We as a family spent a very full day navigating the underground and busses to a few very touristy places the kiddos wanted to see: Big Ben, the Paddington Statue, Hyde Park and the Natural History Museum. I will share about the museum in another post.

Hyde park is a huge park that I hadn’t visited in ages which is a shame. As touristy as it is, it is a quality park; places to play, walks along the water, public art, places to eat, flower gardens etc. It is busy but not crowded and a nice and much needed contrast to the museum. A great place to spend the day if you are able.

Then we went to see Big Ben in the Elisabeth Tower. I’ll admit I would not have agreed to go if it weren’t for Baby Willow really wanting to see it. This is another location where everyone is posing for a picture in front of the tower with loads of street vendors selling souvenirs. I am glad we crossed the bridge and found a bit more calm. The kiddos ended up enjoying watching the tourist boats along the Thames River as much as seeing the Houses of Parliament building and the London Eye. Spending time along the river with our food from the chip shop was good enough for me. Baby Willow thought the silver painted human statue (performance artist) was cool when they met.

Yes, this place is a tourist trap. But once you went away from the epicenter of the chaos, it wasn’t so bad. I don’t mind London as you could be here a year and still never exhaust your options. This is a very good thing much like in LA. The people here have become friendlier in the last couple of decades which is also a major improvement. I just prefer much of the rest of the island just that much more. I really like Wales, Scotland and Northern England personally, and will admit my bias. Although seeing magnolia grandiflora, one of my favorite trees, and calla lilies does help.

Bye for now.