The Otis family: August 2010

Sunday, August 8, 2010

Misc pics

The skyline

Chris, Big Ben, and the sun setting. Does it get any better then this?

We went to Wicked while in London. It was at the Apollo theatre that was literally 5 minutes from our B & B. It was so awesome. We tried to get discount tickets but they don't sell them. We were told that if we go to the theatre and get in line early before the box office opens we might be able to score FRONT row tickets for 25 pounds each. We got GREAT seats. Right up front. You could even see the actors spitting as they sung. I won't ruin the story line but lets just say it was nothing like I thought it would be and it blew away my expectations. So glad we went. I think that was some of the best spent money on the whole trip.

Leeds Castle

Henry VIII. He was a putz.

Trying to use the camera is always frustrating for me. It's so complicated that Chris has to change all the settings before I can take a picture. I should have brought "my" camera. It would have been more fun for ME to take pictures.

The happy couple. I sat for quite a while on the grass while Chris was "framing" pictures. It wasn't too unpleasant though because the weather was fabulous. So much better then what we left in Louisiana.

The mascot of Leeds castle is the black swan. I think Chris did an excellent job of framing this shot. Let me assure you it took FOREVER though.

Dover Castle and the cliffs of Dover

The castle and cliffs of Dover

That's France in the background.

On the shoreline with Dover castle and the cliffs in the background.

We bought a tour to visit some of the countryside we wouldn't be able to get too without a car. One of the places we stopped at was the coast to see the cliffs of Dover. It was beautiful. It was a clear day so we could even see France.

Cantebury Cathedral

Inside the cathedral

Playing around in the cloisters. Basically, just being silly.

Chris in the cloisters. It was such a beautiful day. Sunny and a light breeze. In comparison to Louisiana. Pure bliss. I even wore jeans.

Beautiful Stained glass window

Saturday, August 7, 2010

The London Eye, Tower of London, Buckingham Palace

The gates of Buckingham Palace

They pack some heat here in London

Changing of the Guards. There were HUGE crowds. Because this was the last day that the Queen was in residence before she left for Windsor castle this was a big deal. The red guards were replaced by RAF. This probably took at least 2 hours. The bands played fun songs such themes from Magnum PI, A-Team, etc...

Our picnic lunch in the park. We had to "rent" these chairs for 1.50 pound/chair. I didn't even care at this point. My feet and back were killing me and I needed somewhere to rest.

Our guard at the Tower of London

Our own personal beefeater. He was our tour guide for the Tower of London. He was great fun and since it was a free tour the price was right.

Tower of London

The view from the London Eye

Winsor Castle, St. Paul's Cathedral, Thames, Big Ben, and Parliment

The View

The London Skyline

This guy was playing the bagpipes on the Westminsted Bridge. I LOVE the bagpipes. It was awesome.

The view from the top.

The view from the very tippy top of St. Paul's. We climbed all of the 500+ steps to get to the top of the dome.

The Tube

Windsor Castle
To get to Windsor we took the tube and then the train. It was very easy and while it was crazy busy that day we really had an excellent time. We bought a beautiful china bowl that now I need a curio cabinet to display it to it's best ability.