I am so sorry that there has been a hiatus on the blog for the last few weeks. There is really no excuse, except that I have been lazy! But there is quite a lot of news to catch you all up on so here goes.
The big news, I guess, is that Frans has started his REAL job. As some of you know, he was working temporarily at a removal company packing and carrying boxes and furniture. He enjoyed the work because it was nice to get out the house, do some physical labour and meet new and interesting people. But he was only ever going to be working there for a few weeks while he was waiting for the contract for the permanent job to come through. So Frans's job at The Royal Bank of Scotland started on the 7th of April, exactly two weeks after we moved into our new flat. He works in "The City" as the center of London, and particularly the banking sector, is often referred to. It takes him about 40 minutes on the underground to get to work in the morning and home in the evening. He's enjoying it at the moment, although he's still brand new to the project and there is a lot still to figure out.
While Frans was waiting for his security clearance to be granted so he could start working and I was still on school holidays over Easter, we had a few days where we were both free and we could do a few more touristy activities! We spent one day exploring the center of London. We started by going to see the
Changing of the Guards at Buckingham palace. It was an eye-opening experience, partly because the demonstration was really impressive but also because there were SO MANY people there to watch! I have added a few photos we took but they don't really do the parade justice. Unfortunately, we didn't have a great view and so we didn't stay for the entire 45-minute parade.
 |
Watching the parade through the massive
gilded gates of Buckingham Palace |
 |
| A short video of the guards |
 |
| The guards as they arrive at Buckingham Palace |
We then walked down The Mall from Buckingham palace towards Trafalgar square, passing across The Parade ground and spotting some on duty horse guards. At Trafalgar Square, we spent some time enjoying the fountains and massive bronze lions before heading to the National Gallery. It was beautiful, quiet and grand in the Gallery and I was so excited to see one of my favourite painting of all: Geroge Stubbs' Whistle Jacket.
 |
| Walking across The Parade Grounds |
 |
| The National Gallery entrance as seen from Trafalgar Square |
 |
| The beautiful fountains at Tafralgar |
 |
| Fountains in the pools at Trafalgar |
From Trafalgar Square we wandered towards Leicester Square to eat our picnic lunch. There were quite a few people with the same idea and the pigeons were having a good meal from the scraps that were dropped. From there we made our way to Hyde Park for a walk and it was really lovely to see the famous grounds. There were lots of gardeners busy at work preparing the grass and flower beds for spring and summer. I can imagine that the lawns will be packed with people soaking up the sun as soon as it is warm enough.
It is such fun living in a city where you can, on one day be a normal local, travelling to work, and the next transform into a tourist! This entire day of activities cost us almost nothing! We had already bought our travel cards for the month which meant that we didn't spend anything on transport. None of the sights we went to had an entrance fee and we took our own picnic lunch. Who said London had to be expensive?
 |
| A copy of Whistlejacket by George Stubbs |
