Familia!

Mom, Dad, Alex and Kylie flew into London on Friday morning and I took the Tube out to Heathrow to meet them! That first day we really just went to their place and while Alex and Dad napped, Kylie, Mom and I wandered around the Tower Hill area, where they were staying. It's really industrial and business-y and way different than Kensington, which is mostly residential. It was a cool area, though I must say I prefer the quietness of Kensington. Anyway, after they woke up and were all ready to go, we headed over to Kensington to see where I live! I showed them around the area and we ended up going to a pub in Notting Hill for dinner. We love pubs :)

Saturday was a day we were looking forward to. Alex and Dad went to the Westham football (soccer) match while Kylie, Mom and I went to Regent Street to do some window shopping. We headed to the Charles Dickens house afterward, which was so cool! I really didn't know much about him before, but now I really want to read his books! After the house, we went to Sir John Soane's house and museum, which was even cooler than the Dickens house. It was unbelievable! The man had a museum in his home, which together took up three house spaces. It was packed full of artifacts and sculptures, even an Egyptian tomb! I loved it! I would highly recommend both of the houses to anyone who visits London. From there, we walked to Leicester Square and Covent Garden to meet Dad and Alex for dinner. We ended up going to the oldest pub in London (or something like that) for drinks, which was really cool. We had Italian for dinner in Leicester Square after the pub and then we all headed back.

Sunday, our plan was to go to Portobello Market, but we found out that it's closed on Sundays so instead we wandered around Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens. We ended up in Kensington Palace and it was a little bizarre. I was really looking forward to seeing the inside of the palace and it was all about the seven princesses that lived there so each room was dedicated to one of them. It was a little disappointing. Mom and I ended up wandering around where a lot of embassies are located, which was really cool. Dad, Alex and Kylie tried to go to Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum, but the wait was huge so they gave up. We ended up going to the Hard Rock Cafe for dinner, which was tasty as always!

I had class all day on Monday so I didn't get to meet up with my family until dinner. We ate at Indian Diner, which is an Indian restaurant across the street from the hotel that my dad and I stayed at when we were here five years ago (and that he stays at when he's here for business). It's so good! It's sort of hidden off of a main road so not many people are there.

On Tuesday, Mom, Kylie and I did a little shopping. We ate cupcakes at Buttercup, the cupcake shop near me, and they were SO GOOD! I had chocolate peanut butter :) yum! We decided to meet Alex at the Cabinet War Rooms/Winston Churchill Museum later, so we headed over to the Westminster area. We got a bit lost and got there 20 minutes late. We couldn't find Alex and eventually paid for our tickets and went inside. It was awesome!! We got to see exactly where they stayed during WWII and there was a museum about Churchill, too. Of course, we somehow ended up in the museum right away and didn't know there was more to see of the war rooms so we sort of hurried through the rest of the rooms. Still cool, though. We called Dad when we were leaving and said we'd meet him and Alex at the pub near me. We met them there and apparently Alex had arrived at the museum 10 minutes before we had! He went through super fast so he could catch up to us, but we were waiting behind because we thought he wasn't there yet! Bummer. Anyway, dinner was wonderful, as usual. I just love pub food.

On Wednesday, the five of us met at the British Library, which was absolutely amazing. I LOVE books and reading so I was super excited to go. We got to see a display of a bunch of historical documents (such as the Magna Carta) and that was really interesting. Since the Tube station was King's Cross/St. Pancras, we went to the King's Cross train station and got to see Platform 9 3/4! Super cool, even though I saw it a few months ago. We hopped back on the Tube and went to Abbey Road to see the crosswalk on the Beatles album. Even though we basically just walked across the crosswalk, it was still pretty exciting! We ate lunch at a cafe there and then Kylie and Mom headed to Madame Tussaud's, while Alex, Dad and I went back to their apartment so Alex could shower. When Mom and Kylie got back, we walked across the Tower Bridge, which was a cool view, and ended up going to a Dutch pancake house for dinner in Kensington. Alex, Dad and I went to hear some live music in Camden afterwards, which was fun. I really liked the area of Camden! It seems like a cool place to hang out. I definitely want to go to the market up there.

Thursday was a big driving day. We left around 11 to go to Heathrow to pick up our rental car. We planned to stay in a B&B called Wishay Farm in Collumpton, which is near Exeter, in the southwestern region of England. Needless to say, the drive was an adventure. Dad was driving (on the wrong side of the road of course, not to mention the car was a stick shift!) and I was navigating the roundabouts in the front seat! Quite scary! We went to the Winchester Cathedral on the way, which was really beautiful, and we planned to stop at a few other places, but got lost on the way before finally getting back on track. By that time we just wanted to get to the B&B so we drove there and settled into the house. It was so cute! The woman who owned it, Sylvia, was really sweet, and aside from her, we were the only ones there! Although, I think there were only two rooms, both of which we were occupying. Anyway, it was a great place. We took her recommendation on a pub to go to for dinner, and it was a really cool place! There was a massive fireplace which made it extra cozy inside. Plus, there was a little dog trotting around! So cute. When we finished dinner, Dad had gone to pay at the bar so we wandered out to the main area in front and as we turned the corner, we all started laughing. Dad was standing in a circle with a group of 25-year-old guys chatting away and laughing. For anyone who knows my dad, it's so typically him. He talks to anyone anywhere and just fits right in. It's so great. Later on he told us that while he was paying, the woman behind the bar asked where we were staying and upon telling her that we were at Wishay Farm, she exclaimed that her boyfriend's mom is Sylvia! She pointed out Paul, her boyfriend/Sylvia's son, and my dad started talking to him and his friends about what to do while we were down there. It was hilarious.

Friday and Saturday were filled with driving, too. Friday, after a really tasty English breakfast, we headed up to the northern side of the peninsula, which was beautiful. The hills were stunning, even though Alex, Kylie and I were having motion-induced stomachaches. We went to Lynton and Lynmouth, two towns on the coast. One was up on a cliff right above the other and there was a little lift going up and down the massive hill. It was really fun there! Plus, we had cream tea (which consists of tea, scones, and thick cream for the scones) which is delicious! After a long day of exploring, we headed back to Wishay Farm to drop Kylie off (she didn't feel like going to dinner) and go to dinner. We went to a restaurant nearby, which was not as cool as the pub the previous night, but it was just fine.

Saturday, after another wonderful breakfast, we drove some more. Motion sickness was still a bit of an issue because there are so many winding roads up and down massive hills, but it was enjoyable all the same. We ended up getting a bit lost in a little town called Bronscombe, but it was lucky that we ended up there--there was a beautiful beach that we got to see and it was really just a nice town. After that, we successfully navigated (though a bit slowly) our way to Sidmouth, which is a big coastal town. We first stopped at a viewpoint on a cliff, which was gorgeous, and then drove down to the town. It was much more touristy than the others so I didn't like it quite as much, but it was fun. We had cream tea again and wandered around in hopes of finding gifts for Kylie's friends. She finally decided upon fudge (when we insisted that it was a great gift and not "cheap" to give to her friends.). We came up with the brilliant plan to tell her friends that it came from Fudgemouth, the place where fudge was invented (though really I have no idea--Wikipedia it if you're so inclined). Hopefully they won't read this blog so her secret isn't revealed :) Anyway, we drove back to Collumpton and packed our stuff for the next day. We went back to the pub from the first night and ate there--once again, super good! Dad's "friends" from the first night were there again so we chatted with them a bit and got them to take a family picture of us. It was a lot of fun!

Sunday we basically just woke up and drove to Heathrow so they could return the car and hop on the plane, while I jumped on the Tube and rode back to good old Gloucester Road. I had so much fun with them!! I love my family so I was bummed to see them go, but I'm going to be home in five weeks anyway so it's not too long away! Plus, I have a bunch of fun little trips left here, which I can't wait for! It should be a great last month.

:)

Jackie