Father Daughter Eurotrip: Day 2

On Tuesday, Dad had finally started to get over jet lag. We took a casual morning to get started complete with a full English breakfast. We dined at Shakespeare's Head- a local place near the LSE campus that my friends and I often visit! It was my Dad's first experience with traditional English breakfast, and we left full for a day of sightseeing!

Traditional English Breakfast

Since we were so close by campus, Dad deserved a campus tour. When I applied to LSE, I had only walked by it during my time abroad in 2010. It was not like the whole touring process that my Dad and I did in 2007 when I was looking at colleges. Nevertheless, I gave him a full campus tour complete with a stop at the George (on campus pub).

Outside the Old Building at the LSE

And, since we had no luck getting into the Churchill Museum on Monday- that was our next stop! We spent about two hours in the museum looking at the war rooms from World War II. It's one of my favorite museums in London, so I was glad to get back and go through it again!

The man in the trenchcoat I do believe was Churchill's ghost

To round up the afternoon after the museum, we wander through St. James' Park up to Buckingham Palace and then to the Royal Mews.  The Royal Mews is where the carriages, cars, and horses for the royal family are kept.  We were able to see the carriages used for the royal wedding as well as the gold stagecoach which is used for coronations. Begged me to ask the questions: When is the next wedding? And, when will see another coronation? 

Dad and me outside Buckingham Palace

The Golden Stagecoach used for Coronations 

Early evening before we changed for dinner, we headed down to Waterloo to do the London Eye. I've been meaning to do the London Eye since I studied abroad in 2010. Yet, I never had the time to do it! But, now I can officially cross it off the bucket list and my 101 in 1001 days list! It was a bit overcast, so the views farther away were limited. However, we still got some great shots of the iconic London buildings!

Big Ben in the Background

On the London Eye

After we had a quick change at the hotel, we set off for dinner at Rules. Rules is the oldest restaurant in London. It was established in 1794 complete with tons of stories about the royals and celebrities surrounding the establishment. There's actually a secret entrance for the royal family as well as a private club to be invited too. Sadly, we just ate in the dining room for the evening, but it was a real treat. The walls are decorated with photos, paintings, clocks, etc. from over the years. The atmosphere was elegance left over from the days gone by. And, the food was divine!

The Kate Middleton "29"

The Experience of Rules

And, no...for all of you Downton Abbey fans. Edith was not in for the evening.

Tuesday in London was busy, but we saw a lot! Dad and I were both able to cross off quite a few things on the bucket list! Stay tuned for more adventures. 

White Cliffs of Dover...

"There'll be bluebirds over, The White Cliffs of Dover Tomorrow... Just you wait and see"

As a history nerd and a lover for travel, I've always wanted to see the White Cliffs of Dover. Yesterday, I finally had a chance to do so!

It was my first day-trip outside of London as I left early morning and got back around 8pm. Nicole joined me for the excursion to the southern most tip of England/closest to the continent.  We took off from London Victoria for a two hour journey through the English countryside, arriving in Dover around 10:30am.  We decided to do the cliffs before lunch with the rest of the town and the Castle post lunch.

Grabbing a quick bus ride, we came to the base of the first of many footpaths of the day. In England, for those of you who don't know, there are tons of public footpaths throughout the countryside. Designed to showcase the history and landscapes of the UK, they often run along coasts, through farmlands, cities, you name it. It's an awesome way to get to see a lot more than on a coach.  Starting at the base of the cliff, we worked our way up to the start of the National Trust site. While there is a brief 10-minute overview walk, Nicole and I kept venturing for the final destination: the lighthouse.

White Cliffs of Dover

 Looking into Dover Port

Start of the Public Footpath

Along the journey to the lighthouse, it was a bit muddy post rain showers the day before, but it took us over old farmlands as well as old stone remains from houses. Thankfully, the rain held off while we were there, and we were able to see the coast of France in the distance. From Dover, it is about 20-22 miles from France. Next time I go, I will have to bring my passport to take the fairy back and forth. I've gone in the Chunnel from taking the Eurostar to Belgium, but taking the boat on the Channel needs to happen in the future!

just hanging out...

France is right below the clouds 

Upon arriving to the lighthouse, we had a nice cream tea to refresh from the almost three hour hiking journey. The tea room included photos of those who work there- old family members, as well as photos of those who used to work the lighthouse. 

Post tea and scones with clotted cream (yum!), we took a public footpath that led us to one of the main roads that runs into Dover. Taking the scenic route of farmlands/cluster of houses with the Channel to the other side allowed us to see more of the countryside.

Arriving back into the town centre, Dover Castle was next! Because we spent a lot of time walking the cliffs and the countryside, we really only had time to do one of the many tours offered at the castle. Thus, we chose to do the Wartime Tunnels from World War II on how they were used for the Battle of Dunkirk.  I've done a lot of tours on the UK in WWII as well as how other countries handled the war, fought, etc. (Poland trip in 2010), but this has to be one of the best I've done. The exhibits are built into the actual tunnels, carvings are still on the wall from the soldiers that were stationed there, and the experience of a blackout was amazing.  It's worth the money to do it. I couldn't take any photos inside, but here's one on the outside!

Entrance to Wartime Tunnels

Nicole and I arrived back at the train station exhausted this evening. It was a jam-packed day, but worth it! I know I'll be taking other day trips and trips before visiting Dover again. Yet, I will go back as you can clearly spend more than one day in the town, and may still not see it all!

Have you ever been to Dover? Stay tuned for my travel trips there!