First day in London

We spent Wednesday afternoon roaming Stoke Newington, the northeast London neighborhood where we're staying during our visit.

Rex enjoyed the sunshine that's been in unusual abundance here for the last week.

And we ended the night at the home of friends Chris (left) and Johnny (right). Chris, a UK native, and Rex were housemates in the mid-1980s in Urbana, Ill. Johnny is an expatriate who grew up in Georgia but moved to this side of the pond 20 years ago. His British accent and Euro sensibilities disguise the fact that he's not a native.

Their bright, cute and charmingly precocious son and daughter had gone to bed by the time we finished dinner at their house in Tufnell Park.

See Rex's blog for more on Chris, Johnny and their family.