First Stop – Jolly Ol’ London
Well I made it safe and sound to England, and have been doing quite a bit of sightseeing in my first couple days. My hostel is nice, in a quiet neighborhood but just a few blocks from a Tube station (Tube=subway, much like NY). Blah, blah.. on to the pictures!
Here’s Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament (Fun Fact: Big Ben is actually the bell inside, not the clock itself. I’ve been informed of this 5 times since I arrived, so apparently it’s critically important)
A Trafalgar Square tradition: young children punting pidgeons
Good news for those in Texas… You now have your very own Embassy! (hopefully your only emergency is extreme hunger, as it appears to be a restaurant)
Physical proof of my safety, in a double-decker bus:
And no trip to London is complete without a visit to the theatre, right? So… Spamalot! (Note to Hepworths: don’t worry, tickets were significantly cheaper than in NY 2 years ago, even if I did have to sit waaaay up in the nose-bleed section.) It was a good show, basically the Holy Grail with clever songs and fairly impressive dismemberments.
So that was yesterday. Today I viewed the “changing of the guard” at Buckingham Palace, and checked out the Tower Bridge (the iconic Bridge of London).
Then I spend the rest of the afternoon at the Tate Modern, an amazing collection of modern art. And free! (my legs are paying for it instead)
There are a few less-touristy things I still want to see tomorrow, and then I’m off to the countryside. So far I’ve been mistaken for a local three times. I guess it’s nice while it lasts. Another thing that won’t last are the prices. At first glance, prices all appear fairly reasonable (£5 for a sandwich, £8 admission ticket), except then you remember that the exchange rate is $2 for £1, so everything is really *twice* as expensive. Oh well, “ce la vie” (practicing my French!)
Tags: England, London, Travel
WheresMegan
Haha! Pidgeon punting! I think the trip is worthwhile already 🙂
Awesome. I bet it’s so nice to just be able to GO somewhere instead of doing the “what do you want to do” “I dunno, what do you want to do” dance.
Yesterday I watched Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern and he ate some jellied eels. They were significantly cheaper than your sandwich. Maybe you should try them.
I forgot to say that it was the UK episode and the eels were in London. You probably assumed that.
That “Texas Embassy” disgusts me. Clearly marketed towards tourists. It brings to mind the people who travel to France, and go to McDonalds.
Maybe I’m just in bitter mood.
You look gr-r-r-reat, though.
Love seeing all the pictures, Megan, particularly the one where you are proving your safety! Brings back fond memories of my trek to London after graduating college many moons ago. Can’t wait to see the English countryside. Bet Spamalot was really fun…did you take binoculars? And, mistaken for a local will not last long once you leave the UK! Take care….
Wow, 15 comments already. I feel so popular! 🙂 But too much pressure to impress. Prepare to be disappointed, please.
And I think I’ll pass on jellied eel. I’ve gotten in the habit of finding grocery store meals, which is an adventure itself.
Weeeeee! That all looks terribly fun. My jealousy grows in leaps and bounds so you’ll have to forgive me as I live viariously through your blog posts.
As for pressure to impress–well, I expect nothing short of perfection. So have at it!
😉
I, of course, meant “vicariously”.
Stupid fingers.
Aha! The age old tradition of English Pidgeon punting – Jolly good show!!
Your pictures were great – This is like watching the travel channel!!
You look great!!
Love,
Mom
Hmm, I wonder if pidgeon punting is just an english tradition, or if it is all over Europe. Be sure to let us know, might become the next great sport with roudy fans involving kicking!
Cheerio! I am a bit disappointed there is no sighting of Rupert yet. I hope you will be seeing him soon? Don’t crush my hopes and dreams now. 🙁
Those poor pigeons!
Pigeon-punting! That’s great! Alison liked the pigeons in the Piazza San Marco until she almost stepped on one and it didn’t move.
I’ve always wanted to go pigeon punting…maybe I’ll introduce legislation in Seattle to make it a civic responsibility.