Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain,
to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength
and honor and glory and praise.

Now, on to our adventures in the present.
When you are an uninformed tourist, things don't always work out the way you had hoped.

After office work in our hotel room this morning, went to central London to tour Westminster Abbey, only to discover that it is closed today...and every Saturday.
The prayer on the exterior wall of the Abbey is notable.

May God grant to the living, grace; to the departed, rest; to the church and the world, peace and concord; and to us sinners, eternal life.

Leaving the Abbey to itself and its prayer, we walked around Parliament Square to Methodist Central Hall, of interest to me because of our Brethren in Christ connections with the Wesleyan holiness (Methodist) tradition. Not much was happening at the Hall except preparations for a dinner that would feature a Filipino dance team on tour, but the Hall encompasses a lot: a conference and exhibition center, a concert hall (with rows of magnificent pipes for the organ), an art gallery, adminstrative offices, a Methodist congregation, a tourist attraction and a public cafe. How's that for multiple use of space?!

Now I was ready to fly the London Eye (the locals don't say "ride" the Eye; they "fly"it). JoLene doesn't care for heights, so she opted to sit in a Nero Cafe (a coffeee shop) facing the Houses of Parliament and do needle work while I set off across the Thames River to sign up to board the largest "Ferris wheel" in Europe.

First, I had to wait in line for an hour and a half. All around me were people speaking in other languages, none of which I recognized. And since everyone else was in a party of two or more, but I was alone, for the whole hour and a half no one spoke a word to me. So I started reading Perelandra, the space fantasy with deep spriitual meaning, written by C. S. Lewis.

The flight was incredible: about 20 of us in a glass bubble, big enough to walk around in, so that you could see London in all directions.The flight took 30 minutes. By the time I boarded it was late dusk, too dark to pick out such landmarks as St. Paul's Cathedral, but just right to see the lights of the city. Queen Victoria never saw her city this way! In the distance the lights of the arch at Wembly Stadium were obvious.

Back on the ground, I rejoined my patiently-waiting wife, and we went off to Picadilly Circus. No elephants or clowns, just a traffic circle with a graceful statue of Eros, the Greek god of love, and garish neon billboards reminiscent of Times Square on the other side of the Atlantic. Picadilly on a Saturday evening is a gathering place for all kinds of people. The fancy restaurants looked inviting, but we opted instead for the simple - a sandwich at McDonald's. Can you believe it?

September 27, 2008 – Traveling home and London

I had really hoped to stay awake during both of my flights back home. Flying westward from one side of the world to the other is a freaky experience because the clock is just not your friend. My flight was scheduled to leave Mumbai at 2:50 in the morning on Saturday, and I was to arrive in Denver at 6:30 in the evening on that same day. However, in reality, more than 24 hours would pass between departure and arrival. That’s just weird. Anyway, since I was going to be arriving in the evening, I thought it would be best to make sure that I was really tired and in need of sleep when I got there. Ah, the best laid plans of mice and men…

Once I was on my first flight (Mumbai to London) and realized that I had pretty much exhausted the entertainment options and wasn’t that interested in reading my R. K. Narayan book, I found myself getting very sleepy. I managed to struggle through Adam Sandler’s Zohan movie (I don’t recommend it – it’s like a 10-minute SNL sketch, stretched to an hour and a half – but John Turturro is great in it) and was asleep by the time the credits rolled.

When we landed in London, it was early morning (7ish) and the fog was so thick that the crew had to land solely based on instruments. Visibility was practically nonexistent. In fact, once we were on the ground, if you’d looked out the window, you would have thought we were still in the clouds. The London fog was that thick. As we taxied to our gate, I thought about my layover in London. My flight from London to Denver wasn’t scheduled to leave until 3:45 that afternoon, and it seemed truly silly to waste all that time sitting (or shopping) in Heathrow Airport. I checked out the in-flight magazine and found that there is underground (aka metro, aka subway, aka “the tube”) connecting Heathrow to central London. When I was last in London, almost exactly 15 years ago, that didn’t exist. Once I saw that, I decided I’d spend the time sightseeing in London and squeeze in a little more travel. After all, I’d already slept, so I needed some activity before being trapped on a plane for another 10 hours.

By the time I actually got off the plane, changed terminals, got through security, made sure it was ok to leave the airport (US passport = A-OK), got some local currency, left my carry-ons at the left luggage counter and found my way to the underground, it was a little after 9. The underground was actually mostly overground for its 45-minute journey to the city, so I got to see a lot of suburban London as I rode. I’d grabbed a little tourist pamphlet at the Heathrow underground station, so I reviewed that during the ride to plan my whirlwind itinerary. Fortunately, most of London’s major sights are within about one square mile, so I knew I could take in quite a bit.

I got off the underground at Picadilly Circus and was delighted when I came to surface. Picadilly is undeniably London, and I found myself having one of those moments that I often have when I’m traveling. “I can’t believe I’m here,” I thought to myself.

From Picadilly, I high-tailed it over to the National Gallery, where some of my favorite paintings in the world reside. I stepped inside (the museum is free), grabbed a map and headed over to visit the paintings of Jan van Eyck. His “Man with a Red Turban” and the Arnolfini wedding portrait both hang on one wall in the Gallery. To me, these paints are legendary. I could soak in their brilliant details, deft brushstrokes, clever composition and subtle colors for hours. Unfortunately, I really didn’t have that kind of time. I quickly realized that what sounded like a whole day in London could really only be a few hours, allowing for travel time, getting through security and any unforeseen difficulties along the way. So I paid my respects to the works of Mr. van Eyck, spent a few minutes with some Robert Campin pieces, dashed through some Vermeers and headed back outside.

The National Gallery sits on the edge of Trafalgar Square, an area where I spent a great deal of time when I was last in London in 1993. At that time, the square was filled with the disgusting winged rats that people call pigeons. They were drawn there by all the tourists who insisted on feeding them. Well, I supposed it’s a pigeon-and-egg scenario. The pigeons probably came to the square for the fountains, but then they came and stayed in droves because people fed them. Anyway, there are no longer any pigeons in Trafalgar Square, and several signs order tourists (well, at least those that can read English) not to feed the pigeons, should they appear, so it’s a much nicer place to be. By now, the fog had burned off and it was warming up to a beautiful, sunny Saturday morning. Tourists roamed the square aimlessly, gazing on the beauty of the National Gallery, Nelson’s Column and the nearby Church of St.-Martin-in-the-Fields. I hung out there for a bit, and then headed toward the Thames.

As I slipped down a narrow street, I stopped into a café for a cup of coffee and a sausage-and-egg on a roll to eat while I speedwalked through the city. Damn, that sandwich was good. The sausage was not a typical American breakfast sausage, but more like a bratwurst. Mmm… And it set me back one pound and 80 pence, which is nearly four dollars. Yikes. But it was delicious.

Once I reached the Victoria Embankment along the River Thames, I was right next to Charing Cross station and the Golden Jubilee Bridge. I walked out on the bridge to get a great view of the landmark skyline. There, still somewhat enrobed in fog, were the London Eye (gigantic ferris wheel that didn’t even exist the last time I was there), Big Ben, Westminster Hall and the Houses of Parliament. I soaked in the sight, and then decided to descend back into the city for a closer look. And that’s where my marathon of sightseeing really began.

I swept past Big Ben, then went around to see Westminster Hall and the Houses of Parliament. The streets were absolutely crammed with Saturday morning tourists. Oh, like me. I then went past Westminster Abbey and considered going in, but the crowds deterred me. I wove through narrow streets until I reached Buckingham Palace. I then followed the Mall along the northern edge of St. James Park, where there were a million lounge chairs set up. There was also a petting zoo (see photos) on the northeastern corner of the park. All along the way, I was snapping photos, eavesdropping on conversations in a million different world languages, and maintaining an impressive and exhausting pace, especially considering that my feet were already sore and blistered from days of walking in India.

I cut through the area around St. James’s Palace and passed through Picadilly Circus again, making my way through the West End theatre district (at least, I think that’s where I was along Shaftesbury Avenue (which still makes me think of Bill Hicks’s bit about how England doesn’t really have crime, just hooligans), where I spotted a stage adaptation of Rain Man and the famous Spamalot. I then dropped into a fantastic little coffee shop called Caffe Vergnano 1882, right near Leicester Square on Charing Cross Road, for an iced cappuccino. With coffee in hand, I headed into the Leicester Square underground station and boarded a train back to Heathrow. Riding that train, high on caffeine, I couldn’t help smiling in a self-satisfied way. Many people would gladly have waited out their layover hours at the airport, but I got out and saw the city. Good for me.

Getting back through security and all at Heathrow ended up being much easier than I’d expected, so I had time to pick up a few English candy bars (I love by foreign candy – why is that?) and enjoy a pint of John Smith’s before I had to board again.

The flight from London to Denver was, once again, phenomenally boring. I resorted to watching The Incredibles, which was mildly entertaining, and fell asleep again. That might have been helped along by the fact that I kept insisting on a can of London Pride whenever the flight attendant came around.

Once in Denver, I more-or-less breezed through immigration and customs without incident, was met by my generous sister, and taken back to my car, which I’d left at her house, thus ending my adventure.

[gallery]

Since Alex's friends actually live in London (though have Maltese parents), we left it up to them to decide what sights we should see on Alex's 5hr stay in London. So they planned a whirlwind tour around the major sights of London. Having met in Covent Garden, we of course started from looking around there, From there it was on to Leicester Square - Picadilly - Regent Street - Bond Street where we got the tube to Waterloo.

Had never been in the area around Waterloo, but I quite liked it. It has a different feeling form the rest of London, especially walking along the bank on a sunny day like today. From there we could see the London Eye (had never been so close before), Tate modern, the Globe theater, over the Millenium Bridge and on to St. Paul's Cathedral. So all in all I guess I have seen another chunk of London's sights which I hadn't seen before. At St. Paul's we said goodbye to one of Alex's friends (the other had left when we got the tube earlier on), and we made our way to Trafalgar Square, where Alex and I separated, me to go home and him to catch his bus to his campus.

[googlemaps http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&msa=0&ll=51.507659,-0.099743&spn=0.013197,0.038624&t=h&msid=116517303665655070640.000458fd7ca7bd939da6c&output=embed&s=AARTsJoT4uLGMSRchIdwcbYXm--MtIx-ow&w=425&h=350]

Being a sunny day it was a very good day for sightseeing I guess, cos seeing everything under a bright light makes everything look happier and radiant. It was also good to catch up with Alex, chat a bit with the two London girls, and in general have an easy day out.

Thanks guys :)

Well, living at my aunt's place for the initial week or so wasn't quite different from home or say a vacation somewhere...but finally moving in the new place, new people, studies...its all been quite interesting.. I guess London is growing on me now; however its been quite an overload of information and an overwhelming experience overall.

So what has London been till now - well with my absolute cluelessness about maps- of wrong buses and trains that I have taken, have gotten lost alone some three times...stuck in rain with a broken umbrella...walking along the Thames everyday...seeing London Eye, Big Ben, St. Paul's Cathedral daily...been to the Buckingham Palace...spent 2 evenings already at Covent Garden...London is nice warm n sunny at times n irritatingly wet n windy at others...cooked my first self made pasta...n it was amazing!! :D I could not believe it... hehehe...cooking has become a sort of meditation for me...takes my mind off things...and absolutely destresses me...

So all in all its been a mixed bag...but so much so that there are days I don't remember home at all (:S) n there are days I wish to be back with familiar stuff..things I am used to...I guess for those whom I narrated my Saturday ordeal, you know what I mean...phew...that was quite something...anyhow...studies are quite charged up. Apart from the main course, I've taken up half unit electives in Population and Development; Nationalism, Democracy and Development in India; Cities, people and poverty in South and Complex Emergencies. This has been a really really big decision as attending introductory classes about various other subjects have made me so much more confused as I find them all interesting...turns out I'm also attending the Lecture on Urban Policy and Development in South and lets see what I finally end up taking...

And well...I'm happy...I think this song just says a lot for me... im goin mad smiling as if its like smitten for the first time...though its an entirely different story here...

Grew up in a small town
And when the rain would fall down
I'd just stare out my window
Dreaming of what could be
And if I'd end up happy
I would pray

Trying hard to reach out
But when I'd try to speak out
Felt like no one could hear me
Wanted to belong here
But something felt so wrong here
So I'd pray
I could breakaway

I spread my wings and I learn how to fly
I'll do what it takes til' I touch the sky
And I'll make a wish
Take a chance
Make a change
And breakaway

Out of the darkness and into the sun
But I won't forget all the ones that I loved
I'll take a risk
Take a chance
Make a change
And breakaway

Wanna feel the warm breeze
Sleep under a palm tree
Feel the rush of the ocean
Get onboard a fast train
Travel on an airplane, far away (I will pray)
And breakaway

I spread my wings and I learn how to fly
I'll do what it takes til' I touch the sky
And I'll make a wish
Take a chance
Make a change
And breakaway

Out of the darkness and into the sun
But I won't forget all the ones that I loved
I'll take a risk
Take a chance
Make a change
And breakaway

Buildings with a hundred floors
Swinging with revolving doors
Maybe I don't know where they'll take me but
Gotta keep moving on, moving on
Fly away, breakaway

I'll spread my wings
And I'll learn how to fly
Though it's not easy to tell you goodbye
I gotta take a risk
Take a chance
Make a change
And breakaway

Out of the darkness and into the sun
But I won't forget the place I come from

I gotta take a risk
Take a chance
Make a change
And breakaway, breakaway, breakaway

mmm... :) U know what I mean right ;)

After our four hour flight from Moscow, we easily made our way into the city on the Tube (London's subway). Being re-immersed in the English language, albeit with a funny accent, was a nice change and made our travel lives just a bit easier.

We had some serious troubles booking a room for a reasonable price that Saturday night. In desperation, we decided to give Hotwire a try, and it worked out pretty well. We ended up with a room at the Hilton in the cozy Islington neighborhood, and paid less than the hostel we stayed at the next two nights. We were a little worn down from all of our moving around in Russia, so we decided to take it easy for our first day. It was kind of like one of our low-key NYC Sundays: slept in late, shopped around, ate lunch in a park, meandered through the neighborhood, etc. 

The following day was our only day to take in the tourist sites, so we laced up our walking shoes and hit the pavement early for our usual self-guided walking tour. Over the course of the day, we accomplished the majority of our tourist goals such as the Tower Bridge, the London Eye, Big Ben, St. James and Green parks (both great names in our opinion), Buckingham Palace, Hyde Park, and finally, a local pub where we rewarded ourselves with fish & chips and beer.

Here are the pics:

[vodpod id=ExternalVideo.707362&w=425&h=350&fv=host%3Dpicasaweb.google.com%26noautoplay%3D1%26RGB%3D0x000000%26feed%3Dhttp%253A%252F%252Fpicasaweb.google.com%252Fdata%252Ffeed%252Fapi%252Fuser%252Fjim.mccary%252Falbumid%252F5251355742215421857%253Fkind%253Dphoto%2526alt%253Drss] 

Nibbling a biscuit, Losing the plot, Telling a fib, Feeding a ferret, Giving a lecture, Ogling a screen, Melting some stock, Burying an Aunt, Faking I.D., Laughing too loudly, Dancing on expenses, Dining on drugs, Trudging home, Clutching an ankle, Swallowing a paperclip, Yawning in a cab, Talking bollocks, Looking gorgeous, Running on tarmac, Blaspheming the remote control, Fishing for compliments, Thinking sod all, Getting inspired, Shredding a bill, Arguing with a client, Denying an urge, Following a Saab, Dropping a bag of tomatoes, Riding a lift, Mis-spelling a name, Interpreting a silence, Stemming the flow of blood, Knitting a plan, Crying as a release, Phoning BT, Fantasising standing up, Pee-ing lying down, Drawing an eagle, Counting to nine, Forgetting a line, Buying a tin opener, Stealing a mango, Catching a vase, Dealing with frustration, Feeling knackered, Making a memory, Undoing a tangle, Hopping for kicks, Asking the unreasonable, Loving a mannerism, Shouting over a crowd, Joking about lobster, Belittling a call-girl, Picking through bins, Slagging off the city, Switching on charisma, Reading a blog, Crafting a necklace, Examining a bug, Getting lost in a library, Doing an impersonation, Timing an egg, Singing on a swing, Stroking a scar, Craving a star, You get the picture

Open up your London Eye,

And flood it,

Let it do your head in for a while,

then

Plunge In

This is the second time I visited the London Eye at night. Both times it was the night before someone left for Brunei.

Brunei Gallery at SOAS

Victoria Memorial

Last Sunday, Tim and I participated in the London Freewheel, the second largest cycling event in Europe. It was one of those things I always considered doing when I lived in London, but never did. The centre of the city was closed to traffic from Buckingham Palace to the Tower of London.

Minor setback: I didn’t have a bike. I was tasked with making enquiries about renting one, but I forgot. Crap, isn’t it? A writer, and the best excuse I can come up with is: I forgot. At least it’s the truth, which in this instance I will now attempt to present as ‘refreshing’.

The day before the event, Tim stood outside talking to his neighbour. Michael was attired in t-shirt and a spectacularly unflattering pair of cycle shorts. I mean, really. The Stretchy Lycra Brigade talk about cycling shorts being padded and comfortable, as if that is a valid excuse for wearing them.

ANYWAY, I didn’t fail to notice that Michael was propped against a mountain bike, so after spending some time getting acquainted, I asked if I could borrow it.

“Hi, I’m Niamh.”

“Michael-”

“Nice to meet you. HEY, any chance I could borrow your bike tomorrow?”

“Errr, I suppose. What was your name again?”

Later, I said to Tim:-

“Michael, nice guy. How long have you known him?”

“Ah, that was the first time we’ve met.”

The day was gorgeous. Tim and I cycled across Clapham Common and picked up our fluorescent bibs and armbands at the corner. Since it was a designated access point, a route to the city had been laid out along back roads. We were in a group of fluorescent people and held up the traffic for miles.

Tim; image courtesy SkySport: thanks a million.

The Brits being British, they turned out in their best suits: Wonder Woman ignored her powers of flight in favour of more conventional transport; there was a gladiator and a couple of bears; some bicycles featured bunting and foliage.

Image courtesy SkySport: thanks again.

After cycling three quarters of an hour, we came through a pair of ornate gates, beside which stood a huge fountain. A couple of bronze statues reclined on the bottom, overlooked by a couple of bland, marble figures, topped by a gold figure frozen on the brink of a suicide leap.

“What is this?” I asked Tim.

He looked at me in horror: “It’s BUCKINGHAM PALACE,” he said, appalled.

Indeed, when I looked back over my left shoulder, there was a queen-sized structure.

“You might not recognise it,” continued Tim, “it’s only the most famous landmark in Britain.”

“I thought that was London Bridge?”

We cycled down The Mall to Trafalgar Square, down Northumberland Avenue to Embankment and all the way along to London Bridge and the Tower of London. It was a unique way to view all the major sights of the city: Whitehall, Nelson's Column, St Paul's Cathedral, The Houses of Parliament and the London Eye.

On the route back, Tim and I stopped in St James’s Park for 99s and spent time with a few of the 50,000 cyclists that took part.

St James’s Park

London Eye, from the park

Admiralty Arch

Onlooker

Big Ben @ night, taken from Westminster Tube Station.

******

The Evening of 11th September 2008

I kept looking up at the clock, while I wipe dry the glasses and coffee cups fresh out of the dishwasher. It's almost 6pm. Two of my friends will be here soon. I haven't seen them in ages and look forward to meeting them again. They've planned to take a week off work and holiday in London. London! Out of all places! 

And the timing was perfect. I am in London and need of company to go sightseeing. What is the point of seeing places if you can't share it with someone?

Arriving slightly past 6pm, I jumped with joy and gave quick hugs. I was elated! It was nice to see familiar faces in a land of strangers, a little touch of home. I quickly clocked out and changed out of my bright orange uniform. We went to a middle-eastern restaurant, Alounak, for dinner, famous for their fresh-baked pita breads and tender juicy kebabs. Yumm! We discussed our touring plans for the next 5 days.

9/12 - Westminster Abbey & Sandeman Pub Crawl

9/13 - Tower of London, Tower Bridge & Spam-A-Lot the Musical

9/14 - British Museum

9/15 - Stonehenge & Visiting Mark's Sister @ Bromsgrove

9/16 - Windsor Castle, City of Windsor and Eton

The night was young when we were done with dinner and decided to drop by an English pub, even when they were exhausted and jet lagged from the long flight. 

We took the tube to Westminster. Lo and behold, Big Ben stood majestically in front of the tube station's entrance. What a sight! We walked around for a bit, passing Houses of Parliament, Westminster Abbey, The London Eye and a few statues before heading towards The Clarence Pub.

My first pint was a Strongbow and the next was Guinness. I actually prefer the Guinness here than the ones back home. It tastes lighter, smoother and more deeeeelish! Not long after we headed home, making sure we get the rest needed for the next 5 days!

The interview for the day did not last all that long and I roamed around London. The usual hang out spots. Same old, same old before heading back to the sofa at my friend's place.

Londyn odwiedzam po raz pierwszy. 5 dni to bardzo malo dla tak wielkiego miasta, nie mam zbyt duzego pojecia od czego i jak zaczac poznawac Londyn..Przegladam goraczkowo przewodniki i trafiam na zdanie: " Tak naprawde kazdy przeciez moze miec swoj Londyn, nie gorszy od innych, i to jest jeden z wielkich atutow tego wspanialego miasta." Wyciszam wiec moja saturniana czesc natury i stawiam na luz i intuicje.

O tym , ze jestem zwierzeciem typowo wielkomiejsko-molochowym przekonalam sie juz dosyc dawno. Ubostwienie dla murow, kamieni, cegiel, bruku, kocich lbow itp. A do tego straszliwie mi sie podobaja ciasne, krete ulice - nic wiec dziwnego, ze oszalam ze szczescia na poludniowym brzegu Tamizy, na Gainsford Street  -uliczka znajdujaca sie na odcinku Tower Bridge  -  Design Museum.

posilek wojownika - czyli ukochane sushi za jedyne 4 funty ( zgroza, taniej niz hamburger) zjedzone na malowniczym murku w dzielnicy finansjery czyli  City.

Obok tej slicznoty nie udalo mi sie przejsc obojetnie...po malym targowaniu ze sprzedawca, udalo mi sie ja kupic za 15funtow. Czasem mam szczescie jednak i udaje mi sie trafic cos wyjatkowego za bezcen...

Byc w Londynie i nie kupic sobie butow byloby grzechem, prawda? A do tego hiper modnych platform, z mieciutkiej skorki za jednyne 35 funtow...

Na Baker Street docieram ciut poznawo i zostaje mi jedynie pocalowanie klamki domostwa Sherlocka Holmesa, mojego guru z lat dziecinnych. Fikcja, nie fikcja i tak czuje fajny dreszczyk patrzac na tabliczke 221B...

I tyle na dzis mojego migawkowego Londynu. W nastepnych postach relacje z London Fashion Week, wystawy Timiego Walkera i cudow w National Gallery.

A w kaciku muzycznym cos z plytki zakupionej w Londku ofkors ( 3 funty ) , choc niekoniecznie londynsko ale bardzo mi podpasowalo do mojej podrozy.

Kurztrip ab nur 99 Euro für Flug und Hotel – Eine Weltreise in nur wenigen Stunden

(London, 19. September 2008) London – die ganze Welt in einer Stadt. Chinesische Spezialitäten, nordafrikanische Märkte, indische Dinner, karibische Parties. In der britischen Hauptstadt kann jedermann eine Weltreise machen, an nur einem Tag. Rund um die Themse gibt es (fast) alles zu erleben und zu erfahren – vom britischen Understatement in der Bond Street bis zum bunten Karneval in Notting Hill. In der Multikulti-Hochburg Europas (in London werden 250 verschiedene Sprachen gesprochen!) gibt es selbst für erfahrene Englandfans stets Neues zu entdecken. Einige interessante Tipps für einen Kurztrip haben wir für Sie zusammen gestellt. Die Städtreise zum Spartarif gibt es bei BINOLI – ab nur 99 Euro je Nacht (Flug + Hotel).

Stadt der Superlative – wo man gewesen sein muss
In London gibt es ver UNESCO-Weltkulturerbestätten – den Palast von Westminster, den Tower, die Marineschule von Greenwich und die Königlichen Botanischen Gärten von Kew; alles Ausflugsziele, die man einmal gesehen haben muss. Zu den Top 10 gehören auch das British Museum (über sechs Millionen Ausstellungsstücke aus der ganzen Welt), die National Gallery (die schönsten Werke europäischer Künstler von 1250 bis 1900) und das National History Museum (u.a. eine 40 Mio. Jahre alte Spinne, ein Blauwal in Lebensgröße und ein faszinierendes Saurierskelett). Am besten, Sie verschaffen sich einen Überblick über Big London – per Panoramasicht vom „London Eye“, dem größten feststehenden Riesenrad der Welt.

Smart Shopping – die schönsten Straßenmärkte
Straßenmärkte sind nicht nur etwas für die Einwohner – auf den zum Teil quirligen Märkten erlebt man London-Feeling pur. Wo man gewesen sein muss: Covent Garden – hinter dem bekannten Obst- und Gemüsemarkt gibt es hochwertige Erzeugnisse aller Art, von Kunst über Schmuck und Kleidung bis Antiquitären (täglich, U-Bahnstation Covent Garden). Camden Market – hier sollte man früh am Tag kommen, da sonst Überfüllung herrscht; auf den sechs Märkten gibt es vor allem Billigklamotten, Second-Hand-Kleidung, Retro-Möbel und viel viel mehr (täglich, U-Bahnstation Camden Town). Portobello Road – der beste Straßenmarkt in ganz London bietet Originaklamotten aus den letzten Jahrzehnten, Accessoires für Trendsetter und Bio-Food der besonderen Sorten (freitags bis sonntags, U-Bahnstationen Ladbroke Grove, Notting Hill Gate, Westbourne Park).

Top-Events im Oktober
London Film Festival – National Film Theatre, 15. bis 30. Oktober, www.lff.org.uk
Trafalgar Day Parade – Trafalgar Square (zu Ehren Lord Nelsons Sieg im Jahr 1805), 26. Oktober
Diwali Festival – Trafalgar Square (Hindu-Lichterfest), 28. Oktober, www.diwaliinlondon.com

Reisetipp: Flug + Hotel + London Feeling ab 99 Euro je Nacht
Binoli, das Urlaubsportal von airberlin, bietet einen Kurzurlaub mit Direktflug ab Berlin, Düsseldorf, Hannover oder Nürnberg für 99 Euro für eine Übernachtung an. Domizil ist das Express by Holiday Inn Hotel Newbury Park London.

Aktuelle Flugdaten checken Sie hier:
http://www.binoli.de/web/pauschal/contentPage.php?contentPageType=teaserLONKW38&et_cid=3&et_lid=30&et_sub=LON99 

Autor: Carsten Hennig, Reisejournalist
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[Via deviantART]

This is two horizontal shots stitched together with ptgui for a square image.

(I try to avoid shots of The Eye but sometimes, it is difficult to find inspiration after a long day . . .)

1o. Dia : Harrods - Piccadilly Circus - Leicester Square - Pub (já virou atração turística).

2o. Dia : Abadia de Westminster - Big Ben - Parliament Square - London Eye - Torre de Londres - Tower Bridge - Catedral de Saint Paul - Hide Park - Oxford Street

3o. Dia : Museu de História Natural (exposição de foto) - Pub

4o. Dia : Saint Jame' s Park - Palácio de Buckingham - Science Museum - Pub

5o. Dia : Trafalgar Square - British Museum - Tate Modern

6o. Dia : Viagem para Brugges

Dicas :

Albergue : Globetrotter Inn London . Albergue com quartos para todos os gostos, desde coletivos para 10 pessoas até quartos para casais, onde ficamos. Por ter muitos quartos o preço sai em conta em comparação com outros albergues, com café da manhã incluído. Só cuidado com o aquecimento, leia nos causos. O café da manhã é um encontro de todos os tipos de raças e grupos. Você se sente em Hogwards, podendo dar de cara com o Harry Potter a qualquer instante. Tem um pub dentro do albergue e sempre fazem gincanas e festas, é bem divertido.

Cidade cara : Em Londres tudo é mais caro. Não só pela libra que vale 4 vezes o real, mas tudo é muito caro. Para comer não dava para almoçar comidas decentes todos os dias. Até no Mcdonals que fomos comer esperando na fila da London Eye pagamos 7 libras por dois cheeseburgers com batata e um refrigerante. Isso dá 28 reais ! Uma boa opção seria comprar em supermercados, mas eles raramente são vistos no centro da cidade. Redes de comidas prontas são mais comuns, onde se encontra sanduíches prontos a preços mais em conta. Foi o que comemos em grande parte da viagem. Até o tradicional Fish & Tips deles, que é uma gordureba de um peixe frito que geralmente é congelado e vem duro com batata frita cheia de óleo, é caro.

Como chegar : Eis um grande problema. Para ir de Paris para Londres existem basicamete três opções para cruzar o Canal da Mancha : balsa, avião ou trem bala. A balsa, apesar de sair por umas 15 libras, você ainda tem que pegar um trem até o norte da França e depois outro já na Inglaterra até Londres. Vai perder um dia inteiro para isso e o custo não vai valer tanto a pena. O trem bala seria a melhor opção, mas é extremamente caro. Teríamos desconto se tivéssemos um passe da Eurail que cobrisse a França, mas não tínhamos, então sairia por algo em torno de 125 euros por pessoa ! A grande vantagem é que em uma hora você está no centro de Londres. Acabamos ficando com a solução intermediária: avião low-cost. Compramos duas passagens pela EasyJet por 130 euros. Para sair da França - como aprendemos da forma mais difícil - não é tão demorado porque o aeroporto é o Charles de Gaulle, que fica a 40 minutos de RER. Demora mais em Londres, porque o aeroporto de Luton fica a 1 hora e meia, dependendo do trânsito, do centro de Londres. A RER já está incluída no passe Visite Paris e o ônibus de Luton custa mais ou menos 10 euros, então gastamos no total uns 150 euros, bem melhor que o trem bala, mas perdendo cerca de duas horas a mais, aceitável. Só cuidado para não perder o avião, porque nenhuma empresa low-cost remarca a viagem.

Museus : Pelo menos os museus são gratuitos em Londres ! Mas leve sempre um extra, porque as exposições paralelas são cobradas. No British Museum você vê mais esculturas egípcias do que no Egito, mas pelo fato de ser gratuito eles vivem tirando de exposição e fechando certas mostras. O Science Museum é muito interessante, assim como o de História Natural. Não tente fazer dois desses por dia, não vai conseguir.

Transporte : Assim como em Paris lá também existe um passe, chamado Oyster Travelcard, para vários dias que cobre ônibus (o de dois andares) e metrô. Com ele você consegue visitar todos os pontos da cidade e sai mais barato. Além disso o sistema de tickets londrino é bem complicado, sendo dividido em várias zonas. Fique atendo para saber se o seu albergue fica dentro pelo menos da zona 3, pois se ficar fora pode pagar mais caro pelo passe. É um cartão, que ao contrário do resto do mundo, você deve passar tanto na entrada quanto na saída das estações, justamente devido a esse sistema de zonas. Pagamos cerca de 25 libras para um cartão de 7 dias, cobrindo até a zona 3.

London Eye : Achei muito interessante e a vista de Londres é ótima, já que linda não é. Vê-se apenas os pontos turísticos de cima e o Parlamente e o Big Ben logo de cara. Com o tempo fechado pelo tradicional fog inglês eu não iria, mas demos a sorte de pegar um dos melhores dias do ano até então, com sol aberto e calor. O problema é que todos os turistas, assim como os ingleses que torcem por um dia desses, pensaram a mesma coisa. Mas valeu a pena, foi muito legal. Mas eu não pagaria as 15 libras na época, cerca de 60 reais, para ver neblina !

Palácio de Buckingham : saiba antes o dia em que terá a troca de guarda, porque eles não avisam e vários turistas ficam, como nós, aguardando a tão falada. Achamos que não teria, mas ficamos esperando mesmo assim imaginando que tantas pessoas não poderiam estar ali esperando por nada ! Mas estavam tão perdidas quanto a gente ! Deu pelo menos para o conhecer a casa da Betinha.

Causos :

O Incêndio : No segundo dia em Londres estávamos cansados e doidos para dormir. Chegamos no albergue e estava frio, mas tentei ligar o aquecedor e de tão velho não funcionava. Estava com um botão meio preso e pelo visto não aquecia nada. Acabei deixando pra lá e fui dormir. Mas minha mulher, sem me avisar, acabou ligando o aquecedor. No meio da noite lembro de ter acordado e visto uma luz fraca perto da parede do aquecedor, mas nem me importei, achei que vinha da janela. Por ser elétrico e provavelmente estar com algum curto, no meio da madrugada dispara um ALTÍSSIMO alarme de incêndio. Acordamos apavorados e minha mulher já vai direto no aquecedor desliga-lo ! Abro a porta e estão todos no corredor com cara de espanto e uma inglesinha me pergunta : "Do we have to evacuate?" . Pelo susto pensei que nós estávamos bem perto disso ! O alarme depois de uns 3 minutos parou e fomos dormir torcendo pra ninguém vir acordar a gente pra perguntar o que houve ! E não vieram ! Que susto !

O Grito : Primeiro dia em Londres, em plena Piccadilly Circus e estou tirando foto da tradicional cabine de telefone vermelha quando passa um garoto e dá um berro no meu ouvido e continua andando sem olhar pra trás. Gasto meu repertório de palavrões em inglês mas ele nem se coça ! Mais um susto. O povo inglês, além de meio "bobão", ainda tem um péssimo hábito de não gostar muito de turistas e estrangeiros. Fazer o que ?

A "patolada" : Estávamos indo para a Igreja de Saint Paul quando vemos 4 mulheres, já meio alegres, vestidas "para o crime" atravessando a rua na hora que um carro da polícia inglesa esta passando. Uma delas começa a se engraçar para o policial mais novo e de repente, não mais que de repente, enche a mão entre as pernas do policial ! O cara puxa a garota para o canto e eu penso logo : "pegou". Que nada, o policial puxa a algema e prende a cidadã ! As outras três começam a pedir para ele ponderar, mas não teve conversa, tiveram que sair correndo a pé para ir soltar a outra na delegacia, aos prantos de "Girls, I'm beeing arrested !". É, dá mole em Londres pra você ver !

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