How much to mail these via Royal mail? Do you think corgis would get a discount?
Showing posts with label London. Show all posts
Showing posts with label London. Show all posts
Friday, August 12, 2016
Flat Corgi Friday - Royal Mail part 2
How much to mail these via Royal mail? Do you think corgis would get a discount?
Friday, August 5, 2016
Flat Corgi Friday - The other other Elizabeth
There's Elizabeth I - the Virgin Queen.
There's Queen Elizabeth II - the current monarch and corgi owner.
And there's the Queen Mother, who was also a corgi owner. This is the Queen Mother monument that stands on the Mall in London.
Tuesday, August 2, 2016
Look... Big Ben, Parliament
As I mentioned before, our flight was delayed arriving into Gatwick. This meant our original full day of sightseeing was shortened to a few hours. Prior to leaving for England, we paid and printed our tickets for the Gatwick Express train to Victoria station and so we were determined to use those tickets!
We boarded the train and settled into our 30 minute journey into London. I was immediately taken at the number of rail lines crisscrossing the land, up and over highways, right behind rows of homes, rushing through tunnels and fields. I was slightly jealous too... all these rail lines to traverse England, Scotland, and Wales, but back here in Ontario, not so much.
Once we arrived at the station, I took a few minutes to hunt down an attendant who would install the ramp so Mike could exit the train. We got our bearings and headed in the direction of Buckingham Palace. This was one of my must do stops on our journey, well for obvious reasons.
I had planned to stop in at the palace shop, but on account of our delay, the shop was closed. Oh well, maybe that's a good thing for the old pocketbook after all!
The first building we saw was the Royal Mews, which houses the horses, coaches, and livery used by the Royal family.
Continuing up Buckingham Palace Road, we came upon the palace itself.
Directly across from Buckingham Palace is The Victoria Memorial.
We continued past the palace and into Green Park, which houses the Canada Gate and the Canada Memorial. The Canada Memorial was erected in homage to the one million Canadians who served with the British forces in WWI and WWII.
We left the monument and headed up the Mall towards the Charles I statue and roundabout.
I didn't take any pictures here on account of the large police presence.
By the time we made it to Big Ben and Parliament, the sky was starting to darken.
We crossed the street and headed to Westminster Abbey. It had since closed for the day, but we were fortunate to take some exterior pictures.
By this time, we were starting to tire, so we headed back to Victoria station. We shared a large Cornish pasty for dinner before heading back out on the train to Gatwick.
What little we saw of London was lovely and we plan on returning... some day.
We boarded the train and settled into our 30 minute journey into London. I was immediately taken at the number of rail lines crisscrossing the land, up and over highways, right behind rows of homes, rushing through tunnels and fields. I was slightly jealous too... all these rail lines to traverse England, Scotland, and Wales, but back here in Ontario, not so much.
Once we arrived at the station, I took a few minutes to hunt down an attendant who would install the ramp so Mike could exit the train. We got our bearings and headed in the direction of Buckingham Palace. This was one of my must do stops on our journey, well for obvious reasons.
Who should I see on our way to the Palace
I had planned to stop in at the palace shop, but on account of our delay, the shop was closed. Oh well, maybe that's a good thing for the old pocketbook after all!
The first building we saw was the Royal Mews, which houses the horses, coaches, and livery used by the Royal family.
Continuing up Buckingham Palace Road, we came upon the palace itself.
Directly across from Buckingham Palace is The Victoria Memorial.
We continued past the palace and into Green Park, which houses the Canada Gate and the Canada Memorial. The Canada Memorial was erected in homage to the one million Canadians who served with the British forces in WWI and WWII.
We left the monument and headed up the Mall towards the Charles I statue and roundabout.
We turned down Whitehall and headed south towards Big Ben and passed Downing Street.
By the time we made it to Big Ben and Parliament, the sky was starting to darken.
We crossed the street and headed to Westminster Abbey. It had since closed for the day, but we were fortunate to take some exterior pictures.
Where Duchess Catherine entered on her wedding day.
By this time, we were starting to tire, so we headed back to Victoria station. We shared a large Cornish pasty for dinner before heading back out on the train to Gatwick.
What little we saw of London was lovely and we plan on returning... some day.
Tuesday, July 26, 2016
So you want to go to England?
Last year, Disney Cruise Line announced an inaugural 12 day British Isles cruise. Mike and I were excited and when the booking window opened, we called Disney to inquire about booking. Well, there was such a demand for the sailing that we ended up on a waiting list. The operator told us that there might be a chance we'd be able to sail because sometimes people book the cruise, but cancel a few days later. Ok then, this put us to the following Monday at the earliest. Monday morning came around and the phone rang. It was Disney, there had been a cancellation on an accessible room and were we still interested in the sailing?
The rest as they say is history.
The ship departed on a Sunday, so we opted to arrive in England the day before. Since we started cruising, we've been careful to always arrive at the embarkation location the day before. One never knows what happens when travelling and the last thing you want when you've spent a great deal of money on a cruise is to miss the sailing because of a delayed flight. (Can you tell where this is going?)
We arrived at the airport on Friday afternoon, completed our check-in process/security, and headed to our gate. We stopped at one of the information screens to double check the gate number when we noticed the departure time read not 9 pm, but 1.30 am. I was sure I was misreading the information because there was another Gatwick flight that night, surely that was the delayed flight! Nope, my phone dinged a few seconds later and it was WestJet informing us of the flight departure time change. We made our way to the gate and inquired with the staff. There was a "problem" with the plane and it was being serviced. At this point, they didn't know if the flight would actually leave on time or at any point between 9pm and 1.30 am, but the latest would be 1.30 am. I presumed if things took a turn, they could bring an alternate plane for us to leave at 1.30 am... at least I hoped. We both received a food voucher so we went to dinner.
By the time we took off, it was around 2 am. The WestJet staff were pleasant and were coming around with the drinks cart soon after take off, but that's the last thing I remember before I dozed off. This was a first for me. I never sleep on planes. I'm too anxious, wound up, and uncomfortable most flights that I sit there like an owl looking around at everyone else asleep. This time, pure exhaustion. I may have slept for 4 or 5 hours, I don't remember. There was still a few hours before we landed so I started in on Stephen King's Dr. Sleep.
The next thing we knew, we had landed and were exiting the plane. We made it to the area just outside of the plane's door where we stood to wait for Mike's wheelchair. A couple strollers came up, but no wheelchair. The head flight attendant came out and spoke to us and when she found out we were waiting for a wheelchair, she went into beast mode. She phoned someone and gave them an earful, spoke to the person bringing up items from the hold, and went down the gangway to the reps at the gate to find out about the wheelchair. Turns out the wheelchair was sent with the luggage and we'd be able to pick it up at baggage claim. They gave us a temporary wheelchair to get from the gangway to the airport where we were to wait further instruction.
We were greeted by an employee driving a glorified golf cart, who squeezed us into the rear compartment, then took us for a ride through the airport and straight to immigration. We got in line behind 3 other golf carts and waited our turn. We, (sorry bad pun), sailed through immigration when the officer found out we were sailing on the Magic. The golf cart delivered us to baggage claim, where we found Mike's wheelchair in good condition for being left on a carousel.
We grabbed our luggage and made our way to the Sofitel hotel, where we were booked for the night. We checked in and freshened up quickly before we headed back out to London.
The rest as they say is history.
The ship departed on a Sunday, so we opted to arrive in England the day before. Since we started cruising, we've been careful to always arrive at the embarkation location the day before. One never knows what happens when travelling and the last thing you want when you've spent a great deal of money on a cruise is to miss the sailing because of a delayed flight. (Can you tell where this is going?)
We arrived at the airport on Friday afternoon, completed our check-in process/security, and headed to our gate. We stopped at one of the information screens to double check the gate number when we noticed the departure time read not 9 pm, but 1.30 am. I was sure I was misreading the information because there was another Gatwick flight that night, surely that was the delayed flight! Nope, my phone dinged a few seconds later and it was WestJet informing us of the flight departure time change. We made our way to the gate and inquired with the staff. There was a "problem" with the plane and it was being serviced. At this point, they didn't know if the flight would actually leave on time or at any point between 9pm and 1.30 am, but the latest would be 1.30 am. I presumed if things took a turn, they could bring an alternate plane for us to leave at 1.30 am... at least I hoped. We both received a food voucher so we went to dinner.
By the time we took off, it was around 2 am. The WestJet staff were pleasant and were coming around with the drinks cart soon after take off, but that's the last thing I remember before I dozed off. This was a first for me. I never sleep on planes. I'm too anxious, wound up, and uncomfortable most flights that I sit there like an owl looking around at everyone else asleep. This time, pure exhaustion. I may have slept for 4 or 5 hours, I don't remember. There was still a few hours before we landed so I started in on Stephen King's Dr. Sleep.
The next thing we knew, we had landed and were exiting the plane. We made it to the area just outside of the plane's door where we stood to wait for Mike's wheelchair. A couple strollers came up, but no wheelchair. The head flight attendant came out and spoke to us and when she found out we were waiting for a wheelchair, she went into beast mode. She phoned someone and gave them an earful, spoke to the person bringing up items from the hold, and went down the gangway to the reps at the gate to find out about the wheelchair. Turns out the wheelchair was sent with the luggage and we'd be able to pick it up at baggage claim. They gave us a temporary wheelchair to get from the gangway to the airport where we were to wait further instruction.
We were greeted by an employee driving a glorified golf cart, who squeezed us into the rear compartment, then took us for a ride through the airport and straight to immigration. We got in line behind 3 other golf carts and waited our turn. We, (sorry bad pun), sailed through immigration when the officer found out we were sailing on the Magic. The golf cart delivered us to baggage claim, where we found Mike's wheelchair in good condition for being left on a carousel.
We grabbed our luggage and made our way to the Sofitel hotel, where we were booked for the night. We checked in and freshened up quickly before we headed back out to London.
Friday, July 15, 2016
Friday, July 8, 2016
Flat Corgi Friday - Looking for Her Majesty
When we had confirmed we were sailing on a British Isle cruise this year, I knew I had to figure out a way to get a picture of the Flat Corgis in front of Buckingham Palace. Furthermore, I wanted to figure out a way to get a picture of them on royal property!
I wonder if the real royal corgis have ever been out in this yard?
Sneaking behind the bars.
Thorgi and a couple flat corgis
Mission accomplished: Get the Flat Corgis onto royal property. (see second picture)
Wednesday, July 6, 2016
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