Day 3 - Too Much?

Day 3 (Sept. 5th) - Since we couldn't do the Hop On Hop Off bus yesterday, we rearranged our schedule.  It was a full day, do you think we did too much (we won't be able to keep up the pace)?  Vote on the right.  Here's what we covered:

• Hop On Hop Off (HOHO) Bus
• McDonald's at Piccadilly Circus (Day 2 and we've already gone to McDonald's.  However, we escaped with only spending £20)
• HOHO Bus back to the apartment (I forgot to bring the spare camera battery and lost the camera bag)
• HOHO Bus to Victoria and Albert Museum (great fashion design artifacts)
• Natural History Museum
• Thames River Cruise from Westminster Pier to Tower Pier
• Dinner at The Rose Pub

We asked for advice on whether to take the HOHO bus.  Here's how folks voted:

• Yes - 4
• Maybe - 4
• No - 1
• What's a HOHO Bus - 1

Renae and the girls really enjoyed the tour bus.  The first one we took in the morning had a live tour guide who shared lots of history about London as we drove by.  The 2nd bus we took in the afternoon used taped audio guides which were ok.

St. Paul's Cathedral (from Hop On Hop Off (HOHO) Bus)

Double Decker Bus

Renae and girls in front of a statue of Florence Nightingale near Trafalgar Square

Ben, Ruth, Lean & Sarah on top of the HOHO Bus

"Look Right" is printed on the asphalt so tourists don't get hit by a vehicle while looking the wrong way

London Eye from HOHO Bus

Tower of London from HOHO Bus

We stopped by the Victoria and Albert Museum (which specializes in design) and the Natural History Museum.  (All of the museums we've visited so far have been free!).  Sarah enjoyed trying on costumes at the V&A Museum.  I'd give it 3 1/2 *'s out of 5.

The Natural History Museum was right next to the V&A.  We breezed through the museum as it was only open another hour after we got there.  Also, the exhibits weren't specific to London or Britain.  In my opinion, this museum was 3*'s.

Sarah and Ben trying on costumes at the Victoria and Albert (V&A) Museum

Chasuble worn by bishops - great for next Agape church service

Renae and girls in the garden at the V&A Museum

Stained Glass Windows

Costume worn in the theater

We had to race to make the 6:15 pm City Cruise's Thames River Cruise.  Tickets for this were included in the HOHO bus price, however, the tickets had to be used within 24 hours of starting the HOHO bus.  We decided to take the cruise in spite of the rain.

Trying to stay dry on the cruise

City Cruises go from Westminster Pier to Tower Pier and Greenwich Pier

Globe Theater (only building with a thatched roof allowed since the Great Fire)

View of the London Eye from the cruise

St. Paul's Cathedral

Tower Bridge

We had to take the tube back to Vauxhall station during rush hour.  It was quite crowded.  We've learned that tube etiquette requires one to stand on the right of escalators to allow others to walk on the left.

Since we didn't get back to our apartment until nearly 7:30 p.m., we decided to eat The Rose Pub again.  This time I had the fish & chips, and Renae had the sausages.  Our waitress, who seemed to speak with an Eastern European accent accidentally shattered a glass on our table.  

So far, we're running slightly under budget for food & eating out.  Hopefully that will make up for the extras spent on cell phone coverage and lost charging cables.