London Day 2

Bus Tour of London. This morning we headed off to the centre of London to find the Original Bus Tour Buses. Open Aired Double Decker Buses, complete with tour guide to show us some of the highlights of London. Great tours, you learn a little bit about lots of different buildings, gardens monuments etc, and then the bus stops at locations and you can get on and off as you chose. The buses pass every 10-15 minutes so you never have to wait very long. 

There were 3 different routes to take, Mum and Dad decided to take the yellow route. We wanted to take the red route. So we all got our tickets and went our separate ways. (We have already been to London last Easter, and didn't want to get off at the things we had already seen). for an extra 3 pounds each, you got a voucher for fish and chips at the Sherlock Holmes Pub. So we bought those as well! As any tourist does (especially with children), you have to ride on the top of the bus. 

It was just as cold on top of the bus as it was on top of the boat yesterday. We sat up top for the first hour and just listened to the commentary of the different buildings etc. But after 1 1/2 hours we were all frozen. Even though we did the London Eye yesterday, we got off there, as we knew they have an indoor cafe with great hot chocolate and that would warm us up. 

We decided to get back on the bus (inside this time) and keep going around. We rode on the bus for quite awhile and got off near the Sherlock Holmes Pub for a delicious fish and chip meal (have not had any since being in Germany, it's not a German dish!) From there we walked to Trafalgar Square, and up the road to Buckingham Palace. Some beautiful parkland on either side of the road, and there were heaps of grey squirrels all looking for food on the grounds. We watched the changing of the guards (looks like a dreadful job really, all these tourists taking photos of you and staring, and they must have been freezing too!) 

While we waited for the next bus we ducked into the Buckingham Palace Gift Shop. Just inside there was a Xmas tree covered in crown decorations. Cameron found a crown ornament there where someone had stolen one of the jewels! He was very worried. I got the boys to stand under the tree and strategically position a crown on their heads...introducing Prince Alexander and Prince Cameron!

Alexander has been studying The Great Fire of London at school. One of the stops on our bus tour was The Monument for the Great Fire of London that started in Pudding Lane in 1666. He was so excited to see it.  For 2 pounds you could walk up . Alexander was thrilled to climb up, Cameron was not keen at all. Phil and Alexander climbed The Monument. Cameron and I went shopping for cheap DVD's and CD's at a shop around the corner. The Monument was built in 1677 to commemorate the Great Fire of London. There are 311 steps to climb to reach the top. The Monument was one of the first tourist attractions of London. From the top they had great views of London. 

When they got to the bottom, they were given a certificate for climbing up the stairs. Alexander can't wait to get back to school and tell his teacher! By the way, Cameron and I got some good CD's and DVD's.