This morning we got up and took the train to Windsor to see the castle - and visit with Chuck and the boys. Again i love traveling by train. It's much more civilized and you get to avoid all the humiliation that goes along with airline travel. Anyway, back to Windsor. The train station is at the base of the castle so it looms over you as you walk up the hill and around to the gate. The castle was much larger than we expected. We managed to use Tam & Rog's tickets from the last time they were there - a ticket is good for one year - and saved £30.
Once inside we walked around and saw the last half of the changing of the guard. Then we walked around some more. The former moat, now a very steep garden is quite pretty. The chapel was interesting. It holds the tombs of a bunch of dead monarchs as well as the tomb of the Queen Mum and Princess Margaret. The normal tranquility of a church was disturbed by the renovations currently underway. We spent most of our trip through the chapel being serenaded by a circular saw cutting into a stone floor. We skipped the doll house and the private apartments and instead wandered across the street to the Carpenter's Arms [#6] for a relaxing pint.
We got back on the train and returned to Putney where we alighted and minded all the gaps as we did so. We dropped some stuff off and then headed back into London to fly the London Eye. The half hour trip around the eye provided some great views of the city as it was merely cloudy and only half raining. We'd been to so many different parts of downtown that it was nice to see how they all fit together. After landing from our flight on the Eye (it is run by British Airways so the announcements - and the security - are airport-like) we crossed the Westminster bridge and walked over to Westminster Abbey.
The Abbey was open this time so we went in. just inside the visitor's entrance on the right is the memorial to General Wolfe, who captured Canada from the dreaded French. Apparently he was a big hero in Britain at the time. Much like the chapel at Windsor castle, the Abbey is full of tombs of monarchs and other people of note, including a poets corner with memorials to Chaucer and Shakespeare. The coronation chair was on display and you could see where the Stone of Scone would sit, but it has been spirited back to Scotland. They do however, still get to use it for future coronations.
Afte the Abbey, we hotfooted it over to Saville Row, where i wandered by a bunch of shops where I couldn't even afford a tie, let alone a suit. After a wet, wistful wander, we went over to the Chelsea Physic Garden. The Physic Garden id the oldes garden in London and one of the oldest in Europe. It was established to teach about and experiment with medicinal plants.
After a quick pint [#7], we rushed home to a dinner party put on by Tam. We dined with a Kenyan friend of Tam's who now (obviously) lives in London. She was great fun. After dinner, I tried to do laundry, but managed to make the machine lock the door and then snapped the handle off trying to open it. Now my clothes are stuck in the machine and I am supposed to leave for the rest of our trip in the morning.
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