A little late with this blog entry; was running a fever of 103 last night for a little post-travel system shock, but back to normal now.
So, London. The final stop. So many things to do, so little time. Fortunately, I was staying in a pretty good location (a couple blocks off London Bridge), and I think I hit most of the highlights. And I spent A LOT of time in the West End - great seats for waaaaay cheap (e.g., £25 for 3rd row center at "Avenue Q")
A recap:
Day 1: Walked along the Thames to the Tower Bridge and crossed over to see the Tower of London. Wandered down the river on that side to St Paul's, then went over to Leicester and got tickets for Avenue Q (excellent as expected). Explored the squares (Piccadilly, Covent Garden, Trafalgar) and ate some dinner at busy local pub while waiting for the show to start.
Henry VIII's armor - as you can see, he was a pretty big guy |
Behold the freakishly tall guard |
Walked the OTHER way along the south of the Thames, saw the Globe and the Tate Modern (still trying with the modern art...). Picked up some advance tickets, then went back to the hostel for a nap. Overslept and arrived late for my dinner engagement with old high-school friend Bill and his fiancee Ania for some tasty Indian food. (sadly, forgot my camera - no pictures, but I should be seeing them again in the near future...)
Not from day 3, but this entry clearly needs a Big Ben somewhere...as do the ladies! Amiright? (Also obligatory: Big Ben-related penis joke) |
Double-feature at the West End today - saw a matinée of Billy Elliot (great staging - would have been a lot better if the audience wasn't completely lame) and Chicago in the evening (very polished).
Oh, and I happened to walking north from the Victoria Palace Theater after seeing Billy Elliot and passed by Buckingham palace and there was a bit of a crowd. I asked a policeman if there was something going on, and he kinda looked at me funny and asked me if I read the paper. I guess it was a circus or something; there was a guy in some funny robes riding in a clown car.
Just about wrapped up with the blog now - I think one more wrap-up entry in the few days and it will be time to close the book on a great vacation.