Around London

There are plenty of places to see around London. I had one weekend so narrowed it down to a few places. First up on the list was Windsor castle. The largest inhabited castle was about an hour's journey by train. Very close to the station, the entry line was huge. Took me about half an hour to get in but they do provide audio guides as well and since it is inhabited, security checks also take time. Inside there is a tour of the state apartments, the doll house, and a number of other areas to be visited. The Saint George's cathedral of course is another fine piece of architecture. It was a sunny day and it took me easily the better part of the day to see it all.

Salisbury was a little further off in another direction. The cathedral there was a little more lax in the photography area. The interiors of course as in others are magnificent. Also it does hold the oldest working clock and the best preserved copy of Magna Carta. Listening to the Organ playing on the way out was another treat. There are regular buses to the Stonehenge from Salisbury. The next stop was there. Theories regarding it aside, it is an iconic historical circle of stones. Seems to have been under a fair bit of wear and tear as earlier, people did chip off pieces from it as a souvenirs until they blocked general public from getting too close.


Final stop was the city called Bath which is famous for its ruins of a Roman bath. Can think of quite a few jokes on the name but this is not the place. The abbey overlooks it and had reached there when a mass was going on so could not go inside but the baths themselves were quite interesting. They are located on a hot spring and the ruins are preserved not too well but visible. The city itself is quite idyllic and architecturally very important for its Georgian flavor. The Pulteney bridge and Royal Crescent being the famous ones.

London

Stayed a couple of weeks in London. Unlike last time where I had stayed in Southampton, staying in Central London in summers with only one day of rain during the 2 weeks gave me much more freedom to move about. Caught a couple of movies and window shopped in a few malls. Then went exploring with a tube ticket to the first 4 zones. London of course has the kind of architecture that really intrigues you with the rustic feel that keeps you interested.

Piccadilly circus and Trafalgar square are a great way to spend the evening. Fridays, the gallery is also open until 9. A number of monuments there provide a nice view. There is of course the largest Ripley's believe it or not museum at Piccadilly but gave that a miss. The National gallery of course is free entry and has some really fantastic paintings from 16th century onwards and is large enough to keep you busy for quite a while. Trafalgar square itself provides an interesting hot-spot for tourists although the pigeon feeding is no more a practice.

Saint Paul's cathedral is another cathedral added to my list of so many visited. It has one of the highest domes and is an amazing piece of architecture to see. Photography is not allowed inside and it is not open to visitors on Sunday as services are held. They do charge about 12 pounds for entry. The view from the dome and the spire is of surrounding London if you can climb there, while also viewing the artwork. The crypt and the lower levels hold various memorials.

A walk along Thames at sunset never really gets boring. Had done that on my last trip as well but was not in much of a hurry this time so took my time exploring the areas around Westminster to the Tower bridge. It was a really long walk but fun. Took a ride on the London eye as well. Maybe a little overrated but it does provide an excellent view of the river and the surrounding areas.

The other museums that I visited were the Natural history museum, the science museum and the British museum. All their entries were free so whenever I had time on my hands and they were open, I was able to get around again thanks to the tube. The British museum itself had some really interesting details while the Natural history museum was fun to say the least. The
Kensington garden were walkable and the Albert memorial there is great. The park also attracts a variety of birds and feeding the squirrels never gets boring.

The Tower of London of course is a must see. Along with the multiple artifacts that it houses and the fact that it has a rather colorful and sordid history, the tours are really fun. The tales by the warders there, the ravens kept there as legend has it that if 6 ravens are not present, the kingdom shall fall, the fusiliers museums, the carvings by the prisoners and of course the crown jewels are just a few of the sights.

English

The trip to UK was a very memorable one. It was my first business trip from the company and also my first trip after I bought a camera. A BMW showroom right opposite to my office always kept me drooling . English weather and humor were the only cold dampeners, but that was because I understood neither. The office was in Southampton which is about 1 hr by train from London. The only weekend I spent there had of course one agenda alone: London.

We got to London in the early afternoon, partially because of repair work on the tracks and partially due to our laziness. We spent most of the remaining daylight on the banks of Thames. The view of Westminster abbey and the London eye is certainly breathtaking. Walking across Tower bridge and London bridge in rain not so much. The evening was spent on Oxford street where I managed to even see a cycle rickshaw. I managed to get a room for about 90 pounds which is by far the most expensive and smallest hotel room I have ever stayed in.

The next day began much earlier. We got to the Buckingham palace quite early and despite the rains managed to see some horseback guardsmen on a patrol. Then it started pouring, so took the time off for some souvenir hunting. We used the subway to get to Baker street, a statue of Sherlock Holmes certainly confirmed that. Spent a couple of hours in Madame Tussaud's there. The wax sculptures do jump out. Then walked around a couple of streets before we got back to Southampton(fortunately repairs were done). Of course we did not miss out on an English pub.