After our time in Leeds, we said good-bye to Bara and Tim and Terry and headed back to London. Since the day was primarily spent on the train, I don’t have many photos, but suffice it to say we had a great time on the train doing things like napping and playing cards and reading.

Upon our arrival to London, we boarded the Tube and headed to Kensington (Earl’s Court stop) and got to our hotel for the next two nights, The London Lodge Hotel. It was a very nice hotel and the staff were super friendly and helpful. Sadly, Erik realized that in addition to leaving his jacket in Leeds, his passport was also still there. Rachel quickly made arrangements to head back up to Leeds to collect Erik’s passport because there was no guarantee the Post would make it in time due to the weekend. We sent Rachel off and then headed out to explore Kensington Gardens and Hyde Park and Harrod’s.

Kensington Palace was closed when we got there, but here are some photos of us outside the gate (except Grandpa who hates all royal families):

 

After exploring Harrod’s a bit, we were hungry! So we stopped at the closest place we could find which happened to be an Italian restaurant. We all ordered some delicious pasta, except Grandpa who ordered a club sandwich.
Here’s a baby octopus from Dad’s dinner:

The next day was Sunday and we went to the Matins service at Westminster Abbey. It was enjoyed by all, especially Mom, Dad and Jonathan. Erik and I were a little bored but Jonathan sat between us so we didn’t cause a ruckous. After church, we went back to the hotel where we collected Grandpa after Rachel’s arrival and we all headed to the National Gallery to see some art. Wow, that place is amazing! We spent most of the afternoon there with a little break for some sandwiches from Pret.

We went back to the hotel and dropped off the parents and Grandpa and the kids headed out for a curry! It was great fun for the four of us to adventure a bit in London. We went to Masala Zone in Covent Garden.

Rather than curry, we had thalis and mango lassi.

And then, Erik remembered he’s the youngest sibling and an Amuricahn, so he did this:

 

After that delightful display, we wandered to Leicester Square for some gelato. It was delish.

We hung out a bit and made our way to Piccadilly Circus and then back to the hotel for one last night of sleeping before heading back to the States.

Monday morning we got up and had breakfast at the hotel (it was delicious as well) and then headed out for some souveniers from the trip and so Rachel could see Harrod’s.

Here’s one last family photo:

We did our final packing up, headed to the tube stop and got to the airport in plenty of time to have a late lunch/early supper before our flight. Luckily, there was a Wagamama at the airport! I heart Wagamama so Jonathan and I ate there whilst Mom, Dad, Erik and Grandpa enjoyed some other airport fare.

Then we went to the gate to board the plane. Except the gate wasn’t really the gate! It was just a stairwell! Then we had to RUN to the gate, which againwasn’t the gate, but an entry point for a shuttle bus! I was very glad we made it onto that shuttle, especially since the rest of the fam was already to the plane. Upon arriving to the plane, Jonathan kindly put my backpack into the overhead bin, then promptly smashed his thumb meat. It was really sad.
Here’s what it looked like:

So we said, “See ya later England! Thanks for the good times and the injury!” and sat back for our flight home. Oh boy, was I glad we were able to take such an enjoyable trip together. The Eskesens and McPhersons make a good traveling team! Where will we go next? I’m not sure but Grandpa has mentioned this.