the group. 

The chapels and statues that the miners carved out of the salt are simply incredible! St. Kinga's Chapel is the largest and contains a carving of the Last Supper, chandeliers made of semi-transparent salt, and much more. 

In the afternoon we took a walking tour of Kraków with a local guide, Ada. 

She took us everywhere, including the old Jewish quarter. Today there are 130 or so Jews living in Kraków. Before the Second World War they comprised twenty-five per cent of the population of the city, over 60,000 people. 

Kraków is very proud of its native son, Pope John Paul II. There are statues and references to him everywhere, including a photo of him in the window of the Archbishop's residence where he often spoke to the people. 

Today we head to Auschwitz. 

Prague. Last Day

Last night in Prague. We went to the Dancing Building and the Ginger and Fred restaurant. They had amazing views and great food! 

The photo below isn't mine, but shows the full building. 

It was quite cold in Prague yesterday. We had to break down and buy jackets. 

We took a nice walk to the Charles bridge and then found a coffee shop down an alleyway. We ran into our tour guide from the previous day. In fact, this seemed to be the place all the guides congregated. 

Unfortunately for my spouse, we visited the Moser factory store. It was lovely! 

Today we head to Krakow.