Portobello Road, Tate Gallery and The British Museum, OH MY!

What a LONG but wonderful day! We started Saturday off with a quick jaunt to Portobello Road (insert the song from Bedknobs and Broomsticks here, one of my all time favorites!). While the real Portobello Road shows no resemblance to that from the movie, it was an antiquers paradise. Small booths of trinkets were crowded throughout old buildings that line the street. But bargain hunters beware! Things were not cheap and the street was very crowded on this market day.

From the market we went to the Tate Gallery via the tube. Some planned maintenance in addition to police shutting down some of the major underground stations (due to protests) caused some delays, but our confident guide Nathan got us to our final destinations safely and efficiently :)

The Tate has a fine collection of artwork of varying types from throughout the ages. Nate participated on a guided tour of some of the works, while my dad and I walked around willy nilly, ogling those things that caught our interest. We all agree that the gallery is a worthwhile stop for art lovers.

After a few hours we were on to the British Museum. WOW! Is all I can say. The collection is extraordinary and one could easily spend a few days exploring everything from ancient Egypt to Eskimos. We took the audioguided tour which was a tad bit frustrating as it was somewhat slow and while the commentary was good the devices were not very user friendly (far too much screen tapping and clicking, number searching and waiting for our liking).

Best things we spotted at the British Museum: The Rosetta Stone, lots of incredible structures from Egypt, Caryatid from Greece, and the Lindow Man. If you haven't heard of the Lindow Man, it's a fascinating story!

To enthralled in the tele to write a post...

So last night Nate and I were too busy watching news coverage to even think about blogging. If you weren't aware, yesterday London experienced it's largest protest since the war in Iraq(2002). Approximately half a million people marched from the houses of parliament, through Trafalgar Square and on to Hyde Park to show their disagreement with the Prime Minister's plan to increase taxes and cut benefits, jobs, community supports, to help improve England's current economic state.

The protest was peaceful until a splinter group of anarchists (true anarchists) decided to use this as an opportunity to deface public sites and destroy properties of companies they believed to be evading taxes (large banks, The Ritz Hotel, Top Shop and others) in what they called "an act of civil disobedience." Riots ensued throughout the night, ending around 2am with over 200 arrests and over 100 people treated in the hospital.

The city is quickly recovering from the mess and damage done and thankfully our day today was peaceful and uneventful. I'm thankful for my friend Helen's recommendation of a hotel near Nottinghill as we continued on, life as usual :)

Changing of the Guard and Westminster Abbey

Today was chock full of ceremony, history and walking. We started off with a quick bite to eat at our favorite cafe (cappuccino and a bacon and avocado sandwich? yes please) and then took to the underground to get to Buckingham Palace for the changing of the guard.

Note to readers: if you plan on seeing the changing of the guards, be sure to arrive at the palace early. We got there by 10:30 for an 11:30 changing, and were greeted by thousands of people who had been there for a while. But undetered, we climbed Queen Victoria's monument (across the street from the palace) and took our place in the crowd. The ceremony lasted for a quite a while and had several different moving elements throughout (groups of guards moving in and out of the courtyard, the military marching band, the horse guards). We left the monument a bit early to head to Wellington Barracks so we could position ourselves for the return of the Coldstream Guards and marching band. I'm going to try to post a brief video of the band on my facebook page later on.

After the procession we hiked over toward Westminster Abbey and stopped for a pint and a bite to eat at the Westminster Arms (which is where I learned that the British enjoy putting butter on their sandwiches... not my favorite, but the beer was good and everyone else loved their meals). Cozy spot, friendly staff and great proximity to Westminster Abbey, Big Ben and the House of Parliament.

When our bellies were full we crossed the street to the abbey and began our tour. Did you know that there are over 3000 people buried (starting with 17 monarchs whom I shall not name, Geoffrey Chaucer, Dr. Samuel Johnson, Charles Dickins, Robert Browing, Alferd Lord Tennyson, Thomas Harding, Rudyard Kipling, George Frederick Handel, Sir Laurence Olivier, Sir Isaac Newton, Charles Darwin, a bunch of prime ministers, the unknown warrior, and on and on and on) in the church and cloisters, and over 600 monuments within the buildings? The abbey has been the coronation church of England since 1066 and the church that is present now was established in 1245 by King Henry III. The architecture of Henry's church is striking, with my favorite section being the Lady Chapel.

Nate's commentary: Westminster Abbey? It hasn't been an abbey for over 500 years! People should get around to calling it by its "new" name (given in 1560 by Queen Elizabeth I) The Collegiate Church of St. Peter at Westminster. Geez

What to do in London . . . ? How about a draught at an olde pub?

Does rebuilt in 1667 sound olde enough to you? I dragged the family to it, since I learned of it on my last (and only other) visit to London back in college with "the boys" (no, not college mates, Tom, Doug, Dad and Rick Sullivan). As Liz mentioned in the last post, we spent the morning and early afternoon reveling in the history of London, so we decided to follow it up with a beer and lunch at one of the oldest pubs in London. It has been a pub in its current form since 1667 when it was rebuilt after burning down in the Great Fire.


Its down a small little alley off of Fleet Street and while it is barely noticeable if you aren't looking for it, there is good reason to look. Starting from the bottom up, the vaulted cellars (which are set up as dining rooms) date back to the 13 century and were part of the Carmelita Monastery which first occupied the site. It is only as recent as 1538 that the pub has been there. It is best know for it's literary associations, one of which is being mentioned in A Tale of Two Cities (a good book if you haven't read it). The notable literary folks who are said to have dined there, and possibly even penned some of their works in dark light of the coal fires are: Mark Twain; Alfred Tenyson; Sir Arthur Conan Doyle; and Samuel Johnson.

We had a good british lunch. Rusty had fish and chips (check), Dave had pork loin (check), Liz had a chicken salad with pesto (wait huh? Liz, we're at a british pub, get with the program here!) and I had, of course, a lamb shank (check).

If you are looking for a laid back atmosphere with a whole lot of history (and coal smoke) check it out the next time you are in London - 145 Fleet Street. (But they do their numbering weird over here, not alternating left and right as we do. At least that is how they do it on Fleet Street. Very confusing.) Oh, and it is just inside London City. Know how I know? Well that's easy, just look for the dragons that mark the entrances of City of London. Not to be confused with the rest of London. Which is made up of the City of Westminster and bunch of other boroughs. Yeah, I don't get it either (how can a city be made up of cities) but that's the way it is. trust me.

The Tower of London

It's amazing how a guide with a passion for his/her job can really inspire tourists to be much more invested in their own experience. Today for example, my family and I had the privilege of meeting Ken, a Yeoman Warder at the Tower of London. Ken was nothing short of incredible. Witty, sarcastic, extremely knowledgable, and most of all, a showman who is not only proud to share his country's history but also of the privilege bestowed upon him and his current position. To learn more about the Yeomen click here.



The history within The Tower area is very dark and chilling to say the least. However, to gaze upon the various buildings on a warm and sunny day, like today, one would think it is nothing more than another old, charming castle/village (which it is, as the Yeoman live there with their families). But I was humbled, sitting in the chapel at The Tower, learning of all the people who had lost their lives and were interred in the floor and ground beneath my feet.

But this history is not completely bleak. There are 6 (actually 7) beautiful ravens that live within The Tower confines. It is believed that if they ever were to leave, the kingdom and the tower would fall. And the Crown Jewels are housed here... or as Ken called them: The Queen's Bling.

We spent 3 hours here and could have spent several more. If ever in London, do check out this spot and ask to have Ken as your guide. You won't be sorry you did.

Sorry for the late start...

So we've been a bit tuckered in the evenings since arriving and haven't felt like blogging until tonight. Night 3 of our 8 day adventure. A quick synopsis of what we have seen/done thus far:

1. Walking tour of Kensington Gardens and Hyde Park

2. The Big Bus Tour of London (we saw almost everything from atop a double decker bus)

3. The London Eye

4. The Tower of London

5. Ye Old Cheshire Cheese

6. Fleet Street

7. Lots of underground stations

For lots of pictures, please check out my facebook page. But we're all up and running at full speed now and having a ball exploring this great city.

PS: British Airways is AMAZING :)