City Break

We had three fantastic days in London just after Christmas. It was the girls' first ever
trip to the big city so we were very excited. We packed in so much in our three days.
We did a lot of sightseeing, revisited favourite places and old haunts from when
we lived and worked there, and met up with family and old friends we haven't
seen for years.

One of our first stops was Covent Garden and the the church in Maiden Lane

 where we got married seven years ago. It was really lovely to be able to take

the girls there. We went in and had a look around. It's only a short walk away

from the noise and crowd in the main market but it's always quiet and peaceful

inside. I'm really glad we took them there.

The Cutty Sark on a foggy morning

We went to a few art galleries with them but we kept those gallery visits short and sweet
and that was perfect for everyone. Lulu said that was her most favourite of the whole
trip, seeing all those paintings. Maybe there's a bit of a culture vulture in her,
who knows, but that was very pleasing to hear.

Sunset at the Mall

We stayed in Greenwich and it was very convenient and easy to explore
the city from there. The girls loved the Tube and were very amazed with the DLR
(a driver-less train?!?). On our second morning we were going to go on the River
Bus wanting to get to Westminster and Big Ben but heavy fog scuppered our plans.

We had our boat ride the next morning. It was very frosty but bright and clear and
we had a wonderful view of the city's landmarks as the boat sailed up the Thames.
I'd suggest this to anyone visiting London. You can board from any stops along
the river and you can use your Oyster card to pay. It's also a comfortable ride and
an exciting way to see the city. Highly recommended.

For all our sightseeing and socialising we managed to squeeze in a bit of shopping

as well. We took the girls to Hamley's to spend their pocket money. I was shocked at

how overpriced so many of the toys were; it was just ridiculous. Luckily we managed

to steer the girls from much of those items and they made very sensible purchases -

Lego Friends, a jewellery box kit, a small Trolls doll and a board game. I don't think

there will be a repeat visit there. Anyway, my husband went to his favourite Italian deli

in Soho and stocked up on anchovies, etc. - those are his sort of treats. Mine was

Liberty's. I only had a little time and spent it looking around the haberdashery floor.

Oh, those beautiful fabrics! I was quite content to just browse, but I did buy

a few small things for myself.

We've really enjoyed our little city break over the Holidays. We loved being tourists

with the girls. They were interested and curious and were very good with walking and

getting out and about. We were also lucky with the weather ( it was cold but dry

the whole time) and the dreaded city parking and motorway traffic were not too bad.

I really hope we can do this again this year. Over Christmas again, hopefully. That

would be very, very nice.