Wrapping up the UK with HP and Chunnelling Our Way to France!

Well it’s time for us to leave the UK.  We had a wonderful day in York and then made our way South to London.

It was the perfect time to catch up with the Elwin family and say our final goodbyes. They shared their holiday adventures in Greece, while we shared our time in the UK; there were some great travel stories!

We were so happy to meet up for a wonderful lunch and give our best to the family where we did our housesitting; it also gave us a chance to say a final goodbye to the bunnies! We hope that one day Fiona, Lyall, Luke and Sophie will come to Canada and we can have a chance to host them!

After lunch we went to our final stop in London – Harry Potter Studios!  We had tried to book a visit while we were staying in London, but it was completely sold out.  We had to wait until after our Scottish trip.

The studio did not disappoint.  It was beyond words and one of the most spectacular and inspiring tours we have ever seen.  According to the studio, most people complete the tour in 2-3 hours.  We were there from 3:00 until almost closing at 10:00!  There was just so much to see and take in. One could easily spend an entire day in there and not see it all.

***Just a tip to those who might go – make sure to purchase the audio guide as it gives so much more information and behind the scenes footage that really makes it a rich experience. Also, we didn’t want to post too many pictures as it’s important to be surprised!

In the end, we were so sad it was over.  We all want to read the books and watch the movies again as we now have such an appreciation for all the magic.

The next day we set off for Paris, France via the Chunnel.

The Chunnel – By Mik and Zoe

The Chunnel, or the Channel Tunnel, is a tunnel under the English Channel that connects England to France.  It was built to make travel between the two countries easier and faster.  Using high speed trains, one can get from London to Paris in two hours.  To construct the tunnel, the builders used eleven tunnel boring machines (TBM). The first device used to tunnel under rivers was invented by Marc Brunel in 1818.  Each country began digging from their shores and met in the middle.  The Chunnel was started in 1988 and completed in 1994.

Our Experience

Traveling on the Eurostar high speed train through the Chunnel was a great once in a lifetime opportunity.  The train was so fast (300 miles per hour) our ears kept popping!  We thought it would take three hours to get from London to Paris, and were surprised when it took less time than we thought (two hours – we forgot about the time change).  It was very dark outside; the only way to tell whether we were on land, or under water, were the street lights we could see through the window.  Before boarding the train, we went through security which made us feel like we were in an airport.  The seats also reminded us of airplane seats and almost expected to take off on while we were on the train!

Maybe when we are engineers, we could build an underwater tunnel as amazing as this one.

So here are the top 10 lists for Mikhaila and Zoe in the UK in no particular order:

Zoe’s Top 10

1. Harry Potter Studio Tour
2. Matilda
3. Corris Mines
4. Mary King’s Close
5. Stonehenge
6. Bunnies!
7. Edinburgh
8. Nessie
9. Wales B&B
10. Rock Wall in Cupar

Mikhaila’s Top 10

1. Harry Potter Studio Tour
2. Matilda
3. Corris Mines
4. Mary King’s Close
5. Stonehenge
6. Globe Theatre
7. Glastonbury
8. Highland Games
9. Tower of London
10. Edinburgh

Au Revoir UK and Bienvenue France!