Back in the middle of May we received an email from our friends/former neighbors alerting us to their plans of attending a conference in London in June. The way I see it: if a friend makes the trip over the pond (Atlantic) then the least I could do is take a 1 hour flight to visit them. A bit last minute, but we put together a great trip that took place over a long weekend two weeks ago. Two weeks? Why the delay in posting this wonderful adventure?? Well not to give away future posts, but let's just say that upon our return from London, we packed up our bags for a week-long visit to a country just south of us....NOT on the Euro. Enough of that....onto the experiences of London.
London has a reputation for rain.....and unfortunately our first full day there the city lived up to the rep. Having lived in Seattle most of our lives we do well in wet weather so this was not a show stopper. However, the first morning our friends suggested we take part in the infamous "jump on/jump off" tour bus. It would be a great way to see the major sights, learn a bit of history and facts, and be an experience to ride in a double-decker bus. Great idea......if it were not raining buckets. You see we were not alone in our courage for navigating the wet weather, so the bus was packed......and the only seats available were the "open seats" on the top of the bus. So here is the picture: Andrea and I sitting in a completely wet seat, umbrella open and doing an OK job of keeping the heavy rain from soaking us to the core. Until the bus began the journey.....when at 35mph holding the umbrella became a feat of strength. Then we entered the street with large trees.....which just happened to unload the retained water from the leaves as we drove under each tree. It was at this point that we both began to laugh uncontrollably. I think everyone around us took us for crazy, but what else could we do? I believe our friends captured the moment in a picture....but we haven't exchanged photos yet.
A few stops later and we agreed to "jump off" and begin the sight-seeing. First stop was the National Gallery in Trafalgar Square. The gallery houses over 2300 painting dating from the mid-13th century, but I think the biggest attraction is the collection of 19th century impressionists from Monet, Manet, and Renoir. It reminds me a lot of the Louvre actually.....only you are not allowed to take pictures in this gallery.
Looking at the front of the gallery when the sun came out:
Looking from the front steps of the gallery out towards Trafalgar Square.
The entrance to The Mall: the road leading up to Buckingham Palace.
The entrance to the Household Cavalry Museum.
The world famous London Eye. Did we take a journey up and get a birds-eye view of the city? Given one of us does not enjoy heights, especially in a small container with glass walls that "rotates" as you go around......uh no, we passed.
Big Ben
A better shot of Big Ben with the London Eye in the background. Have to say, this area offered some spectacular views of the area including the Parliament building.
A view of 30 St Mary Axe, the Swiss Re building.....or as some call it the Gherkin.
Tower of London
Walking up to the London Bridge Tower
We "jumped" back on the bus to finish off our sight-seeing of downtown London. Here is a good shot of the Parliament building and Big Ben.....
The following day we started the day right with a good walk through Hyde Park. A great choice and one we HIGHLY recommend if you find yourself with some extra time while in London. Some highlights from our walk:
Wellington Arch, or Constitution Arch built by George IV to commemorate Britain's victories in the Napoleonic Wars.
You can't come to London and not see the changing of the guards.....at least that is what I was told (in a tone that reflected the matter was not negotiable I might add). So we made our way to Buckingham Palace in plenty of time to see daily event.
A guard on the move well before any of the fun started.
Buckingham Palace
Looking out from Buckingham Palace with Big Ben in the background.
The fountain in the center of the roundabout directly in front of Buckingham.
Some time later, including a brief nap on the stairs of that wonderful fountain, and the festivities begin. The fun starts with a marching band....of course!
Followed immediately by the guards......
Next come the guards on horses......
From there all the guards gather inside the gates of Buckingham Palace and do a lengthy but well-choreographed ceremony where the guards march back and forth and ends with the band playing some of Britain's favorite hits, including a few tunes from the Beattles.
We made our way down to another famous sight, Westminster Abbey.
The inside of the Abbey was impressive and worthy of the steep admission charge. I was a bit surprised by the amount of people "resting eternally" inside. In the walls, above the grounds, below the floors....wow.
Looking out at the center courtyard:
Another view of Big Ben and the top of the Parliament.
Andrea and I with the Parliament building in the background.
Looking down The Mall towards Buckingham Palace
On our last night we took in the show The Wicked. For those not familiar with the musical it is the story from the Wizard of Oz only told from the wicked witch point of view....and in a much different light. The wicked witch (Elphaba), played by Rachel Tucker, stole the show with her voice. Wow. A look at the show before the lights went down......
London has a reputation for rain.....and unfortunately our first full day there the city lived up to the rep. Having lived in Seattle most of our lives we do well in wet weather so this was not a show stopper. However, the first morning our friends suggested we take part in the infamous "jump on/jump off" tour bus. It would be a great way to see the major sights, learn a bit of history and facts, and be an experience to ride in a double-decker bus. Great idea......if it were not raining buckets. You see we were not alone in our courage for navigating the wet weather, so the bus was packed......and the only seats available were the "open seats" on the top of the bus. So here is the picture: Andrea and I sitting in a completely wet seat, umbrella open and doing an OK job of keeping the heavy rain from soaking us to the core. Until the bus began the journey.....when at 35mph holding the umbrella became a feat of strength. Then we entered the street with large trees.....which just happened to unload the retained water from the leaves as we drove under each tree. It was at this point that we both began to laugh uncontrollably. I think everyone around us took us for crazy, but what else could we do? I believe our friends captured the moment in a picture....but we haven't exchanged photos yet.
A few stops later and we agreed to "jump off" and begin the sight-seeing. First stop was the National Gallery in Trafalgar Square. The gallery houses over 2300 painting dating from the mid-13th century, but I think the biggest attraction is the collection of 19th century impressionists from Monet, Manet, and Renoir. It reminds me a lot of the Louvre actually.....only you are not allowed to take pictures in this gallery.
Looking at the front of the gallery when the sun came out:
Looking from the front steps of the gallery out towards Trafalgar Square.
The entrance to The Mall: the road leading up to Buckingham Palace.
The entrance to the Household Cavalry Museum.
The world famous London Eye. Did we take a journey up and get a birds-eye view of the city? Given one of us does not enjoy heights, especially in a small container with glass walls that "rotates" as you go around......uh no, we passed.
Big Ben
A better shot of Big Ben with the London Eye in the background. Have to say, this area offered some spectacular views of the area including the Parliament building.
Given our fun-filled adventures on the jump-on/jump-off bus, we thought a boat ride would add some spice to the day.....that and our tickets we purchased for the bus also included a boat ride.....so why pass up a free ride down the River Thames!
London Bridge opening up:
A view of 30 St Mary Axe, the Swiss Re building.....or as some call it the Gherkin.
Tower of London
Walking up to the London Bridge Tower
We "jumped" back on the bus to finish off our sight-seeing of downtown London. Here is a good shot of the Parliament building and Big Ben.....
The following day we started the day right with a good walk through Hyde Park. A great choice and one we HIGHLY recommend if you find yourself with some extra time while in London. Some highlights from our walk:
Wellington Arch, or Constitution Arch built by George IV to commemorate Britain's victories in the Napoleonic Wars.
You can't come to London and not see the changing of the guards.....at least that is what I was told (in a tone that reflected the matter was not negotiable I might add). So we made our way to Buckingham Palace in plenty of time to see daily event.
A guard on the move well before any of the fun started.
Buckingham Palace
Looking out from Buckingham Palace with Big Ben in the background.
The fountain in the center of the roundabout directly in front of Buckingham.
Some time later, including a brief nap on the stairs of that wonderful fountain, and the festivities begin. The fun starts with a marching band....of course!
Followed immediately by the guards......
Next come the guards on horses......
From there all the guards gather inside the gates of Buckingham Palace and do a lengthy but well-choreographed ceremony where the guards march back and forth and ends with the band playing some of Britain's favorite hits, including a few tunes from the Beattles.
We made our way down to another famous sight, Westminster Abbey.
The inside of the Abbey was impressive and worthy of the steep admission charge. I was a bit surprised by the amount of people "resting eternally" inside. In the walls, above the grounds, below the floors....wow.
Looking out at the center courtyard:
Another view of Big Ben and the top of the Parliament.
Andrea and I with the Parliament building in the background.
Hard to find, but they do exist: the old-school double-decker buses.
Looking down The Mall towards Buckingham Palace
On our last night we took in the show The Wicked. For those not familiar with the musical it is the story from the Wizard of Oz only told from the wicked witch point of view....and in a much different light. The wicked witch (Elphaba), played by Rachel Tucker, stole the show with her voice. Wow. A look at the show before the lights went down......
Our first trip to London and I have to say it was a great time....although I think spending time with good friends really added to the experience. We could get used to this routine: meeting up with friends in big cities throughout Europe. If you have plans to be somewhere in Europe in the future, drop us a line and we'll meet you there!
