The walk was slow and deliberate. We walked about 2 and half miles that first day after surgery. We found a grocery store and bought a few items. We discovered the Underground stop just around the corner and figured out how the bus system worked.

We decided to go to Golder's Green to look for some internet signals since we had been told that there were some internet cafes there. We got on the train and took a little trip south. We were unsuccessful. There are no internet cafes in London. None.

Holly and Josh on the train to Golder's Green	Train stop at Golder's Green

On the way back, we bought dinner from the same grocery store and took the bus home. Josh had had enough. Sunday we would walk some more.

We really enjoyed staying at Bob’s Bed and Breakfast and we would have enjoyed it more if we could have used our credit card to pay for it. We didn’t know until we got there that Bob was a cash-only business. We didn’t have any cash. We had to go to an ATM on that first day to get money for the stay. Since this trip was last minute, we really hadn’t saved anything up to go and decided that the whole thing would be put on credit. Neither one of us is rolling in cash but I was the only one with enough in the bank to pull out so I paid for four nights at Bob’s. If we could have paid with credit, we would have stayed at Bob’s delightful little house for the entirety of our trip but because my cash reserves were running low, we needed to find a place to stay that was equivalent in value but would take our American credit. Josh found a place in Stratford for a reasonable amount that took credit. He booked it over the internet while I was asleep, putting down a deposit to hold the room and had a confirmation notice sent to his email.

On Sunday, July 8 th, however, we still had the day in Hendon and decided to take in the Royal Air Force Museum which was just up the road. My dad asked me to go and take pictures for him and since it was free, we said “sure.” The walk to the museum was easy and leisurely except for the part where we sat for a spell to rest and drink some water. We sat on ant hills accidentally and were covered in a matter of moments. That was Mother Nature’s way of saying “no stopping!”

Planes outside the RAF Museum, Hendon, London, UK (l) Hawker Hurricane and (r) Supermarine Spitfire

The museum was lovely and extensive. I took over 250 photos for my dad to live vicariously through our experience. I’m not really ‘into’ planes and neither is Josh but we both were pretty impressed with the collections and the history of the RAF. All of the folks there were very friendly and talkative. Josh and I did sit for the “Plane and Simple” demonstration, which illustrated how planes fly. I have to say that I never considered learning to fly before, even after my brother got his license but this man really inspired me to possibly take up flying. He did a better job of explaining lift, drag, weight and thrust than my high school science teachers. And with audience participation, too! (Additional pictures of numerous planes available upon request.)

Nice man who did Plane and Simple Demonstration

After the museum, we decided on lunch at an American corporate restaurant where we received sticker shock from the prices, especially after the exchange rate was taken into consideration and exceptionally bad service from a very nice girl who was planning on traveling around the world for six months. We both thought she’d do a better job of getting the money for the long haul if she was more attentive to her tables. Josh went straight to bed after our walk back from the restaurant.

One of our fellow residents in the house is a man named Stuart. He’s a friend of Bob’s and also the chef at the local pub up the street. Stuart had invited Josh and I down to the pub, Chequers, for a delightful meal. We were starting to get the impression that Hendon rolls up the sidewalks, excuse me, footpaths, at around 5pm. I wake Josh up to go to dinner around 7 and he doesn’t want to go. He’s too tired, he says. I say that we told Stuart we’d be there and we should go. I said he was just groggy from the sleep and if he got up and moved around, the fog would lift. After much cajoling, Josh got up and actually moved. We get to the pub and discover that Stuart left at 5pm. Right on time, I suppose. We’d had a similar situation that first night in Hendon. We woke up late from our nap and couldn’t find a single place to eat at 9pm on a Thursday night. We had to convince a Chinese restaurant to make us some dinner. So, no pub dinner for us – instead we decided to try the only place open between the pub and the B & B, which was a pizza joint. Time For Pizza! it was called and it was quite delicious. Josh and I walked back to the B & B at about 10pm, there was still a faint hint of light in the sky. We were about to wake up to one of the most challenging days of the journey.