WEATHER: Tops 20C – Lows 7C
HIGHTLIGHT OF THE DAY : Working out the tube system ( I know it’s not hard but still…)
BUMMER OF THE DAY: Not being able to get my Bernstar jump at Stonehenge ( not from lack of trying)
BUYS OF THE DAY: Tuna and prawn salad for dinner from Mark and Spence 3.99GBP
According to my tour voucher we were going to be on the go for 10 hours and 40 minutes. A massive day, we covered a lot of ground but it was a great day.
Not knowing how long it was going to take to get to Victoria Coach Station I headed out an hour before I needed to be there, to make sure I had enough time. I am on the Bakerloo line, so I needed to change stations along the way to jump onto the District or Circle line to get me where I needed to get to. My first obstacle was the ticket machine would not accept my 20GBP ( it’s an old one ) so the station guy let me through and said just pay at the other end. I was just hoping now I would not get spot checked on the train and then get fined as I didn’t have a ticket. At Embankment station I need to change lines and the confusing thing was knowing if I was heading Eastbound or Westbound, but lucky enough they have maps on the wall, so you can work out which way you are going. The whole system is pretty well set up and I know it’s easy to navigate the tube, but it does take some getting used to and there is some sense of achievement after navigating the tunnels to finally arrive at your destination.
I got to the tour starting point fine, and I am glad I set out so early as I only had a spare 15 minutes. Victoria Coach Station is very busy, there are busses pulling in and departing all the time, like a well oiled machine. We left a little late, but after 1 hour and 30 minutes we arrived into Windsor. We walked 10 minutes to Windsor Castle, the oldest still inhabited castle in the world. The Queen still spends week-end here at this residence, so security is quite high, with your bags getting scanned before you get onto the grounds and security in the castle is at a discreet distance. There are headsets available ( included in your entrance fee) that will explain the castle to you. They are really worth getting, some people forfeited the headphones that came with them and just listened to the little machine to their ear. What are they worried about catching from some foam on the headsets? Whatever. I have to say the highlight was the Knights room in the State Apartments. They have a plaque covering the walls and roof of every knight that has been knighted ever. It is a very impressive hall and is still used for functions today. It can fit a table that seats 160 people! After 2 hours here back in the bus to Stonehenge.
Stonehenge was another 1 hour and 30 minutes away. I have been to Stonehenge before, but it was over 10 years ago, so I thought it would be nice to go back. No surprise it hasn’t changed any, but we certainly had a better day than when I was last here. I really wanted to get a Bernstar jump here, but I am sad to say after asking 4 groups of people and 5 people having a go – I was NOT successful in getting the shot. I don’t know why it is so hard, you just press the button as I have it on burst mode that takes 15 pics with one press. In their defense if you don’t push it all the way it only takes 5 or 6 shots and not the full 15, missing the jump obviously. Well it wasn’t from lack of trying and I have a few semi-jumps, so I will just need to pick the best one I have to load in my album. I did get one from Windsor castle, but that only took the second person to get the right shot!
Another 1 hour and 40 minutes found us in the university city of Oxford. This place had a great vibe about it. We got 1.5 hours here, to walk around and have a look. I think Oxford would definetley be a place I would come back to again to spend some more time here. Very pretty with a lot of café’s and people riding around the city on bicycles and a beautiful pedestrian mall.
It was a busy day, and getting back into London at 6.50pm, a very long day. I went and got some dinner from Marks and Spencer and then caught the tube home. I have tomorrow morning free to have a walk around, I am thinking around Picadilly Circus, as my walking tour tomorrow leaves from that area and then this evening I have the London Eye with a glass champagne waiting for me. MY last day in London tomorrow, as I fly very early on Wednesday morning to Rome.
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