Europe 2016...first stop London! Day One and Two...

 We traveled early this year and unfortunately, Ollie couldn't join us...but, Cheryl could!  We were all very excited to have Aunt Cici with us on this trip.  We flew Delta and they treated us great!  Right away they gave us a little packet with the tiniest tube of toothpaste I've ever seen plus eye masks that we put to use right away.  :0) We all (except for Aunt Harriet) managed to get at least a few hours of sleep which was good because we arrived in London at about 8:30 am London time and were all set for a full day of exploring. 

 Cheryl loves all things Royals so was especially excited to get to sign the Queen's birthday book right after getting there.  They even gave her a fake crown and flag. 

 Our first stop was at the hotel to drop the luggage and then we walked down to see Big Ben and Westminster Abbey and then to one of our favorite pubs for lunch.  Above is Cheryl eating the mushy peas that came with her fish and chips.  Very British lunch!  We walked down to Buckingham Palace and then found the Hop On-Hop Off bus and hopped on to take a ride through the city and a short nap as well.  It was very damp but only drizzling on and off so some of us opted for the top of the bus. 

 We eventually got off the bus near the Tower of London, got some coffee and found a bathroom and then H and B went back to the hotel and the rest of us went on the Jack the Ripper walking tour.  This was one of Grace's requests and something we normally would not have done but it was so interesting and we got to walk through and see an area of London we would never have seen otherwise.  We were in the East End for part of the tour which I especially enjoyed because I am a big fan of Call the Midwife and that is where it is set. We were all surprised to learn that Jack the Ripper only actually killed 5 women.  He is so famous that I had assumed he had killed many more.  The murders were very gruesome though and that is part of the reason he is so famous. 

 After the Jack the Ripper tour, we got our Oyster cards  and made our way back to hotel by way of the Tube.  We met up with H and B and we all walked down to Wagamama, our favorite Asian restaurant in London.  I don't have any pictures of dinner though, sorry!  We were up early the next morning, had some breakfast at the hotel and headed out for a very full day.  Below, Grace is enjoying a cappuccino to fuel her morning. 

 First stop--Madame Tussaud's.  I didn't know what to expect of this place but we knew we wanted to go and see the Royals.  It turned out to be an absolute blast.  The girls probably had the most fun, there were so many famous people and they had a blast taking pictures and selfies with all of them. 

 Meeting the Royals was very exciting, we had to curtsy before them before getting our picture taken.  It's amazing how real they all look.  And...there were superheroes for Joe! 

 After Madame Tussaud's we set off looking for lunch and finally ended up at a place called Eat. that had sandwiches and soups and stuff.  It was really good and then we were off to our show, "Mamma Mia!"  The tube station closest to the theatre was also right at Trafalgar Square so of course we had to take some pictures there.  Above is Hannah gracefully climbing up on one of the little columns.  :0)

 "Mamma Mia" was absolutely amazing!!  We all loved it and it may well be the second best "Broadway" show I've ever seen.  "Matilda" will always be my favorite.  "Mamma Mia" was so much fun though and the music was great.  You could hear the audience quietly singing along throughout the show and at the end they did about 3 more numbers and encouraged the audience to sing with them.  It was a big dance party and so. much. fun.  We left the theatre and found our way to Baker Street and Nando's!  Nando's is a somewhat famous British restaurant probably made famous because it is one of One Direction's favorite restaurant.  They are famous for their Peri Peri chicken which did not disappoint. 

 After dinner we went on one last big adventure...Abbey Road!  The cool thing about this is that there is a live webcam there and we let Grammy and Pop know that we were on our way there and they got to watch us from Georgia!  It was a little crazy getting the picture below, it isn't at a stoplight or anything so you just have to see a break in the traffic, run out, get in position and then take the picture fast!  I was the photographer and the traffic stopper as needed.  We did get honked at once and a big red bus made it in one of our pictures (but not this one).  It was such a fun experience and even more fun because we could share it with Grammy and Pop.  We hobbled our way back to the Tube and the hotel after this and slept so well after such a full day!