St. Paul's Cathedral

In case it wasn't clear, I am over in London because my friend Sue is teaching for a study abroad with the University of Dayton. So while she works, I get to play. :-) It's a pretty sweet deal. Along with the classes students take, they also have several excursions planned. One such excursion was to St. Paul's Cathedral. It was made famous in modern times when Princess Diana and Charles married there. There has been a cathedral on those grounds for a very long time. I bought a poster of this amazing picture:

St. Paul's Cathedral through the destruction of the city during WWII

It's a beautiful cathedral with more mosaics than I have ever seen. Of course we weren't allowed to take pictures inside, but we stopped for some pictures around.

Sign kinda speaks for itself ;-)

The front of St. Paul's (I was dodging traffic, so it's a little off kilter)

Looking up at the side

The tippy top of St. Paul's

Imposing but beautiful building 

Walking around St. Paul's brought some interesting sites.

Old gate with some new panels

Pigeons gotta eat too

Union Jack

St. Paul's was beautiful, but it felt more like a memorial (even the alter had an inscription about the lives lost during the two great wars) rather than a church. Although it sufficed the Queen enough to have her jubilee services there several days later.

Below is a view out my window at night. It looks in the general direction of Buckingham Palace. This shows you how bright the city is, probably no chance of seeing stars from here.

View from my room at night - the chimneys look very Mary Poppins-esque

London Day 3 and 4

After doing a drive-by, albeit a roundabout one, of Westminster Abbey, Sue and I decided to go back. So we packed our cameras and purses and headed out. It was pretty crowded as it was a Saturday, but well worth the tour inside. It's a pretty magnificent place with lots of little cubbies that make it so unique and interesting. We got the audio guides and lo and behold - Jeremy Irons. I have *never* been more interested in British history as I was on that tour. I distinctly heard him say, "I love you Erin." Several times in fact.

We couldn't take pictures inside, so we had to load up on postcards. If that were an Olympic sport I would get gold, every time. So the only pictures I have for you are from the outside and from the cloisters. In case you weren't aware, Westminster is where Kate and William got married. It is the place where many Kings and Queens were baptized, married, and buried. It is also a burial place for many notable people (Charles Darwin!!).

Front of Westminster Abbey 

View of Westminster from the Cloisters

Statues on Westminster

In honor of Edmund Halley - as in Halley's comet

I *love* war memorials

The letters were offset from the wall - another memorial.

Beautiful designs throughout the entire building

An interesting door 

The Cloisters at the Abbey

Carving of Martin Luther King Jr.

Big Ben and St. Margaret's Church

 We walked around and stopped at a nice pizza place for a rest. The weather, as you can see, was amazing. This town is pretty cool.

On Sunday, we moved apartments, to one that doesn't have 4am college kids having too much fun outside the bedroom windows. So sleep abounds! We walked a little bit around Bloomsbury, our neighborhood, to acquaint ourselves with the area. It's a great little neighborhood.

We stopped at a pub for some food and on the way back to the flat I ran into Paul Wilson, a friend from Scotland. It was just some side street in London. So I am making the bold claim that London isn't so small after all. In fact, the very next day I saw Toby Jones biking down the street. He was the voice of Dobby in Harry Potter and he's done several other things.

London Day 1 and 2

I am not going to spend time bitching about the travel process. We all know the romance of getting from point A to B (flying anyway) is dead. That was also true for this trip. The only part that matters is that I made it to London in one piece. I'm here!

I took the tube from Heathrow, after a very embarrassing 10 minute wait to find out the entrance was *right* behind me. It was super easy and I only had one transfer. And a very nice gent helped me up the stairs with my big-ass bag. Thank you total stranger!!

After a MUCH-needed shower and some mandatory fish n chips, we went on a walking tour. We came out of the tube at Westminster bridge. I've mentioned I've been to London before right? The thing is, it's still magical to see it all and really fun to see others seeing it for the first time. A panoramic view includes Big Ben, Parliament, the river Thames, the London Eye, and an all together beautiful scene. It was too bright and the sun was in a terrible position for decent pictures, but I've included some because we all know that's why you are reading this anyway. ;-)

The London Eye was not here the lsat time I was, about 15 years ago.

Big Ben, the bell not the clock

Sue and I got separated from the group, ironically when we were trying to link up with some people who were already separated from the group. We caught up to them around the other side, at Westminster Abbey.

Looking at Big Ben from the Abbey

Westminster Abbey

Sue and I decided we would come back and spend some proper time here for pictures and touring, so I'll have more and better pictures later.

We meandered around to Buckingham Palace. There is a lot of scaffolding and railings everywhere because there are about 100 events occurring in this city this summer. I believe the Buckingham Palace event is a pop concert for the queen.

Then it was time to head over to the Eye to ride. I was trying hard not to be terrified, but I wasn't scared at all while we rode it.

At the very top

View on the way down

The river Thames, Parliament, and Big Ben

The Aquarium

We were offered tickets to see 39 Steps, but by the time we got home it was too late and I was too dead. I was sad to miss it, but I would never have made it through the show. Instead I went to bed to get some much-needed sleep.

I have a bit of a cold going on, so today was spent downing Lemsip and water in large quantities, and sleeping and watching TV on and off. We will probably go get some food when Sue gets done teaching; I'll try to remember to take pics because I know how much they mean to you.

Europe 2012

And here I am writing about another trip I am taking. I make it hard to like me. This trip includes London for most of June with a short trip to Paris and one to Stockholm. Then I am going to meander up to Edinburgh, hopefuly stopping in Nottingham and York. Then I will be in Edinburgh for most of July. I know, you hate me. I would too!

On my way to the gate I passed by the newspaper store thing they have in airports. You know, the ones that sell books, Twizzlers, t-shirts of the city you are in, and those adorable laughing cats. Well the shirt for Ohio says, "Nothing tips like a cow." Nothing tips like a cow?? W.T.F.?? Hey Ohio, stay classy, or should I say stay klassy. Then...

One gate down from where I'm sitting, there is a soldier who just got home and I am *fighting* to hold the tears back as he gets a proper greeting from his family. His daughter made a sign and put on her fanciest dress and her prettiest bow. But it's the pint-sized American flag she is proudly waving that makes this scene beautiful. His mother is breathing a huge sigh of relief, likely not her first. And his wife is faithfully filming every hug, kiss, and teardrop. Welcome home good sir! A big thanks to you and to your family for what you do.

I leave in a few minutes, first stop Dulles then on to London. I am meeting my friend, Sue, when I get there to see our 3-bedroom apartment we'll be sharing in Bloomsbury. Let's be honest, it could be a 10th floor studio and I'd be just as happy. I arrive at 6:20 am London time, but between getting to the apartment and the group outing to Westminster and the London Eye I don't think I'll have any trouble adjusting to the time change.

My plan is to keep up the blog with some walking tour posts like I did before. It will be a good way to get to know London a little better. It's been 15 years since I've been there. To all my loyal readers, if you want me to take pictures of specific things, let me know. Also, if you want postcards, send me your address.