After the few days spent in Rome the family spent a few more days in London before heading back home. I took these few days off as well, to maximise the amount of time we had left together and to also make full use of all the bits of knowledge I’d acquired over the years.

On our first day back to London we spent the morning at the Tower of London exhibition where I got to see the Crown Jewels for the first time. I think it’s definitely worth going early if you want to have a look at them close up as we got to walk by, stunned by the amount of queuing people might need to do on a busy day. They have at travelator in front of the jewels as well, to continue to keep the line moving and since we visited really early, we got to take our time going back and forth a number of times to really marvel at the jewels and gold inset on each of the various decorations.

We also joined one of the morning tours where one of the Beefeaters who worked here took us around. Our guard was highly entertaining and told us lots of inside secrets about the place which made the free definitely worthwhile joining.

After the Tower of London experience, we took yet another London experience, a black cab ride back to London bridge where we dined at one of the best fish and chips places I’ve found in London. The Anchor Bankside is also a bit of a historical pub though draws the tourist crowds being perfectly located on the walking path between the Tate Modern and Borough Market. Here, their fish is lightly battered and super crispy, with its only downside being perhaps slightly oily. The entire family still appreciated the experience.

We then headed out to the edge of London where we took the train to look at the Thames flood barriers. It’s quite far our and it’s a free experience that shows a different side to London. We had a really clear day and so we could also see some of the strange and out of place buildings located in Canary Wharf.

Although we weren’t trying to, I think we took all forms of transport that day, next catching a bus back to Greenwich to see the Prime Meridian and its surrounding parklands before catching a ferry back to town to take our family to do some of their souvenier shopping. By this time, the cold outside the busy schedule kicked in again when a few of the family members fell asleep on our journey back in the warmth and slow rocking of the Ferry.

The family finished off their European adventures with a visit to the London Eye and St Pauls before we saw them off past security at the airport. I’m certain that everyone enjoyed their holiday although the memories no doubt started to blur since we packed in so many things. Still, it was nice to share as much of our favourite parts of London with the rest of our family.