On the tourist train.... In London

After a brief R and R following the Vietnam

and Cambodia trip and, taking advantage of

the departure of big sis to Norway and Finland in

search of the Northern lights..... while the cat's away...

my friend Krys came down from Nottingham to enjoy

the sights that London has to offer.

We both had lists of things to do and see, but, being

the good friends we are, everything just meshed

together and we had a great time... in fact so good,

we're hoping to do a repeat before I head back to

Canada.

We started off at Borough Market - the haunt of foodies

and celebrity chefs......

Krys is chuffed at finally making it here!!

We sampled various delicacies.... truffle oil, gourmet

cheeses, sausages of every description!

Fungi of every description.....

And, look at these little beauties, and check out the prices!

Truffles - worth a small fortune!

The British £ is equivalent to two Canadian $..........

The little beauty on the left cost $180!! Do real people buy

this stuff?

 

Cheese of every description.....

We didn't sample the donkey sausage! I'm surprised the Brits

allowed this with their love of animals.

I think I'll have a go at making this when I get home, can't

be too hard!

Outside.......

The Shard - still have to make it up there - and another Great War

memorial.

We wandered around Southwark Cathedral...

Here's Krys taking a photo of the Shard in the Cathedral grounds.

We wandered along the Thames Path.......

Past this street performer who was great playing his tuba.....

Past the Globe Theatre, built in 1599 as the original home

of William Shakespeare's theatre company, the Lord 

Chamberlain's Men. It burned down in 1613 and a modern 

reconstruction was opened on the original site in 1997.

Unfortunately it's only open seasonally so we couldn't go

in.

We crossed the Millenium Bridge.....

And ended up here.......

In the City of London.......

The City of London constituted most of London from its 

settlement by the Romans in the 1st Century AD and through

to the Middle Ages. It has long outgrown its original size and

has become part of the thriving metropolis of London.

Today the City is world renowned as being the UK's trading

and financial centre and the headquarters of many UK

banks are based there.

Every British schoolchild knows about "The Old Lady of

Threadneedle Street".   aka The Bank of England.....

Here's a view from the front.....

And, from behind..... the Brit equivalent to Fort Knox- but classier!

And here's me trying to get in!! It didn't work!

 Across the street, the Royal Exchange......

The glass building to the left is the London Stock Exchange.

The Royal Exchange now houses offices, high-end stores and 

restaurants......

Seeing as it was Saturday, everywhere was closed. Normally 

this place is teeming with well-dressed and well-heeled 

bankers, traders, accountants.

Across from the Royal Exchange another memorial

to commemorate the City workers who died in the

Great War....

The Mansion House......

And this interesting plaque..... I wonder if that's how

the name "stock market" was coined......

We found this original police telephone box, no longer in use:

I loved the colour - I wonder why?

So I had to take a photo beside it! Serendipity!

We wandered down a side street.....

Passed St.Stephen's of Walbrook Church........

St. Stephen's was home to a very famous rector in the 20th century...

The Samaritans, named after the parable of the Good Samaritan,

is a very well known UK charity providing emotional support to

anyone in emotional distress, struggling to cope or at risk of suicide,

often through their telephone helpline.

We passed by this lovely Georgian home....

Stopped off for a well-deserved coffee at Waitrose....

Passed by The Monument, built to commemorate the spot where

the Great Fire of London began in 1666....

Headed here to catch the bus home.....

I was curious to see this building close up.....

The SIS - Secret Intelligence Service - or MI6 Building at

Vauxhall Cross. Also known affectionately as Legoland, 

Babylon-on-Thames or Ceausescu Towers! I'd seen this 

building from the bus previously and it looked oddly

familiar. Of course! It was featured in several James Bond 

movies - I'd seen it being attacked and demolished in SkyFall

and Sceptre. It was also the home of James Bond's boss- "M"

Close-up you can see the many security cameras, high

fences and satellite equipment up on the roof. The building is 

said to have several underground levels.....

Of course everyone from London cab drivers to tourists

and KGB agents knows what it is!

And, on the other side of the bridge.....

These ominous high-rise buildings - I presume they're 

apartments but I don't think they'd be out of place in a 

Stephen King novel.......

And, so to bed.... to continue exploring the big city tomorrow.

                              Talk soon

                                  Zoe