After our discussion, my parents came to Regent’s to take some of my books and warmer clothes that I won’t need in Paris and Spain. They decided to visit me for my birthday and we started out by checking out the Secret Garden in Regent’s Park. Then we took the tube to Westminster and I played Roger Bowdler and gave them a walking tour around the city. We went from the Westminster Tube Station down White Hall, through the military processional court, down the Royal Processional road and up to Buckingham Palace. There was a really large, well dressed crowd going into the palace and we found out that today was Princess Anne’s 65th birthday.
From Buckingham Palace, we walked up to Hyde Park and then to the Victoria tube stop. We took the Victoria line back to Westminster and then crossed the Thames to get to the South Bank. My family really wanted to go on the London Eye but I have a really crippling fear of heights. However, since I was now 20, they talked me into going on the giant Ferris wheel and we got tickets. I started getting a little more nervous while we were in line and then when we finally got into the glass compartment and they closed the doors. I was sitting in the middle of the capsule, gripping onto the bench while my little brothers were walking around and leaning on the edge of the windows. The view was really amazing, though, and my dad got a guide, which could tell us what the main sites were around us. I also continued playing tour guide and pointed out the Olympic Village, Greenwich and the financial district.
It was really great to spend all of that time with my family. I didn’t see them last year for my birthday (they were in Germany while I was in the US) but I definitely was missing them by the time they came to London.
NHL Free Agency also started yesterday and so my brothers and I are eagerly awaiting some good moves from our Blues.
After saying goodbye to my family, I went to the Regent’s sports bar and had my last dinner with Team London at our banquet. We had many toasts, birthday celebrations and played Steven Cushman’s famed drinking game called “Sh!t”. Matt Pesesky also finally arrived and he was very excited to find that we had hot showers and toilets with seats on them. His shoes smelled something fierce so we’ll have to engineer a solution to this problem (he brought foot powder so maybe that’ll help).
Now we are sitting on the Eurostar on our way to Paris. Matt just whipped Paul and I in rummy (which is unfortunate because it was his first ever game) and we’re starting to drift off to sleep as pass the seemingly endless English countryside.
Check back soon from Paris!
-Simon
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