An Olympic Sized Holiday

A 40-day adventure by My Awesome Adventures Read more

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An Olympic Sized Holiday Traveler
Walt’s
August 4, 2024 in France ⋅ ☁️ 24 °C
What a place to have a late lunch! The food was fantastic. I ate too much - again. What’s even nicer, was sitting by the window in the upper floor, watching the parade go by.
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An Olympic Sized Holiday Traveler
A little train trip
August 4, 2024 in France ⋅ ☁️ 24 °C
On Disneyland Rail Road.

I’ve also added a few other random photos from around the park. Unfortunately, I didn’t take many photos today for a combination of reasons: I was tired, many rides won’t photograph well, and Disney is really better when you’re just living it.

Other things I did at the park today:

1. Almost got knocked over by a Disney princess. Now that was embarrassing. Aurora was never my favourite anyway.

2. Went on lots of rides. Like Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Peter Pan’s Flight and Pinocchio’s Travels (all very cute storytelling rides - but some screaming scared children). Dumbo the Flying Elephant and The Mad Hatter’s Teacups (both classics). Pirates of the Caribbean and Phantom Manor (very Disney combinations of story telling with a bit of a thrill rolled in). Star Tours (a fun Star Wars based ride). I tried to find the Indiana Jones ride, but by the time I finally worked out where it was on the app, I realised it was in this tiny out of the way place and my feet were too sore to take me there.

3. I wandered around some very interesting exhibits / areas like parts of Frontierland (western) and Adventureland (pirates), as well as Liberty Arcade (history) and Les Mystères du Nautilus (based on the submarine from the novel 20 000 Leagues Under the Sea). These are some fascinating little places and the details are amazing.

4. Watched Mickey’s Philharmagic Orchestra. A 4D experience and I loved it. It was much better that the one I saw in Orlando many years ago. It felt like you could reach out and touch things, plus the shaking of chairs, misting of water and blasting with air was fun. Donald has always been my favourite.

5. Shopped! But strangely enough I didn’t find too many things to buy. There was plenty that I liked (a Donald Duck backpack for 90€ anyone?) but not much that I really wanted to bring home. There were cute “shoulder pets” that magnetically clip to your shoulder in a range of sidekick characters like Mushu, Chip, Grogu, Sebastian etc but when would I ever use it again? And who would I choose? I am very happy with my Minnie ears headband.

All up it was a fabulous day and I wanted to stay for the light show, but that’s at 10:20pm. After the 10 hours I had already spent at the park today, I thought (and my feet agreed) that it was time to head in, sort out my stuff, pack my bags for tomorrow and check out the train timetables.

Next adventure: London bound.Read more
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An Olympic Sized Holiday Traveler
Gare du Nord - Au Revoir la France!
August 5, 2024 in France ⋅ ☀️ 20 °C
What a bustling hive of activity this place is. That’s one thing I didn’t forget.

Oh. My. God. Exactly as I was writing this I just got hit up for a scan for money for a train ticket. I’m actually surprised it took this long, but I have really been on the move. Now that I’m still I’m more of a target.

Anyway, back to my story. So… here I am at Gare du Nord, bidding Paris a fond farewell. Honestly, this is a good thing. Never again shall I visit Paris during the Olympics! (As if I could?!?)

I got here so early, check in for my train wasn’t open. But that’s okay. Time for a pastry and a coffee.

As it turns out - I’m riding on the same train and Great Britain’s Olympic Team! They have put out so many calls welcoming them and saying that they made their country proud. I bet they’re all in business class.Read more
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An Olympic Sized Holiday Traveler
Park Plaza Waterloo
Aug 5–8, 2024 in England ⋅ ☀️ 24 °C
This is a pretty swish hotel. Also the air conditioning is marvellous which is a huge change from Disney.

I checked in and then decided to go for a wander along Southbank this afternoon.
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An Olympic Sized Holiday Traveler
A Morning Stroll
August 6, 2024 in England ⋅ ☁️ 21 °C
A lovely stroll after breakfast featuring Westminster Bridge, the Houses of Parliament and Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, The London Eye, New Scotland Yard, Whitehall Gardens, the Shard (I think), and Queen Victoria’s Statue at Blackfriars Bridge. There were lovely little gardens along the way.Read more
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An Olympic Sized Holiday Traveler
Shakespeare’s Globe
August 6, 2024 in England ⋅ ☁️ 21 °C
Shakespeare’s recreated Globe Theatre. I did a guided tour which was fabulous, and saw the crew installing the sets for Antony and Cleopatra. It’s a bilingual production in English and British Sign Language.

I absolutely loved our guide. He gave us all sorts of trivia, and had a great sense of humour. As we started the tour he was speaking about how London was much smaller in Shakespeare’s day, and limited in bridges. Then he mentioned the modern Millennium bridge and how they had fantastic construction workers in London now as they completely rebuilt it very quickly when the Death Eaters destroyed it!

The exhibits were great as well. I particularly loved the chests which contained “smells” that were common in Shakespeare’s time. Cloves and gingerbread - great! The fish market? Not so much.Read more
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An Olympic Sized Holiday Traveler
The Tower of London
August 6, 2024 in England ⋅ ☁️ 22 °C
This morning, I forgot the cardinal rule of walking around London. Always carry an umbrella. For my 40ish minute walk back to the hotel, I was misted and drizzled on. I definitely remembered the brolly for this afternoon’s excursion!

This was a great destination. It was fascinating seeing the Crown Jewels. No photos of those - and you should see what happens to those who try! Those guards are scary!

The ravens are particularly well fed. 😁

There’s also a fantastic view of the Tower Bridge.

The prisoner graffiti in Beauchamp Tower is fascinating. Nothing like today’s slap dash efforts. I guess when you have nothing else to do, stone carving seems like a good idea.Read more
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An Olympic Sized Holiday Traveler
The Nag’s Head
August 6, 2024 in England ⋅ ⛅ 20 °C
Dinner tonight is typical English fare in a pub in Covent Garden. Tomato soup for entree, fish and chips for main and an absolutely delightful honeycomb cheesecake for dessert. It was lovely.
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An Olympic Sized Holiday Traveler
Thames River Cruise
August 6, 2024 in England ⋅ ⛅ 20 °C
A lovely cruise along the Thames at sunset. It got a little chilly on the open air boat, but the scenery was beautiful. We even passed the Houses of Parliament precisely when it was turning 9pm, so we got to hear the chimes.Read more
Hi Ms. Pollock, We (8A and me) enjoyed your trip photos today, Maddox was really excited to see you near Eiffel tower whereas Noah liked Marvel superheroes. They loved your pics.Enjoy! [Anu]
8/6/24Reply
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An Olympic Sized Holiday Traveler
Buckingham Palace
August 7, 2024 in England ⋅ ☀️ 17 °C
We got here bright and early on our sightseeing tour, so there weren’t too many people around. The Union flag is flying which means the monarch isn’t in residence. This will change in the afternoon as King Charles has his weekly briefing with the Prime Minister.

Take a look at the boarded up gate. In February some idiot crashed his car into the gate!

So far this morning we have toured via bus, which doesn’t really suit itself to photos. Many streets were familiar from Monopoly: Regent St, Trafalgar Square, Leicester Square, Whitehall, Pall Mall etc.Read more
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An Olympic Sized Holiday Traveler
St Paul’s Cathedral
August 7, 2024 in England ⋅ ☀️ 19 °C
Our tour guide described this as the church of the people. The Royals have Westminster Abbey, St Paul’s is where the people commemorate.

What an amazing church. It is beautiful inside and out. Unfortunately, I have “Feed the birds” from Mary Poppins playing on repeat in my brain.

There are many beautiful memorial plaques in the crypt as well as the tombs of Wellington and Nelson.Read more
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An Olympic Sized Holiday Traveler
Lower Marsh
August 7, 2024 in England ⋅ ☁️ 22 °C
Just around the corner from the hotel is a “market” street. Loads of amazing little food stalls with a variety of cultures and aromas.

There’s also a bit of an Olympic live site and bunches of cafes and restaurants.Read more
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An Olympic Sized Holiday Traveler
The Vaults / Leake Street Arches
August 7, 2024 in England ⋅ ☁️ 22 °C
Just off Lower Marsh and running under Waterloo Station is a legal street art gallery. The artworks change overnight, or you can even see people working on them.

While there is plenty of “traditional” graffiti in this tunnel there are also some amazing works.Read more
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An Olympic Sized Holiday Traveler
Ice cream stop!
August 7, 2024 in England ⋅ ☁️ 22 °C
I’d better not mention the absolutely ridiculous price I paid for this ice cream - sorry, “frozen yogurt” - but it just looked too delicious. Plus I got to sit at the top of this cute double decker bus!Read more
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An Olympic Sized Holiday Traveler
Theatre time!
August 7, 2024 in England ⋅ ☁️ 21 °C
Agatha Christie’s “Witness for the Prosecution” at London County Hall.

Wow. Just the layout of the theatre space itself is fantastic! I’m sitting up very high, in the South Gallery, but in the front row. The atmosphere here is amazing. I already feel like I’m in an Agatha Christie novel. I haven’t read this particular script, or the short story she adapted it from, and I haven’t looked anything up about it either. I’m sure to be in for a surprise!

Some of the audience sat as the jury and were actually sworn in. That’s cool.

Okay, play is over now and I absolutely loved it! It was fantastic! I kinda picked “whodunnit”, but there was still an amazing sting in the tail that was incredible.

Also, I felt like I was practically part of the play, as at one stage, one of the actors was right next to me before being hauled away! Totally loved it.Read more
Hi Ms. Pollock, Thanks for sharing your pics with us, the students love your pics and the places you are visiting. [Anu]
8/7/24Reply
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An Olympic Sized Holiday Traveler
Stonehenge
August 8, 2024 in England ⋅ ☁️ 18 °C
It is absolutely incredible to consider how this site was created. It’s beautiful and the history is fascinating. More and more archaeological evidence is coming to light. Human beings are truly amazing things.

I, however, am questioning some of my life choices today. Guess who left both her cardigan and Mum’s “Mack in a sack” in her luggage. Silly me. Hot chocolate never tasted so good.Read more
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An Olympic Sized Holiday Traveler
The Flying Fish
August 8, 2024 in England ⋅ 🌬 21 °C
Today’s lunch was a typical English roast. I got to eat Yorkshire pudding, so that’s one tick off my checklist.

We’ve headed straight down into Somerset and it was a fabulous meal with beautiful scenery. I’ve also added a couple of shots of the countryside along the way.Read more
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An Olympic Sized Holiday Traveler
Plymouth and the Mayflower
August 8, 2024 in England ⋅ ☁️ 20 °C
The Mayflower departed from Plymouth with the pilgrims to colonise North America. This is the approximate spot it happened.
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An Olympic Sized Holiday Traveler
Cruising Plymouth Sound
August 8, 2024 in England ⋅ 🌬 21 °C
This was not the most pleasant cruise. It was windy, overcast and drizzling, but it was certainly an experience!

It also seemed like half of the Royal Navy was docked in the ship works.
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An Olympic Sized Holiday Traveler
The Hoe and the hotel
Aug 8–10, 2024 in England ⋅ ☁️ 20 °C
Our hotel (the Crowne Plaza) is right up on what is known here as the “Hoe”. Most of us Australians and New Zealanders have a bit of a giggle about the name.

What a difference 24 hours makes. On the 8th, it was dreary and rainy, today a lovely sunny afternoon for a walk.Read more
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An Olympic Sized Holiday Traveler
Can I spot a pirate?
August 9, 2024 in England ⋅ ☁️ 17 °C
Today we’re in Cornwall. These photos are looking out over St Michael’s Mount and Penzance Bay. I wonder if I can spot a pirate? Of course, now all I really want to do is break out in Gilbert and Sullivan tunes!

The weather is quite mild, but I’m keeping the “Mac in a sac” with me to ward off the rain.

This is a lovely little English beach. Of course that means it’s pebbles with very little sand.Read more
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An Olympic Sized Holiday Traveler
Country Lanes
August 9, 2024 in England ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C
We drove along some lovely little lanes on our way through Cornwall. I have no idea how the driver could navigate the narrow, winding lanes edged by beautiful hedges.

As it turns out, for each different species of plant you can find in a hedge, the hedge has been there for a hundred years!

It was quite funny in one particular spot. We came up against a woman towing a camper trailer. She couldn’t back up well and ended up driving into the hedge. The bloke with her got out of the car, unhooked the trailer and backed it up a bit by hand. Neither of them were very happy by the end of it and we all went on our merry way.Read more
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An Olympic Sized Holiday Traveler
St Ives
August 9, 2024 in England ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C
A day trip to St Ives. While I didn’t meet a man with seven wives, I did find the plaque about him.

I enjoyed my Cornish Pasty and a lovely blackcurrant and cheesecake ice-cream. All the locals were very determined to warn us about the sea gulls, but they mostly left me alone.

It was a lovely walk down the hill from the car park. Lots of quaint little lanes. I did catch the shuttle bus for the way back up.

In some ways I feel sorry for the Brits if this is peak seaside town. I’ll take Newcastle’s beaches, a trip to Anna Bay or South West Rocks anytime!Read more
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Glastonbury or Avalon
August 10, 2024 in England ⋅ ☁️ 20 °C
This morning’s stop is at Glastonbury. There is a hill outside of town that is known as the isle of Avalon from all of the King Arthur stories.

Glastonbury feels very much like Nimbin.

Oh, and a photo of a Who’d a thought it pub for Dad - it reminded me of Quirindi.Read more
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An Olympic Sized Holiday Traveler
The Roman Baths
August 10, 2024 in England ⋅ ☁️ 21 °C
So no trip to Bath is complete without visiting the Roman Baths. They were very interesting but terribly crowded today. I think that this is a visit better left for the off season.
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