Warning: This blog post is going to be quite a long one! Let the Olympic Fever begin!
After an emotional goodbye to my gorgeous family, I left Hobart at 10:40 am on Thursday 26th July and arrived into the buzz of the Olympic city on Friday afternoon.
My Qantas Flight 001 departed Sydney and I realised there was a vast amount of space around me. There was no-one in front of me (to jam their seat back into me), no-one beside me (to excuse when I needed to use the bathroom) and no-one behind me…actually there was no-one around the whole two/three rows of the plane, allowing many opportunities for stretching out and relaxing for the next 21 hours.
I settled in, choosing the movies to watch, popping on my comfy trackies, getting my pillows sorted and suddenly realised that I haven’t had such a ‘forced relaxation’ for many years.
I arrived to a smiling Bron who whisked me away from Heathrow and drove to Guildford. It felt very surreal to be: a) on the other side of the world, b) in the northern hemisphere, c) in a warmer climate and d) in a different timezone!
I was blown away by the beautiful countryside which was so green and lush. It reminded me of where I grew up (Hagley in northern Tasmania) but on steroids! We got home to a welcoming Jerome and their boys, Chester & Owen and enjoyed a beautiful roast dinner. After dinner we settled in to watch the Olympic Opening Ceremony!
Day 1 – Saturday
Still recovering from my jet-lag, we were straight into it and caught a train to a neighbouring town to watch the Men’s Olympic Road Cycling event. It was SO exciting! I have never before witnessed such a buzz from a sporting event. We were standing within a hairs breath from the best riders in the world! I shall let the photos speak for themselves!
Day 2 – Sunday
Today, Bron and I took her boys into London! It felt very surreal arriving into Waterloo Station and seeing all the iconic landmarks such as Big Ben, The Houses of Parliament, The London Eye and The Tate Modern reveal themselves on a stormy day. I kept pinching myself that I was actually here!
We wandered into Piccadilly Circus, through Covent Garden, along The Strand and visited the Twinings Store and St. Paul’s Cathedral. We crossed the Millennium Bridge for a cuppa at The Tate Modern to warm up after being caught in a torrential downpour – ah the English summer!
Day 3 – Monday
Today we enjoyed a lovely day in Guildford! Nick and I spoke on FaceTime this morning and it was so amazing to see him and little Pops, live. I think she was a little perplexed about Mummy ‘being in’ Daddy’s iPad. She kept leaning over and kissing the screen. Bless! x
Bron and I went to lunch at Jamie Oliver’s Restaurant – Jamie’s Italian and savored the food (and the ability to eat lunch without chasing after our little ones)!
I am certainly having a fantastic time here in the UK. Tomorrow I am heading into London for a wander around on my own, whilst Bron and Jerome head to see the Olympic Gymnastics. xx
The Poppy Files 
Wonderful Larni, it all sounds fun. And the green countryside – delightful. That is something we don’t have a lot of here although there has been a bit of rain over the last few days…… Bit grey and cold today (Tuesday).
Larn….great to hear you are having a wonderful time. Bron looks so hot! Yes yes – you do too! Food and sights look fabulous……Enjoy!
So glad to hear that you are having a great time over there. There must be so much to see, it must have been fun to check out the best road cyclists in the world. Love that scarf, particularly the green colour, is it British Racing Green? Nice stripes too. Have you had any time to catch with Mary (Princess) or Kate and Will’s? I hear Harry will be turning up to the Beach Volleyball at some stage, lucky bugger. Have fun!