Summertime at Wicken Fen

Over the summer, we returned to Wicken Fen nature reserve.  Blake was writing a physical geography report on the location, I wanted to take some photos, and Cooper was itching for an adventure.  The weather was perfect, and everyone was out enjoying the weather.  Some people had even parked their houseboats and were enjoying a picnic. How quaint!

We paid more attention to the landscape this time since Blake was doing field research. The fens are very soggy; a type of wetland unique to this area of England.  You can easily see the standing water, and the windpump is designed to drain some of that water for agricultural purposes.  Needless to say, we wore our tall hiking boots and Cooper spent the day with a soaked underbelly.

My camera found a lot more wildlife this time than it did when we visited in the winter.  The highland cattle and konik ponies let me get some close-ups, as well as some ducks and insects.

Cooper found some wildlife too.  He caught the scent of something near the river, but the reeds were so thick that none of us could see what it was.  Being a hound, he followed the scent through the reeds until he literally ran headfirst into a roosting pheasant!  The huge bird immediately made a loud whooshing noise and took flight.  All of us were startled, but none more than Cooper, who jumped about a foot in the air at his discovery!  What a fun day.

~Lindsay

London with Parents

After returning from Spain, the four of us took the train down to London for a day.  We bought tickets for the tour bus, which drove us all over the city with a tour guide.  It was nice to sit back and relax after all of our walking in Spain... not to mention that the red double-decker bus is very iconic to London!

We hopped on and off the bus throughout the day to explore some of the sights.  We saw the changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace, ate lunch at the oldest surviving pub in London, and took pictures of St. Paul's Cathedral.  After driving across Tower Bridge, we walked around the Tower of London, and then hopped on a river boat cruise.  The tour guide told us all about the buildings full of history on either side as we made our way up the river toward Big Ben, which just so happened to be chiming for us as we approached.  My parents then went up in the Eye ferris wheel before we made our way back to the bus.

Our final part of the route took us through the neighborhoods of west London, where we got to see such places as Westminster, Paddington Station and Notting Hill.  The streets were all decked out in 'bunting' (streamers with the union jack) to celebrate the Queen's Diamond Jubilee, and it was quite a sight!

Changing of the Guard:

Eating meat pies at Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese:

St. Paul's Cathedral:

Tower Bridge:

Tower of London:

The family getting ready for a river cruise:

Big Ben and Houses of Parliament:

Bunting on every street:

London never disappoints, and we had a great day showing it off to my mom and dad!

~Lindsay