We made it, we’re in London! Woo Hoo! No problems with the flight, arrived at our hotel around 11:30 a.m. and the room was ready. Unpacked and went to Victoria Station to get some money from the ATM, then on board the Hop On, Hop Off tour bus for a whirlwind trip round London. We crossed the Thames four times!? Wow, was Oxford Circus and Regent Street packed with people. Hamley’s was jammed. Harrod’s closed today – jinormous sale starts tomorrow. You can bet we won’t be there. We plan to do the alternate bus tour tomorrow, then the river cruise, then the Tower, then dinner at Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese, then the Ripper Walk with Donald Rumbleow. It’s cold here, but no worse than New Jersey.
Had dinner in the carvery here in the hotel – roast beef, Yorkshire pudd, gravy, veg and dessert – straight down the road to Gouts-ville, but who cares? Met a wonderful couple at the next table, got to talking about how I love UK telly, they love US telly, neither of us can access the other and so we’ve made a Devil’s Bargain to email each other links to our favorite shows. We’ll get around these restrictions or die trying. Speaking of which, Upstairs, Downstairs debuts here tonight, Antiques Roadshow is also on and they told me how to access the Royle Family Xmas special here (BBC Iplay, which you can’t access from the States, hence the Devils’ Pact). After dinner, Greg and I walked down the street to Buckingham Palace to see it lit up at night yes, Vicky, I did yell “Chuck!” even though I know he’s not there. One day . . .
There are gobs of William and Kate tat in the stores here already (yipppeee!) and I’m on the verge of tears every time I see a pub or currency exchange bureau. I know, crazy. Oh, btw, we were on the bus tour and I was telling Greg (or so I thought) about the In and Out Club in Piccadilly and the tour guide overheard me and asked, “How do you know about the In and Out Club/Melbourne House?” and so he turned off his mike and we started talking about the Melbournes and Palmerstons, about Artie’s having been at England’s first railroad fatality, about the Marble Arch, Lady Caro Lamb, etc etc etc . . . . . God, it’s good to be home. As you can see, the laptop is functioning fine, so I’ll be posting more about our trip tomorrow. Off to shower and watch Upstairs, Downstairs. I know I shouldn’t rub it in, but I promise to tell you all tomorrow. I can’t wait to see Rose . . . .