Redweave

Cadbury World! The home of some of the greatest chocolate in the world! It was like I had died and gone to chocoholic heaven. Candace and I went through the World @ Warwick group. We started out at Bourneville, the village created to house workers in the facotry. It was cute and we got some really good breakfast at a tiny little bakery. I really wish we had more of the little specialized shops back home. They are so much better than general grocery stores. The tour started off with little shows giving the factory's history. They were cute, but the general experience was definitely geared toward kids. This could be especially seen in the ride, Cadabra. It was like Small World at Disney, except it was creepy cacao beans instead of creepy children. They sounded ... read more

Today I ended my tour of south-east England with Portsmouth, home of the one of the most famous dockyards in the world. That dockyard was my first stop. I went straight back to the HMS Victory, which is one of the most famous of warships and the oldest still in commission. It was an amazing ship, but I definitely would not want to live on it. It was very claustrophobic and the stairs would have killed me. They were so steep and narrow. There were parts of the ship where I couldn't stand up straight. I missed the plaque on where Admiral Nelson got shot somehow and had to walk through the ship again to see it. Can't exactly miss that part of the ship. The little museums throughout the Dockyard were interesting, but not amazing. ... read more

So I'm not all that impressed with Dover, the city anyway. The cliffs and the castle were great, but everything else not so much. My day started off good. I left Canterbury, took a short train ride to Dover, and had breakfast at one of the little cafes in the main market area. Then I went to the castle. It was amazing! It was massive, with numerous buildings spread out over the top of the white cliffs. You could see it from just about anywhere in town. The first thing I did was a tour of the wartime tunnels. The first level I toured was the middle one, originally built in the late 1700's. The tour mainly focused on the role it played in WWII, especially the evacuation of Dunkirk. It managed communications and monitored ships ... read more

We went to the Tower of London today. It was impressive, even though in my head I pictured a really tall, skinny tower instead of the thick, square tower with a fortress around it. It was a fun place to visit. There was still snow on the ground, which made the Tower Green very beautiful. The ravens (they were huge) stood out so starkly against the snow. The Crown Jewels were stunning, but I can't imagine having to actually wear them. They must be so heavy. There were so many crowns of different styles and gems. The armory in the White Tower was one of my favorite parts. It was full of entire suits of armor (for men and for horses), weapons of all types, and artillery. There was a suit of armor that was three ... read more

I AM IN LONDON! After train delays and changed plans, I am in one of the most spectacular cities in the world. I arrived just in time to catch a cab to the Criterian Theater to see "The 39 Steps" with Amy Soukup. With 5 minutes to spare, we both checked in our bags and found our seats. The theater was right on the Picaddily Circus and while small, had beautiful architecture and flair. The show was absolutely phenomenal!! It was a comedy based on Alfred Hitchcock's drama, "The 39 Steps." There were only four actors. The main character, Richard, stayed the same the whole time. He looked almost exactly like Cary Elwes from the Princess Bride. The other three kept switching characters by changing their clothes, voices, or poistion on stage. Sometimes they did conversations ... read more