Sunday was a nice day in London as well. We went to Abbey Road and took pictures crossing the road like the Beetles' album cover. Since that took a while with other people taking pictures and avoiding making drivers angry, it took a good hour or so. A few members of our group had to go back to the hotel to get their luggage because they had to be at the bus station by 1:00. The rest of us went to a Piccadilly Circus for lunch and shopping...the name is misleading because there was no circus. I got a little something from a souvenir shop and then we went in to a magical, 5-story toy store. When I went to the very top floor, I was in bliss! It was a mini Lego land complete with life-size William and Kate in wedding attire, plus Prince Harry and Prince Charles next to them. The life-size queen sat on her throne and I went inside a telephone booth that had a round dial-style telephone. Other features included Sherlock Holmes, Iron Man, a ninja, and many royal guards. Kayla and I were delighted by a magic show on the other side of the stairs, and we ended up buying a small kit. I can't wait to entertain Hunter and baby Charlotte with it!
We also went to a large store called SuperDry...they have them in all the major cities in Europe and I'm sure they have some in the states as well. I got some mint-colored shoes because I was tired of wearing dingy sneakers when the weather was nice.
Afterwards we took the tube to Covent Garden, also a misleading name because I never once saw a garden. It was another shopping area with a market for people's handicrafts. I met a man who was an expert with Coats of Arms, so I ordered one for Ward. He told me that Ward and Hannon were both very old names and you could tell by the simplicity of the shield. Newer names would have more elaborate symbols and mottos below. He could not find the old version of Wyse that I had seen before, Wysse, but he did find Wyss. I'm not sure if that applies. Since I think it's a German name, it would have been pronounced Vysse, so there may be more spellings. The man suggested that it might be Dutch. So I just got his email address on the order form and we can follow up on that when I get back home to where I have more resources.
On our way back to the hotel, we all stopped by the train station where Harry Potter was filmed going to Platform 9 & 3/4 on his way to Hogwarts. We took pictures with a cart like we were going to Hogwarts as well and that was pretty fun. Remembering a couple of Fandom quizzes I took, I knew that I would either be in Slytherin or Hufflepuff. I used both scarves in different pictures, but I personally prefer Slytherin. I think I would have knocked some respect into that blond kid...I don't remember his name at the moment.
After we got our bags, we waited at the bus station for a little while before we boarded a totally packed bus. Luckily, we got on first so we sat together in the back seats. I watched The Sword and The Stone with Laurie on her ipad and then we boarded a ferry to cross the English Channel. I had such a lovely time exploring the ship and going to the deck where we could see lights from both sides of the waterway. Others had a less than lovely time aboard the ferry, but I thought it was a wonderful experience. We arrived in Brussels a little bit before 7 and, already bright outside, I didn't try to go to sleep before class. I went down to the mini-mart, got a hot fresh pastry, and took about a 20 minute nap.
We also went to a large store called SuperDry...they have them in all the major cities in Europe and I'm sure they have some in the states as well. I got some mint-colored shoes because I was tired of wearing dingy sneakers when the weather was nice.
Afterwards we took the tube to Covent Garden, also a misleading name because I never once saw a garden. It was another shopping area with a market for people's handicrafts. I met a man who was an expert with Coats of Arms, so I ordered one for Ward. He told me that Ward and Hannon were both very old names and you could tell by the simplicity of the shield. Newer names would have more elaborate symbols and mottos below. He could not find the old version of Wyse that I had seen before, Wysse, but he did find Wyss. I'm not sure if that applies. Since I think it's a German name, it would have been pronounced Vysse, so there may be more spellings. The man suggested that it might be Dutch. So I just got his email address on the order form and we can follow up on that when I get back home to where I have more resources.
On our way back to the hotel, we all stopped by the train station where Harry Potter was filmed going to Platform 9 & 3/4 on his way to Hogwarts. We took pictures with a cart like we were going to Hogwarts as well and that was pretty fun. Remembering a couple of Fandom quizzes I took, I knew that I would either be in Slytherin or Hufflepuff. I used both scarves in different pictures, but I personally prefer Slytherin. I think I would have knocked some respect into that blond kid...I don't remember his name at the moment.
After we got our bags, we waited at the bus station for a little while before we boarded a totally packed bus. Luckily, we got on first so we sat together in the back seats. I watched The Sword and The Stone with Laurie on her ipad and then we boarded a ferry to cross the English Channel. I had such a lovely time exploring the ship and going to the deck where we could see lights from both sides of the waterway. Others had a less than lovely time aboard the ferry, but I thought it was a wonderful experience. We arrived in Brussels a little bit before 7 and, already bright outside, I didn't try to go to sleep before class. I went down to the mini-mart, got a hot fresh pastry, and took about a 20 minute nap.
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