I travelled about 1.5 hours from Thisted to Aalborg to catch my morning flight to Copenhagen. The flight took about 45minutes. At Copenhagen airport, i had to wait for another 2-3 hours for my next transit flight to London. There were some delay when i was in the aircraft due to some problems with the aircraft radio. The pilot had it replaced soon after.
LONDON! Back after 15 years... The last time I was here - during summer in 1992.Touched down at London Heathrow in the evening. David, my cousin came to the airport to welcome me. From Heathrow Airport, we took the tube to Leicester Square (on the Piccadilly Line). At Leicester, we changed to the Northern Line and headed to Belsize Park. We were going to the Royal Free Hospital to visit our grandma. At the hospital, i met my Uncle Geoffrey, Aunt Dorothy and cousin Daniel. Grandma was fine, she looked healthy and happy - telling us lots of stories too.
Later that evening, we have some spicy Indian crusine at a restaurant near the Wembley Stadium. Uncle and aunt were kind to have me stay a night at their home at Kingsbury. The next morning Daniel and David (my cousins) brought me to Central London. We took the tube to Leicester Square. The Chinatown is within walking distance from the station. It was about noon. We had some food chinese 'dim sum' and bought some egg tarts too. We had a short walk around Leicester Square before taking the tube to Westminster.
Daniel had to leave for his class, so David was my tour guide on that day.
London's Trademark - The Red Double Decker Bus
As you come out from Westminster Station, you can see the House of Parliament and Big Ben (St. Stephen's Tower) opposite the station. We turned left and headed straight towards River Thames. We crossed the Westminster Bridge over the river - to the other side where they have the Marriot Hotel County Hall, London Aquarium, Namco Museum and British Airways London Eye. The Waterloo Railway Station is nearby too.
Click HERE to see satellite images of the area.
David and me took a round trip at the BA London Eye since he had yet to be in it too. It could be amazing if the weather was clear and sunny. Nevertheless, it was still an exceptional experience. Be alert of the signs in the capsule indicating where the camera will be. Take your position, stand cool and just smile... you will have something like below:
A souvenir from BA London Eye in December 2007 - My cousin David and me
I didnt have much photos from the top, here's one to share.
The Hungerford Bridge (front) and Waterloo Bridge (back). Royal Festival Hall is on the right, the one with the light green roof.
The London Eye is way bigger than the one in Manchester, and alot bigger than the one in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. A round trip took about 30minutes or so, couldnt remember exactly.
At the bottom, there were many people at the river bank. Some stalls were being set up too.
London's Pure White Pair Angels
Next we headed back to the House of Parliament, to the Westminster Abbey.
'The Collegiate Church of St Peter a.k.a. Westminster Abbey, is a large Gothic church who served as a cathedral from 1546 - 1556. It is the traditional place of coronation and burial site for English monarchs.'
Read More...
Click HERE for some cool pictures, or go to their own webpage at westminster-abbey.org.
The North Entrance of Westminster Abbey
The interior of the Abbey is simply spectacular. I had a very interesting tour from my cousin David because he is very familiar with the place and the history. He goes to the Royal College of St Peter (Westminster School) with a history stretching back beyond the 12th century. Read More...
Take a Virtual Tour of the Westminster School.
The Horse Guards Building and Horse Guards Parade
'Horse Guards is a large building in the Palladian style between Whitehall and Horse Guards Parade in London, England. It was built between 1751-1753 by John Vardy to a design by William Kent.
The building was the headquarters of the British Army's general staff and served as the offices of the Commander-in-Chief of the British Army until the post was abolished in 1904. Horse Guards subsequently became the headquarters of two major Army commands: the London District and the Household Cavalry.'
Read more on the Horse Guards HERE and HERE.
Next, we passed by The Admiralty Citidel and walked along The Mall.
'The Mall was created as a ceremonial route in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, matching the creation of similar ceremonial routes in other cities, such as Washington, D.C., Paris, Berlin, Mexico City, Vienna, St. Petersburg and Oslo. These routes were intended to be used for major national ceremonies in the era of the nation state.'
Buckingham Palace
'Buckingham Palace is the official London residence of the British monarch. The palace is a setting for state occasions and royal entertaining, and a major tourist attraction. Buckingham Palace became the official royal palace of the British monarch on the accession of Queen Victoria in 1837.
In front of the main gates at Buckingham Palace is the erected Victoria Memorial which was created by sculptor Sir Thomas Brock in 1911.'
More stories about Buckingham Palace HERE.
Also more on British Monarchy here.
St. James's Park
'St James's Park is the oldest of the Royal Parks of London. The park is 23 hectares (58 acres) in size. The park has a small lake, St James's Park Lake, with two islands, Duck Island (named for the lake's collection of waterfowl), and West Island.'
Follow my adventure at:
London Part II
London Part III
London Part IV
1 comments:
You had a very interesting trip. For me visiting London was a little like reliving fairy tales from childhood. Growing up reading about a land filled with kings and queens, singing a song about the London Bridge, and being told in seventh grade Geography class that Thames is pronounced “Tims”, were enough to create in me the desire to visit this place at some point in my life. I am deeply grateful for being given the opportunity to travel to this amazing city. I was amazed of a quantity of Limo London owners. I love going to Cities and getting lost in the history of the place, I can do that every day in London. Next time you go to London, open your eyes and look around you. It is like an another world.
Thanks Lyd for your fascinating blog, pictures.
Keep up the great work!
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