Okay, the highlights (IMO!):
The lowlights (also IMO):
MISSES:
Well, we didn't do everything, due to time restrictions, or monetary issues, or other.
We did NOT go on the London Eye. It was a wee bit pricy, and Monica was also afraid that she'd freak out in one of the capsules. Personally, I think it would have been worth the price of admission to see her running back and forth, throwing herself against the sides trying to get out. But, alas, we'll have to save that panic attack for next time.
We did NOT go to Madame Tussauds. I kind of wanted to. But Monica didn't want to, and Neal and Geraldine didn't want us to. It's just one of those tacky things that tourist do (like the London Dungeon). I could have gone on my own, but it didn't seem like it would be much fun by myself, so I went to the Tower of London instead.
We did NOT get into Buckingham Palace. The Queen was home, and she didn't want us there. You can only tour it in August, when she's on vacation. We also did not go to Kensington Palace, because it seemed overpriced to us. (And yet, oddly enough, the London Dungeon was not, even though it cost more.)
We walked across Tower Bridge, but didn't take the tour inside to see the drawbridge mechanisms. Why? Dunno. Probably more a lack of time and money.
We walked PAST Parliament Hill, but didn't climb it. Why not? Because we were dummies. We said, Look at that big hill. Yeah. And kept walking. Only to discover later, that we would have had a beautiful view of London. Oh well. That's why this is in the MISSED opportunity category.
We didn't get to Stonehenge. Yes, it would have been very cool, but we would have needed almost another day for that, and we went to Bath instead. I'll file that away for the "next time" category.
Damn it. I should have bought that way cool "Guy Fawkes - What a Guy!" t-shirt at the Tower of London. ~now full of remorse~
I didn't get to see the Queen. But Monica did. Check out my P.S.
- The London Dungeon. Yes, it's cheesy. Yes, it makes the British purists cringe. But we loved it! It's like a ghoulish, vaguely historical theme park of fun. I particularly liked being lost in the mirror tunnels, and Monica being put on trial at Newgate prison. (I always knew she was bad.)
- Sadler's Wells Ballet performance of Madame Butterfly. Probably one of the best ballets I've seen. While I freely admit that I like the opulent theatres of yore, and that the Sadler's Wells is a boxy modern interior, the dancing was exquisite and drew me in, and that's the really important thing.
- Coriolanus at The Globe. I knew next to nothing about the play, and it didn't really grab me in the way that some of Shakespeare's more well-known plays might have. And yet, near the end, there was a moment, when Coriolanus' mother comes to try to talk some sense into him, and he won't listen to her, and then as she's rebuking him and walking away, he stops her and takes her hand, and there was just this electrifying, emotional silence between them, and you know he's finally relented. I swear, it brought tears to my eyes. It was the weirdest thing (maybe because I don't see live theatre much), because it was all unspoken and unmoving, but there was just this connection and you could have heard a pin drop in the theatre. (Except for the one Canadian sobbing in the back of the theatre, that is.) I'm not really explaining it well, but that moment just made the whole play for me. Next time, come with me!
The Pre-Raphaelite paintings at the Tate Britain. So maybe it makes me declassé, but I love the Pre-Raphaelites, and the Tate Britain just had a treasure trove of them. I've always admired Burne-Jones' paintings in particular, but Millais and Rossetti's works were amazing as well. Some of Rossetti's, in particular, do not translate well to the art prints you see in books - the vivid colours and hues are just gorgeous.- Highgate Cemetery. Sure, it seems weird to have to pay to get into a cemetery (and be escorted through it - no wandering on your own!), but the statuary and greenery there is well worth the price of admission. Plus, on the way there, we got to walk through Waterlow Park, which had some absolutely beautiful flowers.
- Walking along the Thames on a beautiful sunny day. When the weather is cooperating, it's the best way to spend a day, particularly on the South side. This is where all the sidewalk entertainers are, a lot of shops and restaurants, and touristy stops. I have a particular fondness for the day when the Blue musician was bellowing after the rude teenagers who tried to knock the Silver Statueman off his pedestal (if that sounds incomprehensible, go back to read the entry on May 9.)
- Rowing on the Serpentine in Hyde Park. Yeah, we suck as rowboaters, but it was fun.
- The weather. The weather was AWESOME. We completely lucked out - really had very little rain, with most days sunny, some of them hot. Much nicer to be wandering around in the sunshine than the typical London rain.
The lowlights (also IMO):
- Boiled peas. I mean, ick. Blechh. Ptooey. But yes, I still ate them.
- Paying for lawn chairs. What's up with that? I mean, really.
- 30-second countdowns to exit the building at the Victoria & Albert Museum. (Okay, I exaggerate, ever so slightly.) It was like a fire drill, without the fire. Everyone out, NOW! And surly coat-boys who don't know their places...
- The Saturday morning market at Notting Hill getting rained out. Bummer. It would have been nice to spend a lot more time wandering through there. Plus, the rain made my not entirely waterproof runners quite squeaky. Squoosh-squoosh-squoosh as I walk down the street. On the other hand, I did buy my tacky plastic Union Jack umbrella there. Woot!
- Stupid Lord Nelson hiding behind scaffolding at Trafalgar Square. I TOTALLY can't see you behind all that. (Guess they were getting him ready for the tourist who were arriving AFTER us.)
- Feeding the pigeons in Trafalgar Square is verboten?! Since when? That just seems so wrong. And a criminal waste of a cop. "We've got a 22-4-0 in Trafalgar Square - some damn tourist is FEEDING a pigeon! STOP THEM!"
MISSES:
Well, we didn't do everything, due to time restrictions, or monetary issues, or other.
We did NOT go on the London Eye. It was a wee bit pricy, and Monica was also afraid that she'd freak out in one of the capsules. Personally, I think it would have been worth the price of admission to see her running back and forth, throwing herself against the sides trying to get out. But, alas, we'll have to save that panic attack for next time.
We did NOT go to Madame Tussauds. I kind of wanted to. But Monica didn't want to, and Neal and Geraldine didn't want us to. It's just one of those tacky things that tourist do (like the London Dungeon). I could have gone on my own, but it didn't seem like it would be much fun by myself, so I went to the Tower of London instead.
We did NOT get into Buckingham Palace. The Queen was home, and she didn't want us there. You can only tour it in August, when she's on vacation. We also did not go to Kensington Palace, because it seemed overpriced to us. (And yet, oddly enough, the London Dungeon was not, even though it cost more.)
We walked across Tower Bridge, but didn't take the tour inside to see the drawbridge mechanisms. Why? Dunno. Probably more a lack of time and money.
We walked PAST Parliament Hill, but didn't climb it. Why not? Because we were dummies. We said, Look at that big hill. Yeah. And kept walking. Only to discover later, that we would have had a beautiful view of London. Oh well. That's why this is in the MISSED opportunity category.
We didn't get to Stonehenge. Yes, it would have been very cool, but we would have needed almost another day for that, and we went to Bath instead. I'll file that away for the "next time" category.
Damn it. I should have bought that way cool "Guy Fawkes - What a Guy!" t-shirt at the Tower of London. ~now full of remorse~
I didn't get to see the Queen. But Monica did. Check out my P.S.
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