London

London... Although my Dad and I had already spent about 10 days there over my Spring Break, it was obviously a can't miss place for our family trip. We stayed in a nice, basement level apartment in Chelsea, which turned out to be a great find. The apartment, although below street level, was well lit and roomy, and the location was amazing. Not only were we near the center city and touristy sights, we were in an incredibly rich and posh neighborhood. Adrian and I developed a hobby of counting Ferraris and Bentleys every time we went for a walk near the apartment, and regularly tallied double digits, even on quite short walks!

(Our street)

(The river Thames, as seen from an early evening walk near the apartment)

(Getting ready to eat a 'home' cooked dinner in the apartment)

Although Dad and I had already seen a good deal of the sights, we were not against seeing some of the major highlights again. We also picked a few different things to see- things that we had missed last time.

(An un-staged [honestly!] photo in front of Big Ben)

(Harrod's)

(I'd remembered some of my favorites from visiting Harrod's food hall over Spring Break)



(For example, the Octopus and Paprika Salad)

One of the best things about London is its amazing collection of museums. Modern Art, Classical Art, Science, Natural History, they have it all. Best of all, they're all free- and as we learned from Paris, our next city, that's not something to take for granted.

(Having a picnic lunch on the steps of the National Gallery)

(Inside the British Museum)

(One of the highights of the British Museum, the Rosetta Stone... sort of)

(The National History Museum. We hadn't seen this last time. It was great, an amazing collection in an equally stunning building)

(I want to shake the hand of whoever first decided to place benches in these museums. We used them often, as we regularly walked ourselves to the point of exhaustion while exploring the city)

Perhaps even more exciting than museums (for me at least) was a stadium tour of Chelsea FC. Dad and I had toured the Emirates Stadium (home of crosstown rival Arsenal FC) over spring break, so this time we took the tour of Chelsea's Stamford Bridge. While the rest of the family took a boat to the Greenwich observatory, I went with Adrian for the Stadium tour. Like the Arsenal tour, it was a great experience. Adrian and I, who are both equally obsessed with soccer, had an amazing time touring the stadium we'd often seen on TV and in video games, especially enjoying the behind the scenes aspects of it- such the media areas and player locker rooms.

(The exterior of the Stadium)


(Chelsea is one of the best clubs in England, having won the league several times in recent years)


(Adrian and I pretending to be new signings, sitting at the actual press conference desk where new players are introduced)



(View from the upper deck)



(Adrian, blending in well with the squad)

We continued our 'Cathedral Tour' in London, visiting both Westminster Abbey, as well as St. Pauls. Dad and I had toured both while in London in March, but we were able to do something new in St. Pauls this time- ascending all the way to the top, to the Golden Gallery. Last time we had only been able to go to an outside viewing area, but the very top had been closed. Think of it as going to the Statue of Liberty's crown, but not the torch (pre 9/11 of course). This time we got to go to the torch. It was amazing (and scary, for those like me, who are less than thrilled about heights and tight spaces) as we climbed up narrow spiral staircases in the inner parts of the dome. But the views were well worth it.

(The Millenium Bridge, with St. Pauls in the Background)



(Checking out the view from the lower gallery)



(At the very top, taking some of the pictures you see below)



(The view across the Thames to the Tate Modern and Globe Theatre)



(The view towards Central London)

(Anna, peering over the edge)

On one of our last nights in London, Dad, Adrian and I went to see some of the sights at night. We went to Trafalgar Square, Piccadilly Circus and Westminster, experimenting with various types of night photography. The below are a few of the pictures that turned out well.

(Trafalgar Square. Event though it's not yet fully dark, it's probably close to 1030 or 11pm)

(Big Ben)

(The London Eye)

(One of my favorite shots. Big Ben and the Eye composed into one photo, even though they're on opposite sides of the river)



(Westminster Bridge- spans the Thames between the Houses of Parliament and the London Eye)

Alright, we're nearly half way done with the vacation! Check back for notes and photos about Euro Disney next, and then Paris.