Just a Few Firsts

It will be our families first trip to London to sightsee  - the boys first ride on a train (not sure how this has not happened before now) - our first time to an English Premiere League Game - and I am sure we could keep the list going.  We left our flat at 6:30 am on what was supposed to be the hottest day of the year in London - when I checked the weather it said 88 degrees and 0 percent chance of rain - really??  I was hoping for cooler temps but what can you do.

Worthing train station

bright eyed and bushy tailed

the Adur river at low tide

Ro just chillin at Waterloo station

the London Eye

Dill and Jen catching up

great to meet up with family in different parts of the world - next time baby Ella has to come

Big Ben

OH silly Mike

Psst - this is where they keep the money

very regal

Buckingham Palace (I cut the bottom of the photo off to avoid looking at the hundreds of people that stand at the gate)

not sure how this guy liked the unusually high temps

time for some football (soccer for the yanks)

not sure how some fit through these

Cravens Cottage was built in 1904

the players taking the pitch

this guy was anxious to see how crazy this would get

seating in this stadium is very planned and particular I guess you could say - our tickets were in the away teams section and marked neutral.  if you have ever read or seen anything about English Football you would understand the reasoning behind this.  Once you are in your area you cannot get to the home teams seating - the fans also enter through different doors.

we sat in the stands that say Fulham (the home team) - it was very loud and rowdy - even though the away team lost the singing was non stop and we stood at least half the game - the boys heard a few choice words and Jenny and I were entertained by some language that would be very frowned upon in the US - but this is their country - their sport and it was not meant in a negative way to the female sex so that is when you role with it and enjoy the atmosphere and the experience.  The fans were wonderful and appreciated that Americans would come and visit their country and be so "interested" in their sport - it was a very positive experience and one we would do many times over.

Cravens Cottage from the road with fam - after all the crowds left

the doors for the home team

we walked along the South Bank of the River Thames before we headed home on a sleepy train ride

it was great to see family - great to figure out the trains - great to get our first taste of London - great to experience an English Premier Football Match -but we were all very happy to step off the train in Worthing and smell the cool ocean air and walk through town in the dark to our flat - it just confirmed we made the right choice in picking Worthing for our time in the UK.  We will go back to London when it cools off and make a list of free museums and maybe the aquarium for the boys.

Thank you Kevin and Jenny for an awesome time in London!!!!!!!!!