Greenwich (Family Visit Part 3)

For Thursday, our last full day together, we were contemplating taking a trip to Hampton Court Palace or Windsor. In the end we chose neither, opting for a trip down the river Thames to Greenwich, and it was a great decision. Even after just one visit, I adore Greenwich, and if I could move into the observatory, I would. But more on that in a second.

To get to Greenwich, you can either ride the Tube and switch to the Docklands Light Railway (DLR) at Canary Wharf, or you can get on one of the boats that cruise the Thames. We chose the faster, slightly cheaper commuter boat pictured here, the Thames Clippers, over the slower, slightly more expensive & more touristy boat. The commuter boat took about 40 minutes to travel from the Waterloo Millennium Pier (which is located right beneath the London Eye) to Greenwich. The trip on the river was a lot of fun and very scenic! It is a great way to view the city.

The London Eye; St Paul's & Millenium Bridge (doesn't it resemble a spine?)

Tower of London; Tower Bridge from the East

After we disembarked from the pier at Greenwich, we walked by the Cutty Sark, which unfortunately was closed for renovations. Feeling a bit peckish, we stopped at a local pub, the Spanish Galleon, for a bite to eat. I had a cheddar & pickle sandwich, which was quite tasty.

Then we walked toward the green spaces, of which there are many in Greenwich! I couldn't stop taking pictures of all the daffodils that were blooming. It was so lovely! I've limited myself to only posting a few of them here, and it was a very difficult editing process, I assure you. :)

Such a handsome bunch!

Okay, okay, enough flowers. :)

One of the nice things about Greenwich is that most of the sights are free! And of course, the beautiful vistas don't cost anything either, like the view towards Canary Wharf, at left, and the marvelous juxtaposition of old & new it provides.

Our first stop was the National Maritime Museum, which contains Lord Nelson's coat and more ship models & naval memorabilia than you can shake a stick at. From there we walked over to the Queen's House, which is a beautiful building (unfortunately no photos allowed inside) that has been turned into an art gallery. Upon exiting the Queen's House, our eyes beheld the Royal Observatory, perched upon a hill just behind us, and hiked to the top.

Royal Observatory; The road to the Observatory

Upon reaching the top of the hill, you are rewarded with the most amazing views of London that I've seen. On the far left, you can see the City of London, including St. Paul's and the Gherkin, straight ahead is Canary Wharf, and to the right are landmarks such as the distinctive O2 Arena.

City of London; Greenwich & Canary Wharf

The park on top of the hill; Mom & Dad

The Royal Observatory was really interesting. It was commissioned by King Charles II in 1675 with the purpose of charting the night skies in order to provide the data to ships so that they could calculate longitude at sea by examining the stars. The story of how they solved the longitude "problem" is fascinating, and I spent a lot of time looking at all the exhibits in the museum.

Time & longitude are directly related, and knowing the time at a certain reference point is needed in order to calculate it. One way to figure out the time at the reference point was to bring a clock with you that was set to that time. But this was not easy. We think nothing of buying a $10 watch that we can take with us on planes, trains & automobiles now, but finding a mechanical time piece that would work accurately on a ship was a challenge. The British Government set up a Longitude Prize in 1714 to encourage people to tackle this problem, and even then it took 50 years before John Harrison solved it with his chronometer.

The other problem was where to set up the reference point. After an international convention, it was decided (with notable detractors such as France, not surprisingly) to place it in Britian. Probably the most famous attraction in Greenwich, located in (or I should say running through) the Royal Observatory, is the Prime Meridian.

Prime Meridian

After taking in one last view of the city beneath us, we headed back down to town and rode the rails home instead of the river. When we arrived from the DLR to the Canary Wharf tube station, I was shocked at how huge it was. The place was a zoo, especially since we were there right at rush hour. But it was all very orderly. At many stations along the Jubilee line, there are doors at the platform, so you know exactly where the doors of the train will be. This allows people to queue for the train in a fairly civilized manner.

I think I still prefer the river journey, though, and if we had bought return tickets, it would have been about the same price as the tube/DLR method. And even a few extra pounds would be worth it to not be squished in a hot, crowded car.

I'm so glad that my family was able to visit! I was very sad to see them go. We had a great time and now have lots of memories.

For more Greenwich pictures, go here.

Family Visit Part 2: Beatles Walking Tour

My dad is a huge Beatles fan, and he really wanted to go to Liverpool, the Beatles' hometown, but my family simply didn't have enough time, only being in London 5 days as it was. And even though London does not have near as many Beatles-related sights as Liverpool, it still had many that Dad wanted to see, so we decided to go on a Beatles walking tour with London Walks, the same company that we had used for our Cambridge tour. We opted for their Wednesday afternoon "Magical Mystery Tour," which met just outside the Tottenham Court tube station at 2:00 p.m.

Our tour guide, Richard Porter, had a crazy smile, crazy hair, and an anecdote to fill every second of the tour. He holds the title "Beatles Brain of Britain" for good reason--the tour was interesting, entertaining, and jam-packed full of information.

Richard has been doing this for over 15 years and has met Paul McCartney several times. He owns a coffeeshop/Beatles memorabilia store in St. Johns Wood where he sells, among other things, copies of his own book and DVD on the Beatles in London.

We started the tour in Soho, where we saw the building housing MPL (McCartney Productions Limited) Communications; Trident Studios, where the Beatles recorded a few of their songs, including Hey Jude; the Palladium Theatre, where "Beatlemania" began when the Beatles appeared on "Sunday Night at the Palladium"--the top variety show of the time; Carnaby Street, made famous during the "Swinging Sixties" as a favorite haunt of pop stars; and a mural based on the Sgt Pepper album cover. Richard also pointed out other non-Beatles-related tidbits, such as the flat where Karl Marx lived when he was in London.

MPL Studios 2nd rowhouse from left; Marx's flat near the red neon sign.

Palladium Theatre; Soho Mural looking a lot like this.

We made our way to Mayfair and to 3 Savile Row, where the Beatles played their last concert together on the rooftop on January 30, 1969. On the 40th anniversary of this concert, which was just 6 weeks ago, Richard's tour was actually allowed to go to the rooftop, and CNN tagged along! That would have been cool to experience.

3 Savile Row

Our last stop before getting on the tube was the art gallery (which used to be the Indica Gallery) where John Lennon met Yoko Ono, who was presenting an art show there.

Where John & Yoko met; Carnaby Street

We then took the tube up to St Johns Wood, which is a really lovely residential area just north of Marylebone and Northwest of Regents Park. A few blocks from the station is Abbey Road, where Abbey Road studios is located, and where you'll find the road crossing made famous on the cover of the Abbey Road album. The road is actually fairly busy with traffic, so getting a clear shot of the crossing isn't easy. There is also a webcam that shows you the crossing 24/7.

Abbey Road Studios; The famous road crossing

Here we are in front of the Abbey Road sign (which is pretty small here--it's the one on the left)

Dad, Mom, Sis Pale>>Beige>>Tan

We really enjoyed the tour and were very glad we went. I would recommend it to anyone!

To see more pictures from the family visit and the Beatles tour, go here.

Family Visit!

My parents and my sister were here last week, and we all had a great time exploring the city! It had been a long while since my parents were last in London (mid-1970s), and this was my sister's first trip to Europe, let alone London, so they were all up for seeing all the sights.

They arrived Sunday after a nonstop flight from Tampa to Gatwick (can you believe such a flight exists? It does, thanks to British Airways' recognition of the large number of Brits who love Florida but hate changing planes). I met them at the airport, which means that I've now visited 3 of London's 5 airports. I must find an excuse to go to Luton now! We took the train to Victoria Station and then the tube to my flat and then just chilled the rest of the time--jet lag usually makes that first day worthless anyway.

Monday we headed down to Buckingham Palace to watch the changing of the guard. I think I have taken more pictures of this than of anything else, ever. I should put together my own "Changing of the Guard Calendar." It's a little different each time, though, due to the different guards and bands that play, so I always see new things, like the dog leading the band below.

In front of Buckingham palace; Changing of the Guard led by a dog?

We're too cool for you. Okay, okay, we'll smile.

After getting a bite to eat at a pub near the palace, we walked past Westminster Abbey (which was closed due to some event), Houses of Parliament, and Big Ben before getting back on the tube to go to the Tower of London. I was really impressed that even with the jet lag, my fam was up for doing so much in one day! But I was glad, considering you really have to take advantage of any day without rain here.

Big Ben; Tower Bridge

After seeing the crown jewels & exploring the Tower, we rode the bus back in order to experience the double-deckers, which are so much fun!

Riding the Tube to the Tower; One of the old-timey buses we got to ride on to go home.

Tuesday was a rainy day, so Dad rested at the flat, and we three had a "girls' day out," going to Harrods, where Mom had scones & clotted cream, and then Kensington Palace, which has a few of Diana's dresses and an exhibit on debutantes. It even cleared up a little in the afternoon.

Lunch at Harrods; Kensington Palace

Wednesday we decided to do a Beatles' Walking tour (more on that later) in the afternoon, so in the morning we headed over to the British Museum, which I love, love, love. Because it is free, you don't feel compelled to see everything like you would if you were paying for it, so you can linger in a few exhibits each time, which is a lovely way to visit a museum. The Rosetta Stone is a must-see, of course, as is the giant scarab. I wonder if that's where the word "scary" comes from.

The Rosetta Stone; The only beetle I enjoy seeing.

To be continued . . .

Cambridge

On Saturday we took a day trip to Cambridge, which is famous for its university, scientific discovery, and Pink Floyd. We decided to do something a little different with this excursion and joined a guided walking tour to and from London. The company is called London Walks, and they are pretty well-known for their tours in the city of London, and on the weekends they go to various destinations in the English countryside. The nice thing about London Walks is that you don't book in advance--if you want to go, you just show up, so it is very convenient for last-minute decisions or if you're not 100% sure if you want to go (and don't want to risk paying and then having to cancel).

We began our journey at the Kings Cross train station, which is a bit of a tourist destination in itself, at least for Harry Potter fans. Having never read the books or seen the movies, I don't know what the significance of Platform 9 3/4 is, but there were a ton of people taking pictures of the sign (which is fake--there aren't any trains nearby, and it's actually been moved to a random corner of the station due to all the construction taking place there).

We found our tour guide, Simon, as well as 40-odd other tourists, handed over our money, and after some problem with the ticket-selling man (Simon assured us that in the "umpteen years" he's been doing this that this sort of thing has never happened), we weren't able to get on the train we were supposed to get on, but got on another one that arrived in Cambridge about 30 minutes later.

When we arrived at the Cambridge train station, we were met by a coach bus that drove us out to the American Cemetery and Memorial. Who knew there was an American Cemetery here? Not me. What an unexpected delight! (Not that dead Americans are a delight, but it was nice to visit a WWII cemetery while we were in Europe, especially since we didn't have time to go to Normandy). We only got to spend about 10 minutes here, and I really wish it could have been longer. It was so peaceful and beautiful, if a cemetery can ever be beautiful, and I could have spent an hour lingering here, walking among the graves, analyzing the huge map in the chapel, and taking pictures.

Our guide pointed out two names engraved on the "Wall of the Missing" that would be familiar to most Americans. The first was Joseph P. Kennedy of Massachusetts, older brother of John F. Kennedy. The second was the name of Alton G. Miller, who is more commonly known as Glenn Miller. Glenn Miller was a famous band leader and recording artist from the early 1940s. He joined the Army Air Force Band in 1942 to help the war effort by providing morale to the troops. In December of 1944, he got on a plane bound from England to Paris which disappeared over the Channel, and no trace of it has ever been found. I grew up listening to Glenn Miller's music (in fact, whenever I hear "Moonlight Serenade," I am transported back to my grandparents' farmhouse where it was always on their record player), so it was really neat to see his name engraved here.

Trees in the reflecting pool; Graves of U.S. servicemen

After our brief stop at the cemetery, the bus drove us back to Cambridge and dropped us off on the outskirts of town, where we began the walking part of the walking tour.

One of the first things Simon told us was that Cambridge is a town of about 100,000 people, but it has 30,000 bicycles. This is because students at Cambridge University are not allowed to have cars. Even Prince Charles, who was a student at Cambridge several decades ago, rode a bike here. Simon also told us to try to stay out of the road or else risk being run down by a bicycle (I initially scoffed at this, but it is so totally true--I nearly got hit a couple times).

The whole university system is still a bit confusing to me. Everyone who attends Cambridge University is admitted through one of its 31 colleges, which provide housing, meals, etc., but it is different than the US system. I don't fully understand the relationship, so I can't explain it. For wikipedia info, look here and here.

Simon gave us lots of information on the history of the area going back to the Romans, the creation of Cambridge University, the founding of many of its colleges (mostly by rich people who wanted their names to live on), famous people who have studied at Cambridge (Charles Darwin, John Harvard, Sacha Baron Cohen), and the many scientific breakthroughs that were made here (discovery of the electron, discovery of DNA, the EDSAC computer). Crick & Watson announced their discovery of the double helix structure of DNA at the Eagle Pub in Cambridge. We took a picture but didn't pop in for a pint.

We didn't go inside many buildings, with the exception of several churches, the largest (by far) being King's College Chapel (and calling it a chapel is silly--it's the size of a cathedral). Inside the chapel, our tour split in half, and our half was led by Jane, a Cambridge resident, who gave us lots of information about the chapel with the voice of a soothing English grandmother telling her grandchildren a story at bedtime. The interior is just breathtaking, especially the stone work, the stained glass windows, the wood carving on the altar, and the dramatic fanned stone ceiling, the largest of its kind in the world.

King's College Chapel Exterior; Chapel Interior and fanned stone ceiling

We didn't go "punting" on the river, but we enjoyed standing on one of the many bridges watching the boats go by. We might have done it had it been warmer outside. It was a long day (9:15 a.m. - 7:00 p.m.), but we enjoyed it, and we were glad we went on the guided tour, because it took the decision-making out of our hands, and we learned more than we ever could have just going on our own. The only downside was that our tour was a little too big to navigate the narrow streets & sidewalks of Cambridge efficiently. It's hard to keep a group of 40 people together! A group half that size or smaller would have been more ideal, but that's the price you pay for the convenience of not having to book in advance.

A punt on the river; Courtyard at King's College

Edit: I almost forgot! To see more pictures of Cambridge, go here.