During the flight, crew members provided excellent service. As it was a long haul - 14 hour flight, we had to keep our stomachs full, adequately hydrated and tried to catch some sleep. We had apple/orange juice, warm water, took some muffins, sandwiches and apples from the pantry conveniently positioned just behind our row 55. The inflight service and entertainment was brilliant! I watched the Devil wears Prada and Genius: Picasso. Bernadette played games on the TV. I also learnt some basic French via the Learning Platform. When our plane was nearing London, Bernadette felt very cold and lethargic and I requested some peppermint tea from a crew to perk her up. We touched down at Heathrow Airport 3.40pm Local time. After freshening up at the washroom, we walked another 15 mins to the Immigration. It took us one hour to clear immigration. After collecting our luggage at Belt 9, we pushed our trolley to the arrival hall where John was waiting. Temperature outside was cool and nice 14 degrees C. After purchasing the 3-day pass at ticketing booth, we took the underground to Victoria Station, which is a 10 min walk to our hotel - Premier Inn London Victoria. A receptionist came forward to attend to our check-in. We took the lift to level 2 and walked up a flight of stairs to Room 221. The clean beds were so welcoming after our long flight. I started to boil water for a hot drink as it was very cold. All of us could not sleep very well that night due to jetlag. We headed to the cafe downstairs for buffet breakfast @ 10.50 British pounds, free for child below 16. The toasted mushroom was delicious, with free flow of cappuccino, latte, coffee and tea. I had cereal with cold skimmed milk, dried fruits, yoghurt and a banana.
After a hearty breakfast, we took the underground to Tower Hill Station to visit our first stop for the day - Tower of London. It was a sprawling fortress made up of many towers that reside in a large compound overlooking the River Thames. The entrance fee was 26.80 pounds for Adult and 12.50 pounds for child. There was strict security check at the entrance leading to the Lion Tower. We went further down past the moat, then took pictures along the stone-paved walkway. It was a high climb up of about 500 steps inside the Tower. It comprised of 3 towers, namely: Broad Arrow Tower, Martin Tower which used to be a prison, and Crown Jewel Tower. We saw many crowns embedded with valuable gems and jewels like sapphire, ruby. I was captivated by a dazzling crown that was bedecked with 2868 diamonds! These were worn by Kings and Queens of old. Some of them are now valued at S$4 million. What fascinated me was the predominant presence of huge black ravens that were said to be the only animal species remaining in the Tower today. People believe that if they leave, the Kingdom (Monarchy) will fall. There were also many statues in armored suits. Moving on, we saw these luxurious rooms which King Edward I had them built in the 1270s. The royal bed and the decoration of the room was recreated based on documents, manuscripts, images and surviving furniture from the 1200s to demonstrate the comfort and luxury he enjoyed during his reign. He also had a private chapel - The Chapel of St John. Next, we took pictures with the Beefeater standing beside a canon outside the tower.
It was almost time for lunch and we took a break in a nearby restaurant. Bernie had cottage pie, brocolli and potato. John and I tried what the Brits are famous for - their Fish and Chips! It was marinated with beer. The meal came up to Euro41 = S$73. After lunch, we exited the Tower of London, walked along the River Thames to the iconic Tower Bridge. We spent some time soaking in the surrounding view of Butlers Wharf along the dark murky waters of the Thames and the bridge with a tower at each end.
We ran after Bus RV1 that would bring us to Covent Garden. What greeted us upon arrival was the sounds and sights of buskers playing guitar and belting out opera songs amidst alfresco dining in the shopping square. This was a really unique experience for me.
Inside the mall were lots of pushcarts selling handicrafts like ear rings, fashion accessories and souvenir magnets depicting pictures of Big Ben, Double Decker Bus, The Crown. A shop we entered had lots of stuff similar to Cath Kidstons but with other unusual knick knacks. Next, we queued at a gelato stall for exotic flavors like pistachio almond, sea salted caramel, rocky fudge and mango sherbet. With gelato cones in our hands, we found a place to rest our aching legs. We were attracted to the bright coloured murals on the walls in the square. Bernie and I took turns to take pictures in front of the thematic walls. After photo taking, we took a long walk to the train station to board a train back to Victoria Station.
We ran after Bus RV1 that would bring us to Covent Garden. What greeted us upon arrival was the sounds and sights of buskers playing guitar and belting out opera songs amidst alfresco dining in the shopping square. This was a really unique experience for me.
Inside the mall were lots of pushcarts selling handicrafts like ear rings, fashion accessories and souvenir magnets depicting pictures of Big Ben, Double Decker Bus, The Crown. A shop we entered had lots of stuff similar to Cath Kidstons but with other unusual knick knacks. Next, we queued at a gelato stall for exotic flavors like pistachio almond, sea salted caramel, rocky fudge and mango sherbet. With gelato cones in our hands, we found a place to rest our aching legs. We were attracted to the bright coloured murals on the walls in the square. Bernie and I took turns to take pictures in front of the thematic walls. After photo taking, we took a long walk to the train station to board a train back to Victoria Station.
The next day, after another day of sumptuous breakfast, we took a 10min walk to Westminster Cathedral for Sunday Mass. Lovely choir. Toured the Cathedral and bought angel pins from the article shop. John took a picture of me and Bernie with the facade of the Cathedral as the backdrop. Boarded bus 24 to Westminster Station, then proceeded to Big Ben. It was unfortunately under renovation and all we could see was the top of the clock tower. Across it was the London Eye. Further down, we reached Royal Horse Guards. The sign next to it read, "Beware! Horses may kick or bite! Thank You" The guards appeared smart and handsome in their uniforms. While we were there, we also witnessed the changing of guards. After passing Scotland Yard, we reached Trafalgar Square. It felt surreal to see the lions sculpture depicted in the scene from E Nesbit's Railway Station, a book I read as a kid.
From the bus stop across, we hopped onto bus no. 9 to Knightsbridge, Harrods. This building had a facade with intricate architectural design that I found very appealing. There were many levels of shopping in the mall. It resembled Robinson's back home with a few luxury, designer boutiques. We headed straight to Harrods Cafe for a variety of quiche, rocket salads and desserts like tiriamisu and strawberry cheesecake accompanied with piping hot latte. The basement had gourmet food like caviar and other expensive meats and seafood. Just before closing time, we purchased some confectionery and liquor filled chocolates. Taking the subway from Knightsbridge to South Kensington , we finally reached Victoria via the Picaddily Line. Temperature that day was 12 to 16 degrees celsius. The next day, we checked out of Premier Inn Victoria and took the subway to King's Cross station to redeem our remaining stored value tickets.
We took a short walk to St Pancras station, had a light lunch at Starbucks while waiting for our 3pm train to Paris. During check-in, I felt anxious and tore my boarding pass in my haste to get through the gantry. During the train journey as I past stretches of meadow fields and trees in the autumn hues of red and orange, I had the inspiration to sketch. I flipped open my sketch pad and did a sketch of the scenery unfolding before my eyes. My daughter could imagine her composition 'Train Journey' playing in her head. After a two hour ride, we arrived in Paris. John and Bernie carried our luggage up the stairs. He exclaimed, "Welcome to Paris!" This is a city where there were no escalators but only stairs in the metros. We took the metro from Gave du Nord to Marcadet Doissanniers, lugging our luggage to the exit gates which were manually operated. Hotel Langlois, where we were going to put up for the next 4 days was just a stone's throw from the Metro Station. On entering the hotel lobby, we realised it exuded a very ancient, sophisticated presence. The lift was really archaic. We had to push down the handle of gate to enter the lift, close the gate then press the button to reach our room level. Upon entering our room, we were greeted by bronze and marble statues and busts in the hallway and it gave us the creeps. There was a single bed in the main hallway leading to another room with a King sized bed with solid wood bedrest and bulky wooden closets. After a quick freshen up, we walked to a nearby Italian restaurant for garlic escargot, pasta and salad. The escargots were larger, more succulent and juicier than those back home. In the cool autumn night, we stumbled upon a convenience store selling fruits, greens, candies, snacks, savoury pies and sandwiches. Bernie picked a packet of gummies.
That night, we were so exhausted that all of us fell soundly asleep once we hit the bed. I awoke early the next morning to get us breakfast. A few doors away, the aroma of freshly baked croissants filled the air. I was drawn to the delicious looking, large spread of patisserie - jumbo sized buttery fluffy croissants, a mixed selection of scones, muffins, chocolate and strawberry eclairs, apple pies, Danish tarts, fruit tarts. We enjoyed our scrumptious breakfast then set off for our first destination - Church of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, taking the metro from Trinite to Serres Babylone. Inside the church lay the incorrupt body of St Catherine Laboure. We met a very approachable nun who chatted with us. Entering the church for rosary session with the congregation, we prayed the rosary together and offered prayers for family, friends and colleagues. Before leaving church, we purchased some miraculous medals and prayer cards before taking a train to Birkhakeim to visit Eiffel Tower. We stayed in the queue for 2.5 hours under the hot Autumn sun. On seeing that we were hungry, John went to get an upsized sausage sandwich for us to share. Upon reaching the ticketing counter, it became so hot that we removed our jackets and tied our heads with it - we looked like llamas. People around laughed at us as they found us so amusing! We had a panoramic view of Paris city and River Seine, taking lots of photos as we enjoyed the magnificent view from the top of Eiffel Tower.
The next day we had croissant, strawberry and chocolate cake for breakfast before shopping at Galeries Lafayette. We bought lots of confectionery and chocolates, early Christmas gifts such as candles with decorative revolving angels and cats. After shopping, we proceeded to a nearby restaurant, Cafe Opera for lunch. Bernie had soup of the day - minestrone and pasta. John and I had pan fried salmon. After lunch, we took an alternate route Chauseed Autin to Chatlet, changing to Cite. Exiting from Cite, we took as short walk less than 100m to Notre Dame Cathedral. We bought 10 pcs of the iconic Notre Dame votive candles with picture of Our Lady Of Guadalupe to distribute to family and friends back home.
Crossing the road to River Seine opposite, we walked past shops selling souvenir. We visited an ice cream parlour for some very uniquely designed ice cream flavours in the shape of a rose. Coffee, macadamia and pistachio were a few of my favourite flavours I picked. We found a shop selling many varieties of chocolate ranging from praline to dark chocolate to almonds, hazelnuts, butterscotch and macarons. Further down the road, we stepped into a restaurant with a lovely ambience serving crepes. We had crepe with ham, mushroom and egg for dinner, then returned to our hotel feeling very satisfied.
On the final day of our vacation, we visited Arc De Triomphe, took train from Trinite to Pigalle, transferred to Charles De Gaule Etoile. Strolling along Champs E'lycee, we entered the Louis Vuitton shop for 3 levels of browsing. We also entered H&M shop to get a blue cardigan for Bernie before going back to the earlier Chocolate shop to pick up our pre-ordered macarons. From there, we took a train back to Trinite the subway nearest to Hotel Langlois. For our dinner finale, we had escargot, fillet salmon, duck confit, creme brulee, and topped it off with Muscato wine.
The next morning, after packing our luggage, we went to the bus stop to take Roissy Bus to Charles De Gaule airport for our flight back home. This was absolutely a memorable holiday for all of us for a long time to come.
