London is huge, and we had perfect weather. Fortunately, we spent a week in London and had the opportunity to feel relaxed while see the vast number of sites to visit. It became noticeably evident that our family loves park time.
I'm not sure about y'all, but our family loved the Apple+ series Ted Lasso. We completely binge watched them and were tempted to watch them twice. Therefore, when visiting London, our first endeavor was heading to Richmond. While there, we visited the Ted Lasso places. We visited Paved Court, the alley he and Coach lived on, had lunch at the 300 year old Prince's Head Pub, wandered through Richmond Green, and ate Biscuits with The Boss. We also spent time in Notting Hill area where the movie Notting Hill was filmed. We saw Hugh Grant's blue door apartment and the travel bookstore where he worked and Julia Roberts showed up.
The next day we visited the Natural History Museum, which was enormous. I was surprised by the affordable prices - free unless going to the Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibit which was remarkable and only cost £40.25. Because in the US the Academy of Sciences is $140 for one day for our family, this seemed a steal.
We managed to catch Buckingham Palace changing of the guards, which was more interesting than I expected. Luckily, Mia weaseled her way to the front and a friendly guard told the kids they could sit past the boundary and watch. We got prime video because of this.
Walking to the Kensington Gardens, we spotted the Royal Albert Hall and Albert Memorial. The sun was shining and Patchen and I relaxed on a bench while Mia played in the park with sticks practicing her martial arts. We were lucky because the weather was perfect. Another memorable park was Battersea Park. We walked there crossing the Albert Bride and explored the Peace Pagoda, but we were impressed by the renovated Power Station. They turned an old power station into an impressive mall/living space with artful grounds and a playground that Mia explored.
I think Mia's least fun day was when we hit all the big must-see sites like Westminster Abbey, Big Ben, London Tower, Tower Bridge and London Bridge. Like medicine, we forced it on her all in one day and got it over with. I, on the other hand, thoroughly enjoyed it, and Patch was somewhere in the middle.
Finally, we wrapped up our time surprising Mia with a visit to the WB Harry Potter Studios and staying at the De Vere Latimer Estates. Mia reported the studios were amazing because it showed the sets, how costumes were made, and special effects were executed. She couldn't believe she was in the same place as the actors and it made her feel special. Of course she got a wand, which was tough in the choosing, but eventually the Hufflepuff House Cup wand chose her.
More pics here.
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