Day 16: Sep. 19, 2018 - Windsor Castle, British Museum, Rules

Today will be a busy day! We meet the family early in the morning at VQ (Vingt-Quatre), near Notting Hill Gate Station. After finishing up breakfast, we head to Waterloo Station on the underground to take the train to Windsor Castle. The ride goes through London south of the Thames. There is a lot of building going on here, just like the rest of London. (and just like Seattle!)

We get to Windsor, head up the hill and enter the castle.

Edward IV Tower

We spend a delightful couple of hours touring the castle. This is where Prince Harry and Meghan Markle got married last spring. We tour the state rooms as well as St. George’s Chapel. Lots of interesting things to see here.

After the castle, we are thirsty, so the kids find a quiet local pub, the Horse & Groom! Delightful place to hoist a few. After the refreshments, we head back down the hill to the other train station (to Slough) and head back to London, to Paddington.

Eliot is interested in other things, so goes his own way (he has seen the British Museum on a prior trip). The rest of us head to Bloomsbury to that quintessential British institution, the British Museum.

The British Museum

We take the tourist’s approach and decide to see the top 10 items on display. Our quest takes us to most sections of the museum and we see some really interesting stuff, including the Rosetta Stone and some antiquities from Egypt, Iraq, Greece.

The Lewis Chessmen

After the whirlwind tour, we head back home for a brief rest before dinner. During the ride, we (Sarah, actually) get reservations at Rules, the oldest continuously working restaurant in London.

We meet up again and take the underground to Covent Garden just in time for our reservation. This place has been here since 1798, and the décor looks it! There are mementos from every period on the shelves and hanging on the walls. This place is a real hoot! Hunter orders a Guiness and it comes served in a silver mug:

Guiness Served in a Silver Mug

We all order cocktails/drinks, then get down to business. Our orders covere a wide range of food: Venison Carpaccio, Barnsley Chop, Chicken & Ham Pie, Escalope of Veal, Sirloin Steak, Venison Stroganoff.

This night is a little extravagant, but it is a most enjoyable treat. We all head home stuffed and happy.