London Snaps

One of my favorite London jokes came from the mouth of Jimmy Kimmel, or maybe Craig Ferguson. He said something like, "I just returned from my vacation in London. At the airport on my way out, I stopped at the desk and said, 'Can I have my vacation snaps now?'" All of England--every inch--is monitored by the government's CCTV (closed-circuit television). So in theory you could get snaps of your whole vacation--every inch--from them. Still, not trusting their aesthetic approach, we decided to take our own snaps, too. Here are a few:

Arrrggghhhh!  Jasper and Ruby (the little fuzzy white heads) boarding the pirate ship at "the pirate ship park."  And you thought Hyde Park was the most famous park in London?!  You haven't been there with your kids.  This one is actually called the Princess Diana Memorial Playground and is in Kensington Gardens.  It's a huge park all based on Peter Pan themes--very cool.  If you ever go to London with kids of any age, don't miss it.  It's free, but closes at 6:30 and is completely addicting for children.  Whereever else we were, Ruby was begging to go to the Pirate Ship Park.

Ruby loved the torture implements at the Clink Prison Museum.  We didn't have the heart to tell her how this chastity belt was really supposed to be worn.

Jasper has definitely got the onry look down driving this doubledecker bus.

At the Clink Museum again (the 'Clink' Street Prison is the one which gave all other prisons its name--getting thrown in the 'Clinker'), Ruby and I demonstrated the potential consequences for children who whine while walking around London.

If Steve and I were younger, and he weren't holding a half-eaten child's ice cream, we might look like honeymooners out for a walk in front of Tower Bridge.

Jasper and Ruby were permanently perched on the front, top row in every bus we took.  That odd golden thing streaming through the window is a recent London import--sunshine.  I honestly could not remember ever struggling with sun in my eyes on a London bus before.