London on my Own

Monday, April 20 

From Monday - Friday morning I was on my own.  First up was a move from Marriott to an Airbnb.  I decided to try this as I have read so much about Airbnb and I wanted to stay in the heart of central London.  I found a nice place with Carmen & James - 'Cosy double bedroom in a quiet area' is how it is listed.

Keys to my room at Carmen & James

comfortable bed

Fireplace in my room

It is two blocks from the Tufnell Park tube and was quite nice.  I had a private area of the home with my own bath.  And Carmen & James were delightful hosts.  From this location it was easy to get everywhere.


London is a great city to be in if you are traveling by yourself and love history.  I had 4 full days and about 4 weeks worth of sites I wanted to see.  How to narrow it down?  A good friend of my Dave S, told me about a group called 'London Walks' www.walks.com.  They are a co-op of professionals who do guided walking tours.  Most tours are 9 GBP (Great British Pounds) and last 2-21/2 hours.

Before I started this trip, I got on their website and read about the daily tours.  I made a list of 2 or 3 tours each day that I was interested in, all beginning at different times.  I figured that would give me the flexibility to choose what worked best based on how my day was progressing.

British Museum 

After I dropped my gear at my new digs, I was off to my first walk - The famous British Museum.  The Museum is 5 Levels of historical treasures - it is overwhelming if you are in to this type of stuff - which I am.  I was thankful to have a great guide in Brian.  He is the type of guide that makes history come alive in his style of telling the stories.

Brian, London Walks guide

We right as we entered the Museum is the Rosetta stone!  Brian gave a great run-down of its importance.

Then we visited Ancient Egypt, Greece, Rome, Assyria, Mesopotamia  and finished up with the Lindow Man & The Sutton Hoo ship find.  All this and we just scratched the surface.

The Royal Lion Hunt about 645 BC

 After the tour Brian left us in the museum - which is free by the way, I made my way to the courtyard for tea & a scone.  Then I went back to the Egypt exhibit to look closer a the mummy's - they have a huge collection!

I really could do a whole blog with just pictures and descriptions of what I saw in the British Museum, but I don't want to bore anyone too much.  All I can say, is if you get the chance, this is one of the coolest Museums to explore

Tuesday, April 21

Today, my pick was St Paul's.  This is where Diana & Charles were married and amazingly it had survived the Blitz while all around it was bombed to pieces. For more than 1,400 years, a Cathedral dedicated to St Paul has stood at the highest point in London. The present Cathedral is the masterpiece of Britain's most famous architect Sir Christopher Wren. (Got this from our guide Margaret). There is a fee to enter the Cathedral unless you are attending a service.  London Walks gets a group rate + the 9 Pounds, I think the total cost was 24 pounds.  It was totally worth it.  As Margaret took us through the church, stopping and explaining the highlights it was hard to concentrate and listen as there is so much that fills the senses as you look around you.  The tour starts on the Cathedral floor, this is still a church and the Eucharist is said daily.  The tour includes the crypt under the main floor where you can see the tomb of Lord Nelson. 

taken from the whispering gallery looking down to the main floor

You are not to take pictures in St Paul's!  I don't know how these photos ended up on my camera!

The Cathedral is tall with many levels.  If you wish to see a great view, climb the 528 stairs to the 'Golden Gallery' and take some pictures.  It gets a bit tight the higher you climb

 

  At the end of the tour, you will be shown where the steps are to start your climb or the gift shop and exit if you've see enough.  You can stay in the Cathedral and explore as much as you like.

I had to take the climb.  First is 257 steps to the 'Whispering Gallery'.  You whisper in to the wall and the person on the other side of the dome can hear it!  Then it is up another 119 steps to the Stone Gallery.  

This is outside the dome, you can get some great snaps from here if you have had enough stairs!

The Shard

Yep that is the Tower Bridge in the distance

 But if you are game - its just 152 more steps up to the Golden Gallery where you can see the whole city.  It was a beautiful clear day, worth the effort! Below are a few of the pictures I took from the very top!

do you see the London Eye?

The Millennium Bridge

The London Skyline with the newer buildings

 Nelson's Tomb ( from stpauls.co.uk)
Lord Nelson was famously killed in the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805 and buried in St Paul's after a state funeral. He was laid in a coffin made from the timber of a French ship he defeated in battle. The black marble sarcophagus that adorns his tomb was originally made for Cardinal Wolsey, Lord Chancellor during the reign of Henry VIII in the early sixteenth century. After Wolsey's fall from favour, it remained unused at Windsor until a suitable recipient could be found. Nelson's viscount coronet now tops this handsome monument. 

After all that climbing - I was starving!! As I exited I saw a large sign 'M&S - Simply Food'  My friend Jeanine had told me this was a great place to grab a quick lunch, so I ran in, got my sandwich & beverage and headed back out to join the large crowd of Londoners sitting on the steps of St. Paul's having lunch and enjoying the warm sunshine.

Having told James what I was doing in the morning, he suggested I walk down to the Tower of London after St. Paul's, which I did.  I took a walk around the area and took some nice pictures of the Beautiful Tower Bridge

Tower Bridge (built 1886–1894) is a combined 'Bascule' (a type of Bridge that is raised and lowered using counter weights) & a suspension Bridge, which crosses the River Thames. It is close to the Tower of London, from which it takes its name and has become an iconic symbol of London. (not to be confused with 'London Bridge, which is not as dramatic looking!

The bridge consists of two bridge towers tied together at the upper level by two horizontal walkways, designed to withstand the horizontal forces exerted by the suspended sections of the bridge on the landward sides of the towers.  They still raise the bridge for navel traffic about 500 times per year.  (Credit to Wikipedia - for the description)

Picture taken standing at the end of the bridge towards the first tower

By this time it was getting late in the day and I was quite tired from all the walking and climbing at St. Paul's, so I decided to save going in to the actual Tower until the next day.  I found the nearest Tube station (they are seemingly everywhere!)  and headed 'home'.

Wednesday, April 22

London Walks had an 11 am tour for The Tower - perfect!  Time to sleep in, have tea & toast, then head out for the Tower Hill Tube Station.  (BTW - London Walks always meet near the closest Tube station to where you are going to be touring). 

To my delight, both Brian & Margaret where the guides for this tour.  Brian actually led the tour and did all the speaking, Margaret made sure that no one got lost! 

For this tour, you start on Tower Hill where most of the beheadings took place.  Brian tells a griping story of the history of this practice for dealing with subjects convicted of Treason and the horrible last beheading that went terribly wrong.  (very bloody, I won't describe here)

 Here is an except from London Walks description:  In the beginning William – the bastard – created the Tower.  And, yes, the biblical  echo is deliberate. That's how important the Tower is. Crown jewels, battlements, Traitor's Gate, the executioner's block, armour, centuries-old ceremonies, the stage on which so much of our history climaxed: the question isn't whether you'll go to the Tower – the question is whether you'll go First Class. And let's tell it like it is.  What it is - is seeing the Tower with a great guide. Because that thrilling, chilling past is still there – sighs run in blood down Tower walls – but you have to know where to look. And how to look. 

I Highly recommend that you take a tour to start your day at the Tower - and it will be a full day if you are a history nut like me :-).  Brian gave us two hours of history & introduction and then set us loose. There is a nice cafe restaurant on the grounds, so I headed there first to refuel.  

Then it was off to explore and see the Crown Jewels, go in to the White Tower, listen to the Yeoman Warder tours which end in the Chapel.  A Yeoman Warder,  AKA 'Beefeater' does a tour every 30 minutes that start in the moat.  

The tour lasts a hour and is included in the admission ticket price.  If you do not do an organized tour, this would be a good overview.  I would see a tour in progress and listen in for a while. They do a good job and are very experienced, but I have to say, I preferred Brian's style and information.

I could go on and on about the Tower, but let me just say - plan a day for this  There is so much to see from King Henry VIII's armor to where Queen Anne + 5 others lost their lives by beheading.  

sorry no pictures of the crown jewels, photos not allowed :-(

NOT King Henery's but still cool looking

Thursday, April 23

Since this was my last day in London, I wanted to do a little shopping -- Harrods was definitely out of my price range, so I headed back to Covent Garden.  It is a large market with everything from brick & mortar stores to an open market with stalls of hand made, one of a kind goods to carts of all the typical souvenir stuff.   I had taken note of this when I was there with my friend Steve, but we really weren't in shopping mode that day.  I took my time and wandered through all parts of the market.  Stopping in a small shop for tea & a scone when I got hungry.

 I bought several nice hand made items to bring home and a couple of souvenirs.  I walked and wandered and before I knew it, it was almost Tea (dinner) time!  I got myself a nice table in the sun with a good view of the area where the street performers do their thing.  As I ate, I watched several fun performances.


Friday begins my adventure in to the English Countryside and my stay at the York Marriott..... tune in tomorrow. 

Safe Travels,
Susan