Our bright idea was to take the train so that we could both take our strollers. Unfortunately we were unaware of the fact that Jen had three strollers so we could have flown. However, the train trip with a fellow mother made it much more enjoyable so that the 4-5 hour trip didn’t seem to take that long.
Jen graciously met us at the train station so that we wouldn’t have to find our way to her house. Since the day of an infant and toddler is short (7pm), we decided rather than going back to Jen’s immediately, we would stay out for the day and just carry our backpacks.
First on our agenda was lunch. We stopped at 2 or 3 pubs and they all had signs not allowing anyone underage inside. This was my first inkling that this trip would be very, very, very different from all of my other trips to London.
We decided to look for a Wagamama’s for lunch (at my suggestion). There was one near Oxford Street where we were going to do a little shopping. However, the one we were looking for didn’t exist so we ended up at an Indian chain restaurant called Masala Zone.
When we entered, the wait staff seemed to be overwhelmed with the idea of three strollers so it took a good 10 / 15 minutes to get us situated. Thankfully, the hubbub was worth it as the food was quite tasty. I wish we had a Masala Zone in Bonn! For a chain, I thought it was really great food.
After lunch, we hit a few shops on Oxford Street. Of course instead of shopping for clubbing clothes as I had in the past, this shopping expedition was all about baby clothes. Bye-bye cleavage tops; hello onesies.
We realized that it was quite late already and decided to take the tube back to Jen’s house. The tube has not really embraced the handicapped or the stroller-capped. The majority of tube stations have stairs and escalators. Anna and I both braved our first experience with a stroller and an escalator. The up isn’t so bad but the down is a little sketchy.
We got to Jen’s lovely 3 story flat and got the kids fed, diapered, dressed and in bed so that we could enjoy a nice evening.
I was outvoted on the dinner plans so we ordered Dominos pizzas and enjoyed some great cheese. As much as I resisted, I have to say that I enjoyed the pepperoni pizzas that took me down high school memory lane.
Jen’s place is so spacious that we all had our own room with our children. This would be good for those of you who like to sleep with your children. I, however, do not. Sabine and I are super light sleepers so we spend the night waking each other up and no one gets a good night’s sleep. Jim likes to say that we are both thrashers in bed.
The next day started early for everyone (thanks to Sabine) so we walked through St. James Park and watched the changing of the guard. It was the one tourist thing I had never done and the kids wanted to see the horses.
We stopped for lunch at a chain in Trafalgar Square just in time to miss some rain. I know that three women with large strollers and small children are not the most desirable customers so I feel badly for the servers who get stuck with us. Not too long ago, I was the server complaining that a family of 5 just sat in my section.
Lunch with children is never a short affair. The kids need to eat, we need to eat and then there comes the diaper changing relay where we all take turns using the changing station (if we are lucky enough to have one). Otherwise we take turns “spotting” while one mother carefully changes her child who is balancing precipitously on a small ledge near the sink.
After lunch, we decided to head back to Jen’s neighborhood to visit a charity resale shop dedicated to children’s items. Before we were able to get there, it started raining quite heavily so we popped into a bookstore along the way to let the rain subside a bit. I found a few books for Sabine as well as some great vintage wrapping paper that was educational and in French! They will look great framed and hung in Sabine’s room as posters.
We walked back to Jen’s and worked on feeding and getting the kids to bed so that we could enjoy another nice evening. We ordered Indian food for dinner and had an awesome mint flavored chicken dish which I’d never had before. Unfortunately I’ve forgotten the name of it so I'll probably order the wrong thing the next time I get Indian.
On our last day, we packed up in the morning and then hit a fun park near Jen’s house. Sabine enjoyed the little spinning bowls and the swings. Unfortunately, they don’t have baby swings in Bonn so she hasn’t done very much swinging in her life. She wasn't a fan of the swing at first but then she got into the swing of it.
We headed to the train station after lunch and were able to enjoy a coffee together while all three kids sleep simultaneously for the first time of our trip.
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