The occasion of celebrating my son's 7th birthday, some sunny spring weather, and the desire to escape from painting and decorating for a day led to us embarking on a most unusual tour around central London.
We had booked a trip on London Ducktours, which uses a fleet of six WW2 era amphibious vehicles, for a tour around central London landmarks that ends with a half-hour cruise up and down part of the River Thames. The amphibious vehicles are known as "Ducks" from their military acronym "DUKW". An American invention, over 22,000 "Ducks" were built during World War 2 and the "boat" we were on took part in the D-Day invasion on 6th June 1944*.
* One of the passengers on our trip provided a double-whammy of trivia: her father had driven a Duck during D-Day, and he was also the first ever baby born by Caesarian section at St George's hospital in Tooting. An unusual combination of facts certainly, but this blog is no prisoner to protocol!
The Duck Tour was actually just the middle part of our day which had started at 5.43am when my chronically overexcited son awoke and thundered down the stairs to let us know that he was now 7 years old.
After unwrapping presents and much excitement for the kids, we began preparations for our day which included my wife starting to roast chicken at 6.30am and both of us drinking gallons of coffee to stay awake.
By 10am we were assembled at Epsom station to meet 4 of my son's friends who were coming on the Duck Tour with us. My wife and I were soon wondering about the folly of our venture as the noise levels approached that of a Concorde flying through an underpass. There appears to be a point at which a group of 6-7 year olds reaches critical mass, resulting in parental meltdown.
The train journey itself seemed to be exciting enough for them, so their day could only get better. Which it soon did, as we reached the "Ducks" parking up spot in Chicheley St behind Jubilee Gardens and the London Eye.
We'd arrived in plenty of time for our midday trip, so after half an hour of letting the kids burn off some excess energy in the park we joined the queue to board our Duck and begin the adventure. We set off into the London traffic and soon became a tourist attraction in our own right. Our guide had us laughing and enjoying the sites as he provided a terrific blend of information and bad jokes.
We took in most of the usual sights around Westminster, went as far as the Ritz & Green Park, then back down to Vauxhall where the highlight of the trip awaited us.
We pulled in right next door to the famous MI6 building, where the Duck was prepared for its watery excursion. Some minor adjustments were made to the vehicle, then our driver Steve was replaced by "Waterman" Mark. No build-up was required to heighten the excitement as Mark drove the Duck over the edge of the ramp and we accelerated down into the river with a suitably dramatic splash.
Sitting at the back of the vehicle with our party, we had a lot of engine noise with the propellor screws churning underneath us and the water swirling about halfway up the back door (the Duck has a fairly tail-heavy profile) but the experience was fantastic. My son was beaming from ear to ear, and his mates were all shouting and pointing and loving every minute.
We pootled up the river to the Houses of Parliament, then performed a U-turn and struggled back against the outgoing tide. We emerged from the river at the same spot next to the MI6 building and returned to Chiveley St, where we disembarked from our remarkable tour vehicle.
In desperate need of refuelling, we adjourned to a nearby Pizza Express and fed and watered the troops. After that, a short runaround in Jubilee Gardens was followed by the return train journey to Epsom where waiting Mums picked up my son's friends, and we made our way home.
We were all absolutely worn out, but it had been a really special day built around the unforgettable journey on the Duck. It was an experience that we can thorougly recommend to anyone, no matter what age or how cool they are! It's a great way to see the tourist sites, and to be a tourist attraction yourself along the way.
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