After nearly three months in Morocco, we were ready for a change—which is a very good thing, as our 90-day visa-free period in Morocco was nearly up.
We were looking forward to continuing our travels in Europe, and had nearly completed our 90 days outside of Europe’s Schengen Area, but not quite. The way the rules work, if you spend the max 90 days (out of 180) in the Schengen Area, then spend the max 90 days in Morocco and want to re-enter Schengen, you’re left one day short, due to overlapping travel days being counted in each zone.
Our Euro-African Journey (So Far...)
That means, visiting a third country outside of Morocco and Schengen Europe. This is getting harder and harder to do with each passing year, as more and more European countries join Schengen.
As it’s not really feasible or permitted to cross land borders into Morocco’s neighboring countries, we were left with only options that required a flight.
The UK and Ireland offered cheap flights, but they are expensive countries to travel around in once you get there. Plus, that would put us far from where we were keen on exploring (Eastern Europe).
Tunisia was a possibility, but expensive flights. The Balkans were also a possibility, but also didn’t put us where we wanted to be.
Eventually, we landed on a week in London. Until we discovered we would arrive right in the middle of the UK/Europe Easter holiday break (all schools across the region get this off). But in the end, there was no better option and we decided to take our chances.
This might very well be the most expensive week of this whole journey, so we made sure to get our money’s worth. We logged some 60 miles of walking over seven days, and averaged 20,000 steps per day. By the time we left the city, we were exhausted (but in a good way).
Yes, the city and most attractions were pretty darn crowded. But we lucked out with some really great (and very Un-London weather) with temps reaching into the 80s on a few days—lots of sunshine, no measurable rainfall.
Both boys were really excited about this leg of our journey, but Noe was the most excited. He’s been hoping that we’d make our way here for years, and counting the days since we told the boys we were headed to London a couple months ago.
While we were in the RV, Noe developed a deep interest in British history and a fascination with the Royal Family. In our last month in Morocco, he just happened to get into the Harry Potter series as well, which made it all the more exciting for him.
Last summer, Lori and I also learned from DNA spit tests that ~40% of the boys’ ancestry can be traced to the British Isles. This made our time in the UK extra special for the boys, given that we don’t often visit places where people look like them, let alone share some ancestry.
All that to say, it was a perfect time to visit. I’m positive Noe’s interest has reached Peak British, and I’ve never seen him so excited for every little thing we saw and did (which is saying something, because he’s generally pretty excited about sightseeing).
And we got to see pretty much everything. Lucky kid.
Riley was also thrilled to be here, mostly because he could finally speak English with other kids at the playground (and developed a pretty convincing British accent along the way, as well!).
We bid adieu to Morocco and boarded a 3.5-hour flight from warm and sunny Marrakesh to gloomy London (no surprises there). Fortunately, the gloom was short-lived.
I wasn’t crazy about having to take a Ryanair flight. Even with all our travels, we only average a couple of flights per year (usually to get back to the U.S. for our annual visit). so when we do fly, I get kind of picky.
But it was a nonstop flight and the price was right, even with our baggage and the fees they pile on (they make you pay for seats if you’re traveling with kids!). It was cramped and no frills, but better than 90% of the U.S. domestic flights I’ve flown in my life, so no complaints.
And, we got a nice view of Lagos and the Algarve out our window. November seems like a long time ago…
This was our first flight since arriving in Lisbon in early October, and will be our last until we fly back to the U.S. in August. From London, we plan to make our way to Istanbul all by rail, then around Turkey by whatever means possible.
Our flight arrived into London-Stansted in the late afternoon. Stansted Airport is nowhere near London (it should just be called Stansted Int’l Airport), but we knew this when we booked, fortunately.
Rather than fight traffic into the city in the evening, we figured we’d spend a night near the airport and make our way into London in the morning.
After checking into our hotel, we thought we’d take a walk around the neighborhood. Our first stop was an M&S Simply Food, which I’m fairly certain did not exist when I studied in Northern England for a semester in 2000.
After three months in a conservative Muslim-majority country where alcohol was taboo and very hard to find, I was shocked to be greeted by this…
The best part might just be these little guys…
A Sake Spritz (which is delicious, by the way), and a double-shot G&T. The weirdest thing about it all is that the government slaps big taxes on any beer with an ABV above 3.4% (another BIG change from 25 years ago), but these little guys, not so much it seems.
The next day, we made the trip down to the East London borough of Welling, a place I probably would have never known existed if it weren’t for our staying here for a week.
Accommodation in London is notoriously expensive. To make a week in London work for us during the Easter holiday break, we had to be flexible and get a bit creative.
After an exhaustive search, I managed to find a small, yet comfortable mother-in-law apartment in a commuter town with easy access to the rail system. A ten-minute walk to the rail station and a 30-minute ride on the Southeastern Line gets us into Central London. Plus, we got a more “local” experience of what it’s like to live in London for a lot of people.
Our home for the week was in an add-on of a suburban duplex owned by a family of four who happened to have a 10-year-old and 8-year-old. They’re on vacation this week, so the boys didn’t get to meet them until the day we left, but that also meant we had full access to the fun-filled backyard.
After three months in Morocco, Lori and I had a hankering for some good English pub food (and a pint or two).
We headed to the neighborhood pub and ordered up a delicious and hearty steak and ale pie, a local Hazy IPA, and of course, a perfectly-poured Guinness.
The last time I visited the UK was in the spring of 2001, so it’s been a little while. It’s absolutely surreal being back after 25 years.
So much has changed (including how you order and pay at most pubs…through apps and contactless, etc.). And pubs carry a much wider selection of beers (but that’s true for a lot of places these days).
In a way, I was hoping to walk into a pub, have a face-to-face exchange with a no-nonsense bartender and see the likes of Carling, Carlsberg, Stella, Kronenbourg, Fosters, and Guinness Extra Cold on tap, but that frigate has long sailed, it seems.
The next morning, we hit the ground running. It wasn’t our intention, but holiday closures and crowds forced our hand.
We were up bright and early to catch our train into the City. It was a bit complicated figuring out how to pay for the boys, but we managed it in the nick of time before our train left without us.
It feels nice to be traveling by rail again.
The boys both noticed The Shard before we did.
The skyline of London has also changed dramatically since I was here last. I never associated London with modern high-rises. These days, they’re everywhere.
Still, glimpses of decades past still remain on the horizon.
We dove right into London sightseeing with the Grandaddy of London landmarks: The Tower of London. We got there right at opening and a huge line had already formed.
I first visited London (and the Tower of London) in 1996, and I was pleased to see that not much has changed here. It is, after all, nearly a thousand years old, so I should hope not!
I’m pretty sure back then that you were able to enter through the main gate. Now, they have an entire side structure devoted to queuing.
More than anything, Noe was looking forward to setting eyes on the Crown Jewels. You can’t take pictures inside, but I can tell you that Noe must have taken the people mover nearly a half dozen times to make sure he got a good look of ALL of King Charles’ best bling.
Yeah, I’m pretty sure none of those glass buildings were there in ’96.
The Tower of London (which actually refers to the entire fortress complex, not just the infamous central tower), was commissioned by William the Conqueror, himself, back in the 1070s to show everyone the Normans were now in charge.
A handful of ravens are considered the permanent guardians of the Tower of London. According to legend, if the six resident ravens ever leave the fortress, the Tower, the monarchy, AND the entire British kingdom will fall.
Enough Brits believe in the prophecy that the birds are fiercely protected by royal decree (with a couple of spares on hand, just in case).
You can explore all levels of the central tower, which is mostly filled with armaments and suits of armor (including King Henry VIII’s gigantic suit). The boys loved it.
It was recommended to us to join one of the free tours given by one of the resident Yeoman Warders (Beefeaters).
In addition to being cheeky tour guides, every Beefeater is also a retired, high-ranking veteran of the British Armed Forces (they must have completed at least 22 years of active military service and hold a certain rank). They live with their families (if they have one) inside the fortress walls of the Tower.
As we were wrapping up our visit, things really started to get busy. It was a good time to leave.
The Tower Bridge is just down the street from the Tower of London, so it seemed like a good next sightseeing stop. But first, some lunch.
These pods are also new since my last visit—so you can sit along the River Thames and enjoy the great outdoors when it rains…
So far, we’ve lucked out with the weather. The day started out overcast, but the sun is starting to poke out.
Lori planned this entire day, which was no small feat, considering at least three of the day’s activities had to be booked days in advance.
Our division of labor these days (in terms of travel) is that I research and book accommodation and figure out transport, and she researches/books attractions, and plans busy days.
For lunch, she had us making a stop at Borough Market for some famous sausage rolls, a brisket sandwich, and coffee. Pretty straightforward, right? Turns out, everyone else had the same idea.
It was a madhouse and took way longer than it should have for grab-and-go food. But the sausage rolls and sandwich were huge and delicious.
The coffee was also topnotch, but because I had the audacity to ask for a take-away, I had to pay a £5 deposit on a reusable cup. I had already stood in line for a while and we are on a time crunch, so I had no choice. Looks like we’ll be making a trip back here at some point for my deposit (or, I’ll have a souvenir on my hands…).
Leaving Borough Market, we headed back to the bridge. On our walk, the clouds began to part and suddenly, we had more blue sky than grey.
It seemed that everyone was out enjoying the weather on this April Thursday.
Despite having visited London a number of times over the years, the Tower Bridge was yet another city landmark I’ve only visited once—in 1996.
There’s not much to the self-guided tour. You ascend one tower, cross the pedestrian walkway just as the Victorians did over a hundred years ago when a lot more tall ships kept the draw bridge open more than closed, and ascend back down.
Simple, but very much worthwhile.
One surprise was the glass floors. Installed in 2014, they add a fun element to the visit.
From Tower Bridge, it’s was over to the Uber Boat pier for a 30-minute cross-town jaunt on the Thames to Westminster.
I had high hopes for the Uber Boat, but it was a bit of a let down. No open-air seating and the windows were a bit mucked up from all the spray and rain. Still, it was a relatively cheap way to do a Thames river cruise (if you want to call it that), and got us efficiently to our destination.
It’s really expensive to tour Westminster Abbey now, but you can attend a service for free. Normally, doing so isn’t difficult, as they have services throughout the week. But this is Holy Week. We thought our best bet might be to go on Maundy Thursday. We got there 45 minutes ahead of time and joined a very long line snaking around the block. We just barely made the cutoff!
t was an impressive service in this 1,000-year-old church that’s one of the most famous in the world. (no photos allowed inside)
Since 1066, it has been the coronation site for nearly every English monarch, as well as the setting for 16 royal weddings and the burial place for over 3,300 people, including 17 monarchs.
Noe loved every minute of the 2-hour service, and even went up to receive his first blessing. Riley made it an hour, which is a record for him. Lori and Riley ducked out early and went over to nearby St. James Park.
After the service, Noe and I passed this little clock tower on our way to meet up for dinner.
We grabbed some sandwiches at Pret a Manger, which seemed like a good, cheap, bet at the time.
Noe and I made it three months in Morocco without tummy issues, but the meatball sub we split in London may have been our undoing. I had cramping for the next three days and Noe woke up sick in the middle of the night.
Despite it being a cheap and convenient option in a notoriously expensive city, we did not make another visit to Pret a Manger.
A big first day out with Lori and the boys, logging 11.5 miles across London.
Proud of the boys for keeping up (and even putting us to shame sometimes). They didn’t complain once and were still excited for the days to come when we got back to the flat.
We’ll see how long we can go until we’re all completely knackered.
