Jolly Old England

We landed in Gatwick after an uneventful flight from Faro on British Airways. A quick call to the B&B from the terminal and 15 minutes later were were ensconced at the Gable End Guest House. If you are ever in Gatwick we would highly recommend staying here. Joseph and Mary (yes, that's their real names) run a wonderful little place with good sized rooms and a 5 star British breakfast - bacon, eggs, toast, sausage, beans and grilled tomatoes.

We walked down to the local pub - Ye Olde Six Bells - for a pint and dinner that night. It was nice to be back in Britain! In the morning after our huge breakfast we jumped on the Southern Train into London. Interestingly, it cost us only 15 pounds for 3 people and took the same amount of time as the Gatwick Express at 1/3 the cost. Go figure.

From Victoria Station we hopped on the tube and made our way to Tottenham Court Road before walking the last little bit to the 'world-headquarters' for Head Communications where Susan's brother Rob works. After coffee, the rest of the day was spent strolling around showing Aidan the sights in London - Hamley's toy store, Big Ben and Buckingham Palace. We caught up with Rob again in the evening and made our way on the train to Bletchley. It didn't take us long to settle into Rob and Nikki's town-house.

Saturday was spent talking and relaxing. A fair amount of drinking was involved as well as a fine BBQ. Nikki's mom Di came over to join the festivities. Michael and Rob finished the day sitting out on the deck smoking Cuban cigars and drinking cognac. Unfortunately for Michael, he didn't realize how much he was drinking and ended up getting stupidly drunk and sick to his stomach (first time in a decade). Not too swift, but it was funny to laugh at both of them the next day.

Sunday everyone piled into the car for a picnic at a local farm. It was lambing season and we had the opportunity to watch several lambs being born. Aidan ran around from one area to the next enjoying the petting zoo, jumping castle and pedal carts among other things. It was a very enjoyable way to spend a Spring afternoon in the south of England.

On Monday Rob took the day off work and the four of us went into London to visit the Imperial War Museum. Aidan was in heaven. He ran from exhibit to exhibit dragging one or the other of us along while the others tried to actually read the information. Tanks, rockets, planes, artillery, guns, model battlefields and two interactive displays - the Trench Experience and the Bombing of London Experience. The whole museum is really impressive (and for once is free!), but the two experience displays really stand out. They were realistic enough that the smells, sounds and shaking floor started to frighten Aidan. Of course as soon as we were out in the hallway he wanted to go right back in again.

Tuesday was the last full day of our trip spent in another country. It was low key affair. Both of us felt that the adventurous part of our journey ended when we left Africa, so this was more of an encore farewell. Aidan played most of the morning, after which we took to a bus to Milton Keynes mall. We spent a pleasant afternoon looking through the stores and getting much needed haircuts. We met up with Rob later that evening and had our last overseas dinner at a very nice Indian restaurant.

The next day Nikki's mom Di was nice enough to drive us to Heathrow for our journey home. Visiting Rob, Nikki and Di in Britain was a really nice way to end our trip, and we're glad we got the chance to visit.