A DAY IN LONDON

We got up early, had our coffee and Jane drove Roger and I to the train station for our trip in to London. I think Vancouver could use a lesson or two on commuting.... what a train system they have over there!! In a short time, we get off the train and are walking in the city, and what a magnificent city it is !!

Our tickets to ride !!!!!!!

We did a little bit of walking and I snapped a few pictures. We came across what appeared to be a very well dressed Japanese guy crawling on the ground at a very slow speed, with a nurse walking beside him. God, was that strange, and Roger and I couldn't believe we were seeing this. Later in the week, we discovered through reading the newspaper, that the Japanese guy in the 3 piece suit was in fact a robot, and the nurse was an artist..... apparently this was art?? LOL

Here I am with Tower Bridge in the background. We had great weather for our day in London.

Our first stop was to be breakfast, and guess where we went?? Well, as the tradition had been set in Las Vegas, and you don't wanna mess with tradition, we were off to McDonalds for Egg McMuffins!! What amazed me was the menu. The McDonalds over there serve ethnic foods.....I have never seen Samosa's on a McDonalds menu before !! We ate and the next stop was for postcards and stamps. I had promised Tim (aka vegaskindaguy) that I would send him as many postcards as I could, as well as the long list of other friends I had to send cards to. Hope you all got them.

We visited all the main tourist spots including St. Paul's Cathedral and Trafalgar Square but our time was limited due to the fact we had a very important lunch date.

This is St. Paul's Cathedral, we sat in the garden for a bit.... and this is me in front of Canada House !!

This picture on the left is Buckingham Palace, on the right is Trafalgar Square...can you tell which one is actually a postcard and which is the very professional shot taken by me??????? LOL

Well, it was time to head to Covent Garden to meet our lunch date. We arrived a bit early so we sat down and Roger got a bottle of champagne. We sipped our champagne and took in the sights as we waited for Roger's mobile phone to ring. Finally, the phone rings and Roger tells Ben (aka Boogies) to walk over to the Transport Museum (we had a good view of it from our seats), and to stand in front looking lost. I really think Roger gets a kick out of watching people looking lost and confused.....lol. Ben tells Roger he's wearing a denim jacket and is carrying a WH Smith bag. Within a few minutes, sure enough, there's this lost looking guy in a jean jacket carrying a bag. It has to be him !!

And here he is !! The one and only Ben !! It was a real pleasure to meet you Ben, and thank you so much for the lovely necklace. Also thanks for listening to me whine until you finally gave in and came to meet us!!

We had another bottle of champagne and talked and got to know each other, then it was time to find a place to eat. I can't actually remember the name of the place where we ended up, but the food was good, and the waitress was from.......of all places.......CALGARY!! We did some more walking after lunch and also took a little tour of London by taxi, then headed to Victoria Station where we were to part company with Ben and go our separate ways. We had some time to kill before catching the train, so of course we had to stop in at the pub (there is no lack of these in England).

We took the train and then hopped into a cab back to the pub where we went on the day of my arrival, this time so I could meet Rogers friends. I was introduced to Jim, Tony, Phil and I apologize, but the other names have escaped me. What a nice group of guys. Jim handed Roger a folder, and as Roger opened it, he walked away laughing hysterically. Inside was a booklet and the printed material inside was all about planning a wedding in Vancouver..... you guys are tooooooo much !! It was a real delight for me to meet Rogers friends and talk with them as we sat outside drinking beer and wine.

This handy little book, made by Jim, includes everything from Wedding Photographers, Limousines, Florists and Music to Job Opportunities in Vancouver and.... Roman Catholic Elementary Schools??? Still laughing!!

Jane and the children came up to the pub and joined us for a couple of drinks (the kids had pop), then Roger and I went back to the house with Jane and the kids for a seafood dinner. We ate dinner, and shortly after Jane and I sent Roger to bed and we stayed up and talked until Bob came stumbling home from the pub. I finally went to bed around midnight, exhausted as it was a very long day.

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