London - bare with...

As much as we enjoyed trekking around the UK in a car, we were pleased to park it up and not have to deal with the traffic caused by the Underground staff going on strike in London.  What bad timing by us to strike a strike!  Like the Secondary School teachers, they are not happy with their pay nor their working conditions.

Our options for getting around - walk, bus and bike.  I wanted to go on the bicycle but Rosie and Grant were having none of that when they didn't know where they were going!

Hop on, Hop Off bus it was so we could cover most of the London attractions in the few days we were there.  We didn't even scratch the surface but gave it a good nudge!

Hyde Park - lots to look at here but Princess Diana's memorial fountain was closed for cleaning! 

It was in this park that I had my first encounter with a squirrel.  Grant wanted to see if the squirrel wanted to think I was a big nut but fortunately he didn't like the look of my cute face and ran off.

Trafalgar Square – dates back to the 1200s, and commemorates the famous victory of Admiral Viscount Nelson (on top of column) over Napoleon at the battle of Trafalgar in 1805.  At the base are 4 bronze lions depicting his naval victories.

China Town – quick look around here which included a yummy Chinese buffet meal

before going to a

West End Show – if you want to have a good laugh, Book of Mormon is the show to go to at the Prince of Wales Theatre. We had a smile on our faces the whole show but is an adults only show, not appropriate for youngsters!

Buckingham Palace – quick nosey at the outside of it, no royal members in sight

but had good timing to watch a bit of the ‘Changing of the Guard’.

I must say the memorial to Queen Victoria is quite imposing.  She definitely was quite a character!

Tower Bridge –  not to be confused with London Bridge that is not falling down, falling down

but is another most impressive looking bridge over the River Thames and it is mindboggling how it can split in half to let big boats go through.

 I loved it when our bus drove over it.

Tower of London – the history and stories that come out of this place are so interesting.

 From traitors to lost princes, to tortured prisoners, to the courageous soldiers, kings and knights,

who fought many battles over the years, to the unfortunate ones who had their heads taken off…  The Beafeater guide has many to tell.

The poppies on display are to commemorate 80 years of the end of WWII.

Paddington Station – this was our closest station.  I had to get my photo taken with the famous bear and low and behold, I found Harold the Giraffe hanging out with him.  It was so good to see a familiar face from NZ, so we shared our travel stories so far.

And that tis the end of the London blog, so pleased I got to visit this busy, multi-cultural city that has so much history.