Day Two: I hope you are ready for the...............dramatic pauses.

They say the easiest way to have a great day is to have a great breakfast.  I'm not one who usually has a regular breakfast, for me a Large Black Iced Coffee from Dunks usually does the trick, but today, I had a great meal!  European hotel breakfasts are usually a wonderful deal and the Heston Hyde is no exception.  Today, they offered quite a spread.  The hot breakfasts included mushrooms, roasted tomatoes, baked beans, scrambled eggs, bacon, hash browns, and I had them all.  It was really good.  After that, I went up and got a cup of yogurt with some fresh fruits mixed in...also delicious.  I also grabbed a pastry...it was also tasty.  Finally, I took a roll, split it, and put in some deli meat and cheese.  Before you start thinking that I am eating too much (which I am) please realize that I knew in advance that we had a very busy day ahead of us and that I'd be eating only a couple times during the day.  As I tell the kids, if you have a big breakfast, you'll spend less money at lunch.  The kids seemed to really like the breakfast too. Many of them, especially after a good night's rest, had enough energy to go up for seconds.  Some were really excited about "new" breakfast items like beans and mushrooms.  Some were far more traditional and grabbed some serial.  Amanda R. was a little upset that the bacon was more like ham and was a little under-cooked for her liking.  At last, the time arrived for us to depart the hotel for a day full of seeing sights.

Our bus ride in today was much shorter than Day 1.  Being Saturday, there was very little city traffic.  We arrived into London and picked up our city guide, Keith.  David had warned us about Keith.  He is a great guide, David said, but if the kids do not engage with him, he gets kind of mad.  Well, we didn't have to worry about that...our kids were engaged.  Keith took us past all of the coolest spots in London and had quite a few stories to go with them.  His irreverent sense of humor and his ability to ask the "tough" questions had everyone involved.  Erica did a great job of answering a question early on and getting the ball rolling.

Keith, in front of St. Patrick's Cathedral.

Keith in front of Westminster Abbey.  It wasn't raining, we follow the blue umbrella when the crowds are busy.

Westminster Abbey!!!

The group arriving at Buckingham Palace.

Outside of Buckingham Palace.

Perhaps the best part of Keith's tour was his impeccable timing.  Not only could he deliver jokes better than Domino's, Keith was able to get us through the city and down by Buckingham Palace for the changing of the guard.  We saw the procession marching back to their barracks and witnessed the pomp and circumstance of the British Army.  It was one of the more impressive things I've seen in a long time.

After the changing of the guard, we stopped for lunch and then headed to South Kensington Station on the Tube.  We are not sure, but a couple of us may have been on the Today Show this morning.  There was an NBC News crew outside of the palace and we stood down range of the camera...if anyone was watching and thinks you saw us...you probably did!!!

Amanda M, Diana, Alison, and Lexi riding the Tube.

Our actual stop was Exhibition Road.  On this road, there are four major points of interest.  The first is Harrod's Department Store. It is one of the most luxurious department stores in the entire world.  While I had had an unbelievable time there three years ago, today, like most of the kids, I decided to check out the other three sights...they are all museums.  The first museum that I visited was the Science Museum.  As you can expect from the title, this place was all about the sciences.  I really enjoyed it.

I've been teaching about the Industrial Revolution. The steam engine was really cool!!!

After the science experiment, I headed off to the Victoria and Albert Museum.  It was described as a museum for things that people built.  I didn't really know what to expect.  David had mentioned fashion, and while I am one of the more fashionable teachers at Saugus High School (Not really, although I am fashionably late while on tour), I am not really interested in fashion or design.  The museum, however, was really cool.  It had artifacts from all over the world and from all ages.  I found some kids enjoying the ancient collections from Egypt.

I caught these three admiring the artifacts and snapped this quick picture before the one above.  They didn't know I was there...or how proud I was just seeing them take it all in.  (Wicked Cool for a history teacher to see)

The largest of the three museums on Exhibition Road is the Natural History Museum.  I had spent nearly three hours there the last time I was in London and so, today, I only ran in for a quick bit, but I did catch a quick picture of an old friend of mine...

After our time at the museums had expired, we took the tube again...today's title was going to be a Tube reference, but I changed it at the last minute...and the kids did great maneuvering through London's Underground.  We didn't lose any of them, lol.

50 American tourists on an escalator!!!

It was dinner time and our meal was Curry.  David explained that Indian food was becoming London's official food because of the large population of Indians who had moved into the city.  Our restaurant was an interesting place and the kids who tried the food seemed to enjoy it...I'm going to work on those who didn't try it. :)

The last official part of our evening was a Jack the Ripper Tour, but before we made it there, I forced everyone to stop for a group photo.  I am not in this picture.  I feel as though I make it into a lot of pics.  David, our tour director, might not make it into as many and he is a really important part of this trip's success...so, I made him be in the photo while I took the picture.

David is just right of the William Shakespeare statue.  He's been great so far!!!

After dinner, we headed back onto the Tube.  Our destination was Whitechapel.  When we departed the train station a very strange man was waiting for us.  He was dressed all in black and was carrying a McDonald's bag.  He stopped in front of us and watched a couple of take pictures near a Bus sign.  His mannerism were quite strange...which is fitting because he turned out to be Fred Strangebone.  He is one of the premier Jack the Ripper Tour Guides in all of London.  I was fortunate enough to see him several years ago and knew we were in for a treat.   He is kind of like the Pied Piper.  The kids hang on his every word.  From the very beginning of the tour, Fred incorporated many interesting facts surrounding the world's most intriguing serial killer and his victims.  Fred also gave us some safety instructions, included several comedy moments, and unusually long moments of pause for dramatic effect.  

Fred has just unveiled that his McDonald's bag actually contains a lantern which he will guide our tour...he's also revealed that he has family troubles at home.

He then took us down this creepy alley!!!

He then showed us some of his creepy facial expressions!!!!

Fred saying good night...the kids were still eating up his every word.

Another group photo...this time, with the star of the evening.

The entire day was packed with fun and adventure.  I often find myself going up to kids on tour and asking about meals and the coolest things they've seen so far.  It is fun for me to see the excitement in their eyes and hear it in their voices.  I wanted to give some shout outs to a few of the kids I talked to...a dangerous trend, but one that I hope to continue:

Jenna was the first one that I thought I'd give a shout out too.  She mentioned my blog as we waited to leave exhibition road.  I'm not sure if she's reading it, but she was asking when I put it all together.  Jenna, if you are reading this, then I can tell you my secret.  When you guys are all in bed (and hopefully sleeping) I stay up really late and write the blog.

I also wanted to give a shout out to Amanda M.  I never taught Amanda, but I witnessed something really cool tonight on the Tube.  Amanda was speaking with an older couple riding the train.  I couldn't hear exactly what was being said, and didn't want to disturb them, but it reminded me of something I make the kids in my classes read.  It's a speech from David McCullough.  In it, he tells some college graduates to go far in this world.  He reminds them to talk to people and to listen to what they have to say.  He says, if they do this then they will have a greater appreciation of the world around them.  Amanda seems to get this!!! I know a lot of the other kids do too.

(The hotel lobby is turning off the lights, so I should wrap this up soon)

The final shout out goes to Ms. Alongi and our kids as a group.  She is doing a great job leading her first tour.  I know how stressful it can be, but she is not letting it phase her at all.  She should know that nearly everyone of our kids said "Thank you" tonight as they got off the bus.  The bus driver was very appreciative of our kids thoughtfulness.  To piggyback on their words, Ms. Algoni...thank you.

A final photo from London as we approached the coach tonight.  

Good night, London.  Tomorrow, we depart for Canterbury and then France.  It's been a whirlwind adventure so far and we have only been here for two days.  I cannot wait to see what the world has in store for us next.

Mr. Lavoie, currently sitting in a darkened hotel lobby with only the glow of a cell phone and laptop to keep him company, but with visions of tomorrow morning's breakfast running through his mind.