London - castles, palaces, bridges, parks and more!


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Europe » United Kingdom » England
May 23rd 2008
Published: May 23rd 2008
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After three days of recovering from jet lag, I'm finally back to my normal self.

When I arrived at my hostel about 8.30am on Monday morning , I left my things in storage because I couldn't check in until 2pm. I took the underground to Winchester and walked along the Thames. Winchester Station is the best place to start, where on one side of the Thames there is Big Ben, The Houses of Parliament and the other side there is the London Eye. I walked further down the Thames where I walked past Tate Modern and The Globe Theatre. When I walked across the Millennium Bridge towards St Paul's Cathedral, I could see the Tower Bridge in the distance. I caught a quick glimpse inside St Paul's Cathedral because I wasn't up to paying $20 AUD before I walked along Fleet Street and The Strand until reaching Trafalgar Square.

Tuesday was spent at the Tower of London. It was amazing! Mark who is one of the Yeoman Warders at the Tower was very entertaining when he described some of the gruesome tales of executions that occurred at the tower many centuries ago. I would not describe it here because it would make some stomachs turn! The tower of London is also the keeping place of the Crown Jewels. Once my eyes were blinded from all the gold, silver and diamonds I visited the White Tower. This tower displays loads of weapons and armory that were used by guards, soldiers and even the royals over the many centuries. I even saw the execution block and equipment that were used to torture prisoners. Once I left the Tower of London, I put my feet up at a bench overlooking the Thames and the Tower Bridge. That evening I meet Phina at Leicester Square and had dinner with her Aussie friends at an Irish pub. Fish and chips are amazing over here!

After sleeping ~11hrs I checked out of my hostel on Wednesday and made my way to Buckingham Palace. I got a bit lost on the way (because I studied the map the wrong way). However I got there just in time to watch the changing of the guard. I relaxed in Hyde Park after exploring a shopping strip in Knightsbridge and made my way to Phina's after collecting my luggage from storage at the hostel.

Thursday was spent taking photos of Piccadilly Circus (the intersection with the massive TV screens), walking along Regent Street and Oxford Street. I hopefully plan to return to Oxford street to go shopping 😊. Buying clothes in the UK is apparently cheaper than in Australia. I spent the entire afternoon relaxing and walking through Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens. There are so many squirrels over here!



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30th May 2008

hey!! having a ball?
Heya Hydes! :D try bringing a squirrel back! Say hi to Phina for me will ya. Enjoy reading your travels while I slog through the office week. Cyaaaa

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