We had a great flight over if you consider sitting in one spot for 10 1/2 hours as great. I'll tell you that we spent the extra for economy plus and it was well worth it. Somewhere between economy and business class, the service and food was better. Larger seats with plenty of leg room and they reclined further than the rest. So from now on for long haul flights we'll spend the extra.
We've been busy rushing from here to there and in doing so have been learning how to use the Tube. Don't call it a subway, it's the Tube or Underground. A subway is a tunnel under the street or a roadway which you walk. The Tube is fast and relative easy to navigate, at least for a local. It's best to know which direction you're going but I still haven't figured out which way is east or west. But it's inexpensive if you buy an Oyster Card, which you load with money and use to ride the Tube. If you use all the money you loaded on the card, you can add more cash at the station. So it's the way to go, so mind the gap and hop on.
I won't go into great detail but we've been hitting some of the sights. As a volunteer on the USS Midway, we had to make a stop at the HMS Belfast a WWII light cruiser. A self guided tour with an audio guide much like what we use on the Midway. In the gun turret they project video on the walls with a narrative by crewmen. The guns move, when they fire, the deck shakes and smoke fills the turret. A well done display.
Next it's a short walk to the Borough Market where there are food stands galore. The place is crowded with the lunch time crowds all of whom are looking for the most appetizing lunch. Every thing from sausages, to curries to paella to meat pies all hot and cooked on the premises. Also great produce, fresh breads, cheeses and pastries. We had a curry dish with rice, chicken and potatoes which as very good.
The market is under a glass roof to keep the rain off, which by the way it has been raining. Of course it's England and it's suppose to rain,
After lunch we tubed to the Churchill War Rooms for a tour of the underground bunker used by Churchill and the War Cabinet during the bombing of Britain. An interesting tour and a must if you're at all interested in WWII history.
London is crowded and most of the people on the streets seem to be tourist. Although we have not experienced lines at the sites we've been to, the streets are crowded with people and the traffic is horrible. If there is an opening in the traffic, some truck, called a lorry here, will race into the space a go like a bat out of hell til he's stopped by the next traffic jam. It's such a mad house at some intersections that it's a wonder more people aren't killed.
LITTLE CHESTER STREET
Our Bed and Breakfast is in a quiet neighborhood in the Belgravia section of London. Rather upscale with old row house type of buildings. We are situated on a back street from where you could throw a stone and hit the back yard of Buckingham Palace. Of course the back yard consists of 42 acres so you would have to throw that stone many more times before you would hit the palace.
Being so close to the Queen's residence we figured we ought to pop by for a cup of tea with Her Royal Highness. They made us buy a ticket to get into the place, but it turns out the Queen heard we were coming so she and the family hi-tailed it out of town for Scotland. We did get to see the State Rooms in the palace, which were opulent. Another great tour with an audio guide. I noticed they put Prince Charles to work painting some of the window sashes.
Just some other tourist at the palace
No comments:
Post a Comment