After sunset, we went back to Bianca’s and gathered an overnight bag. We were to travel by train to Kent for an overnight stay at Bianca’s friends’ house to get up early on Saturday – 5 AM – to watch the Australian Football Grand Final. I was outnumbered by two Australian girls! Only kidding. Spending Saturday in Kent checking out the English countryside sounded great to me. Besides, I only got up early enough to see the second half. After the football, the Australians took a nap and I got to know Tatiana, wife of Tim (another Australian and instigator of football watching). Both Tim and Tatiana were so welcoming and Tatiana became our tour guide for the day.
She drove us to Ightham Mote, a medieval manor dating back to 1320 and restored from 1989-2004. We had a tour of the inside of the building and a walk through the garden. It was another picture perfect day with blue sky and bright sunshine, which made the trip even better.
After leaving Ightham Mote, we enjoyed a lovely pub lunch complete with glasses of white wine and delicious meals. Fueled and recharged, we headed for Hever Castle, the childhood home of Anne Boleyn. It looked spectacular against the bright blue sky, the beginning of autumn having turned the vine on the face of the castle bright red. We walked through a maze just outside the entrance, and I managed to keep my panic to a minimum. I had to squelch many thoughts like “What if I get thirsty and can’t get out?” and “What if it gets dark and we still haven’t found our way out?” However, my trusty friend Janelle employed a strategy that won us first place in a competition against Bianca and Tatiana. Nothing but left turns. It worked, and I didn’t even get thirsty. Next we walked through the gardens and down to the lake. It was really something to wander the same grounds that Anne Boleyn herself once strolled.
Tatiana dropped us off at the train station, and we split up from Bianca in order to get to Victoria back in London, where we had tickets for Wicked. We were both so tired, and a stop at Starbucks for sandwiches and coffee hit the spot. We rushed over to the theatre and saw a great show. Wicked was not, in fact, a prequel to The Wizard of Oz. It was kind of an interpretation of how things could have happened behind the scenes we saw in the famous old movie. How the Wicked Witch became wicked, and what could have happened. Anyway, it was a great show, and we happened to catch the third birthday of Wicked in London. To celebrate, they had balloons and streamers fall from the ceiling, which made the event for Janelle and I even more special. After the show, we went for a drink at the Shakespeare pub and called it a night. We got back to Bianca’s and fell into our couch and air mattress exhausted.
The next morning, Bianca’s flat mate Lisa joined the three of us for a trip to Camden. The markets were amazing, and our lunch was good too. We saw all kinds of people, as they were out by the hundreds in the gorgeous weather, weaving through the colorful, eye-opening stalls of endless goods and crafts. I think the Camden markets used to cater to punk-type people, but now all kinds of folks get out there for the good deals. I bought a skirt, a ring, and some purses that are made out of zippers and you can unzip them all the way to one long zipper. They’re so much fun!
As our long hours in Camden came to an end, Lisa and Bianca went home and despite our aching feet (and my nearly crippled knees), Janelle and I went to Leicester Square, Covent Garden and Trafalgar Square, where I got a great dusk view of the Houses of Parliament. We got back on the tube and headed back toward Clapham, where we met Bianca for a Thai dinner. We walked home after dinner and hit the sack shortly after we planned our London exit the next day.
We ended our trip to London on Monday with a walk down the South Bank of the Thames, a wander through the Tate Modern and finally a pizza lunch before heading for the train station.
This time, at the airport, my suitcase got tested for size (love Ryanair!) before I got to board the plane. Luckily, after some creative shifting around and crushing some stuff, I passed the test and got to carry on for free. I was feeling thankful that would be my last Ryanair flight. Aerlingus trips from here on out! Despite the suitcase test making me grumble a bit, the trip to London was lots of fun, and I found myself wishing I had more time there. You can never finish London. There’s way too much to see and do.
