Phillies in London

No this hasn't become a blog about my holiday snaps. This is a baseball related post!

The Christmas holidays have started~hooray. As a teacher, I enjoy the break. Every year we try to do something with our children for the start of the holidays. On Friday my family (extended-my wife outlaws came too) went up to London for two days. We use to live in London about 4 years ago and moved closer to the coast and a beach.



We did most of the tourist things, Trafalgar Square, Buck Palace, Piccadilly Circus, Big Ben, etc. We were lucky as we walked up The Mall to see the changing of the horse guards , which my girls loved. By the time we had reached Buckingham Palace they were fed up and didn't want to see anymore guards! All they really wanted to do was go to Hamleys, a overpriced, over crowded toy shop that isn't a patch on Toys'R'Us but they love it!

All my boys wanted to do was go to the playground that has a really impressive wooden pirate ship that is as big as a real ship only better. It is great fun and I think there are more dads on it than actual children. It is a further walk through St James Park and the complete opposite end of Hyde Park, so that wasn't going to happen! We went to Hamley's and came back to the hotel.

While we were waiting for the lift a man wearing a Phillies cap and World Series Champions 2008 T-shirt got out of the lift. I asked the obvious question 'Are you a Phillies fan?'
'Well yes I come from Philly.'
'You must be pleased winning the World Series, the last time was 1980.'
'Do you know baseball?' he inquired.
'I'm a big fan of baseball.'
My wife and four children stood in the lift waiting. I asked if I could just chat for a little longer realising that I would be leaving her with four hungry, tired and grumpy children. She saw that this was too big an opportunity for me to pass up, she answered positively.

Don and I chatted for a while about various things baseball ~ Phillies specific Chase Utley, Mike Schmidt, Pete Rose and the recent World Series, the upcoming World Classic, Red Sox, Manny Ramirez. I told him about collecting baseball cards, but he suggested that only children did that! I told him about blogging and mentioned a couple of names, who knows when he is back in Philly he may just look a few up.
He had to go and meet a colleague for dinner and hoped that I might meet him tomorrow. I didn't. Which was disappointing because it was enjoyable listening to an American accent, talking baseball face to face and being able to hold my own in the conversation.

Thanks Don, the Phillies fan.