Archive | London RSS for this section

Trafalgar Square Via Whitehall to Horse Guard’s Parade

Horse Guard's Parade

Day Three in London on July 25, 2014 started off in the Trafalgar Square area.  I already showed you some pictures in my previous post Big Ben, Westminster Abbey and St. Margaret’s Church, however, I didn’t want to bore you with too many pictures along the way to Westminster, so now I can bore you in this post…..excuse my dry humor!

So let’s continue the journey!  This is very close to our hotel in Trafalgar Square, and is on the corner of Whitehall and Charing Cross

Whitehall and Charing Cross

Nelson's Column, Trafalgar Square

Nelson’s Column, Trafalgar Square

Trafalgar Sqare

Trafalgar Sqare

Just a bit of London for you, with some Londoner’s of course!

Whitehall, City of Westminster

Whitehall, City of Westminster

London Bus No. 12 - Oxford Circus at Whitehall

London Bus No. 12 – Oxford Circus at Whitehall

Looking back at the Trafalgar Square area

Nelson's Column, Trafalgar Square

Nelson’s Column, Trafalgar Square

55 Whitehall – Sherlock stood atop here in the “Empty Hearse”, so did James Bond 007 in “Skyfall”.  This building now houses the Department for Energy and Climate Change

DSCN0585

55 Whitehall – think Sherlock and James Bond!

Talking of Sherlock, here’s a pub named after him and that is close by to Great Scotland Yard.

Sherlock Holmes Pub

Sherlock Holmes Pub

It is on the junction of Whitehall and Great Scotland Yard, which is pictured below

Great Scotland Yard

Great Scotland Yard

Some of my pictures are quite self-explanatory, so I won’t write the same info above them as the info is captioned on the picture. This building is right next to 55 Whitehall – it is the Ministry of Defence

DSCN0586

The Ministry of Defence, City of Westminster

And this picture will show you both 55 Whitehall and the Ministry of Defence in the same shot, as well The Clarence (restaurant)

The Clarence Restaurant, 55 Whitehall, and Whitehall Place, City of Westminster

The Clarence Restaurant, 55 Whitehall, and Whitehall Place, City of Westminster

Prince George, Duke of Cambridge Statue, outside the War Office, Whitehall

Prince George, Duke of Cambridge Statue, outside the Ministry of Defence, Whitehall

Want to see the Duke of Cambridge (not the present one mind you) up closer?

Prince George, Duke of Cambridge Statue, outside the Ministry of Defense, Whitehall

Prince George, Duke of Cambridge Statue, outside the Ministry of Defence, Whitehall

I bet you didn’t know Whitehall was such an interesting place.  It’s the area that houses a lot of the government departments and ministries, and of course the terrific Horse Guards Parade, which is a parade ground used for royal parades and ceremonies.

Horse Guards Parade Whitehall

Horse Guards Parade Whitehall

Life Guard, Household Cavalry - Horse Guards Parade, Whitehall

Life Guard, Household Cavalry – Horse Guards Parade, Whitehall

Horse Guards Parade, Whitehall

Horse Guards Parade, Whitehall

Horse Guards Parade, Whitehall

Horse Guards Parade, Whitehall

Life Guard, Household Cavalry

Life Guard, Household Cavalry

Household Cavalry, Horse Guard Parade

Household Cavalry, Horse Guard Parade

Please beware – the horses may kick or bite you!

Horse Guard Parade, Whitehall

Horse Guard Parade, Whitehall

Horse Guard Parade, Whitehall

Horse Guard Parade, Whitehall

Guard's Memorial, Horse Guards Parade

Guard’s Memorial, Horse Guards Parade

This is the Old Admiralty Building at Horse Guards Parade

1st Viscount Wolseley Statue at Horse Guards Parade

1st Viscount Wolseley Statue at Horse Guards Parade

Wow, now they are all taking a picture of what I took a picture of before – the Ministry of Defence Building (sorry, I am spelling it the British way, Word Press wants me to put an “s” instead of a “c” in “Defence”, but right now I want to stick to the way I used to spell it while growing up in the UK).

The Ministry of Defence, Whitehall

The Ministry of Defence, Whitehall

Horse Guards Parade

Horse Guards Parade

I meant to share more pictures of Big Ben, St. Margaret’s Church, and Westminster Abbey, but I will have to share them with you the post after the next one.

Do you like taller pictures on Pinterest vs. horizontal pictures?

Sherlock Holmes Pub

Do you like taller pictures on Pinterest vs. horizontal pictures?  The reason why I ask is that you sometimes have to keep it in mind when taking pictures especially if you want to pin them to Pinterest.  Your taller pictures will be more prominent and your horizontal pictures won’t stand out that much.

These pictures were all taken with my Samsung Galaxy Note 3 and taken with the camera held up creating longer taller pictures, rather than horizontal picures.   I have discovered that on Pinterest, these kinds of pictures (taller) stand out more and the other ones look way too small.  I forgot while I was taking pictures while I was in London, as I wasn’t thinking about Pinterest, but just the scene.  Good job, I varied my picture taking and took so many pictures.

I like this pub, the Sherlock Holmes Pub/Restaurant – I didn’t go into it….but I liked it enough to take quite a few pictures.  One of the advantages of taking a picture on a smartphone is that you can share it almost straight away.  My pictures that I showed you in my last post were taken with my Canon G10, except the Sherlock Holmes Pub and Great Scotland Yard picture that I got off my Note 3.  The Admiralty Arch pictures on that post were taken with my Nikon P600.  It is hard to share pictures quickly when they are on your camera, although the Nikon P600 is a WIFI enabled camera, I often had problems as the download would stop mid-stream – probably because I had so many pictures.  Therefore, my pictures on my traditional cameras (not smartphone) tend to get shared a lot later.

This first picture of the Sherlock Holmes Pub was shared via Pinterest pretty soon after it was taken in July, however, I prefer having it on my blog, so that it links back to my post.  Now look at the one posted yesterday, it doesn’t look as good on Pinterest because it is smaller than the one that I shared on Pinterest back in July.  I know they are two different pictures of the pub, but the taller ones looks more prominent.

The Sherlock Holmes Pub/Restaurant #3

The Sherlock Holmes Pub/Restaurant #3

I don’t think I have shared this picture before yet, on Pinterest or here.

 

The Sherlock Holmes Pub - #4

The Sherlock Holmes Pub – #4

Here’s my taller picture of Great Scotland Yard, shared earlier via my smartphone in July – but it did not link to my page.

Great Scotland Yard

Great Scotland Yard

Here’s a few of the London Eye (although I am stepping out of sequence by putting that one in).  Again, they were shared on Pinterest back in July, but not on my blog.

London Eye by the Aquarium  #1

London Eye by the Aquarium #1

London Eye by the Aquarium  #2

London Eye by the Aquarium #2

I will still end up taking horizontal/landscape pictures most of the time, as my pictures are also for my enjoyment and it feels more natural taking a picture that way – plus you can get more into the scene.  Why can’t Pinterest allot more space for horizontal pictures?   Anyway, you will still see many landscape pictures here as I often forget what’s best when I’m in the moment.    I hope you like the pictures.

Big Ben, Westminster Abbey And St. Margaret’s Church

Can you believe it is now Day Three?  I can’t.  I am already feeling sad just writing this as if I was still there.  My trip to London is half way over (almost).  I need to get out of this pessimistic mood and make the most of it!  So what to do, just go out there and see it and soak it in!

Admiralty Arch, The Mall

Admiralty Arch, The Mall

Well, hopefully, you remember that this is close-by to my hotel in Trafalgar Square, so you may have seen Admiralty Arch pictures that I have taken and posted before, but since I walked past this area quite a number of times during my stay, it is befitting to add some of what I saw on the way today to Westminster.  We are headed in the same direction as yesterday, as there is nothing wrong with repeating what you just saw yesterday.  Today is another day, and you always get a new perspective on the location on different days.

Admiralty Arch again.

Admiralty Arch, The Mall

Look what’s in the neighborhood of Trafalgar Square, here is a pub named after the great English detective!

Sherlock Holmes Pub/Restaurant

Sherlock Holmes Pub/Restaurant

Look at this great street – this was the location – well, the rear entrance of the original headquarters of the Metropolitan Police Service of London.  It’s within walking distance of Trafalgar Square.

Great Scotland Yard

Great Scotland Yard

Now, we are in the Big Ben area – what a stunning looking clock and housed in such a magnificent building!

Big Ben with London Eye

Big Ben with London Eye

Wow, what beautiful architecture!

Westminster Abbey

Westminster Abbey

My daughter in front of Westminster Abbey

Westminster Abbey

Westminster Abbey

Of course, I had to take a picture away from my current focus of Westminster Abbey, Big Ben and St. Margaret’s Church – but this is London, and why not get a London bus?

London Bus in Westminster

London Bus in Westminster

Here is a lovely church – St. Margaret’s Church – right next to Westminster Abbey

St. Margaret's Church

St. Margaret’s Church, next to Westminster Abbey

Westminster Abbey

Westminster Abbey

Big Ben and London Eye

Big Ben and London Eye

Do you like the name Houses of Parliament of Palace of Westminster?  This building is known by both names, but I think most commonly…..Houses of Parliament.  I once went in here and loved seeing Members of Parliament debating with each other – quite entertaining!

In front of Houses Of Parliament

Houses Of Parliament

Houses Of Parliament #2

Houses Of Parliament #2

Statue of George V

Statue of George V

Westminster Abbey

Westminster Abbey

Houses of Parliament/Palace of Westminster

Houses of Parliament/Palace of Westminster

Such sisterly love from my two daughters.

George V Memorial

George V Memorial

George V Memorial

George V Memorial

This building was right in the vicinity.

Old Palace Road, SW1

Old Palace Road, SW1

Houses of Parliament/Palace of Westminster

Houses of Parliament/Palace of Westminster

Big Ben

Big Ben

Big Ben in the corner

Big Ben in the corner

near to Big Ben

near to Big Ben

Methodist Central Hall

Methodist Central Hall

I love Dean’s Yard – I find it so picturesque!

Dean's Yard, close by to Westminster Abbey

Dean’s Yard, close by to Westminster Abbey

 Well, I really must stop now.  Do you know I will probably have another post with more pictures of Big Ben, Westminster Abbey and St. Margaret’s Church featured in it again?  Either you will dread it or look forward to it, I hope it will be the latter.  Well, until next time!

Tower Bridge – My favorite Bridge In The World!

Tower Bridge – my favorite bridge in the whole wide world!   It is also my favorite destination spot in London – the place I must go to whenever I go to London.  I don’t know what it is about this bridge, but it has won my heart over and I gladly go visit it every time I go to London.  Day Two of our July, 2014 visit had us visit the Ritz Hotel, walk through Green Park to Buckingham Palace, then walk over Westminster, and then we caught the tube to the Tower Hill Underground Station, which is where we exited to the Tower Bridge and Tower Of London area.

This is the welcoming scene.

Tower Bridge area #1

Tower Bridge area #1

Now, throughout this post, I am not going to write much at all and have labeled all my pictures in this post with numbers.  That way, when I want to put them on Pinterest, I will know which ones I have already pinned.

Tower Bridge #2

Tower Bridge #2

Tower Bridge #3

Tower Bridge #3

 

Tower Bridge #4

Tower Bridge #4

 

Tower Bridge #5

Tower Bridge #5

Tower Bridge #6

Tower Bridge #6

Tower Bridge #7

Tower Bridge #7

The Shard as seen from Tower Bridge area #8

The Shard as seen from Tower Bridge area #8

 

Tower Bridge #9

Tower Bridge #9

Tower Bridge #10

Tower Bridge #10

Tower Bridge #11

Tower Bridge #11

Tower Bridge #12

Tower Bridge #12

Tower Bridge #13

Tower Bridge #13

Tower Bridge #14

Tower Bridge #14

 

Tower Bridge #15

Tower Bridge #15

Tower Bridge #16

Tower Bridge #16

Tower Bridge #17

Tower Bridge #17

City Hall - viewed from Tower Bridge area #18

City Hall – viewed from Tower Bridge area #18

Tower Bridge #19

Tower Bridge #19

Tower Bridge #20

Tower Bridge #20

I really wanted fish & chips, but would end up waiting until I got to northern England, where I had them twice!  Oh, was I in heaven eating them!

Ted's Fish & Chips, Tower Hill, London #21

Ted’s Fish & Chips, Tower Hill, London #21

Millennium Pier, Tower Bridge #22

Millennium Pier, Tower Bridge #22

Tower Bridge #23

Tower Bridge #23

We packed in quite a lot on our second day in London, which was really our first full day, and later this same day we would end up eating out at China Town.  I will show you some more photos from China Town later on.  See you next time!

The Tower Of London – How I Love Thee

The Tower of London is steeped in history and in mystery – all of it extremely relevant to England, and to history lovers everywhere.  What  went on behind these walls built as early as the 11th century by William Conqueror – may be better left to the imagination.  If you would like to know more about The Tower of London and it’s history, just click here.  However, a visit to London cannot be complete without a visit to one of it’s historical landmarks, and I highly recommend a visit to the Tower of London.   Oh, how  I love thee Tower Of London, let me count the ways:

1)  I love you from this angle

The Tower of London

The Tower of London

2)  I love you with my three kids in front

The Tower Of London

The Tower Of London

3)  I love you with poppies and the significance behind the recent installation of the ceramic poppies.  By the way, they were just starting to put all the poppies into place at the Tower Of London to commemorate the British soldiers who died in World War 1.

The Tower Of London and A Sea of Remembrance

The Tower Of London and A Sea of Remembrance

4) I love you from this angle with more poppies, and people dressed in red adding to the effect

Poppies at The Tower of London

Poppies At The Tower Of London

5) I love how your historical architecture can sit side by side with the modern City Hall

The Tower of London and City HallThe Tower of London and City Hall

The Tower of London and City Hall

6) I love just capturing you with or without trees – but I think this bit of tree in the picture is quite nice!

IMG_6189

7) I love you because you are splendid!

Tower Of London - Oh, how I love thee!

Tower of London, oh, how I love thee!

8) I love you, and I think you know…. the red in this picture could be the blood in my heart

Tower Of London

Tower Of London

9) I love  your stylish buildings

Tower of London

Tower of London

10) I love you Tower of London – look, even the sky and grass around you look magnificent, but you shine brightly and are the star

Tower of London

Tower of London

11) I love your arches

Tower Of London

Tower Of London

12) I love your buildings – oh, I beg your pardon….I think I’ve said that before!

Tower Of London

Tower Of London

13) I love your White Tower, the oldest part of the Tower

White Tower, the oldest part of the Tower

White Tower, the oldest part of the Tower

14) I love how you put lions outside out of the Tower and to me this looks like the lions are guarding the Tower and it’s secrets

The Tower of London with lions

The Tower of London

15) I love how there are so many refreshments all around, and especially ice-cream with Flake (delicious English chocolate)

Refreshments at The Tower Of London

Refreshments at The Tower Of London

16) I love how the Tower of London blends in with the Tower Bridge in this picture – two amazing Towers!

The amazing Tower Bridge and Tower Of London

The amazing Tower Bridge and Tower Of London

17) I love how you look different in all my pictures – you are one unique amazing landmark!

Tower Of London

Tower Of London

18) I love how everyone is going to think “oh, these two pictures are the same” – but can you spot at least five differences?

The Tower Of London

The Tower Of London

 

19)  I love your history and your mystery.  So much went on between these walls, that some of it is better left unsaid.

The Tower Of London

The Tower Of London

 

20) I love to keep folks in suspense, but think I better let you in on a bit of the history incase you didn’t know it.  Here’s a picture who’s words will tell you quite a bit

Tower of London History

Tower of London History

Well, I’ve named just twenty, and I think that’s plenty.  There could be plenty more, but I think we’ll stop right there.  I hope you enjoyed my collection of pictures of the Tower of London.  Did I tell you that I love it?

Left A Part Of My Heart In London

I think I left a part of my heart in London, and perhaps writing about it or posting some pictures might help my heart-ache and might help me get over London, but I don’t think so.  I have been ever so busy since I got back from the UK about three weeks ago, and have been meaning to carry on with writing about my trip and sharing pictures, but it’s been hard to do so.  I just about got over my jet-lag – that took me over a week to recover from!

Oh, I forgot to show you this picture last time of St. Martin-In-The-Fields

St. Martin In The Fields, Trafalgar Square

St. Martin In The Fields, Trafalgar Square

Where did I leave off?  I think I was only on Day Two of my five days in London.  Did you know that I then traveled up north, and spent a few more days in the UK before heading over to Turkey?  We went to an all-inclusive resort in Antalya, and I’ll be writing about that sometime soon.  Here are some more pictures of London.

Walking back from Buckingham Palace, we weren’t really sure how to get to Big Ben, and we kind of just stumbled in that direction. On our way, we saw the HM Treasury.

HM Treasury Building

HM Treasury Building

near the HM Treasury

near HM Treasury, Westminster

near HM Treasury, Westminster

I just take pictures of anything, so I decided to do it some more

The Red Lion, Parliament Street

The Red Lion, Parliament Street

London Phone Booths in Westminster

London Phone Booths in Westminster

Oh, look what I see!

Palace of Westminster/Houses of Parliament

Palace of Westminster/Houses of Parliament

So, the bus moved out of the way, and the picture is a little different

 

Houses of Parliament

Houses of Parliament

Funny how the sky seems to change

Houses of Parliament

Houses of Parliament

Westminster Station

Westminster Station

Big Ben

Big Ben

St. Margaret's Church, next to Westminster Abbey

St. Margaret’s Church, next to Westminster Abbey

Of course, I have to have one of my kids pose in front of Big Ben!

 

Big Ben

Big Ben

Oh, how I could keep taking pictures, and did!

Westminster near Houses of Parliament

Westminster near Houses of Parliament

Westminster Station

Westminster Station

Oh, and why wouldn’t you get all your kids to pose together in front of Big Ben?  Of course, you would!

Big Ben

Big Ben

Well, I have to leave off here, and I’m still not done with Day Two!  It’s not that the day was too long, it’s just that there are quite a few pictures to go with the day.  We came back to this same spot the very next day, and got more pictures, including quite a few of Westminster Abbey, not shown in this post – that’s why you have to go back to the same place  more than once at times.  Also, don’t worry about the part of my heart left in London, it’s been left there before too.  Well, until next time!

Enchanting London

Day 2 in London started off with a nice view from the hotel:

View from Trafalgar Hotel - Room 305

View from Trafalgar Hotel – Room 305

We explored the lobby area

Hilton Trafalgar Lobby & Bar

Hilton Trafalgar Lobby & Bar

Breakfast was included, and we were allowed one item from the menu as well as the continental breakfast.  The menu offerings were English Breakfast, pancakes, waffles, Eggs Benedict and a few other items.  Since this was our first full day, we just had to have English Breakfast, which consisted of baked beans, egg, bacon, sausage, grilled tomatoes, and black pudding (which I did not eat as this makes me feel a bit uneasy).  

English Breakfast - complete with Black Pudding

English Breakfast – complete with Black Pudding

Here’s a view of our table, and then a view of the restaurant

Hilton Trafalgar Restaurant

Hilton Trafalgar Restaurant

Hilton Trafalgar Restaurant

Hilton Trafalgar Restaurant

Now to the outside which beckoned me with all its might.

Trafalgar Square

Trafalgar Square area

Trafalgar Square

Trafalgar Square

We headed to Charing Cross Station and bought our travel passes – I was told it was best to buy Oyster Cards, that are basically tube and bus passes that you swipe for unlimited travel during a certain period of days.  2 adult Oyster 3 day passes were £60, that contained a £5 refundable deposit per pass – so the net cost was £50, plus £3.60 per day for my son’s travel pass.  London certainly is not cheap for getting around or eating out, but it is well worth it.  These passes can be used unlimited amounts per day and after you have used £8.60 or so up in a day, it won’t take any more from the balance off your card, so you can keep on taking more rides after you have maxed that amount out, and you won’t pay anything further – the key is to at least use it up to the value of £8.60 in that day.  However, I think a single ride is about £2.70 or £3.30 or so, so it makes sense to get the Oyster Pass and you can use it on the red double decker buses (just not the Big Bus sightseeing buses).

The London Underground - Piccadilly Circus

The London Underground – Piccadilly Circus

Oh, the train is here!

The Tube

The Tube

The London Underground

The London Underground

The London Underground

The London Underground

So where to today?  I thought we’d just wander around and might as well start off with Buckingham Palace.  This involved taking the train to Green Park and then walking through the park to the Palace.  We could have walked to Buckingham Palace from our hotel in Trafalgar Square, it would only have been a 12 minute walk or so.

Once we had come out of Green Park station, this is some of what we saw

The Big Bus, London

The Big Bus, London

near the Ritz Hotel

near the Ritz Hotel

Sightseeing bus

Sightseeing bus

London

London

London near the Ritz Hotel

London near the Ritz Hotel

I had always fancied going into the Ritz Hotel, this is a favorite hotel of the well-off, including celebrities and royalty.  Therefore, my curiosity peaked and I could not resist going in.  

The Ritz Hotel

The Ritz Hotel

I can just imagine Princess Diana being welcomed by this employee of the Ritz and then entering the hotel. 

The Ritz Hotel

The Ritz Hotel

Here are some pictures taken in the hotel

The Ritz Hotel, London

The Ritz Hotel, London

Here I am at the Ritz

The Ritz Hotel

The Ritz Hotel

Last one of the Ritz

The Ritz Hotel

The Ritz Hotel

Better stay on track and get to Buckingham Palace – so we headed through Green Park.  English parks are so beautiful, just how parks are supposed to be – with lakes, ducks, and lots of greenery.  The parks in London are some of the best I’ve ever seen.  People in London really make use of the parks, and frequent them often.

Green Park, London

Green Park, London

Here’s my little girl enjoying Green Park

Green Park

Green Park

 Just a nice building I saw in Green Park

Green Park

Green Park

Here is that building again

Green Park

Green Park

Here’s an English Bobby (another word for police man) in Green Park

English Bobby in Green Park

English Bobby in Green Park

Green Park

Green Park

Green Park

Green Park

Green Park

Green Park

Green Park with a view of Buckingham Palace

Green Park with a view of Buckingham Palace

We have arrived at Buckingham Palace, every time I see this place – it feels like the first time, and that is how I feel about most of the places in London, they are special to me time and time again.

Guards Marching outside of Buckingham Palace

Guards Marching outside of Buckingham Palace

Buckingham Palace

Buckingham Palace

Buckingham Palace

Buckingham Palace

Buckingham Palace and it's beautiful blooming flowers

Buckingham Palace and it’s beautiful blooming flowers

There’s me and Chandi with the blooming flowers of the Palace behind us

Buckingham Palace

Buckingham Palace

Buckingham Palace, London

Buckingham Palace

Buckingham Palace

Buckingham Palace

This memorial just opposite Buckingham Palace is another must-see and very popular with tourists

QueenVictoriaMemorial

Queen Victoria Memorial

Queen Victoria Memorial

Queen Victoria Memorial

BuckingamPalaceGuard

Buckingham Palace Guard

BuckinghamPalace4

Buckingham Palace

Buckingham Palace Informational Sign

Buckingham Palace Informational Sign

Queen Victoria Memorial

Queen Victoria Memorial

Queen Victoria Memorial

Queen Victoria Memorial

and yet one more of the Queen Victoria Memorial

Queen Victoria Memorial

Queen Victoria Memorial

Buckingham Palace

Buckingham Palace

Buckingham Palace Gates

Buckingham Palace Gates

Now, I will show you one last photo of Buckingham Palace

Buckingham Palace

Buckingham Palace

As we left Buckingham Palace and walked by one London’s many parks – St. James’s Park – so central, just like Green Park, and Hyde Park.  We saw this memorial on the ground – I had to take a picture – I absolutely adored Princess Diana.

Diana, Princess Of Wales Memorial Walk

Diana, Princess Of Wales Memorial Walk

We continued on our walk until we got to a tube station that would take us to Westminster, and this is what we saw:

Flowers of London, near Buckingham Palace

Flowers of London, near Buckingham Palace

St. James' Park

St. James’ Park

St. James's Park

St. James’s Park

St. James's Park

St. James’s Park

St. James's Park

St. James’s Park

St. James's Park

St. James’s Park

St. James's Park

St. James’s Park

I take way too many pictures, and just think that each picture is unique in it’s own way.  I don’t want to tire you with all my pictures of Buckingham Palace, and the Parks, but believe me….I have many more!   However, I feel that you can get an insight into life in London – at least with the park pictures, as there are mostly local Londoner’s in the pictures who are on their lunch breaks, and just enjoying the beauty of what is around them.   Next post, I will show you some more of what we saw today on Day 2 (which was our first full day in London).

London Is Ever So Lovely – Can’t Get Enough!

My favorite place in the world is London – it is one of the places I can go to again and again, and never be bored. I just love London! Me and my family flew to London on July 22nd, 2014 and arrived in London on July 23rd at Heathrow Airport at around 3:15 pm.  We were to have 5 days in London…..I wish I could have stayed longer!  In this post, I will just show you what we saw on Day One in London.  Since we were going to stay in Trafalgar Square, that is the picture I will show you first.

Trafalgar Square

Trafalgar Square

UK Border at Heathrow, London

UK Border at Heathrow, London

I could have got a taxi into London, but no….that would not make sense – the traffic is crazy there, and it would have been ever so expensive. I could have got the Express Train from Heathrow, but that was £42 for all four of us (Chandi – my 5 year old would have been free). I thought, no…I have spent so much money already on this trip that I need to economize a little where I can – so what did I do? I was daring and did just as I have done many times before – I took the underground from Heathrow into Central London.  Besides, you can’t beat taking the underground for speed – yes, the Express would have been faster – 15 minutes instead of 40 minutes or so, but after an 11 hour direct flight from San Diego, I think 40 minutes was not too bad.

The Tube aka London Underground

The Tube aka London Underground

Why do I say that I am daring? Well, you have to be daring to take the underground when you are traveling with three kids, 3 big suitcases, one smaller rolling carry on bag and about three or four more bags. After all, you get just a few seconds at times when those tube doors open and it is quite a process to get all the suitcases, myself and 3 kids out of the door on time!  We changed lines at Piccadilly Circus where we got the Bakerloo Line (the brown line) and got off at Charing Cross – just one stop away.  After getting out at Piccadilly Circus, and lugging our suitcases up a big flight of stairs (there are escalators, but sometimes you are faced with plain old stairs too and no elevators), I was tempted to just exit and walk about 12 minutes to Trafalgar Square, but decided to plough on and change lines – which meant for the sake of one stop – having to go through all that again…getting out of the tube doors on time, and going up more stairs.  Understandably, it was daunting, and we were already quite exhausted.

Charing Cross Road Station - Trafalgar Square

Charing Cross Road Station – Trafalgar Square

Charing Cross Road, near Trafalgar Square

Charing Cross Road, near Trafalgar Square

So you might want to know how much it was on the tube?  The tube is another name for underground – but you already probably know that.  I had to get two adult one-way tickets since my daughter is 17 years old, and a child’s ticket for my 12 year old son who just turned 13 during this trip, and that cost a total of £14.20 – my 5 year old was free.

We stayed at the Hilton Trafalgar right on Trafalgar Square, you might be able to see it on this picture.

The Hilton Trafalgar

The Hilton Trafalgar – right in Trafalgar Square

I think I’ll pass on telling you how much it was for my hotel for 5 nights and for our flights to London from San Diego….I’ll be paying it off for quite some time!  Anyhow, we checked in and were really happy with our hotel.  Additionally, it was heavenly to notice that there was milk for tea in the room, instead of cream or powdered cream….how I hate having to put cream in tea – I always call down to the reception to ask for milk.  Similarly, I must have cream for my coffee, and not milk – let’s just say I’m spoilt when it comes to my hot beverages!

Hilton Trafalgar in the room self service

Hilton Trafalgar in the room self service

Hilton Trafalgar

Hilton Trafalgar

Hilton Trafalgar

Hilton Trafalgar

Hilton Trafalgar

Hilton Trafalgar

I had bought a new Nikon P600 and initially put a setting on it to print the date and time, however, I don’t think I changed the time to local time in England – so it probably reflects an incorrect time of at least 8 hours behind (USA time is 8 hours behind that of England). I subsequently decided to take off the setting a day or so later, as I was trying to decide whether it was kind of cheesy having the date on my prints.  Some of the pictures were taken with my Canon G10 and some with my Note 3.  I think you have to have a number of devices with you when you travel, as your batteries will get exhausted and what better than to reach into your bag for another fully charged camera!

Well, that is enough talking right now, and let’s get to some pictures.

Trafalgar Square and Nelson's Column

Trafalgar Square and Nelson’s Column, also St. Martin In The Fields

Trafalgar Square

Trafalgar Square

Trafalgar Square and the Blue Hen

Trafalgar Square and the Blue Hen

Trafalgar Square

Trafalgar Square

Admiralty Arch, near Trafalgar Square

Admiralty Arch, near Trafalgar Square

National Gallery, Trafalgar Square

National Gallery, Trafalgar Square

Trafalgar Square

Trafalgar Square

We walked over to Leicester Square later that evening, it is only a 5 minute walk.

St. Martin In The Fields

St. Martin In The Fields – an English Anglican Church (center of the picture)

St. Martin In The Fields

near Trafalgar Square

Trafalgar Square/Leicester Square area

Trafalgar Square/Leicester Square area

near Leicester Square

near Leicester Square

near Leicester Square

near Leicester Square

Leicester Square

Leicester Square

I craved fish and chips, but we ended up going to Pizza Hut in Leicester Square on our first night, that’s what the kids wanted.

Leicester Square

Leicester Square

This hotel looks ever so nice at night time – it’s right in the heart of Leicester Square

The Hampshire, Radisson Blu - Leicester Square

The Hampshire, Radisson Blu – Leicester Square

Leicester Square

Trafalgar Square at night

Trafalgar Square

Trafalgar Square

Trafalgar Square

Well, that was Day One in London.  I already am having the time of my life, and want the next four days to go ever so slowly.  Next time, I will let you know about Day Two, and/or the remainder of my visit in London.

Social Media and My New Pinterest

I just had to add a new interest, or should I say Pinterest?  Pardon the pun………if my kids knew that I just said that, they would get mad at me.   I am always having fun with word play, much to their consternation.  Well, to go back to Pinterest – I don’t know what took me so long to get into it.  All, I can say is it’s a lot of fun.  All the pictures don’t have to be your own, you can like other people’s pictures and pin them on your board, and others will hopefully like what you pin, and re-pin.  It’s a bit like retweeting on Twitter, and you can like pins too – now you’ll be reminded of Facebook.  You can also pin videos, so hence YouTube can be brought in……now you have all your social media played out  just in Pinterest.

I like to divide up my travel or my interests (such as on empowerment, or the British Royal Family, especially Princess Diana) into boards, it’s a little like having photo albums all sorted out, and not lumped together.  I have one album, more appropriately called “board” on Pinterest for London, one for Izmir, one for Istanbul, one for Italy, one for San Diego, and one that I named Travel Repins when I didn’t really know what I was doing, and still don’t quite know what to call it.  This board is where I just put pictures that I like taken by other people into one big collection, and this one isn’t at all organized – it has pictures from all over the world in it.

I still have to do more on Pinterest, I can’t just leave only mostly my pictures on my boards for instance – like the ones on Izmir or Istanbul.   My board on London has many pictures from others who have taken pictures of that amazing city.  Just like with all social media, it’s about sharing.  After all, there are so many other pictures to discover out there in the world, we have to go beyond ourselves, and share the work of others.

I have to find more time, and have been lacking time lately…..life has caught up with me.  Now just living day to day leaves hardly any spare moments to even dabble in social media, unfortunately.  However, my emails from Pinterest even when I’m not active myself, have shown me what people are interested in, and I’ve noted with much curiousity, that people are really into London, and why not?  London is one of the best cities in the world, if not the very best.  However, I would like to add some interest for San Diego, especially since I now live here.  So, I will work on my board on San Diego, and on some of the other boards, where I might only have my pictures.

Lastly, you know I like to have pictures in my posts…..so here are three pictures taken by me in three of my favorite cities and of course on Pinterest.

First, one of my favorite destinations….beautiful Venice in tantalizing Italy.

Venice, Italy

Venice, Italy

Then, lovely London in enchanting England.

Tower Bridge, London

Tower Bridge, London

Lastly, Paradise on Earth in Coronado, San Diego, in sunny California, USA.

Coronado, San Diego

Coronado, San Diego

I think you ought to give Pinterest a try, you just might find it Pinteresting!

Follow me on Pinterest at http://pinterest.com/luchanik/

My Love Of Travel – It Started In Lovely London

Life is constantly evolving, and you never know from day to day what the next day will have in store for you.   I made a post not too long ago, and just modified it now – Social Media and My Whirlwind Life, I also modified the page about me – About Luchanik Travel & Cruises.  Why?  Well, just two days ago, I finally made a decision – I no longer want to be a travel agent!

I’d now like to deviate, and focus on the place where it all started – England, and specifically lovely London!  My love of travel started right here, I have to say that one of the best places in the world is London. I can go back to London time and time again, and never be bored of seeing the same places….each time is like the first time.  I absolutely love it, and miss London a lot.

I really like going to this area of London – the Tower Bridge in the St. Katharine’s Dock area.

Tower Bridge, London, England

Tower Bridge, London, England

Tower Bridge, London, England

Tower Bridge, London, England

Tower Bridge, London, England

Tower Bridge, London, England

Tower of London

Tower Of London

I also love seeing Buckingham Palace time and time again – let’s say I have a fascination with Royalty.

Buckingham Palace, London

Buckingham Palace, London

Buckingham Palace, London, England

Buckingham Palace, London, England

I believe this picture was taken close to Buckingham Palace.

London, England

London, England

Here I am standing right in front of the spectacular monument near Buckingham Palace

London, England

London, England

London has some beautiful museums, check out the Victoria and Albert Museum in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea

Victoria and Albert Museum, London, England

Victoria and Albert Museum, London, England

You can’t go to London without checking the place Princess Diana called home – Kensington Palace

Kensington Palace, London

Kensington Palace, London

Kensington Palace, London

Kensington Palace, London

Don’t miss seeing London’s fantastic parks, complete with ponds, lakes, and ducks.

Hyde Park, London

Hyde Park, London

London, England

London, England

I just loved going in the Houses of Parliament and listening to how they argue.

Houses of Parliament, London

Houses of Parliament, London

Westminster Abbey, London, England

Westminster Abbey, London, England

This picture was taken close to the Houses of Parliament

Dean's Yard, London

Dean’s Yard, London

I love Harrods of Knightsbridge, London – you just have to go in this amazing, but very expensive store.

Harrods of London, Knightsbridge, England

Harrods of London, Knightsbridge, England

This is close by to Harrods – stunning architecture in London, quite fabulous!

near to Harrods of London, England

near to Harrods of London, England

Now, one of the best photographs that I treasure is that of Princess Diana, and Dodi who were tragically killed in an accident when Diana was at her happiest.  I cried so much when Diana died, she was a childhood hero of mine, and I had even wanted to attend her wedding to Prince Charles – of course, I was not invited – so sad!  I was so happy to see a shrine dedicated to them in Harrods which at that time was owned by Dodi’s father – I’m not sure if he is still the current owner or not.

Princess Diana and Dodi at Harrods, London

Princess Diana and Dodi at Harrods, London

Harrods candy shop time and cappuccino time!  Of course, I also like to get a pot of tea when I go into Harrods, with a scone with clotted cream and jam, doesn’t that sound nice?  Oh, I crave for my English things!

2008-06-27_0021   2008-06-27_0017

Finally, a London street scene.

Central London, England

Central London, England

I love London, it surely is one of the best places to visit, and I highly recommend it.