(written last night)
So I arrived in London totally ‘knackered’ but strangely haven’t suffered from jet lag yet, simply exhaustion. Alicia was there to meet me all set with my Oyster card. Despite the ridiculous name it is a wonderful invention: Pay as you go for all London transit so once you buy the original card you just top it up as needed and it keeps track of your trips and will never charge you more than a day pass.
We dumped my stuff off at her flat and grabbed a bite to eat before heading off on a Jack the Ripper walking tour. Which was awesome, history is so much more interesting when you can really well uh, experience or touch aren’t perhaps the best words but anyway…
The next day (yesterday the 28th) we slept in (much needed!) and then took to the streets again. I am the most spoiled tourist, I have my very own personal guide! And good thing too or I’d be completely lost two steps from the front door. I will never be very good at navigating cities, it’s a challenge just to follow someone!
We wandered all over starting in the City of London from the newer Gherkin tower (that’s not its real name but I can’t recall the real one…. It does have some other less savoury nicknames though) to the historic Tower of London and across Tower Bridge. Then we meandered along the Thames passing the Globe theatre and stopping by the Tate museum of modern art, which is free so we checked out some of the cool, interesting and just plain bizarre ‘artwork’. By this time we were starving so we grabbed ourselves a picnic of baguette and cheeses with berries dipped in double cream for ‘pudding’. To die for, I have finally found a friend who truly shares my love of dairy products =) and is willing to indulge before I am forced to go without fresh dairy for the next couple months.
After our lunch/dinner on the banks of the Thames, we headed back across to the North bank but most things we were going to see were closed by then so we’ll go back another day. Instead we wandered about forget-the-name-which-is-silly-since-I’d-been-there-last-time…. Will get back to you on that. Anyway, neat marketplace with street performers including one who threaded himself though 2 squash rackets and a toilet seat before juggling knives on a 12-foot pole. And then weaving ourselves back through Trafalgar Square that pretty much ends our day of London on foot for next to free!
This morning I slept in again, excellent. Then re-packed my backpack and got myself down to Victoria station, onto the train to Portsmouth and from the train station to the ferry port virtually sans problemes! Quite proud of myself or my luck whichever it was. I am now in the ferry port (memories of 3 years ago…) nibbling on Hobnobs for dinner (I got the plain ones at least!) and have another 4 and half hours to wait here before my overnight ferry leaves… No internet unfortunately so I will hopefully post this tomorrow.
We dumped my stuff off at her flat and grabbed a bite to eat before heading off on a Jack the Ripper walking tour. Which was awesome, history is so much more interesting when you can really well uh, experience or touch aren’t perhaps the best words but anyway…
The next day (yesterday the 28th) we slept in (much needed!) and then took to the streets again. I am the most spoiled tourist, I have my very own personal guide! And good thing too or I’d be completely lost two steps from the front door. I will never be very good at navigating cities, it’s a challenge just to follow someone!
We wandered all over starting in the City of London from the newer Gherkin tower (that’s not its real name but I can’t recall the real one…. It does have some other less savoury nicknames though) to the historic Tower of London and across Tower Bridge. Then we meandered along the Thames passing the Globe theatre and stopping by the Tate museum of modern art, which is free so we checked out some of the cool, interesting and just plain bizarre ‘artwork’. By this time we were starving so we grabbed ourselves a picnic of baguette and cheeses with berries dipped in double cream for ‘pudding’. To die for, I have finally found a friend who truly shares my love of dairy products =) and is willing to indulge before I am forced to go without fresh dairy for the next couple months.
After our lunch/dinner on the banks of the Thames, we headed back across to the North bank but most things we were going to see were closed by then so we’ll go back another day. Instead we wandered about forget-the-name-which-is-silly-since-I’d-been-there-last-time…. Will get back to you on that. Anyway, neat marketplace with street performers including one who threaded himself though 2 squash rackets and a toilet seat before juggling knives on a 12-foot pole. And then weaving ourselves back through Trafalgar Square that pretty much ends our day of London on foot for next to free!
This morning I slept in again, excellent. Then re-packed my backpack and got myself down to Victoria station, onto the train to Portsmouth and from the train station to the ferry port virtually sans problemes! Quite proud of myself or my luck whichever it was. I am now in the ferry port (memories of 3 years ago…) nibbling on Hobnobs for dinner (I got the plain ones at least!) and have another 4 and half hours to wait here before my overnight ferry leaves… No internet unfortunately so I will hopefully post this tomorrow.
