Day 5--Only the slightest hint of slowing down

Liam and Lucy riding the tube like the pros they are. The insouciance is palpable.

In the morning, I took Liam, Lucy and Miranda to the British Museum. We went into the experience knowing that we'd only be able to see a fraction of the collection, but even with that knowledge, we still weren't prepared for how much was there and how little we would get to see. We limited ourselves to the Egyptian and Greek/Roman collections (and a statue from Easter Island) and even then we weren't able to see everything. Every nook, cranny and stairwell was stuffed with artifacts that would have centre pieces in nearly any other museum in the world. It was almost as if the place was littered with history. After a while, it's hard not to become a little numb to the significance and majesty of everything around you. I was pretty proud of myself that I only got lost a couple of times in navigating our way through the halls, but the nice thing about getting lost at The British Museum is that you always stumble into something interesting.

Now this is a lobby.

The Rosetta Stone

Toys!

The Elgin Marbles

Liam, Me and Socrates

We headed home to collect Julie and pass James off to Grandpa Mike for an afternoon of wonder. We're so grateful they were able to spend some time with James and allow us to go see yet another show (it's hard not to feel a little spoiled).

Before our show, the plan was to grab a quick bite to eat at the some place around the theatre. There weren't as many choices as I thought there would be and I ended up opting for the simplest and easiest--Burger King. We've had such great eating experiences that I felt a little guilty for giving into the temptation for All I can say for my burger is that it gratified without satisfying. Miranda and Julie made much better choices. However, one bland burger does not a London eating experience undo.

After our compromising lunch at Victoria Station, we crossed the street to see our final show of the trip, Wicked. As a family, we've been listening to the soundtrack to the show for nearly six years. It's got a fantastic score and it was great to finally be able to see how the songs fit together and what the heck was going on. The theatre and sets were fantastic and the performances were great. It definitely allowed us to go out on a theatrical high note. At the end of the show, the cast announced  that we had just seen the 2000th performance of Wicked in London. There were balloons and there was much cheering.

We joined Mom and Mike for some pizza at a nice little Italian restaurant around the corner from their apartment, and then, the next block over, we were treated to some great gelato. In Abu Dhabi, if you go into an Italian restaurant, odds are your server speaks Tagalog or Chinese. In London the waiters at Italian Restaurants and the servers in Italian ice cream parlors all speak Italian. I have to say that it makes for a somewhat more authentic experience.

Onslow Gardens. Our home away from home.

We were home by eight, but it felt much later. Hard to believe there's only one more day left, but on the other hand, I'm not sure we could survive much more of this place. London gives generously, but it takes too.