We walked down to Virginia Water in the morning. Stopping at a bakery that is just a few minutes away from the station. After riding the train we transferred to the Underground at Richmond. I was left to venture forth as Mom and RA went to explore Kew Garden's.
I went over to the Olympia II complex to check out the Doctor Who Exhibition. There was around a half hour interactive part where you work through a problem. You get to see most of the major monsters in action. Dalek's are actually pretty big. After that they have a couple of rooms with prop's and clothes from the recent shows.
After I finished up with that I got on the tube and road to Victoria. I walked from there on the north bank to past the London Eye and back on the south bank until we met up. From there we went to the Tate Modern. They had one exhibit where there were millions of individually painted sun flower seeds. They have many of the more popular artists on display.
For dinner we walked around two miles past Saint Paul's Cathedral to Brink Lane. This is one of the more ethnic areas in London. There has been several immigrant groups that have lived in the area over the last two hundred years. Currently Bangladeshi's work and live in this area. I couldn't tell the difference from Indian food and the food we got there.
We then headed back to start packing. I figure I walked around 14 miles today. A nice effort.
Monday, April 11, 2011
Sunday, April 10, 2011
Cambridge - April 10th
The last day of the car rental, we headed around on the M25 to the M11 for Cambridge. The sun was out and it was around the mid sixties today. Apparently this is very abnormal weather for here, I suppose judging my the natural skin pigmentation that would prove out to be correct. We walked around Cambridge and saw people punting. This is a practice of taking shallow draft boats and using a combination of a paddle and a staff to push it around the canals. Not really my type of activity, I prefer walking around. The water has to be constantly moved or else the bacterial growth will overtake it. You can see this by walking around to the sections of still water that are just off these areas.
We walked through the Clare College grounds to get back to the city center area. This was after making a big loop trying to find the entrance to King's College. The gardens and grounds were very well kept. We finally made it around to Kings College and walked through the cathedral and some of the grounds. It was started by Henry VI and carried on from there. You can see Henry VIII all over the architecture, his crest and symbols throughout the building. Very nice building, on the outside there is a sundial which as it happens, is still accurate.
After getting a Cornish Pasty for lunch we walked around for a while going through different parks. Then it was back to RA's place for dinner. She made felafels, which were good.
Tomorrow is the last full day it is into London, to try and see what one can see.
We walked through the Clare College grounds to get back to the city center area. This was after making a big loop trying to find the entrance to King's College. The gardens and grounds were very well kept. We finally made it around to Kings College and walked through the cathedral and some of the grounds. It was started by Henry VI and carried on from there. You can see Henry VIII all over the architecture, his crest and symbols throughout the building. Very nice building, on the outside there is a sundial which as it happens, is still accurate.
After getting a Cornish Pasty for lunch we walked around for a while going through different parks. Then it was back to RA's place for dinner. She made felafels, which were good.
Tomorrow is the last full day it is into London, to try and see what one can see.
Saturday, April 9, 2011
The White Cliffs, Canterbury - April 9th
We got up a little earlier to make the trip down to Dover which is on the Southeastern coast of England. The cliffs in the area are made of chalk and show up as white, hence "The White Cliffs of Dover." The trip down took around 1.5 hours, using the M25 for most of the way.
We made it up to Dover Castle, it was 14 pounds for entrance. This is one of the best things I have done here yet. Great experience, would recommend to anyone you can easily spend 4 hours or more there. The castle was built by Henry II and was never really used as a permanent base. There are tunnels which were used during World War II to plan to evacuation from France when the Germans were advancing. The D Day invasion was also planned in part in the tunnels. During the Battle of Brittan a hospital in the tunnels was used to treat injuries from the fighting.
The great tower is a nice place to go through, it is one of the most complete castles left. They have things setup to look as close to what it looked like back when it was used for its original purpose. The roof is open and has a good view out to the Channel.
After we finished up walking around the grounds we drove over to Canterbury. We went through the cathedral. Very nice, strange to go to a place where a religion is based out of. After that we drove along the coast. This was around a 80 mile diversion. The first third was good, but then it got dark and lots of corners on the road.
Tomorrow it is off to Cambridge.
We made it up to Dover Castle, it was 14 pounds for entrance. This is one of the best things I have done here yet. Great experience, would recommend to anyone you can easily spend 4 hours or more there. The castle was built by Henry II and was never really used as a permanent base. There are tunnels which were used during World War II to plan to evacuation from France when the Germans were advancing. The D Day invasion was also planned in part in the tunnels. During the Battle of Brittan a hospital in the tunnels was used to treat injuries from the fighting.
The great tower is a nice place to go through, it is one of the most complete castles left. They have things setup to look as close to what it looked like back when it was used for its original purpose. The roof is open and has a good view out to the Channel.
After we finished up walking around the grounds we drove over to Canterbury. We went through the cathedral. Very nice, strange to go to a place where a religion is based out of. After that we drove along the coast. This was around a 80 mile diversion. The first third was good, but then it got dark and lots of corners on the road.
Tomorrow it is off to Cambridge.
Friday, April 8, 2011
Mercedes Benz World, Windsor - April 8th
We walked down to the train station this morning to rent a car for the weekend. It was 90 pounds for three days, which really doesn't seem like that much.
The first place on the day trip was Mercedes Benz World. Like the Nissan World Headquarters and Toyota Mega Web, it is a show room. They had a lot of different Mercedes there. Including the first model, celebrating 125 years of being a automobile company. Several Formula 1 cars, including one that was completely disassembled and hanging on wires. It was the exploded view of the car, but in real life. That was very cool. They also had the 300 SL the original Gullwing, and the SLS AMG which is the new version. In a corner they had a red SLS and a silver SLR 722S. Also they had a lot of Smart Car models, including some tuned versions. It was worth the trip for me, but that is in part because they are my automobile company.
We then went over to Brooklands museum which is in the same area. In fact this area used to be the home of a very large plane manufacturing business. At the height there were around 14,000 people working on the grounds. It was used to make bombers during World War II. A track which has gone into disrepair surrounds the entire area. This was because the British didn't have a home track for the GP, which has become Formula 1. They had a lot of race cars. I got to try my hand at driving the MP-19 around the track in a simulator. I wasn't fastest and blew my line, cost me around 5 seconds and I was down by 3. You had to slide your feet into the car, very tight fit.
They had recovered a bomber that had crash landed in Lock Ness in 1940. Americans discovered the wreck while looking for Nessie. The British took over and after raising funds for 5 years brought it back to the surface. There are only two of those planes left in existence today. We went onto the Sultan of Omans plane which was a Vickers VC10 converted into a pretty nice setup. We sat in the cockpit while one of the staff today us about how to operate it. It was pretty cool, and we understand more of how modern planes operate now. They built them all on the grounds. And when the Sultan upgraded to a 747 he gave the plane back to the manufacturer.
This place was a neat stop and is worth a look through, especially if you combine it with MBWorld.
We then went over to Windsor and walked around for a while. We walked over to Eaton and then had dinner at Wagamama's which is a Japanese style place. I had katsu curry, which is always a good choice.
We then drove back. Tomorrow will be a road trip day, so an early start is called for.
The first place on the day trip was Mercedes Benz World. Like the Nissan World Headquarters and Toyota Mega Web, it is a show room. They had a lot of different Mercedes there. Including the first model, celebrating 125 years of being a automobile company. Several Formula 1 cars, including one that was completely disassembled and hanging on wires. It was the exploded view of the car, but in real life. That was very cool. They also had the 300 SL the original Gullwing, and the SLS AMG which is the new version. In a corner they had a red SLS and a silver SLR 722S. Also they had a lot of Smart Car models, including some tuned versions. It was worth the trip for me, but that is in part because they are my automobile company.
We then went over to Brooklands museum which is in the same area. In fact this area used to be the home of a very large plane manufacturing business. At the height there were around 14,000 people working on the grounds. It was used to make bombers during World War II. A track which has gone into disrepair surrounds the entire area. This was because the British didn't have a home track for the GP, which has become Formula 1. They had a lot of race cars. I got to try my hand at driving the MP-19 around the track in a simulator. I wasn't fastest and blew my line, cost me around 5 seconds and I was down by 3. You had to slide your feet into the car, very tight fit.
They had recovered a bomber that had crash landed in Lock Ness in 1940. Americans discovered the wreck while looking for Nessie. The British took over and after raising funds for 5 years brought it back to the surface. There are only two of those planes left in existence today. We went onto the Sultan of Omans plane which was a Vickers VC10 converted into a pretty nice setup. We sat in the cockpit while one of the staff today us about how to operate it. It was pretty cool, and we understand more of how modern planes operate now. They built them all on the grounds. And when the Sultan upgraded to a 747 he gave the plane back to the manufacturer.
This place was a neat stop and is worth a look through, especially if you combine it with MBWorld.
We then went over to Windsor and walked around for a while. We walked over to Eaton and then had dinner at Wagamama's which is a Japanese style place. I had katsu curry, which is always a good choice.
We then drove back. Tomorrow will be a road trip day, so an early start is called for.
Back to England - April 7th
We got to the train station a little early and were able to catch the train before the one we had planned to. This gave us a little more time to walk around Glasgow Central station. We finally got onto the train heading south. The trip south was smooth. It took around 5 hours in total time. We passed lots of sheep, lambs, cows, and calf's. Very green this time of year.
We took the tube from Euston to Waterloo and were able to get on an earlier train once more. The train was delayed a little because the train heading to Windsor was four minutes late. The trains air conditioning system was broken so the windows in the cars were opened up. Then two girls hoped the fence at Stains station and tried to board the train. The operator wouldn't go until they got off. They got off and tried to jump on, finally they left the train. He made an announcement that the police had been called and hoped that they would great the teenage girls.
We had a vegan meal for dinner. I watched the Europa league wrap-up show and then went to bed.
We took the tube from Euston to Waterloo and were able to get on an earlier train once more. The train was delayed a little because the train heading to Windsor was four minutes late. The trains air conditioning system was broken so the windows in the cars were opened up. Then two girls hoped the fence at Stains station and tried to board the train. The operator wouldn't go until they got off. They got off and tried to jump on, finally they left the train. He made an announcement that the police had been called and hoped that they would great the teenage girls.
We had a vegan meal for dinner. I watched the Europa league wrap-up show and then went to bed.
Thursday, April 7, 2011
Visiting Scotland - April 6th
Just like the northwest weather wise, dumping rain to start with. We headed out to see a few things around the area. We headed over to do some shopping at a shopping center converted from a distillery. After that we headed over to Lock Less to see the third largest lake in Scotland. It was very rainy, you couldn’t see that far out into the lake. We then headed over to where my aunt grew up and where my uncle met her. The weather improved and the sun actually came and visited. We went up to the top of the hill to look down into the harbor. Very impressive. We drove back to the house and saw a lot of lambs and cows.
We watched the Champion’s League Manchester United vs Chelsea game. Rooney scored to go up 1-0 and it remained the score. Another restful day before heading back down to England.
We watched the Champion’s League Manchester United vs Chelsea game. Rooney scored to go up 1-0 and it remained the score. Another restful day before heading back down to England.
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
Up to Scotland - April 5th
Today was the earliest day yet. We were up and off to the train station by 740. We caught a taxi from RA's place, the driver shared the feelings that the Michael Jackson statue was very strange. After a quick stop at the post office we waited on the platform. Then the rain started, so we moved under the cover. When the train pulled up we moved to a car that wasn't full. So that we had a seat on the way up to Vauxhall. Which is the station just prior to Waterloo. The train did get full as it was during the morning commute.
We switched to the Victoria line at Vauxhall. We had to wait for the third train before we could get on, it was almost like Shinjuku. Except there were no people pushers, people just shoved there way on. This train was completely packed, most people departed at the Oxford Circus stop. We then alighted at Euston and transferred to the Virgin train up to Scotland.
WiFi was 12 pounds for 3 days, as we will be returning on Thursday I purchased the access. It has made the trip go by faster than it would have otherwise. The speeds are not the fastest, but Youtube works. So that isn't that bad. Several stops were added during the journey. As we travel north the weather gets wetter and wetter.
Finally got into Glasgow Central station at 1410. As it would happen there is a Starbucks right in the middle of the station. So after a quick stop and amazing the Baristas with my Gold Card, it was onto the local service train. While sitting on the train before it left, I felt something crawling on my neck. Without thinking I reached up and grabbed it and threw it. It hit a guy sitting further down the train in the face. Then the bee flew away, in this scenario no one was injured, so that was good. I started laughing with just how ridicules it was.
We finally arrived at our last stop. My uncle picked us up from the train station. They are very funny people, and the dinner was excellent. This was a really relaxing day.
We switched to the Victoria line at Vauxhall. We had to wait for the third train before we could get on, it was almost like Shinjuku. Except there were no people pushers, people just shoved there way on. This train was completely packed, most people departed at the Oxford Circus stop. We then alighted at Euston and transferred to the Virgin train up to Scotland.
WiFi was 12 pounds for 3 days, as we will be returning on Thursday I purchased the access. It has made the trip go by faster than it would have otherwise. The speeds are not the fastest, but Youtube works. So that isn't that bad. Several stops were added during the journey. As we travel north the weather gets wetter and wetter.
Finally got into Glasgow Central station at 1410. As it would happen there is a Starbucks right in the middle of the station. So after a quick stop and amazing the Baristas with my Gold Card, it was onto the local service train. While sitting on the train before it left, I felt something crawling on my neck. Without thinking I reached up and grabbed it and threw it. It hit a guy sitting further down the train in the face. Then the bee flew away, in this scenario no one was injured, so that was good. I started laughing with just how ridicules it was.
We finally arrived at our last stop. My uncle picked us up from the train station. They are very funny people, and the dinner was excellent. This was a really relaxing day.
Monday, April 4, 2011
London Tower Mean Time - April 4th
We headed up early to London again. We have been walking to the train station which has been nice. It is just over a mile and a half to the station from RA's place. We have the trains down at this point. It can be crowded at times, but it is not really that different from Japan, just not as many trains. This trip there has not been a late train as of yet.
When we arrived at London Waterloo we switched to the Northern Line to switch at Embankment. From there we got on the District Line and went out to Tower Hill. The last trip I didn't have a lot of time to look around the Tower of London. So we went through it again. Followed around the one Beefeater that had done the Ceremony of the Keys on my last trip. He was very funny once more. We saw the Crown Jewels, a lot of resources went into making those. We then stopped at Starbucks is as often happens. Then we took the DLR out to the Cutty Sark.
The Cutty Sark is a famous ship that was on display in Greenwich, but had been set alight to. On the last trip they were almost finished with the renovation. Then someone burnt it down to the keel. They are almost finished with the reconstruction now. After walking around the construction site we walked up to the Old Royal Navy College. Very impressive. We went into the area where Lord Nelson laid in state after dying in the Battle of Trafalgar. The painting in that room, aptly named "The Painted Room" was very impressive. From there we walked through the Maritime Museum, interesting pieces of history, they had a Royal Barge. Looks something like you might see in ancient Egypt. We then walked up to the Royal Observatory where Greenwich Meantime is kept. Nice view from the top of the hill down towards the college and the river.
By this time we were hungry so we went and found a Mexican restaurant. The food was not spectacular, but it was a fair representative of what that type of food should taste like. We then headed back to RA's place to get ready for the trip up to Scotland.
When we arrived at London Waterloo we switched to the Northern Line to switch at Embankment. From there we got on the District Line and went out to Tower Hill. The last trip I didn't have a lot of time to look around the Tower of London. So we went through it again. Followed around the one Beefeater that had done the Ceremony of the Keys on my last trip. He was very funny once more. We saw the Crown Jewels, a lot of resources went into making those. We then stopped at Starbucks is as often happens. Then we took the DLR out to the Cutty Sark.
The Cutty Sark is a famous ship that was on display in Greenwich, but had been set alight to. On the last trip they were almost finished with the renovation. Then someone burnt it down to the keel. They are almost finished with the reconstruction now. After walking around the construction site we walked up to the Old Royal Navy College. Very impressive. We went into the area where Lord Nelson laid in state after dying in the Battle of Trafalgar. The painting in that room, aptly named "The Painted Room" was very impressive. From there we walked through the Maritime Museum, interesting pieces of history, they had a Royal Barge. Looks something like you might see in ancient Egypt. We then walked up to the Royal Observatory where Greenwich Meantime is kept. Nice view from the top of the hill down towards the college and the river.
By this time we were hungry so we went and found a Mexican restaurant. The food was not spectacular, but it was a fair representative of what that type of food should taste like. We then headed back to RA's place to get ready for the trip up to Scotland.
Sunday, April 3, 2011
Fulham Match - April 3rd
Two football matches in under 24 hours, crazy? Perhaps, but we headed out early to the train station. I went up to the Post Office to buy some snack food and ran into RA's friends that she goes to the Fulham matches with.
We had an early start because they were doing train work by the rail station that you would normally use to get to Fulham. Instead they let you ride a bus that takes around 40 minutes. It was a bus ride! Right before the last stop the bus was crowded with a lot of people who had just been in a Bus Bus accident. Some were still a little jittery from the crunch. We finally got to Putney and headed over to a Starbucks.
We then walked down to Craven Cottage to watch FFC take on Blackpool. One of the players for Fulham is Clint Dempsey, who plays on team USA. Fulham ended up winning the game 3-0, with a player recently off injury scoring two goals. After the game we headed over to see one of the strangest things I have ever seen. The owner of FFC was friends with Michael Jackson and had just unveiled a statue in his honor the same day. It is very weird, most FFC fans are concerned that it will turn them into the laughing stock of the Premier league. It was just very strange.
It was actually Mothers Day in the UK so we went to dinner with everyone. Italian again, it was decent.
We then headed back to RA's place for another full day.
We had an early start because they were doing train work by the rail station that you would normally use to get to Fulham. Instead they let you ride a bus that takes around 40 minutes. It was a bus ride! Right before the last stop the bus was crowded with a lot of people who had just been in a Bus Bus accident. Some were still a little jittery from the crunch. We finally got to Putney and headed over to a Starbucks.
We then walked down to Craven Cottage to watch FFC take on Blackpool. One of the players for Fulham is Clint Dempsey, who plays on team USA. Fulham ended up winning the game 3-0, with a player recently off injury scoring two goals. After the game we headed over to see one of the strangest things I have ever seen. The owner of FFC was friends with Michael Jackson and had just unveiled a statue in his honor the same day. It is very weird, most FFC fans are concerned that it will turn them into the laughing stock of the Premier league. It was just very strange.
It was actually Mothers Day in the UK so we went to dinner with everyone. Italian again, it was decent.
We then headed back to RA's place for another full day.
Saturday, April 2, 2011
London: Changing of the Guard, West End Show, Women's Friendly - April 2nd
We headed back to London, taking an earlier train than before. We went over to see the Changing of the Guard. The area around the palace was packed with people. We walked past where the guards were coming from to replace the ones on duty. Set up on the corner we got some good shots, lots of people around for that. We then switched sides of the street and watched the guards who were replaced coming back. Not as many people. The band played a Beatles song before the changing happened.
After doing this we headed over to meet one of RA's friends and then go to a show. We went and watched Wicked. It is the Wizard of Oz story from a different viewpoint. Afterwards we went to an Italian restaurant for dinner. The service was slow, but the food was decent.
Mom and RA went back to her place and I headed off with RA's friends to a football match. It was a match between England and US women's teams. The women's World Cup is this summer. Team USA played very sloppy and got behind 2-0 within 12 minutes. They scored a goal before halftime, and played better for the remainder. Sadly they could not create enough chances to score. The exciting part was that we got on ESPN 2. My sisters friend had it posted on her wall before we got back from London. I looked way to excited after a losing effort, oh well. The trip back took around an hour and a half.
After doing this we headed over to meet one of RA's friends and then go to a show. We went and watched Wicked. It is the Wizard of Oz story from a different viewpoint. Afterwards we went to an Italian restaurant for dinner. The service was slow, but the food was decent.
Mom and RA went back to her place and I headed off with RA's friends to a football match. It was a match between England and US women's teams. The women's World Cup is this summer. Team USA played very sloppy and got behind 2-0 within 12 minutes. They scored a goal before halftime, and played better for the remainder. Sadly they could not create enough chances to score. The exciting part was that we got on ESPN 2. My sisters friend had it posted on her wall before we got back from London. I looked way to excited after a losing effort, oh well. The trip back took around an hour and a half.
Friday, April 1, 2011
Reading April 1st
Slept in once more, or to say I woke up and then went back to sleep. Last night was a late one, so a little catch up was in order. We decided to head over to Reading to do some shopping.
Walked to Virginia Water train station. Very nice weather and the walk took around an hour. It was supposed to rain today, but didn't when we were out. The weather has been very nice, in deference to the forecast.
The train ride to Reading took around half an hour and was nice and smooth. After stopping at Starbuck's we headed over to a mall called the Oracle. Just like any other US mall, it did remind me of a mall in north west Sapporo. We then went over to Primark for some shopping. Then it was back to the train station.
We got Indian take-away for dinner and went back to RA's place for dinner. One of the nurses who works at the school came over. We watched the Wizard of Oz as a precursor to going to Wicked tomorrow.
A good easy day to ease into UK time.
Walked to Virginia Water train station. Very nice weather and the walk took around an hour. It was supposed to rain today, but didn't when we were out. The weather has been very nice, in deference to the forecast.
The train ride to Reading took around half an hour and was nice and smooth. After stopping at Starbuck's we headed over to a mall called the Oracle. Just like any other US mall, it did remind me of a mall in north west Sapporo. We then went over to Primark for some shopping. Then it was back to the train station.
We got Indian take-away for dinner and went back to RA's place for dinner. One of the nurses who works at the school came over. We watched the Wizard of Oz as a precursor to going to Wicked tomorrow.
A good easy day to ease into UK time.
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