Nothing could prepare Michelle and me for taking Brett, Keegan, and Joel to London, the first destination of our four-month European traveling adventure. Until then, the largest city we had traveled to stay overnight was Victoria, British Columbia, a day’s drive from Red Deer. Victoria is an easy city to visit, unlike London, which is a busy, crowded, expensive metropolis, and where Michelle and I quickly learned our first lessons of traveling in Europe with our family.
It took six days of traveling to reach London, first driving from Edmonton to Toronto, and then flying across the Atlantic. We arrived in early February, during the offseason. The weather was dreary, with grey overcast clouds that threatened rain at any moment. We didn’t mind the gloomy weather, having driven through freezing temperatures and a snowstorm in Canada to get to London. As far as we were concerned, it was spring, with green grass and temperatures above freezing.
Everyone quickly adjusted to London time, and over five days we saw many of the major tourist attractions that London offers. Since we arrived during the offseason, there were few tourists at the museums we visited. In fact, at the Tower of London, curators turned off the conveyor belt running beside the Crown Jewels, allowing us a leisurely look at the jewels with no other visitors present.
Much to my surprise, my favorite stop was the National Art Gallery where I saw, for the first time, paintings by Vincent van Gogh. I had paid little attention to art before: all I knew was that van Gogh was a famous Renaissance painter who cut off his ear because he suffered from a mental illness. I could also name a few of his famous paintings from pictures I saw in various reading materials over the years. When I saw van Gogh’s paintings in person, I understood why he was such a famous painter. I could see every paint color and brushstroke and was astounded by his artistic talent.
For entertainment one evening, we attended The Phantom of the Opera at Her Majesty’s Theater. It was an old theater that had seen better days and we sat in the cheap seats high on the second balcony. Michelle bought the tickets online in Canada so we wouldn’t have to worry about the show being sold out, but the theatre was less than half full. Michelle and I had already seen The Phantom of the Opera, but it would be the first time for Brett, Keegan, and Joel. However, they knew every song, having listened to the soundtrack that often got played back in Canada and as a preschooler, Brett played dress-up as the phantom. The performance did not disappoint us–the music, visual effects, and singing in that dark musty old theater were exceptional.
Other destinations we visited were Piccadilly Circus, Science Museum, London Museum, Hyde Park, Trafalgar Square, the British Parliament, London Bridge, and Big Ben. We walked miles every day to reach these attractions, and Michelle and I found out our sons were troupers, especially Joel, who was much younger than his brothers. He never complained, but at the Science Museum, he was so tired from walking he fell asleep on a bench. Michelle stayed with him and finished reading her book to let him sleep while the rest of us learned about humanity’s technological marvels.
Whenever we walked around in London, Michelle always held onto Joel’s hand and walked slowly, with Keegan close by her other side. Brett was usually leading the pack, and I walked behind everyone. As a result, we annoyed Londoners when we impeded them on the busy, crowded London sidewalks. Despite their annoyance, they were always very polite as they navigated around us. This says a lot about how the British treated us during our stay in London.
Unexpectedly, what our sons loved the most in London was riding the Tube. The subway system in London is very impressive, having eleven lines, 272 stations, and 402 km of tunnels that carry up to 1.8 million passengers daily. At each station, there are maps to find your way around Greater London, and soon Brett and Keegan could single-handedly direct us anywhere in London.
I am embarrassed to admit it, but the station I looked forward to stopping at the most was King’s Cross Station. Like my sons, I was reading Harry Potter books, and couldn’t help looking for platform 9 3/4 and wizards using the portal to get to Hogwarts Express.
The greatest challenge while staying in London was feeding our sons, especially Keegan and Brett, who were teenagers with enormous appetites. Our hotel accommodation included breakfast that was set outside the door every morning. It included fruit, orange juice, and cereal bars–not enough to feed three growing boys who would later get cranky from not having enough for breakfast.
By the third day, we all craved the breakfast we would normally have back in Canada, like toast topped with peanut butter, or jam, or honey, with a bowl of hot oatmeal with brown sugar and raisins. Something other than fruit would have made everyone happy.
To sufficiently feed everyone at lunch and dinner, we looked for family restaurants but had a difficult time finding inexpensive options in central London as the price of a meal was almost double what we would pay in Canada. At Harrods, it was so expensive I had the cheapest item on the menu to save money: a ham croissant and soup. It was not very filling and later I ate junk food to stop my stomach from growling.
Eventually, we found Marks and Spencers, an iconic department store that sells everything from clothing to furniture. They also had a restaurant and convenience grocery store where we could grab a bite to eat that didn’t blow the budget, and fruit, nutrition snacks, and takeout meals to keep everyone satisfied.
It was clear our sons were enjoying London on the day we walked to the Palace of Westminster to listen to Big Ben. Big Ben is the nickname given to the large bell in the clock tower attached to the palace. Our plan was to walk there and call Barb, Michelle’s mother, in time to let her hear the bell ring at the top of the hour. However, we were running behind and missed the bell. Barb was expecting our phone call, so when Michelle phoned, our boys made loud bonging noises that sounded like Big Ben. They had fun playing the prank and fooled their grandmother into believing she got to hear Big Ben.
It was good seeing Brett, Keegan, and Joel having fun. When we first arrived in London, I was concerned that they wouldn’t enjoy exploring London because of being exhausted from our marathon trip to get there. Also, before we left Canada, Michelle and I did not know what it would be like traveling in Europe with our sons, and whether they would truly enjoy the adventure. We were less than two weeks into our five-month trip, and I was happy to see them making memories of traveling together as a family.
We enjoyed our stay in London, and in the end, it turned out to be our sons’ favorite city. However, after five days, we were ready to pick up our rented van at Heathrow Airport and travel across the English Channel to France. Michelle and I left London knowing we could manage traveling with our family for the rest of the trip.
France, here we come.
One Last Kick 
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