Thursday, March 22, 2007

London Bridge is NOT falling down!

Ever since I wed my husband 10 years ago, I've learnt to be more spontaneous. Many things were done at the spur of the moment, especially when it comes to taking short trips away. We'd plan things a day earlier or up to a week earlier but keep the plan to ourselves. One of the main reasons was to minimise the amount of disappointment it might cause to the kids as there were some previous occasions where we had to abandon our plans.

Last weekend we went for a day trip down to London. Before they went to bed the night before, I told them that if they were good, we'd take a trip somewhere during the weekend. So when I woke them up on Saturday morning, I told them to hurry and get ready because we were going to London.

Bangun! Bangun! Rise and shine! Kita nak pergi London hari ni. Nak ikut tak?

Alah, Mama tipu... (grumbled Abang and he tugged the duvet over his head)

I couldn't help laughing because I knew what he meant. There were occasions in the past when we were busy getting ready to leave the house and the kids would be asking (over and over again): where are we going? (though it's sometimes the other twin asking but you think you've answered the question so many times already). After the umpteenth time, I'd finally exclaim: We're going to London! And then, they'd get the message and end up saying, Alah, Mama ni...

So they couldn't be blamed if they didn't believe me that day. No, we're REALLY going to London today!

Abang H's eyes were wide open. Betul ke?

Betul... Cepat siap! Lagi cepat siap, lagi banyak tempat boleh pergi!

My princess jumped out of bed. Yea-yea..Boleh pergi London Bridge! Yea-yea..

Ever since we came last September, my princess has asked me on three separate occasions, Boleh tak kita pergi London Bridge?

She learnt the song London Bridge is falling down when she was in kindergarten and she now knows that we are not far from London city. In fact, she asked me again when we went fishing the week before. Naturally, when MrD asked me on Friday, what the plan was for the weekend, I quickly suggested London!

My research on that particular Friday night was to check on the weather forecast: cloudy in the morning, sunny in the afternoon. Okay, that's not too bad. I checked on routes to take, costs and laid out a list of possible places to go to.

The children's best was London Bridge. Little D and Princess sang the song all the way to London and even when we were at the bridge! We also made trips to Trafalgar Square, Marble Arch, Oxford Street, Picadilly Circus, and of course to the Malaysian Hall for lunch. Other must-see spots were reserved for our next trip, including Buckingham Palace where we'd have to watch the changing guards. They loved it so much that at the end of the day, they didn't forget to thank us on the way back home (Abang H was the one who led the thankyous): Thank you Mama. Thank you Abah. Thank you sebab bawak kitorang pergi London!

Oooh, wonderful moments are best spent with your loved ones! Pause to reflect...


18 comments:

k.d said...

Awwww....cair hati dengar the thank yous yek...

I was loking forward one time tengok Buckingham Palace..tapi I saw that AFTER I tengok Versailles in Frances..Such contrast.

Anyway, don't forget London Eye, The aquarium, Madame tussaud and for lunch go to "Makan"..my friend said it's good.

Anonymous said...

betul kadang2 i wish i have more children lagi ramai lagi seronok jln2 kan. it's not the jln2 but it's seeing them happy yg buat best. next time you go to london don't forget to bring them the natural history museum, and science museum. perhaps just make one trip just for the museums visits. they will enjoy it very much, especially kids at their age.

Mama Sarah said...

syoknya, jealousnya, bestnya, sejuknya...

p/s: did Princess get to see London bridge? In the photo is Tower bridge kan? (cece, macam nak tunjuk pandailah pulak...)

Darling said...

teringat masa kecik2 nyanyi lagu london bridge.. ntah apa nama mainan tu ntah.. lepas tu kena kejar.. :d

Anonymous said...

This is the best part of study. Melancong dan berjalan-jalan.

London? Saya pernah bawa anak-anak ke Harrod. Tak beli apa-apapun, mahal. Bila nak keluar terjumpa seorang Melayu Sarawak yang kaya raya. Pernah jumpa sekali semasa mengajar di sana.

Dia bagi selambak duit pound kepada anak-anak saya. Kami masuk balik dan beli sedikit cenderamata untuk budak-budak tu....

Bestkan?

Makcik Runner said...

been to london once in 97, just got married at the time, hubby plak kena pi training 6 weeks kat Holland so ikut skali. kira honeymoonlah. so masa dia kena pi london ada keja kat sana, i pun tumpang skaki. round2 kota london sempat jumpa my sister yg study kat sana. so in that 2 days full tour betullah sampai balik rumah terus pengsan. duit pun kopak. best gak pegi sana cuma masa pegi tu time summer. kalau dapat time winter ke spring ke kan best...huhuhu

Helena said...

bestnya weekend trip.... dah dekat tu, mmg kena visit all the places. Teringat masa kecik2 dulu masa kat US, every weekend mesti my parents bawak jalan2..... naik bas greyhound.... heheh

cikdinz said...

kat sini ada seremban bridge....heheheheeeee...

Ungku Nor said...

alaaa..nak pegi London jugaaakkkk!!!

hehehe.

13may said...

best best:)

13may said...

best best:)

13may said...

best best:)

Darling said...

ko ni tamak, kan 13may... sampai 3 kali hantar tu :P

Intan said...

england is one country i really really want to visit... flight stopover adalah, tapi tu tak kira.

selalu dengar cerita dari kawan2 aje and tompang baca cerita2 dari bloggers like u lah.

D said...

kd,
yup, there's so much to see in London. Definitely so much more (I think the kids would love Little Venice and of course MrD wants to go to Petticoat Lane!!)

anon,
Must go to museums and galleries but gotta plan it carefully so that the kids will still get the most out of it. Furthermore, I think they are just so eager to learn more about history and culture now that we'd have to make sure we know what they are in order to explain it to them! LOL!

mamasarah,
yeah, we first went to London Bridge but obviously were more pulled towards Tower Bridge!! They kept asking, "Betul ke London Bridge is falling down?". Puas explain..!?!

darling,
jom main jom!

mki,
berjalan dengan anak-anak memang seronok (walaupun memenatkan)

kc,
kalau berjalan, memang kena semua musim. bila nak mai lagi??

helena,
dah besar pun boleh naik bas lagik. this time, naik London touring bus (my kids dok kata, macam dalam cerita Mummy)

cikdinz,
mana plak seremban bridge nye???

kak ungku,
apa lagik? cepatla booking tiket AirAsia tuh... saya tunggu kat airport yea?!!

13may,
thank you..

thank you...

thank you....

darling,
nasib baik 13may tak buat 13 kali!!!

D said...

intan,
time to get a break... pecah tabung, go get tickets. meh datang dok rumah I - free accomodation, free makan minum. Souvenirs kena pakai duit sendiri la..

Lee said...

Hi D, enjoyed reading your posting of your kids and London bridge. Have always loved the sights and sounds of London, as well the British sense of humour. I never get tired of seeing the movie, "Nottinghill" starring Julia Roberts and Hugh Grant. Seen it more than 5 times todate.
Here's some smiles for you, D. You have a nice day. UL.

Mother taught me: 1. My Mother taught me about ANTICIPATION...
"Just wait until your father gets home."

2. My Mother taught me about RECEIVING....
"You are going to get it when we get home!"

3. My Mother taught me to MEET A CHALLENGE...
"What were you thinking? Answer me when I talk to you ... Don't talk back to me!"

4. My Mother taught me LOGIC...
"If you fall out of that swing and break your neck, you're not going to the store with me."

5. My Mother taught me MEDICAL SCIENCE...
"If you don't stop crossing your eyes, they are going to freeze that way."

6. My Mother taught me to THINK AHEAD...
"If you don't pass your spelling test, you'll never get a good job."

7. My Mother taught me ESP...
"Put your sweater on; don't you think I know when you're cold?"

8. My Mother taught me HUMOR...
"When that lawn mower cuts off your toes, don't come running to me."

9. My Mother taught me how to BECOME AN ADULT...
"If you don't eat your vegetables, you'll never grow up."

10. My Mother taught me about SEX....
"How do you think you got here?"

11. My Mother taught me about GENETICS...
"You're just like your father."

12. My Mother taught me about my ROOTS...
"Do you think you were born in a barn?"

13. My Mother taught me about WISDOM OF AGE...
"When you get to be my age, you will understand."

14. And my all time favourite... JUSTICE...
"One day you'll have kids, and I hope they turn out just like you...
then you'll see what it's like."

D said...

uncle Lee,
You're SO resourceful! Lurvvve all 14!! thx..