England - Part One (London Temple, Wicked, Eastbourne Cliffs, Isle of Wight, Stonehenge)

As I was boarding the 777 to fly to England I noticed three children going aboard with a different kind of luggage than you normally see when you travel - Harry Potter broomsticks. Fitting, I suppose.

They must have put special fuel in that plane because it only took 6 1/2 hours to go from Dulles to Heathrow. And the plane was packed! I think it seats over 350 people. I was pleasantly surprised when we landed 30-45 minutes before the scheduled arrival time. I went to Avis, rented a little Peugeot, and headed straight for the London temple.

This was my first view of the temple as I rounded the corner.

I stayed in the temple guest housing for two nights, for only about $15 per night. Great price considering the fact that I had two beds, a bathroom, and a small kitchen with a fridge, microwave, plates, bowls, silverware, etc.

I made the mistake of getting settled and NOT taking a nap before I went in for a session. I thought that hunger and cold would keep me awake. Not so! Hunger and cold were no match for exhaustion (remember, I didn't sleep Friday night on the plane). I'm sure God understands. I had to get a session in before they closed in the early afternoon. I devoured a yummy meal at the cafeteria after the session, took a nap back at the room, and then headed to the train station.

It doesn't seem right to have the word "Wicked" right after "London Temple" in the title. :) I took the train into London and really enjoyed the show. After 90 minutes (again, I was still exhausted from all that travel with only a short nap to keep me going) the curtains came down, people applauded, and everyone got up......to leave, I thought. I went downstairs and asked an employee (with hope in my voice), "That's the end of the show, right? It's not intermission?" I had mixed feelings when he said, "Oh it's just a 20-minute intermission and then you get another 60 minutes of the show. You definitely get your money's worth." I honestly enjoyed the performance - great voices and a fun story - I was just looking forward to my bed. After the show, I grabbed Burger King at the station and hopped on the train for my hour-long ride back to the temple. What a day!

I got this shot at midnight, right before I flopped into bed. I can't resist a good view.

Sunday morning I attended the East Grinstead Sacrament Meeting, where I had the pleasure of listening to a Mum and her daughter speak about enduring to the end, followed by a soon-to-be-missionary (Mark Lippert) who is heading off to Romania. His entire family disowned him when he was baptized. They even demanded that he return his guitar, his car, and everything else his parents had purchased for him. He is now living with a family of members in the area and he's excited to serve the Lord. Once again, the trials and troubles of my own life are put into perspective.

After the 3-hour block of Church meetings with the good saints of East Grinstead, I drove an hour south to the coast. I spent a couple of hours walking all over and taking pictures. I just couldn't get enough of those amazing cliffs.

So you can see how high the cliffs are compared to your average adult.

A British Mum out looking for starfish and other little creatures with her son.

This morning I woke up early, dropped the key to my room in the little drop box, and left the temple grounds. I drove 90 minutes south to Portsmouth and bought a ticket to ride (hey, that's a Beatles song) that awesome machine you see in the video. What a neat experience! I couldn't believe how soft the ride was on the choppy waves. I have to give a little shout-out to Jarem here. If he hadn't mentioned the Isle of Wight I wouldn't even have known to go there. Thanks, Jarem!

I arrived pretty early (around 8:00AM), so I decided to walk around and find a place to enjoy a traditional English breakfast. One local woman directed me to the Wetherspoon Freehouse.

What could be better on a cold, rainy day?! Eggs benedict on ham and English muffin, with hollandaise sauce all over = happy tummy.

After breakfast I hopped on the bus and went to the Osborne House. This was Queen Victoria's summer house. I went in the very room where she died.

It's too bad they don't allow photography inside. The place is amazing!

After taking the fun hovercraft ride back to the mainland, I drove another hour to the less-than-impressive Stonehenge, where I stopped for five minutes to get a picture, and left. I didn't even pay to enter the place. I took the picture from outside the fence. They're just a bunch of rocks anyway, right? :)

On my way back to The Stanwell (where we're staying tonight) I stopped to fill up the little gas tank. I paid $66 for the equivalent of seven gallons of gas. You do the math. Is that $9 per gallon?! I believe so. $4.15 doesn't feel so bad anymore. Ha!

Now I'm off to pick Dad up at the airport. The adventures continue...