I see London I see France...literally

I am never one to pass up a challenge, so when a fellow co-worker of mine challenged me to fly out of the States on a Friday afternoon to hang out for the weekend with him in London, how could I say no? He was on his way back through London having just completed a training session in Monaco and was preparing for formal meetings in London the week after, so there wasn't anything for him to do in the meantime and wanted someone to hang out with. I accepted and booked my flight out of STL and ORD to LHR for Friday 1/18 to return on Sunday 1/20. Upon arrival in Chicago I discovered that plans had changed and that I would be staying an extra day. As it turns out I was invited by my friend's boss to participate in a team building exercise at an undisclosed location that would require a passport and little to no English speaking ability. I rebooked my flight home for 1/21 and waited in anticipation for word as to what we would be doing on Sunday.

Saturday in London was set aside of fish and chips and beer. We walked around the place with no particular place to go. We did seek out a Thames River Boat Tour, but they were either booked or not quite what we were looking for. We settled for a cafe next to the London Eye.

Sunday morning the team met at St. Pancras train station and found that we were booked on the Eurostar to travel to Paris to participate in a team building scavenger hunt. We were to visit Parisian landmarks and take pictures to provide photographic proof of our visit. The Eiffel Tower, Arc de Triomphe, Notre Dame, and the Louvre were all on the list, among a few other obscure landmarks. We barely made the train back to London.


It was a great little get away - I didn't get very many good pictures, as we were on the move most of the time. I have wet my appetite to return to Paris to see more, and of course a trip to London is always on the list.