The Munce Family: London!

Our much anticipated summer adventure has finally arrived and we are so excited to be on a three week European adventure. We had planned to go to Spain but were able to get an extra week of vacation so decided to add in Paris and London, and it was absolutely worth it.

Our adventure started in London. We had a minor flight delay but nothing that curbed our itinerary too much. We arrived at Heathrow and took the London Express right into Paddington and off to our rental, this time in Chelsea, on the most charming little off-street where the homes are painted in different pastels, ours was green, with a pink door. We dropped our belongings and had pizza a shop around the corner called Cinquencento Pizzeria. They had cokes and sprites and wines and it was just what we needed before a brief jet-lagged siesta, which we all fully enjoyed. We woke around 4pm to sunny skies (something we aren't used to in London as our last couple of stays have been in the wintertime), it was an absolute treat. We went for a long walk across the Themes and into Battersea Park where we found snacks and simply meandered. We came back for dinner at Polpo in the Duke of York Square, our first two Italian meals of probably 100 over the next few weeks. We returned to the airbnb and had a pretty good night of sleep all around.

The following day we had organized a family bike tour through London Bike Rentals that took us to all of the main spots in London. Our guide was great and traffic was actually minimal as there had been a race that morning through London so many of the main roads had been blocked off. We saw Big Ben, Parliament, the Palace, rode through Hyde Park and ended up at The Albert Memorial before returning. It was so much fun with minimal complaints, it was a really cool way to see London. We grabbed a drink and a snack when the tour was over and then made our way over to Bond Street to check out the shops and decor. After that, we returned to our rental for some quiet time before going to Pizza Express, Dave's favorite for dough balls and pizza. On our way to dinner, we noticed all sorts of activity at a local pub and realized England was playing Spain in the Euro Cup. We hurried with our food and found a pub with an open table and watched part of the game, including a goal for both teams. Unfortunately England lost, but it was lots of fun to be a part of it.

The next day, we followed our noses. Piper wanted to do a bit of shopping so we wandered to Harrods from our rental, it was a 25 minute lovely walk through neighborhoods and shops and restaurants, a great way to get the lay of the land. When we arrived at the shopping area, I had a notification from the West End about our upcoming show and realized I had my dates off and we indeed had show tickets for that evening. We cut the shopping short (much to Dave's delight ;) and returned to get ready. We had dinner in a pub near the Seven Dials with great ambiance but terrible service and then walked to the theatre for Mama Mia, it was SO fun, we all enjoyed every minute. We capped off the night with ice cream at Udderlicious and made our way home.

We spent our last full day in London taking in some sights. We took the Tube to the Tower Bridge and came upon it from an unfamiliar direction, so when I saw it, it literally took my breath away. We found a secret spot to take up close photos of it from the water and spent quite a bit of time down there just enjoying the views and hunting for rocks. Then we grabbed a glass of wine and snacks at The Vault, a trendy bar located under the Tower Bridge. We returned home to pack and then walked to find a burger before an early bedtime in anticipation of a travel day tomorrow.

Highlights- Thai Rice, Simon, the Nike Store, the Apple Store, the Wine and Food store down the street from our rental (Greta's dream come true), and the balcony for two at our apartment where Dave and I spent hours regrouping after the days out and dreaming of what lies ahead. We simply love London.

Photo overload...