A Very British Thanksgiving

On Thanksgiving day, we did things a little differently here.  First off, we woke up bright and early to go to Buckingham Palace for the Changing of the Guards.  We got there a little too early and since it was cold we decided to warm up in the gift shop.  However, when we got out the spots we had staked out were gone.  We stood on the steps of the monument shown and were still able to see quite a bit since they come right through the crowd before entering the gates.  The guards that day were British and you can tell this because of the red accent on the side of their hats and the pattern of the buttons down the front of their coats.  We were quite surprised to hear the band playing John Williams pieces.  Mom recognized the Star Trek theme song right away which was what they started off with.

After the Changing of the Guards we walked through St. James's Park over to Westminster to visit our dear friend, Big Ben.  We got some great pictures, especially for the Sun & Record.  Look for us in one of the next few issues!

Next we were off for a macro view of the city from high above.  We rode on the London Eye, which lasted about 30 minutes.  We had such great views!  Jake opted out of this adventure for he isn't too fond of heights.

We had a quick lunch at a pub across from Westminster Abbey after.  I decided to get a cheeseburger since I haven't had one since I've been here.  It was nice to escape the cold for awhile as well.

After lunch we headed to Westminster Abbey, the site of the William and Kate's wedding which will be held on April 29th.  We weren't able to take pictures inside but we talked to one of the guides.  We were able to see where the wedding party would process in, where the two families would sit and the rest of the invitees in the nosebleed section.  The guide said the church could hold 2,000 people but it looked like it'd be a cramped fit to me.

We walked by 10 Downing Street to say hello to our friend, David Cameron before walking on towards Trafalgar Square.  We were cut short by time so I just showed Mom and Connor the National Gallery and explained the collection a bit to them.  Then we were on the bus back to my flat for some hor d'oeuvres before the Thanksgiving Feast.

Our Thanksgiving dinner was spent in the upstairs floor of a nearby pub.  Brad's mother rented it out and had it all organized which was a nice treat.  There were 24 of us total including all of my roommates, other friends from Syracuse and three other families.  The meal had the traditional fixings consisting of turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, cranberry sauce, brussel sprouts and sweet potatoes.  They also introduced us to a green bean dish with tomato sauce, and creamed leeks which I particularly enjoyed.  For dessert, they made pumpkin pie and apple pie.  It was a great and convenient way to spend the holiday with family and friends.  And to think the seven of us college kids thought about making the meal for everyone in our flat!