Last day in London

Just a quick update before we set off for Paris tomorrow.

Today was quite a full day due to packing and repacking and trying to get rid of a lot of crap we've accumulated during the trip. We were reasonably successful, but the real test will be tomorrow when we have to cart it all on to the Chunnel train.

Two big touristy things today:

1) St Paul's Cathedral. Unfortunately no giant cats stuck their heads out of the dome while we were in the area (for those who don't get it, watch The Goodies). In many ways St Paul's was a fairly conventional cathedral, but its big differentiating point is of course the grand dome, which was installed as part of the rebuilding after the great Fire of London. It was actually possible to climb up into it, which gave a unique view of the rest of the cathedral.

2) Kew Gardens. While this is meant to be the Botanic Gardens of England, it was actually the most disappointing garden of the entire trip. It was very dull, and the grounds stretched on forever, which was not helped by the fact that it was a very hot and sunny day. So the Gardens themselves were a bit of a bust. However, we travelled back to our hotel not by taxi or the underground, but by a boatride up the Thames. That was a good way to see the city (it took a good long while though). It was also interesting from a historical point of view, as there was a plaque on the boat saying that it had taken part in the Dunkirk operation saving thousands of British troops in the Second World War.

We had a delicious Greek dinner, which was a nice way to finish up our British dining experiences. Unfortunately my cold (or at least the nose part of it) seems to have made a bit of a resurgence, which is very irritating as i thought i had pretty much got it under control.