On our Way

I am excited to be on our way to Oman. An ancient part of the world that is only now starting to be understood. The home of Sinbad the Sailor and the key to early trade across the Indian Ocean and with China.

But first, our final full day in London was fun but tiring. After breakfast we made our way down Piccadilly in cold fog to the National Portrait Gallery and Trafalgar Square.





From there we followed Fleet Street to St Paul's Cathedral. St. Paul's is a magnificent building. Beautiful beyond description. We also enjoyed being inside and away from the cold. We sat for several minutes under the dome and just enjoyed the beauty while we rested.


As we left St. Paul's after several hours of oohs and aahs, the sun came out and the overcast disappeared for the first time during our visit. We spent a few minutes in the sun getting oriented before crossing the the Thames to the Tate Modern where we found a good pub for lunch.


We hiked back across the Millennium Bridge and flagged down a taxi for the ride back to the hotel.


After freshening up we decided we could not waste the sunshine. We crossed the street into Green Park and visited the Wellington Arch and wandered through the park.


We returned to the hotel in time to change for the National Geographic cocktail party and dinner. It was fun. We met up with many people we had traveled with previously and made several new friends. Most of people on this anniversary trip have been on previous jet trips with National Geographic.

Today was an early morning. We were in the lobby by 6:00 and on our way to the airport before 7:00. Our route is taking us across Eastern Europe: we are over Hungary now with stunning views of snow covered mountains. From here we turn south and pass over Bagdad, clipping a corner of Iran before landing in Muscat, Oman.


You can enlarge the photographs by double clicking on the photo.


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Location:Enroute Muscat, Oman

London

We had an easy, uneventful flight to London. After a quick shower at the hotel, we took a short walk through Mayfair and enjoyed a late pub lunch along with a few pints. We returned to the hotel and napped the rest of the afternoon.


Today we were up early. The dreary (mid thirties with fog and drizzle) weather did not hamper our sight seeing. We crossed Green Park to Buckingham Palace and then along the Birdcage Walk to Westminster. Westminster Abbey is beautiful. It is difficult to comprehend how long the church has stood and all the famous, historic bones entombed under its stone floors. We played tourist and took in all the sites in the area before having a late lunch at Hard Rock Cafe.





We are meeting friends later this evening for a show and a late dinner.


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Location:Hamilton Place,London,United Kingdom

Packed

We are packed and ready for our next trip. We leave tonight for London where we will meet some friends for a show. Later in the week we will meet with the Nat Geo group for their "Celebrating 125 Years of Exploration" trip. The map above shows our route and destinations. As you can imagine, packing for this trip took some imagination. Nine countries with temperatures ranging from the 30's to the 90's.
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