Saturday 20 December 2014

Hey London









We didn’t make it to the lighting of the Christmas tree in Trafalgar Square as the rain poured down and we didn’t feel like venturing into the cold night.  I did however visit the tree the following day and I was a little disappointed.  The Christmas lights around the city have been so spectacular, that I think I was expecting the tree to be something extraordinary.  In fact, it is just a large pine tree decorated with single strands of white lights.  Ordinarily I would have been impressed by such a big tree, so I guess it just goes to show how spoilt I have become. 

We moved into our new apartment in Fulham Broadway, which illustrates the point that you should never judge a book by its cover.  The apartment is housed in an old council development, which bears more than a passing resemblance to the Colcroft or Jasmine Allen Estates (fans of The Bill will know what I am referring to).  Its beauty is not enhanced by the scaffolding, which surrounds the building whilst repairs to the balconies are underway.  The apartment is situated on the 4th floor and we were pleasantly surprised to find a very spacious, nicely furnished and comfortable unit.  The owner is very friendly and has bent over backwards to make sure that we have an enjoyable stay.

Tim returned from Birmingham where he had an eventful time.  We lost no time in continuing his guided tour of London, first with a visit to the Portobello Road Markets and then over to the Spitalfields Market.  Then it was off for a quick walk around Brick Lane followed by a drink at the White Hart to soak up the Ripper atmosphere.

A rare treat was in store for Tim as we took a trip to Goudhurst to show him where his Grandma was born.  We took to the train to Gatwick Airport where we collected our hire car before travelling to Orpington to collect Peter and Margaret for the outing.  I think Tim enjoyed the trip, listening to Margaret explain the various points of interest and fill him in on some of the lesser known details of his grandmother’s history.  We had a lovely cream tea at the Star and Eagle in Goudhurst, which dates back to the 14th century.  A quick walking tour of the village followed and we were able to visit St Mary’s Church and the attached cemetery.  Lunch was at The Peacock Inn, another 14th century pub where the beams were so low that Michael and Tim were practically bent double walking to our table.  The food was great and the company was even better.  We returned Margaret and Peter to Orpington and then we journeyed home. 
 
Tim and I took the train to Oxford for the day.  It was a very chilly day and I think that Tim struggled with the cold.  It was a busy day in Oxford although nowhere near as busy as when Michael and I visited in the summer.  There were carollers dressed in Victorian attire singing on a street corner to raise money for the homeless and they would have been frozen stiff by the end of the day.  We visited the huge grounds of the university and marvelled at the ornate buildings.  The most enjoyable part of the day was a visit to the Oxford University Museum of Natural History.  The building itself is a magnificent neo-Gothic structure, which resembles a cathedral with a glass roof.  All around are statues of famous scientists and each column is made of different stone collected from all around the United Kingdom.  The exhibits themselves are fascinating with large whale skeletons suspended from the ceiling and huge dinosaur skeletons on the floor.  It was a very interesting museum and I would like to return with Michael one day, as I know that he would really enjoy it.
 
Another day trip took Tim and I to Brighton.  It was a very windy day and we enjoyed walking along the stony beach, watching the waves crash over the pier.  The pier was almost deserted and it was exhilarating being blown along by the icy wind.  We spent the remainder of the day walking through the many cobblestone lanes filled with interesting shops.  I think Tim really enjoyed Brighton, as it was completely unlike anywhere else he had seen before.
 
The Tower of London was next on our agenda and I was more than happy to accompany Tim, as it has been 30 years since my last visit.  The Yeoman Warders were in fine voice as they regaled visitors with embellished tales from history.  Tim and I wandered up and down stairs exploring all the different rooms.  Naturally we went to see the Crown Jewels and I was most impressed with how they have improved the display since I was last there.  Now visitors stand on a moving walkway so you glide past the jewels.  This stops people standing in front of the displays and ensures that everyone can view them.  We also saw the famous ravens and I was able to fill Tim in on the legend, which surrounds them.

We spent the afternoon at the Tate Modern, as Tim wanted to see the exhibition Conflict Time Photography.  This was an excellent exhibition which showed photos taken of historic events (ie the bombing of Hiroshima), moments after the events they depict, then those made days later, then weeks and months later and finally years later – sometimes 10, 50 or 100 years after the event.  The results were quite moving and certainly very interesting.
 
The three of us went off to the Churchill War Rooms.  I had visited there just after they had originally opened to the public 30 years ago.  This was the original wartime bunker that sheltered Churchill and his government during the Blitz.  It is a fascinating display, which gives you a glimpse of what it must have been like during the WW2.  Two major things have changed since I was last here.  Firstly, security or rather lack thereof.  When I visited in 1984, security was very tight as there had been a spate of bombings by the IRA.  I remember that it was the first time that I had my handbag x-rayed outside of an airport.  This time a gentleman asked to see inside by bag however he only gave it a cursory look.  The other change has been the addition of the Churchill Museum.  This interactive museum comprehensively details everything about the life of Churchill from his birth, political career and personal life.  You could easily spend hours looking at all the material, which ranges from artifacts, displays, memorabilia and videos. All of it is very well presented and very interesting.
 
We took Tim to Southbank to view the Christmas Market and to lunch at the Real Food Market.  It was a glorious, sunny day and the markets were crowded with people enjoying the sunshine.  We also took a peek at the ice skating rink, which has been set up in the courtyard of Somerset House.  It was full of families enjoying themselves with tiny children holding onto baby polar bears to help them balance.

Made of Lego
Michael and I left Tim in peace on Sunday as he had gone out to a music venue the night before.  The gig didn’t start until 11.30pm so we knew that he wouldn’t have arrived home until the early hours of the morning.  We took a short bus ride to Apsley House, also known as Number One, London, which was the home of the first Duke of Wellington.  This wonderful mansion has changed little over the years and holds one of the finest art collections in London and a huge collection of silver and porcelain.  There is even a massive nude statue of Napoleon.  Michael also took a walk over to the Wellington Arch in Hyde Park and was able to climb to the top and walk across it.  It was a very interesting visit, made more so by the fact that we had visited Waterloo earlier this year.

 




U Boats at the Royal Academy
I took Tim to the British Museum as I wanted him to see the Rosetta Stone and the Elgin Marbles.  I think he was suitably impressed although I think he was just as irritated as me by the people lining up to take selfies with the Rosetta Stone.  We wandered the museum for about two hours exploring the African and Japanese sections.  The Tree of Life made by 4 Mozambican artists was particularly interesting.  It is a tree made from cut up guns, which had been decommissioned and handed in as part of an initiative to exchange guns for items like ploughs, bicycles and sewing machines.  The project was an attempt to eliminate the threat presented by millions of guns and other weapons hidden or buried in the bush of Mozambique.  It was nice to see something that was rather beautiful in its own way created from something so ugly.

Australia Memorial from Wellington Arch
St Paul’s Cathedral was next on the list and Tim and I were fortunate to time our visit with the choir rehearsal.  The singing was truly beautiful and enhanced our experience as we wandered around the magnificent cathedral.  Tim wanted to climb to the steps to the Whispering Gallery so I bravely ventured up with him.  I was doing quite well climbing the 257 steps up until the passage way suddenly narrowed to not much wider that me and I decided to leave him to it!  Tim climbed beyond the Whispering Gallery all the way up 528 steps to the Golden Gallery where he was treated to a fantastic view over London.  We then plunged down into the crypt to view the tombs of Wellington, Nelson, Turner and Reynolds to name but a few.  I think Tim enjoyed exploring the cathedral from top to bottom.

Thursday 4 December 2014

London Pride







Our son, Tim, arrived at Heathrow looking well considering he had just endured such a long flight.  It was wonderful to see him again and Michael and I are thrilled to be able to show him the sights.
 


Tim and I spent the next three days walking around London, and I do mean walking.  We covered over 71 kilometres in that time!  I know this because Michael loaded an app onto my phone, which counts the number of steps taken each day as well as measure the distance walked.  Even though we walked around so much we have really only scratched the surface with plenty more sights to see.

One of the more unusual places we discovered was a coffee shop, called Attendant. The café is housed in a former Victorian toilet, which was built around 1890 and had been abandoned since the 1960’s.  The building has been restored and the old attendant’s office has been turned into a small kitchen while the original porcelain urinals are still there and have been turned into a coffee bench.  I can honestly say that I have never had a coffee in a toilet before however, it was without a doubt, the best coffee I have had in London.

We walked past Lord’s Cricket Ground and were saddened to see the flowers that had been placed there in honour of Phil Hughes.  There was also a television crew filming an interview with people at the entrance gate.  Phil’s tragic death was very much in the news here, receiving wide coverage on both television and in the newspapers.  We also walked past Australia House and saw the flag flying at half-mast in his honour.  Very sad.
 
Saturday was a glorious day with the sun shining so Tim and I took full advantage.  Unfortunately, Michael had to work, so Tim and I started our day with a coffee at Trafalgar Square before heading to Buckingham Palace for the changing of the guard.  I think Tim enjoyed watching the pomp and ceremony taking place.  We then took a long walk along the Thames past Cleopatra’s Needle, across the Wibbly Wobbly Bridge and then past the Tate Modern where another Christmas market has sprung up along the forecourt there.  We then strolled past the Golden Hind and the Clink before lunching at the Borough Market.  The market was absolutely packed with people, as it seemed that the whole of London was taking advantage of the sunshine.  More walking took us to the Tower Bridge (after a quick look at the Shard – it is starting to grow on me) and then over to the Tower of London.  The poppies have now entirely gone and the moat now looks so bare without them. 
 
On Sunday we took Tim to Euston station where he boarded the train to Birmingham where he will attend a course for the week as part of his uni studies.  Michael and I then headed to the British Museum to view the exhibition Terror and Wonder: The Gothic Imagination.  This wonderful exhibition traces 250 years of Gothic tradition.  There are many literary works featured from The Castle of Otranto by Horace Walpole through to Dracula, Frankenstein, Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde right up to modern day authors such as Stephen King, Clive Barker and Val McDermid.  There was much to see with excerpts of movies showing along with various props.  There was also a clip from the film Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit, which was hilarious.  We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves and the exhibition has once again renewed my interest in travelling to Transylvania. 

I took myself off to the V&A Museum to have a look at the exhibition Disobedient Objects.  I had already had a quick look at it with Tim but decided to return to investigate it in more detail.  The exhibition focuses on the period from the late 1970’s to the present day examining the role that of objects in political movements for social change.  There were banners and badges, placards and slogans.  It was an interesting exhibition, which highlighted various struggles that have taken place around the world. 
 
The weather is turning colder now with most days struggling to reach 8 degrees.  It is still positively balmy when compared to winter in Canada so I am not complaining.  Tonight we will rug up nice and warm and see the lights being lit on the Christmas tree in Trafalgar Square.  It should be fun.