by Waverly Winchester, 9 years oldLast year we had so much fun riding around London, seeing all the sights from the top of an Original Tour Bus. Well, now they have a new route so we decided to check out Windsor!  You probably already know about the big wedding taking place there in May between Prince Harry and Megan Markle and I felt really lucky to be there right before this big, important event!  But guess what? There’s more to this place than that, and I learned all about it while riding around the very beautiful and very royal streets of Windsor and Eton. As we travelled through Home Park, I noticed how different the two sides of the street were – take a look for yourself!  Then I learned that the left side of the park is public, and the right side is private, because Queen Victoria and Prince Albert got tired of all the people..I guess I can’t blame them!  See for yourself:We traveled across the Thames River, the same river that flows through London, and learned that it used to be used mainly for trade and transport, but now it is mostly used for fun (except they called it “Leisure,” pronounced Le-zsure, of course!!). Here I am crossing the Thames, for le-szure, and having a great time on the Original Tour Bus!We also got to pass through Eton, home of the world-famous Eton College, which I was surprised to learn is not a college like we have here in America, it’s more like a private high school.  It started in 1440 by Henry VI, and it is very exclusive and fancy.  It’s only for boys who are 13 to 18 years old. Of course Prince William and Prince Harry both went here…I wonder if they also carved their names in their desks like the boys who went there long ago did – I learned a fun fact about this on the tour!  Boys would use their knives to sharpen their pens back then, and that is where “Pen Knife” comes from. Don’t thank me – thank Original Tour London!  Things were definitely not better in the old days there – when you take the tour for yourself, you will learn why!  Hint:  Let me just say that there was once a Headmaster who was not so nice!
I loved hearing about all the Eton stories through my headphones and thinking about how different it is for kids here in the United States, and I really loved looking at all the beautiful old buildings and imagining what it must be like to go there!We passed a place called The Waterman’s Arms that used to be a temporary mortuary during the days of The Plague- and guess what? Back then, they thought smoking cured the plague so boys were whipped for NOT smoking! Can you believe that? Another fun fact bought to you by Original Tour Windsor!
I think my favorite part of the tour was seeing The Long Walk that leads to Windsor Castle, and while we passed it, we heard all about the ghosts that live there.  I learned that the ghost of Queen Elizabeth I still haunts the Royal Library, all dressed in black…spoooooky….
The Long Walk is 3 miles long and believe me, pictures do NOT do it justice!  It is amazing so I think you better go hop on an Original Tour Bus Windsor for yourself so you can check it out, too!
The Kids’ News NYC Tour of Windsor is coming to an end now, so I’ll leave you with one more fun fact I learned on the bus:  Every July, they do a census of the swans in Windsor to count them and check their health.  I’m not kidding!!  Don’t believe me? You will see that I’m right when you hop on the fun and interesting Original Tour Bus in Windsor – and when you do, say hi to the fabulous driver and guide Bryn from us here at Kidsnewsnyc!
For more info:  the-original-tour-windsor