Jolly ole England

Wednesday September 10th, 2008
Well I would LOVE to start with yesterday but I should blog from the beginning of our arrival here in London which was the day before (Wednesday).. Our flight across the Atlantic was uneventful (thankfully)- Virgin Atlantic Airline is awesome! FREE movies, TV, and music with a huge selection- I watched 'In Bruges' and 'Forgetting Sara Marshall'- (unfortunately Grace's screen broke after one episode of Spongebob but she watched the ipod). They gave out little packages with socks, toothbrush, toothpaste and eye mask as well. We got into London at 6AM (I didn't sleep on the plane but G got a few hours) and made it through Immigration without a hitch- because I had that Toys R Us stroller we got to go to the front of the line! We got our bags (luggage carts were FREE) and found the Heathrow Express train that took us into Paddington Station in 15 min. Here's where it got tricky. Grace was tired, we have a lot (yes, a LOT) of bags because YES, I need my laptop, camera, toys for Grace, clothes, 'milky' supply, snacks, pillow, etc etc.. And I knew our hotel was only a few blocks away so I didn't want to get a cab. But Grace didn't want to walk. Somehow I dragged everything to Sussex Gardens but it wasn't fun. Then we had to kill time because it wasn't even 9AM and we couldn't get into a room until about noon. I already knew that we wouldn't be staying in our main hotel because they were fully booked that night. They told me they would put us up in their Annex building around the corner. But they decided to put us up in a different hotel (the Alexandra) just a half block down the street. So Grace and I headed out to Hyde Park to explore. We found swans in the little fountain pools (Grace LOVES the swans, and the ducks, and the pigeons!) and walked to Princess Diana's Memorial Playground in Kensington Gardens. I enjoyed watching the people in the park with their dogs- the dogs all have great coats and are fit and happy- lots of smaller dogs like pugs, jack russells, chihuahuas, westies, border terriers and some bigger ones- goldens and I did see a Newfie. I met a nice mom in the park with a 4 yr old boy named Arthur. She was originally from Sweden (beautiful and very fashionable but she still talked to me!). She told me the kids start school there when they are 4- they go everyday all day. But in Sweden they don't start until they are 7. She also told me if it was raining we should go to the Science Museum where they have a cool area for the kids to play in the basement. We walked back and finally got to our hotel at 12:30 and we passed out for about 4 hours. Our room at the Alexandra was tiny and on the very top of the building. Lots of German tourists were staying there. When we woke up I decided we should try to see something in London so we took a cab to Harrod's. We bought some chocolate in the shapes of little animals and a sandwich and milk and diet coke. They have amazing food arcades with anything and everything but we kept it simple. Then, we went to McDonalds. It feels like a repeat of my last trip to Europe when I was backpacking and poor- I ate fries and shakes all through Europe in 1991- but this time it's because that's where Grace wants to go. It got cold so we went into the Gap (I know, more American corporate shopping) and got her a brown hoodie but I also couldn't resist a cool long sleeve dress and tights in Fall colors. We took the tube back to our hotel- I overpaid buying a 1 day pass at the machine thinking it would be good for 24 hours. When, in fact, it was only good until midnight. Oh well. We got back and watched a little TV and went to bed.
Thursday September 11th- the day of the much anticipated Kimya Dawson (and Heathers) concert! Originally Grace wanted to go to the zoo but it was raining when we got up, so we headed to the Science Museum via the Tube to South Kensington station. I bought an Oyster Card for the Tube- it is cheaper and you can add money as you go. The subway here is generally cleaner than in New York and it's much easier to understand the maps/signage and know that you are going in the right direction. The Science Museum had a small display of Veterinary Medical History on the top floor. They have cool exhibits on steam engines and space but mostly we spent our time in "The Garden" which is an interactive play area in the basement for kids 3-6 yr old (all completely free!). Grace was sad when it was time to leave but when we got outside it wasn't raining anymore. So we walked through Hyde park to see Princess Diana's Memorial Fountain and the Peter Pan statue, and say hello to our friend's the swans again. When we got back to our hotel (The Rhodes Hotel) we finally got to see our actual hotel room- this one is also on the top floor but it is called their Family Room- its the biggest room with 3 beds and a huge (for England) modern bathroom and jetted tub (it was the only room they had available when I was booking our stay here but it's great). We freshened up then headed out to the Highbury/Islington station to find the Union Chapel where the concert was going to be. I had to laugh when we stepped out of the tube station there was a pub called "The Famous Cock".. I wanted to take a photo of it but was trying to remain inconspicuous as there was lots of people around. When we got to the Chapel (with another Happy Meal for Grace) there were 3 other young girls sitting on the steps waiting (it was around 5 pm and doors opened at 7). About 3 other people came within the next 20 minutes. Then a car pulled up and out came Kimya, her husband Ange, and daughter Panda!! Very exciting! We had brought along a belated birthday gift for Panda (who turned 2 on July 28) that we weren't able to give to Kimya when we saw her at the Seattle Capitol Hill Block Party because security was so tight. I knew it was a long shot bringing it to England but Grace really wanted to give Panda that present! I told Kimya the bag was crinkled because it flew 6000 miles and she asked where we lived- when I told her she was like "What are you doing here in London? You live 30 minutes from us!" and I said "We were on vacation, so we decided to come see you!". She gave Grace a free copy of her new kid's CD "Alphabutt" and went inside. We ended up in the front row for the show and it was amazing! The concert was in an actual chapel with pews, stained glass, etc. The most amazing venue I have ever been for a show. The band "Heathers" opened- they are 18yr old twin sisters from Dublin with the most incredible voices ever. We befriended a girl from Texas who goes to college in Spain and is on an internship in London before the show while we were waiting and we sat with her. She had come alone to the show so it was fun to have someone to talk to while we were waiting. Grace fell asleep during the Heather's performance but I woke her up for Kimya. During Kimya's show she sang a song that asks the audience to call out different names of animals- when it was quiet Grace said "Panda Bear" and Kimya said "Panda Bear! You win, Grace!" After the concert we gave hugs to Panda and chatted and Kimya said we should try to get the girls together for a play date in October. She told me her personal email address so I will contact her next month and see if that actually comes true! Needless to say the evening was everything I hoped it would be and more! We had to take a cab home because they closed the tube station early but I didn't care- sometimes the door-to-door service is totally worth the extra price! I wanted to blog last night but the internet connection here is a bit slow- even today I don't think it will allow me to upload any photos so I will have to add them later. Today we are off to the Zoo if it isn't raining and then a trip on the London Eye. I have tickets for a tour bus that I bought on Expedia when I booked our flight but Grace has decided she hates tour buses so I think that ticket is going to waste
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Didn't realize that no flash photography is allowed in the tube stations until after I took this photo..oops!