We left home at a reasonable hour and had a good journey down. We drove through the Blackwall Tunnel and then followed signs for the Thames barrier but promptly lost them! In a way it was good as we found a car-park about a mile away which was right next to the Thames path. I was amazed to see a sign saying that Dartford was 13 miles away and one day I'd like to go back and cycle there.
On the way up to see the barrier, we passed the Woolwich Ferry which apparently is free to travel on. There's also a foot tunnel for pedestrians but although I was tempted, we'll leave that for another day! The weather improved drastically, going from cool and overcast to warm and sunny and we had fantastic views over the river to Docklands, the O2 and the barrier which was a lot smaller than I imagined, blending into the towering background and losing some of the impact I'd anticipated.
We couldn't walk right up to it, but we did have great views so we took lots of photos (well, Sophie did...I forgot my camera again) and then we had a slow walk back.
On the way we had a small squabble about which showing of Cowboys and Aliens we were going to see. Soph and I wanted to see the later showing but Mikey and Keith thought it was best to go to the 3pm show and then head home. As we were on holiday and there was no rush to get back, Sophie and I won so we returned to the car and then headed to Greenwich as I thought it would be good to show the children the Royal Observatory and to tell them about Greenwich Mean Time.
We got very lost in Greenwich. Ages ago, when I was a child, I'd gone to the town with my grandparents and I vaguely remembered a big statue in a park and this is where I wanted to go. We needed to park the car and have a snack and a drink, but I became lost in the maze of streets until I remembered I'd brought my little map of London with me. We quickly found where we needed to go and before long I saw the statue I remembered and we were parking the car in beautiful Greenwich Park.
Luckily there was a great little tea shop selling sandwiches and snacks so we had something to eat and drink before going to see the incredible views over London, Docklands, the O2 and the Thames. It was very busy with tourists of all nationalities and the children were able to stand on the Meridian Line as Keith and I tried to explain what it all meant!
It was a gorgeous afternoon and Greenwich Park is a lovely place for a walk with lots of space and an avenue of trees that were just beginning to turn into their Autumnal colours. I'll definitely come back again, with maybe Mum and Nan as it's not at all far from Dartford.
As the time was getting on, we drive back to the O2 and parked the car. We thought it was a good idea to get our cinema tickets and then have a drink before the showing. This is when Keith paid an outrageous £8.95 for a glass of Pinot Grigio for me which was unbelievable seeing as I can get a decent bottle for that price!
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| Probably the most expensive glass of wine I've ever drunk! |
Cowboys and Aliens was a great film and we all really enjoyed it. It was a different take on the usual Western and Daniel Craig was brilliant in his part. The cinema was great with big comfy seats and very good sound. Just before we went in, we picked up Sophie and Mikey's snacks which we'd pre-ordered...!
Only joking, kids! We actually didn't have any popcorn as we went to eat at Las Iguanas when the film finished, much to Sophie's delight as she was able to have her beloved Fajitas. We devoured (and I mean devoured) a plate of nachos to start and then had very enjoyable main meals (chicken, burger and chilli). We staggered out, feeling very full and a bit tired and had a great journey home on mainly quiet roads. Needless to say we all went straight to bed after a long, but very enjoyable day!
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