Today was my last day in London, and I used my umbrella for the first time. It was drizzly this morning, but by the afternoon it was just really windy. I went to the Natural History Museum and looked at their wonderful gemstone collection, and an exhibit of birds from all over the world. Fascinating to see them all together, they even have a replica of a Dodo. Then I wandered along Oxford Street and bought some last-minute souvenirs. This afternoon I took a final walk through Hyde Park. The daffodils have started to bloom. I followed the Serpentine to the statue of Peter Pan, and I saw some amazing ducks. My favorite was the Mandarin Duck. It was absolutely gorgeous. Then I came back and packed. It wasn’t easy to fit everything in. I’m afraid one of my suitcases might pop on the way home. It’s sad to be saying goodbye to London. I feel like I’ve really gotten to know it in the past two weeks. I will certainly never forget my 30th birthday. But I’m excited about going home too. I miss everyone, even Stella and Bram. I hope everybody has enjoyed reading this blog as much as I’ve enjoyed writing it. I’ll see you all soon. Cheers!

I went on my last tour today. We started in Oxford, where we walked around Christ Church College, home of Alice and Wonderland, and several of the places where Harry Potter was filmed. Then we drove through the Cotswolds to Stratford where we had a lovely lunch and toured the house where Shakespeare was born. We finished the day at Warwick Castle, the only castle in England never to be defeated. It now has several waxworks displays of castle life in different eras. It’s kind of like a theme park, but fun. They’re forcasting snow for Tuesday night, I hope I can fly out on Wednesday. We’ll see. Cheers.

I toured the Cotswolds today. They are truly gorgeous! Beautiful, picturesque little villages full of antique stores and tea rooms. I could plan a whole vacation there. I walked through a little graveyard with tons of snowdrops. Breathtaking. The countryside was beautiful too. I saw deer, rabbits, lots of pheasants, and even a fox in the fields. We had lunch at a little pub and then tea at an inn on the river. One of the towns we stopped in always wins the “Prettiest Village in England” prize. I can see why. I had a great time. Cheers.