Day 3: London to Cardiff

Feb 27th, Saturday.

Today is our last day at London before moving on to visit our friends at Cardiff. Ivy has kindly booked us coach tickets much earlier from Victoria Coach Station to Cardiff.

We had our breakfast at The Regency Club on the 8th floor as usual. The food selections were the same but we are not complaining. Totally grateful for such a convenient luxury and savings, haha.

In the morning we were more busy. Packed most of our things because we planned to go to Portobello Market as it is one of the popular place on a Saturday and I was excited to get all sorts of bargains. We rushed abit as we were behind time with the packing and bathing the kids.

When we got to the Marble Arch tube station which is the nearest to the hotel, we again carried William in his stroller (here in UK they call it buggy) down two flight of stairs, and a long escalator only to realise that the train was not going to Notting Hill Gate that weekend. So we had to go all the way up again, claim back our money and take the Big Bus to Notting Hill Gate.

Weather was bad. Gloomy, and drizzling. We walked to Portobello Market together with many other people, and off and on it rained. Not the heavy cats and dogs kinda rain like what we have in Malaysia but we still had to open up the two umbrellas to shield the kids while quickly checking out some stalls.

I bought only 3 little souvenirs, a tomato-vege-sausage stew and a tee-shirt. We didn't get to see much as the weather was not favourable and time was not on our side.

We rushed back to the hotel with the bus and on the short walk back to the hotel, dropped into Sainsbury to buy ready-made lunch boxes. Coincidently, Vic and I saw this pack of Irish brown soda bread that her allergist doctor from Tangkak has mentioned to us. This is a special organic bread that is made yeast-free. We bought one loaf at 1.49pounds (only!).

The hired car came on time to pick us at 1pm, and we arrived Victoria Coach Station in good time. The hired car dropped us off near the entrance and we struggled a bit with the luggages for a short distance. Vic helped us with the push trolley, whilst I pushed William on his stroller with a backpack and also pushed his carseat with the harversack. Daddy pulled two hardcase luggages and carried his laptop bag and a backpack on his back.

Victoria Coach Station is a pretty small place, I'd say. The kids didn't have a proper lunch as the food from the lunch boxes were not the tastiest. Thank God for bananas.

When we got into the coach, I placed the laugai William in his car seat. Initially he protested but we had no choice because this is a strict law in UK that toddlers must sit in car seats and children in booster seats. Finally he gave in. I pretended to sleep, and it worked, he fell asleep.

We arrived Cardiff 530pm. Kevin, Ivy's hubby, came to pick us and help us with the luggages. We went home to rest for a while, before proceeding for dinner at a Korean restaurant nearby, which happens to belong to one of Ivy and Kevin's good friends. So although the restaurant was pretty pack, we got our food quick fast.

The kids ate glass noodle with beef for dinner. For the first time, they refused rice because they love the noodle so much.

Ivy and Kevin has kindly gave up with their masterbedroom for me and William to sleep in, and Victoria and Daddy takes the other room. Their house is very warm, cosy and extremely clean. Ivy make sures that she kills every bacteria that attempts to live in her house, haha.

That night, William woke two times crying very loudly. I think he's just not used to the new environment yet but now (as I type this), he's very very at home. The two kids have warmed up to both Ivy and Kevin, and William is very attached to Kevin.