I didn’t have any energy to write last night – not for any particular reason as our day wasn’t grueling… I just wanted to go to bed.

Yesterday we booked tickets for the London Eye. That’s one thing Amir and I didn’t do last time we were here that we knew the kids would love as well. You can buy the tickets online ahead of time. There’s an option for fast track or standard tickets. We opted for standard, and I’m glad because fast track was 60% more and only saved maybe 5 minutes. Do book ahead though because tickets can sell out.

Just before our Eye time, we killed a few minutes at a nice wooden playground just adjacent to the Eye loading area. It was busy but had a variety of play structures for kids of all ages and gates to keep them all in.

The London Eye was worth the money. We were able to get a new perspective and great photos of some of the cities most meaningful landmarks. You can also purchase a private pod with a champagne toast if you are feeling extra fancy or maybe planning a proposal or something equivalent.

After the Eye, we finally stopped by the gates of Buckingham Palace. The flag on top was raised, signaling that Kind Charles was home at the time.

After Buckingham Palace, we stopped by the grocery store to pick up some essentials. We’d eaten a late lunch and just planned on cheese, charcuterie and fruit for a light dinner. We thought we were buying fruit for the rest of the week, but 7 minutes after the groceries hit the countertop, all of the strawberries, blueberries and raspberries were demolished. No one tells you that the expensive part of raising kids isn’t college, but FRUIT.

We started off today taking the tube to Monument Station. It dropped us off right behind the memorial to the fire of London that happened in 1666. The fire spanned three days and destroyed roughly 2/3 of the city. The memorial tower has only a spiral staircase within, but Amir and our two oldest still managed the climb all the way to the top.

We had 11:30 reservations for the Tower of London. This is where the Crown Jewels are kept as well as the history of the armory (armor, horses, weapons, you name it). The towers housed prisoners, sometimes for years, and the walls still bear the etchings and desperate words from those same men.

We split up a bit for this journey as Amir and I both came here in 2014, but the kids and Liza had never seen any of it. After Tower of London, our logical next stop was Tower Bridge.

At Tower Bridge, you can actually buy tickets to go inside the bridge and up to the walkway above the pedestrian and traffic span. Your ticket also gets you entrance into the engine rooms to see the motors behind the lifting mechanism for the bridge.

From Tower Bridge we headed in to Borough Market. we were hungry after all that walking. The market was much more crowded that when we went in 2014 – clearly word has gotten out.

Tonight we met up with my cousin Ryan for drinks at Sky Garden, the rooftop bar in the Walkie Talkie building. We were lucky to score a reservation just 48 hours in advance.

Our reservation was for 7:15, which turned out to be the perfect time. We were able to take in the views of all of London both during the daylight as well as sunset and evening.

The place was an interesting mix of clientele. 1/3 aspiring Instagram and TikTok influencers trying to capture amazing shots, 1/3 tourists in backpacks, and 1/3 people like us.

We enjoyed a few extra drinks gratis thanks to an ordering snafu by our waiter. I’m proud of myself for committing to writing tonight after this outing, but I felt I had to since I skipped last night already.

Tomorrow we have tickets for high tea at Kensington Palace as well as a palace tour in the afternoon. We doubt we’ll have much energy after that, so we’re already planning for Indian takeout for dinner tomorrow night. And with that… zzzzzZZZ.

– Steph