Well I slept better than I though I would. I was a tad scared for awhile, especially as I heard a thud outside on the balcony but unless Spider-Man was coming to visit I had nothing to worry about. Actually, I’d have nothing to worry about even if Spider-Man was coming to visit.

I forgot to mention yesterday that when we open the balcony doors, the smell of garlic and peri peri wafts in. I didn’t like it yesterday but I did today!

Walked to Spitalfields Market but the vendors were not set up yet. (9:30am is not that early to be out and about on a Sunday in Melbourne). It was a strange walk because it seemed so deserted. A few times I thought ‘what am I doing here on my own’ but then I hit Brick Lane and the tourists were starting to show up and I felt safer! 

Fascinating area. Has always been a place of immigration and today is no exception. Mosques and Pakistani eating places abound. 

Found a cafe open and enjoyed coffee and breakfast. Walked back through the now open market and headed back to the house to wait for the boys.

I got to hear how Harry dropped his phone in the toilet on the train 😂

Tower of London

The best history lesson a kid could have! The performers took us through 3 events in English history and asked us to be the garrison of the Tower. At the end of the presentations we were asked to decide which event actually succeeded in breaching the Tower. Turns out it was the peasants revolting about the poll tax. Yes the peasants have always been revolting. (Dad joke). It brought to mind year 8 history in my first year of teaching where one of my students dressed up as a poll tax collecter on Medieval Day 😂 

The place drips history and you could spend a whole day there. I was particularly moved by the place were the scaffold used to be. There is a memorial there with the names of 10 executed prisoners including Anne Boleyn and this poem:

“Gentle visitor pause a while, where you stand death cut away the light of many days. Here jewelled names were broken from the vivid thread of life. May they rest in peace while we walk the generations around their strife and courage under these restless skies.”

http://www.culture24.org.uk/history-and-heritage/royal-history/art39959

Selfies with the guards

Tower Bridge 

A short walk to and then over one of the most iconic buildings in London. Josh has a great time with his fancy pants camera! Stopped where I had that great gin yesterday and got another. Looks good next to Josh’s fancy pants camera.

Trafalgar Square

Where have all the pigeons gone? I talked it up to Harry! I told him he could have pigeons all over him but they are not there anymore. Josh reminded me that it was 27 years ago… At least Nelson’s Column will never change. 

Fun fact: Nelson died at sea but they wanted to bring his body back for a state funeral so they popped it in a vat of brandy. Legend has it the sailors continued to drink it too. Now they have a saying when asking for a drink, you tap two fingers on the bar. It’s called “tapping the Admiral”.

Piccadilly Circus
Piccidilly is such an unusual name and its origin is interesting. At one stage the area was a field and people would pick lavender. Lavender was called ‘dilly’.  You would go to pick the dilly – Piccadilly! The old nursery rhyme makes sense now!

“Lavenders blue dilly dilly, Lavenders green dilly dilly, when I am king dilly dilly, you shall be queen”. 

Josh wanted to go here just so he could use the Wayne’s World 2 quote “What a shitty circus” on his check in. So immature 😂

We waited at a bus stop in Holburn for about 12 hours (hyperbole folks) but the app said it was the quickest way apparently. About 50 million no. 25 buses went past but the 252 that we wanted was MIA. At what point do you give up and stop waiting? Turns out an hour. We ended up in an Uber. And after nearly 22,000 steps today, I needed a good sit down. 

Chick’ n Sours

On Josh’s must eat at list. The sticky wings were so delicious Harry ordered another round. The drinks were pretty good too! 

Good night! Foodie Monday tomorrow!