Doreen No strawberries and cream at Wimbledon?

Lois Goodstein What’s in a name? Westminster Abbey is technically not an abbey at all! The correct categorization is a Royal Peculiar. Who knew? So glad you had such a brilliant trip! Welcome back!

Lois Goodstein Among the many things Londoners have left on the Tube are a samurai sword, a stuffed puffer fish, a human skull, an urn full of ashes, 3 dead bats in a jar, an entire park bench, and a coffin. Remember: If you see something, say something.

Lois Goodstein Somehow “Paris Mean Time diminished by nine minutes 21 seconds” doesn’t have quite the same ring as "GMT" (Greenwich Mean Time), don't you agree?

Lois Goodstein How about St. Paul’s Cathedral? It's amazing to look at, but it also SOUNDS pretty awesome, too. Up in the Whispering Gallery (the indoor balcony at the base of the dome), the acoustics of the cathedral’s architecture create a bizarre phenomenon: stand on the exact opposite side of the dome as each other, whisper something (like “I think I’m ready to go home”), and you can hear each other loud and clear, despite being over 100 feet away!

Lois Goodstein Tired of the same old London tourist spots and being whacked with a selfie stick while you’re queueing up? Wander off the beaten path and check out the bingo hall at the top of the Elephant & Castle Shopping Centre. It offers a bingo experience like no other, and the canteen serves up mammoth portions of super-cheap curried goat. Oh, and you can apparently win money, too.

Lois Goodstein When you’re having your next kick-around with your mates or shouting at the next Redskins match on the telly, you can thank Cambridge for establishing the rules of modern-day football. The first game of football was played in 1848 in Parker’s Piece, a grand public park in the centre of Cambridge. Go Skins!

Lois Goodstein Now that you have become world-famous buskers, why not try your hand at punting? As you see, Cambridge is the world’s home to punting, a traditional form of rowing. The punter generally propels the punt by pushing against the river bed with a pole. And everyone knows that a punt should NEVER be confused with a gondola, which is propelled by an oar rather than a pole. Obviously.

Lois Goodstein Boo! The International Ghost Research Foundation announced in 2002 that York is officially the Most Haunted City in Europe. (Might want to check under the bed in your hotel room tonight for any unwelcome visitors…)

Pam Cool!

Laura Glad Marvin survived the stumble. What song did you two sing?

Lois Goodstein York is home to the oldest working convent in England, and you can even book bed and breakfast with the nuns at the Bar Convent! Puts Shakespeare’s “Get thee to a nunnery” in a whole new light. But heads up from their website: “Please note that we do not take bookings from stag or hen parties or similar.”

Lois Goodstein How about a taste of New Orleans with that Lebanese cuisine? Durham is the home of street brass, and there is a week-long brass festival happening while you’re in town! This is a perennial favorite, with international street bands transforming Durham's World Heritage Centre into the Home of Street Brass for two days of fun, frolic, and musical madness. It’s the bees’ knees!

Lois Goodstein Speaking of sanctuary cities, on the main door of Durham Cathedral is a replica of the Sanctuary Knocker. Any fugitives who grasped the knocker were granted sanctuary for 37 days. They could then either face their accusers or be given safe conduct to the coast. So I guess Durham is a little like Jersey City?

Lois Goodstein Perfect timing! The annual Scottish Real Ale Festival is this week at the Edinburgh Corn Exchange, featuring over 180 real ales. And if that’s not enough, then add a great choice of food, traditional pub games, and the ever-popular “Win a Tee Shirt” beer trail. Lang may yer lum reek! Slainte! Live long and healthy! (literally, Long may your chimney smoke!)