Distance walked – 240.8km
Number of Windtrainers – 5
Number of Runs – 5
Museums visited – Royal Observatory, Cutty Sark, The Tower of London, Shakespeare’s Home, The Natural History Museum, Churchill War Rooms, Victoria and Albert Museum, Imperial War Museum, British Museum
Favourite Museum – The Tower of London and The Crown Jewels.
Palaces – Blenheim Palace, Buckingham Palace, Kensington Palace, Windsor Castle, Hampton Court Palace.
Favourite Palace – Kensington Palace
Art Galleries visited – National Portrait Gallery, Tate Modern, The Serpentine Gallery, The Courthauld Gallery, Saatchi Gallery, The Queens Gallery, The Queens Mews,
Favourite Art Gallery – The Courthauld Gallery
Restaurants visited – The Ivy, Albasto, Margaux, Amaya, Farm Girl, Champagne and Fromage, Fenchurch 37, Margot, Cahoots, Mash, Bluebells, Fortnum and Mason Jubilee Tea Rooms, Tozi.
Favourite restaurant – Margot for Dinner and Fortnum and Mason for Afternoon Tea
Shopping districts visited – Carnaby, Oxford St, Bond Street, Regent Street, Soho, Covent Garden, Harrods, Brick Lane, Box Park, Connaught Village, Nottinghill, Sloane Square, Fortnum and Mason
Favourite shopping district – Carnaby
Markets visited – Borough Markets, Columbia Markets, Spitalfields Market, Camden Markets, Portobello Markets.
Favourite Markets – Columbia Flower Markets
Musicals and Theatre – Bat Out of Hell, 42nd Street, Romeo and Juliet, Phantom of The Opera, Wicked
Favourite Musical – 42nd Street
Areas Outside London visited – Highgrove Garden, Blenheim Palace, Bibury, Bourton on the Water, Greenwich, Stratford Upon Avon, Windsor
Other stuff – Taylor Swift, Fever Tree Championship, Making of Harry Potter Warner Brother Studios, Globe Theatre
Gardens visited – Highgrove, Skygarden, Kensington Palace Gardens, Shakespeare’s Home Gardens, Hampton Court Palace Gardens
Favourite Garden – Highgrove Gardens
Bleinham Palace Gardens
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Hampton Court Garden
Most interesting thing I learnt: The most interesting thing I learnt was to look critically at museums and art galleries when I visit them. I was lucky enough to be sitting in a museum when a lecturer was interviewing his students about an assignment they had been given. He was questioning them about the information that was available in the museum and who chooses what the public get to see and why. It made me think about the different museums we have seen in different countries and the different information that is presented. For example the Jewish Museum in Berlin presented different information about the Jewish Holocaust to the Imperial War Museum in London. It is very important to have an awareness about different biases when visiting different galleries and museums around the world.
Most amazing thing that happened: We had a drink in a very groovy bar called Cahoots and then dinner at a restaurant called Mash with friends from Brisbane. Michelle was off to Paris Fashion Week the next day as part of the media contingent. She was so excited. We were thrilled to share a meal with her and her husband Paul the evening before her amazing adventure.
Michelle writes for She Brisbane. Here is the link to her article about her experience . A Dream Comes True – Paris Fashion Week.
Best thing about our holiday: The best thing about our holiday was sharing it with our family. I have taken a paragraph from my last holiday blog but once again it is very appropriate
I am sitting quietly today thinking about our holiday in June. We had the most wonderful time seeing beautiful places, eating scrumptious food, learning about new cultures, and making special family memories.
There are terrible things that happen in the world.There is so much fear being perpetrated all over the world. One of the highlights of our holiday for me was coming home and the love I felt for my family and our country.
We live in a country that is free. We are free to be who we want to be, we are free to vote for who we want to run our country, we are free to put our hand up to help run our country if that is our desire and we are free to disagree if we want too.
I am so grateful that we had such a wonderful holiday. I am grateful that we came home to Australia. I am grateful for all the things I experienced while we were away. I am grateful for spending time as a family and I am grateful for spending time with David .
I encourage everyone to travel and I encourage everyone to appreciate what a special country we live in.
Until next time
