Day One – London!

We arrived in London around 11:00 a.m. Made it through customs without any problems. Grabbed our bags and took the Elizabeth Tube line to the Paddington station. The Paddington area is quite lively with lots of restaurants, pubs, and shops. A nice mix of tourists, locals, and English folks who catch trains from Paddington to places like Bath, Bristol, and the Cotswolds. Met some super-friendly English people as we were enjoying a pint at the pub after dinner. Also, met a guy who worked on a construction site nearby who was a Yankee fan ... could tell by his Yankee cap. (DAD – We are now counting how many Yankees hats we spot... we are up to five so far.)

After checking into our hotel and taking a short rest, we ventured out to explore Paddington. 

We walked into an old church (St. James's Sussex Gardens) nearby to appreciate the beautiful height of the rafters and stained glass windows.

Then took a nice long walk in Kensington Gardens. Such a beautiful outdoor space with nature, art, people, and off-leash dogs.

Birds on The Serpentine (lake)            "Physical Energy" by George Frederic Waltz

"The Arch" by Henry Moore                            Peter Pan sculpture

Had dinner at Paramount Lebanese restaurant just around the corner from our hotel. Best hummus ever! So smooth!

Pub updates: a "modern" British pub called The Bear (yes, actually) that got very busy with young urban professionals after work, where we watched anxiously and expectantly as a young man waited for a date who seemed to take a very long time to show up ... he finally did show up. 

And Sawyers Arms, the pub across the street from our hotel where we met the British folks mentioned above. Apparently a thing in London is that when you sit down outside a pub, people walking by will simply sit down with you and start talking to you.

(l) Michelle had a Negroni and Lisa opted for a drink with Rhubarb liqueur.                                     (r) Beef flavored crisps???