Dads Visit

I woke up Saturday morning to bright and shining sun, which is rare in London, and I was off to pick up my daddy from the airport.  When I told my dad that he was convinced the sun was shining because he was here.  Possible could have been true because we had a wonderful sunny weekend!  Just like when my mom and sister came, first thing in London was hoping on the underground or tube to my flat in Central London.  He was instantly amazed at the transportation system here and how efficient it is.  

For lunch we went to one of my favorite places: gourmet burger kitchen where of course we had delicious burgers and chips.  It was Saturday, so it was a necessity to get my gluten free crepe, which dad ate about half of! :P  We then went to Borough Market, which I have not been to yet.  There was so much delicious smelling and looking food.  Good thing we went there full because we would have eaten and purchased way too much!  I was so surprised at how big it was, kept going on for forever.  The market is near the river that runs through London, so we headed towards that and took part of ‘The Queens Walk’ from London Bridge to Tower Bridge.  

We then crossed the bridge and stopped half way through to look at the city.  The whole time walking so far my dad could not stop commenting on the architecture of the city.  I know I have said this before, but seriously my pictures do not even do justice to how mind-blowingly beautiful London is.  I could look at it forever.  

By then I was ready for my afternoon tea, so I took my dad to my favorite little tea place to warm up with some tea.  Yes that’s right, my father drank tea!!!

Later that evening we visited the recently lighted Christmas tree in Trafalgar Square.  Each year since 1947, a Christmas tree has been given to the people of Britain from the people of Norway in gratitude for Britain's support for Norway during World War II.  It is decorated in traditional Norwegian fashion, with vertical strings of lights.  The tree is of huge importance to the people of Britain during Christmas time and the lighting ceremony marks the beginning of the holiday season for most. 

Sunday morning I dragged my dad to church.  I found a Catholic Church here that I really like going to and this was the last Sunday I was able to go to, so I made sure to get to the service that morning.  After church it was necessary to go out for a traditional English breakfast: eggs, bacon, sausage, hash brown, baked beans, tomato, and mushroom.

Stomachs full, it was time to make our way to Abbey Road.  Yes we crossed just like the Beatles and signed our names on the wall outside the studio. 

I had to go to the Imperial War Museum for a class, so I decided to save it for when dad came to visit.  I thoroughly enjoyed the exhibits that we visited here.  It was filled with pictures and stories of war heroes.  It gave me a strong sense of Britain and how appreciative and acknowledging they are of the men and women and their acts of bravery and kindness. 

We both needed a bit of a “pick me up”, so it was time for peppermint hot chocolate and a toffee nut latte.  Delicious!  We made our way to Covent Garden, which is a market, shopping area beautifully decorated for Christmas.  My dad was impressed at the decorations.  They really are my favorite in London.  We wandered our way through the market and stumbled across a few treasures. 

Dad’s last full day in London was filled with “touristy” things.  First stop was the Queen’s Courtyard where the horse guards are.  We then made our way to Buckingham Palace.  Around this area there were a lot of the royal carriages out, which of course dad referred to as the Amish horse and buggies.  No dad, they are a bit more honorable and classy here.  I was freezing today in the 40 degrees, which I know I should not have been considering I saw that you all got blasted with snow, but I needed some hot chocolate to warm up before partaking in one of my most favorite things I have done here in London thus far. 

One of my friends in the program has an internship in Parliament and she is allowed to take two people into the House of Parliament, which she so graciously did for my dad and I.  This is something that is not open to the public to do, so it was such an honor and experience to say the least.  We spent our afternoon going through Big Ben, seeing the House of Commons, the House of Lords, and standing right next to the Queen’s throne!  No pictures allowed, so I will attempt to describe the best I can.  Inside the architecture is just outstanding.  Each room was different than the next with crazy amounts of detail in design and beautiful artwork.  The House of Commons is green and its members are voted in by the public.  The Queen has never entered the House of Commons and doesn’t really want a thing to do with it.  Her throne and presence is in the House of Lords, which is red and its members are selected by the prime minister and appointed by the Queen.  Inside the house of Parliament you might be surprised to learn that there is a hair salon, a nursery, and many pubs that sell the cheapest beer in London because it’s provided by tax quid, or money.  If you are interested in seeing pictures of what we saw Google Image House of Commons and House of Lords- such a jaw dropping experience. 

This is inside of the House of Parliament and was given to the Queen for her Jubilee.  Rumor has it that she doesn’t really like it and would have preferred a bottle of Gin!

Dad’s last night in London, it was a given to go out to a pub again for dinner.  Traditional British food: fish and chips and ham, fried eggs, and chips; complete with cider of course!  Dad really enjoyed the fact that I was able to go up and get more cider here because the legal drinking age is 18. 

I am so overjoyed that all of my family came to visit me here in London and I was able to share my home away from home with them.  This time I was able to answer all of dad’s questions and I was proud at myself with how much I have learned about the culture and life in London.  If anything my dad coming made me all the more excited to go home and see the rest of my family and friends again.  It is going to be incredibly difficult to leave, but knowing I am coming home to all of you wonderful people make it that much easier.   

-Brittany