Hot times in London!

Oh my achin' feet!  According to my Fitbit, I walked over 26,000 steps yesterday.  In fact, I've averaged more than 15,000 each day over the last two weeks!  My feet were feeling particularly rebellious this morning, so Mona drew a bath and I soaked my legs for a while and started today's posting.  I can't believe my portion of this trip is coming to an end.  Saturday will be our last full day together; Sunday will be cut a little short so I can rest up for a pre-dawn flight Monday morning.

Yesterday (Friday) was already unseasonably warm for London; today is supposed to be very much the same.  I plan to dress light and hope the weather cooperates.  It will be pretty chilly if it gets windy, rainy or cold!

Heading out to the train station, the morning was both windy and a bit chilly.  I was hoping the weather would improve as the day went on, or else, I'd be a little on the miserable side!  We caught our train and headed back to an area we'd visited the other day, the Borough Market.  There, Mona got a fantastic cup of coffee and some duck confit salad.  Yum!

We continued onward to Shakespeare's Globe Theater, determined to make the tour today. ☺  After getting our tickets, our tour guide led through the reproduction of the iconic location.  We learned quite a bit about the theater might have looked in Elizabethan London, and how people might have enjoyed the works in that time.  As an added bonus, I snagged a picture of the donation stones in the yard from some famous benefactors who'd contributed to the reconstruction, including John Cleese, Sir Laurence Olivier and Sir Patrick Steward!  Globe Theater tour: check!

Walking a short distance away, it was time for another bus and a trip to Covent Gardens.  We stopped an outdoor plaza that led to a nearby series of shops.  We snaked through the maze of shops and stores, enjoying the wonderful afternoon. 

Our next stop took us a few short blocks away to Chinatown.  Chinatown is always an interesting place, so we try and check them out whenever we travel.  This time, we stumbled across a genuine Japanese bread shop!  They had an assortment of stuffed buns and traditional treats, so I had to help myself!

Moving on, we crisscrossed the streets, heading for Trafalgar square.  As we reached the square, we saw a festival celebrating Canada's 150th birthday.  We'd see the same signs when we were in Toronto just a week ago.

And as we reached the square, we found ourselves in the center of (peaceful) protest march!  The marchers were protesting a number of unpopular policies and austerity measures.  We caught sight of lots of clever signs, some of which I snapped pictures of.

We moved past the marchers and headed onward towards Chinatown.  Chinatown is always interesting, filled with unique foods.  This time, we found a Japanese bread shop!  I snagged a filled bun and we moved onto the next stop.

Kensington Park was gorgeous in the summer weather, filled with people enjoying the weekend.  We criss-crossed the park, before finding ourselves on the far side.  We hoped on a bus and found ourselves in front of Harrod's department store, famous for its toy department and its high-tech entertainment division.  Inside, we took ourselves to the fancy food court and snagged a few treats.  We left Harrod's and stopped at a nearby pub for more fish-n-chips.  This might be my last time to enjoy them before returning home.

As the afternoon wore on, we opted to hop on the bus and head a little closer to our flat.  At one of the stops, we hoped off as Ramona recognized the location:  Selfridge's!  We took a look around, then opted to stop  for a quick bowl of ramen at a stand.  Quality!  We were pretty much out of gas at this point, so we headed for the train station.  We picked up tickets for our next stop, then took ourselves home.

Day 10 - Packed with Even More London!

What a vacation!  I can't believe the opportunity we've had to see and do all these things in such a short time!

The day started off a little cloudy, but we've learned the weather in London can change, almost at random!  Heading out for the day, we had a lot of things on the agenda.  While we won't probably see everything, we'll get a lot of things checked off the list for certain!

We returned to the train station and headed back toward London.  Is it me, or does the Southwestern line trains look like Southwest Airline's planes?

At Victoria, we switched trains, exited and proceeded towards Buckingham Palace.  After a few turns on the London streets, it was easy to figure out which way to go: follow the masses!  We followed the throngs of people walking to see the changing of the guard and found ourselves just shy of the gate.  We were still a few rows of people back from the gate, but we had a decent view.  I took (too) many pictures of the guards and the marching band before we moved on.

Walking along St. James Park, we headed towards the Churchill War Rooms, a display from the Imperial War Museum.  World War II continues to fascinate me, so I really wanted to learn a bit more about one of the most influential people of the 20th century.  The exhibit was a short walk from Buckingham Palace, and many of the folks in line at the Palace had also made their way here.  By the time we arrived, a helpful guide told us the wait was about 40-50 minutes.  While waiting in line, Ramona met a nice couple from Texas who were here on holiday.  They both had lived in Michigan for a time, and the wife was born in Kalamazoo.  What a small planet!

Inside the museum, we navigated through the well-preserved bunker that led a nation through many difficult decisions.  The state of the underground offices was very much as it had been over 70 years ago.

Now, for something a bit lighter!  We changed course and headed across Westminster  in search of lunch.  We strolled around before finding a fish-n-chips stand, not too far from a few park benches.  After a short respite, we were off again - this time, towards the London Eye.

The walk to the Eye took us over Westminster Bridge, which was teeming with tourists.  The mass of bodies stretched from the bridge, all the way down to the line for the Eye.  Once we got our tickets, however, the line moved fairly well.  Once aboard the glass carraiges, we were treated to a wonderful view of the Thames and many famous sights along it.

Back on the ground, we headed along the Riverwalk, pausing at the Royal Festival Hall, Queen Elizabeth Hall before returning the Eye for a London river cruise.

Our tour guide pointed out numerous sights along our brief journey on the river, delivering fun factoids along the way.  This is the stuff I really enjoy when we go on vacation!

 Interesting story about the Waterloo Bridge:  it was built during World War II.  As many able-bodied men were off to war, it was presumed to be built largely by women.  How do we know for sure?  Of all the bridges in all of London, it is the only one that 1) is self-cleaning (because the stone used washes clean in the rain), 2) was completed on scheduled and 3) completed under budget.  Hmm.....

The red piles here are from the old steam locomotive bridge that crossed the Thames.  When the locomotives were switched to heavier diesel trains, the steam bridge was removed.  However, the pillars were so heavy and costly to remove, they simply painted them and left them!

We were fortunate enough to pass under the Tower Bridge during one of the few times it opens!  I have a longer movie of its closing that I will post when I edit it next week.  Funny story: the Tower Bridge rarely opened and closed in its first years of operation, as it unceremoniously failed to open during its inauguration !

 And yes there's a Starbucks on the Thames...

Back at the dock, we chose to head toward a location the guide mentioned, the Tate Modern gallery.  We walked along the Riverwalk, once again in, following the crowds.  An interesting note, there was some form of evening running group, as a large group of colorful runners passed us heading up the river, then back down later on.  They disappeared over the Blackfriars bridge.

The Tate had several floors of open exhibits that guests could tour for free.  We had several pieces we were told to see by our Top 10 London guide book, but the day was wearing on us heavily, so we checked out a few free exhibits and called it a night.

As the museum closed, we made our way across the Blackfriars bridge to the tube stop, and back to Victoria station.  On the train home, we encountered two girls, one of which was holding a 5ft long stuffed orca that was as tall as she was.  The things you see on a London train!  As our train station had a short platform, we had to move up a few cars so that we could exit.  So did the girl with the stuffed orca, who attempted to exist at the next stop, before realizing her friend had not moved cars.  She quickly doubled back to look for her friend, but asked us to watch her stuffed animal.  We did, of course, but not before taking a selfie with it!

Back at our station, we dragged ourselves back to the flat just as the rain started.  What a day!

Day 9 - Going about London

We awoke with a bit of anticipation, having arrived in London and ready to explore the city.  For it's size, it would be impossible to see everything in just a few days, but that's just fine with me.  Mona made (great) coffee this morning, as she has this entire trip, and we talked about our must-see lists and planned for the day's excursion.  The weather was going to be in the mid 60s, so we'll see how hot we get moving around.

We started our day by heading out in search of Travel Passes, which would let us get around by the Tube (Underground), train or bus.  We needed to head back to the London Victoria Station to get them, so we returned to the station and attempted to board a train headed back that way.  Except, I picked the wrong platform and headed the wrong way.  Doh!  We switched directions at the next stop and were on our way!

At the Victoria station, we found the right counter to purchase our Travel Passes.  Now, where to go?  Why, the Tower of London of course!  Our first stop would be a cultural landmark originating before the 15th Century.

The Tower of London was an interesting visit, allowing us to maneuver up and down narrow stairways and old towers.  The exit also afforded us an excellent view of the Tower Bridge, where we snapped a few pictures and planned our next stop, Shakespeare's Globe Theater.  We headed over the bridge and along the Thames River, passing through Borough Market, a large venue like the St. Lawrence Market we'd visited in Toronto.  This outdoor bazaar was nestled under the train trestles and filled with every manner of produce stand and dining experience.  More on that later.

Arriving at the Globe Theater, we discovered we'd missed the last guided tour (they're only held in the mornings) so we took a quick look in the gift shop before leaving.  It was lunch time, so the Borough Market was a good choice for lunch.  The selection of food was immense, and we had no trouble finding new and interesting things to sample.

Onward from the Market, we traveled further west towards St. Paul's Cathedral.  Along the way, we stopped at the Monument of the Great Fire of London.  In 1666, a massive fire ravaged the city for nearly three days.

St. Paul's Cathedral was a sight to behold - it's massive dome and sweeping arches filling much of the sky.  We circled the grounds and stopped for ice cream, pausing for our first pictures of an iconic British phone booth!

Our walk continued onward toward the Museum of London.  There were several features on the history of the city, its growth, decline and rebirth through the ages.  I vaguely remember the manufacturing decline in England in the 70s and 80s, and was very surprised to see how closely it mimicked the decline of manufacturing in the US that we still experience today.

In the museum cafe, Mona mentioned a nearby theater and suggested seeing a movie.  We hadn't been to the theater to see a movie since our beloved Alamo Drafthouse Theater had closed in Kalamazoo.  So, we were off to the Ritzy Theater in Brixton!

Along our walk from the train station, we picked up a snack of cupcakes from a local baker and had a quick bite while we walked.  The documentary we saw, "Can I Be Me?" covered the life and times of Whitney Houston, one of our favorites.  While the topic was sad, it had us engrossed for a time.

As we headed back to the evening streets, we walked back to the Brixton Village, another bazaar teaming with restaurants.  A Mexican restaurant caught our eye, so we snagged a nice meal, relaxed and made plans to return to our flat.  There were fewer trains as the night grew later, so we headed to the nearby station, only to find the next train was canceled and the following train wasn't due for another half-hour.  Ah well - time for the bus!

Google Maps has been an excellent tool for getting around.  When we pick our destination, it gives us the option to use public transportation and provides details about train times, bus timetables and where to get them.  We used this to pick a bus, and found one that ran from our current location all the way back to the flat!  As long as I can get my bearings, Google Maps has been a great way to get around!