We are so excited to be in London!  After taking a train ride from Manchester, we took a cab out to the new Battersea Reach complex on the Thames, and checked into our nice little one-bedroom apartment.

Our first day on the town was freezing and difficult, but we managed to see some cool places.  After leaving the apartment, we caught the bus into town and managed to get off at the right stop.  From the bus stop, it was a short walk to the first stop on our tour of London, Kensington Palace and Gardens.  This royal residence was built for the Royal Family in the 17th century.  It has been home to quite a few of it's members, including Princess Diana, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge (Will and Kate), and will be home to Prince Harry after they finish up some renovations.  The gardens surrounding the park are gorgeous, and have statues and fountains around the park.  We really enjoyed walking around and seeing everything.

Kensington Palace.

Bryan with the Peter Pan statue in the park.

After leaving the park, we decided to try figuring out the tube, a system of trains used to travel across London.  Our first attempt went well; We hopped on the tube at our stop near Kensington, and hopped off at the Marble Arch.  The Marble Arch was a little smaller than we expected, but still a neat little stop.

The London Tube: Underground

The Marble Arch.

The Marble Arch is in the corner of Hyde Park, which is also the location of a few other sculptures and attractions.  Opposite Marble Arch is Speakers Corner, where speakers can talk on any topic and debate and speech on any topic can take place. This right to free speech is not limited to Speaker's Corner but provides a useful rallying point. Nobody was talking there when we visited.

After visiting the Marble Arch and Hyde Park, we decided to stop at a shop for some hot chocolate to warm up and figure out which public transportation we would use to get back home.  After charting out a route, we hopped on the underground to Shepperd's Bush, then walked across the street to get on the overground train out to Wandsworth Station.  Unfortunately, we were unaware that there are multiple Wandsworth Stations in London, and after getting off the train, realized we were quite far from home.  We asked for directions to our apartment complex, and started walking.  The walk home quickly became a brutal, high-wind, freezing rain, three-mile trek, but after a miserable, long walk, we managed to make it back safe.

Today, we decided to make it a relaxing day in, and Laura is excited to make a home cooked meal.  The entire day has been freezing rain and cold, so we have enjoyed staying inside for the day for some down time (and Bryan has been streaming March Madness games onto his laptop!).  Hopefully the weather will cooperate for the rest of our stay, as we have a lot more of the city to cover!  Otherwise, this leg of the trip will be very cold and wet.

Here's hoping for some sunshine soon!

Laura and Bryan

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