Today we were up bright and early to finally leave London on the tour proper. We breakfasted then joined our new travel mates on the bus. There are 32 of us on a 50 seater. Our tour guide is a young Irishman called Tim. Our driver Steve will join us tomorrow and today we had the services of Neal, the temp driver. About half the travellers seem to be Americans and the rest Aussies. But I guess we will sort out soon enough if we have Canadians and Kiwis amongst us. There was one woman who just talked and talked and talked. She makes stupid jokes - like we had a tractor driving in front of us on the road through Kent. We came to a cross road and her comment was ' well , if he was a gentlemen he would have pulled in but he didn't so he's just an arsehole'. The Americans laughed but they don't really appreciate the humour or swearing - my first impressions. Sadly, the noisy one is an Aussie.
Canterbury Cathedral is just impressive. It is so tall and you really only appreciate the height when you get inside. You are allowed to take photos everywhere inside except the crypt. A change from St Pauls which fancies itself to be better. We were given all the facts and figures about the Cathedral but now my mind is a complete blank. The workmanship is just incredible; nothing that you would see done today. There is a lot of restoration work going on too right now. The grounds of the Cathedral are like a little village in itself with so many old buildings - houses, classrooms, priory. Definitely this is a place to visit. Unlike our Cosmos tour of Europe, we don't seem to be inundated with local guides giving us all the information. We were just let off at the Cathedral and given nearly three hours to explore. You can get the audio guides if you want. After exploring the Cathedral, Alex and I wandered around the streets of Canterbury until it was time to rejoin the bus.
Next stop was Hastings but it was only a loo break. Fun fact: the Battle of Hastings didn't take place at Hastings but at a smaller place called Battle which is around 7 miles away.
At Brighton we were taken to the Brighton Pavilion built by George IV for his dirty weekends away. It is decorated in a Chinese style with the reds and greens and golds, bamboo and even dragons. We were given an audio guide but I found it too long and boring and started just listening to the first part in each room. Once again we had been given a long time to explore. We left the Pavilion but couldn't work out where the Pier was from there, so just wandered the streets. I wasn't that impressed with the Pavilion.
Our hotel, Hilton, is on the waterfront at Brighton. The room is large with a large double and a pull out double sofa bed. There is a reasonable bathroom with a bath. Tonight we get a free wine or beer, and then a buffet dinner in the hotel. This is the included Welcome dinner. A lot better than the Cosmos one we had two years ago. The food was lovely and we enjoyed conversation with 6 of the Americans.
After dinner, Alex and I walked up to the Pier. It was dusk and there was a brisk breeze blowing but it was a long but pleasant walk there. The Pier is really long with arcades, and rides, and food places all along it. Darkness fell as we were walking back to the hotel.
It was a relief to be on the bus today instead of walking all day. But the walking we did made everything sore and tired again.
Tomorrow we head to Stonehenge and Bath. Breakfast and bags out at 7. Leaving at 8. A sleep in!
Canterbury Cathedral is just impressive. It is so tall and you really only appreciate the height when you get inside. You are allowed to take photos everywhere inside except the crypt. A change from St Pauls which fancies itself to be better. We were given all the facts and figures about the Cathedral but now my mind is a complete blank. The workmanship is just incredible; nothing that you would see done today. There is a lot of restoration work going on too right now. The grounds of the Cathedral are like a little village in itself with so many old buildings - houses, classrooms, priory. Definitely this is a place to visit. Unlike our Cosmos tour of Europe, we don't seem to be inundated with local guides giving us all the information. We were just let off at the Cathedral and given nearly three hours to explore. You can get the audio guides if you want. After exploring the Cathedral, Alex and I wandered around the streets of Canterbury until it was time to rejoin the bus.
Next stop was Hastings but it was only a loo break. Fun fact: the Battle of Hastings didn't take place at Hastings but at a smaller place called Battle which is around 7 miles away.
At Brighton we were taken to the Brighton Pavilion built by George IV for his dirty weekends away. It is decorated in a Chinese style with the reds and greens and golds, bamboo and even dragons. We were given an audio guide but I found it too long and boring and started just listening to the first part in each room. Once again we had been given a long time to explore. We left the Pavilion but couldn't work out where the Pier was from there, so just wandered the streets. I wasn't that impressed with the Pavilion.
Our hotel, Hilton, is on the waterfront at Brighton. The room is large with a large double and a pull out double sofa bed. There is a reasonable bathroom with a bath. Tonight we get a free wine or beer, and then a buffet dinner in the hotel. This is the included Welcome dinner. A lot better than the Cosmos one we had two years ago. The food was lovely and we enjoyed conversation with 6 of the Americans.
After dinner, Alex and I walked up to the Pier. It was dusk and there was a brisk breeze blowing but it was a long but pleasant walk there. The Pier is really long with arcades, and rides, and food places all along it. Darkness fell as we were walking back to the hotel.
It was a relief to be on the bus today instead of walking all day. But the walking we did made everything sore and tired again.
Tomorrow we head to Stonehenge and Bath. Breakfast and bags out at 7. Leaving at 8. A sleep in!
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