Massive London picspam
I am so sorry. I only spent two full days in London, but somehow I made loads of photos and as hard as I tried to make a small selection, I only managed to cut down the original amount to a picspam of 70 (?). Oops. Hope you're in the mood for a long tour *grins* May I entice you with a visit to Choccywoccydoodah? A view of the river Thames? A stroll through Soho Square Park? Come along then!
Day 1: Friday May 30
Left Amsterdam on Thursday at 9 p.m. on the (K)nightbus (aka Megabus, where all passenger seats are high up, like in a doubledecker!) which drove to Calais to cross the Channel at around 4.35 a.m. on the 'Pride of Canterbury':
Lots of people found a place to sleep on board (in chairs or simply on the floor), but I went exploring... (I had slept on the bus from 9 right away, because I knew I needed to be awake again for the bordercheck at around 3 a.m.;)
I found the door to the outside deck, wahey. *sings: "wind is blowing air in my hair, here and there and everywhere"*
Due to the timedifference between mainland Europe and England, it was only around 5 a.m. when the ship arrived at Dover. (Does anyone know how that song goes about the white cliffs of Dover?) There is was back on the bus for a couple more hours (of sleep!)
When I woke up (in London!) I saw some odd shopfronts (this gives you an idea why this picspam is so huge;)
Arrived at Victoria Coach station around 7:30 a.m. From there it's a ten minute walk to the tube/train station, where I got money and topped up my Oyster card (public transport pass). Then it was time to start checking off my shoppinglist. First shopstop was Neal's Yard (best footbalm in the world) before I took the Underground to Hogwarts King's Cross station for a visit to the Harry Potter shop at platform 9 3/4:)
Look: it's Hedwig!
Even if you're only in London for a short visit, be sure to wander in here! It's at King's Cross station between platform 9 and 10 (duh;)
With already two shoppinggoals managed, I sat down for breakfast before traveling on to my hotel.
I couldn't check in for my room yet, but did freshen up and left my backpack in storage to do some more exploring in town. Are you ready? *grabs your hand* Come on!
To (eventually) get to Oxfordstreet we first walk past the British museum (from MDCCCLXXXIII)
Some streetart from Nathan Bowen (probably commissioned by the City of London) and a dude I saw on more walls (I'm not complaining;)
I shopped for a bit in Forbidden Planet at Shaftsbury Av before continuing our walk to Oxfordstreet. To avoid the crowds we're taking some small sidestreets. Such lovely sights.
Look at the pretty building!
Soho Square. If you're ever tired of shopping in Oxford street, I recommend this little oasis. (It's hidden in a sidestreet at the end, near Tottenham Coart Road)
Besides benches, this little park also features gorgeous pieces of art. This is The Conversion of St. Paul by Bruce Denny
Paul of Tarsus, blinded by light on the road to Damascus. (Regaining his sight three days later instigated his conversion to Chritianity.) This piece was originally created in 2010 for St. Paul's Cathedral to celebrate the 300th anniverary of the Wren building.
Charles II by Caius Gabriel Cibber (1681) Restored to the Square by Lady Gilbert in 1938. Soho Square was originally called King Square after Charles II:)
More marvelous art from Bruce Denny
This group is from the 'Intriguqe' collection from Bruce Denny's second body of work 'Interaction'.
From a different angle (Yes, I did walk all the way around and yes it's very detailed, but I'll spare you the other photos;)
Not art, but a building in progress. Also pretty, yes?
Remind me to visit this street again on my next visit, so I can figure out what the hell that twirly bit is.
Okay, I can see you're getting tired. How about we sit down for a bit of lunch. Time for the chocolatest chocolatecake at Choccywoccydoodah!
We take a turn at Carnabystreet to get to Faulbert's Place.
EVERYTHING IS CHOCOLATE. EVERYTHING. *grabby hands*
*drools some more*
I WANT THAT ONE. No... THAT ONE... <3 <3 <3
Ordered a white chocolate truffle milkshake and because I couldn't decide between the chocolate cake and the lemon cake, I had both. I didn't know a slice at Choccywoccydoodah equals about a quart of a normal sized cake AND is served with icecream and extra chocolatey swirls for decoration. CHOCOLATE OVERDOSE. ABORT ABORT! Luckily they were prepared and I could get boxes (yes, plural) to take my left overs with me. *hearts some more*
One last look. *clings to doorway*
Back to the hotel to claim a room. Finally: a bed. Let's take a nap and dream of all the wonderful stuff I bought:)
Feeling rested? Time for the theatre, me thinks... At TKTS on Leicester Square I manage to score an awesome third row ticket for a musicalversion of Dirty Rotten Scoundrels with Robert Lindsay in the lead \o/ We have some time to do some more exploring before it starts though!
Due to work on the Underground, we have to walk above ground for a bit; check out the lovely buildings on our way to Embankment.
View on the houses of Parliament from one of the Jubilee bridges (next to Hungerford bridge)
Ah, you can spot our destination behind the tree: a tip from brutti_ma_buoni: the roofgarden at the Elizabeth Hall at the top of the yellow stairs.
Even though it's Fridaynight, it's quite quiet. Too bad we can't hang long; we have to get back to theatre area the Strand. RUN!
Pfff, with ten minutes to spare I get to the Savoy theatre.
Lovely Art Deco Style (The theatre was rebuild in 1929)
Musical was wonderful; same feel as the film, Robert was dashing and made me grin a lot. Good stuff. Let's take the tube back to the hotel.
Loot of the evening! Note the bathbubblebars from Lush. Time for a -you guessed it- luxurious bath and then bed. Goodnight!
Day 2: Saturday May 31
I already bought a theatre ticket for tonight; until then I have all the time to finish my shoppinglist:)
{Have seen enough? Click to comment (and go home;)}
First things first: a full English breakfast. Nomnomnom.
Feeling pretty damn good. Let's go! We'll get on the bus in front of the hotel to take us right to...
Camden!
A short stop at the actual locks, officially called Hampstead Road Lock.
Gorgeous wall art.
The Buck's Head pub. No, we're not going in, we have shoe shopping to do!
Wait until I show you my new shoes *bounces* SUCCES. \m/
I get a crepe with lemon and honey to eat by the water (with a glass of freshly squeezed lemon juice) and then walk around the market stalls. Some are not open yet, but look at that cool artwork!
After a bit more shopping (check out the loot at the end), I take the bus back to the hotel. (Where I have the left over chocolate cake from yesterday by way of dinner;)
My room (4273) was about as far from the elevator as you can get. Such a maze!
SCORE! skull and bones chain, papercut cards and SHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOEEEEEEEEEEEEES. I'm gonna put those on for my date with Kevin Spacey. <3 Time to move again! We're taking the same bus in the other direction: to Waterloo!
View from the bus; crossing Waterloo bridge, now look at the other side...
...can you see the Elizabeth Tower (with Big Ben?)
The Old Vic theatre, where I will meet up again with Kevin *sighs*
What's that, dear? Oh, you'll be on stage, I'll be in the audience? Whatever, it's a date. :-p
Djeepers! A round stage and I'm waaaaaaaaaay up high, but what a great view; I can see everything that's going on below:)
Great play. (Did I mention I love Kevin Spacey?) There is still some time to get groceries for tomorrow's trip back home before taking the bus back to the hotel.
I love doubledeckers; they give you such a different point of view of the city...
... I never would have noticed this statue near the roof of that building from streetlevel!
A healthy lunch/diner combo for the bus home tomorrow. (Shut up, it has dairy and wheat and meat and fruit and chocolate; all the food groups are there.;)
Another bubble bath and then a good night's sleep. What a day.
Day 2: Saturday May 31Travelday 3: more sights!
Only a couple more photos, I promise;)
{Have seen enough? Click to comment (and go home;)}
Deja vu, but I just so love the English Breakfast *munches*
Packed and ready to go!
Departure was supposed to be 10:30, the bus left about fifteen minutes late and got stuck in traffic a little, but who cares when you get a final chance to wave goodbye to London:)
This time we're crossing the Channel through the Tunnel, woohoo.
Still a bit of a drive ahead though. England is so pretty.
Look at that: right next to the entrance of the station is the gorgeous hillside with the fabulous Folkestone White Horse.
A final view before driving onto the platform.
I've shown this before, but it's just SO COOL. Check it out...
... the bus goes right onto the train!
Gotta love that tiny turn, it's like magic:)
It totally looks like a space station, doesn't it? So scifi and it's real!
Upon arrival at the other side, the separation panels open again and we drive out...
...right up to the highway...
onwards to Brussels and beyond! (Time to eat the last bit of left over lemoncake, omnomnom)
This is Antwerp (I waved at you, tanisafan:) Het Steen is a medieval fortress build between 1200 and 1225.
I tried to capture the Euromast in Rotterdam, didn't even notice the Norsk Sjømannskirken (1914) in the foreground until I checked the photo. (This one is for you, bflyw:)
And a couple of windturbines and old fashioned windmill, with love from Holland;)
Finally the Zeeburg area in Amsterdam, where I can catch a tram to the station for the train hoooooooooome.
Thanks for coming along. I apologize for the random foodpics and selfportraits *grins*. Hope you enjoyed the trip anyway.
Back to working on my BigBang art!
J.
P.S. Please let me know if you can see the photos as LJ keeps messing up my preview:(
Day 1: Friday May 30
Left Amsterdam on Thursday at 9 p.m. on the (K)nightbus (aka Megabus, where all passenger seats are high up, like in a doubledecker!) which drove to Calais to cross the Channel at around 4.35 a.m. on the 'Pride of Canterbury':
Lots of people found a place to sleep on board (in chairs or simply on the floor), but I went exploring... (I had slept on the bus from 9 right away, because I knew I needed to be awake again for the bordercheck at around 3 a.m.;)
I found the door to the outside deck, wahey. *sings: "wind is blowing air in my hair, here and there and everywhere"*
Due to the timedifference between mainland Europe and England, it was only around 5 a.m. when the ship arrived at Dover. (Does anyone know how that song goes about the white cliffs of Dover?) There is was back on the bus for a couple more hours (of sleep!)
When I woke up (in London!) I saw some odd shopfronts (this gives you an idea why this picspam is so huge;)
Arrived at Victoria Coach station around 7:30 a.m. From there it's a ten minute walk to the tube/train station, where I got money and topped up my Oyster card (public transport pass). Then it was time to start checking off my shoppinglist. First shopstop was Neal's Yard (best footbalm in the world) before I took the Underground to Hogwarts King's Cross station for a visit to the Harry Potter shop at platform 9 3/4:)
Look: it's Hedwig!
Even if you're only in London for a short visit, be sure to wander in here! It's at King's Cross station between platform 9 and 10 (duh;)
With already two shoppinggoals managed, I sat down for breakfast before traveling on to my hotel.
I couldn't check in for my room yet, but did freshen up and left my backpack in storage to do some more exploring in town. Are you ready? *grabs your hand* Come on!
To (eventually) get to Oxfordstreet we first walk past the British museum (from MDCCCLXXXIII)
Some streetart from Nathan Bowen (probably commissioned by the City of London) and a dude I saw on more walls (I'm not complaining;)
I shopped for a bit in Forbidden Planet at Shaftsbury Av before continuing our walk to Oxfordstreet. To avoid the crowds we're taking some small sidestreets. Such lovely sights.
Look at the pretty building!
Soho Square. If you're ever tired of shopping in Oxford street, I recommend this little oasis. (It's hidden in a sidestreet at the end, near Tottenham Coart Road)
Besides benches, this little park also features gorgeous pieces of art. This is The Conversion of St. Paul by Bruce Denny
Paul of Tarsus, blinded by light on the road to Damascus. (Regaining his sight three days later instigated his conversion to Chritianity.) This piece was originally created in 2010 for St. Paul's Cathedral to celebrate the 300th anniverary of the Wren building.
Charles II by Caius Gabriel Cibber (1681) Restored to the Square by Lady Gilbert in 1938. Soho Square was originally called King Square after Charles II:)
More marvelous art from Bruce Denny
This group is from the 'Intriguqe' collection from Bruce Denny's second body of work 'Interaction'.
From a different angle (Yes, I did walk all the way around and yes it's very detailed, but I'll spare you the other photos;)
Not art, but a building in progress. Also pretty, yes?
Remind me to visit this street again on my next visit, so I can figure out what the hell that twirly bit is.
Okay, I can see you're getting tired. How about we sit down for a bit of lunch. Time for the chocolatest chocolatecake at Choccywoccydoodah!
We take a turn at Carnabystreet to get to Faulbert's Place.
EVERYTHING IS CHOCOLATE. EVERYTHING. *grabby hands*
*drools some more*
I WANT THAT ONE. No... THAT ONE... <3 <3 <3
Ordered a white chocolate truffle milkshake and because I couldn't decide between the chocolate cake and the lemon cake, I had both. I didn't know a slice at Choccywoccydoodah equals about a quart of a normal sized cake AND is served with icecream and extra chocolatey swirls for decoration. CHOCOLATE OVERDOSE. ABORT ABORT! Luckily they were prepared and I could get boxes (yes, plural) to take my left overs with me. *hearts some more*
One last look. *clings to doorway*
Back to the hotel to claim a room. Finally: a bed. Let's take a nap and dream of all the wonderful stuff I bought:)
Feeling rested? Time for the theatre, me thinks... At TKTS on Leicester Square I manage to score an awesome third row ticket for a musicalversion of Dirty Rotten Scoundrels with Robert Lindsay in the lead \o/ We have some time to do some more exploring before it starts though!
Due to work on the Underground, we have to walk above ground for a bit; check out the lovely buildings on our way to Embankment.
View on the houses of Parliament from one of the Jubilee bridges (next to Hungerford bridge)
Ah, you can spot our destination behind the tree: a tip from brutti_ma_buoni: the roofgarden at the Elizabeth Hall at the top of the yellow stairs.
Even though it's Fridaynight, it's quite quiet. Too bad we can't hang long; we have to get back to theatre area the Strand. RUN!
Pfff, with ten minutes to spare I get to the Savoy theatre.
Lovely Art Deco Style (The theatre was rebuild in 1929)
Musical was wonderful; same feel as the film, Robert was dashing and made me grin a lot. Good stuff. Let's take the tube back to the hotel.
Loot of the evening! Note the bathbubblebars from Lush. Time for a -you guessed it- luxurious bath and then bed. Goodnight!
Day 2: Saturday May 31
I already bought a theatre ticket for tonight; until then I have all the time to finish my shoppinglist:)
{Have seen enough? Click to comment (and go home;)}
First things first: a full English breakfast. Nomnomnom.
Feeling pretty damn good. Let's go! We'll get on the bus in front of the hotel to take us right to...
Camden!
A short stop at the actual locks, officially called Hampstead Road Lock.
Gorgeous wall art.
The Buck's Head pub. No, we're not going in, we have shoe shopping to do!
Wait until I show you my new shoes *bounces* SUCCES. \m/
I get a crepe with lemon and honey to eat by the water (with a glass of freshly squeezed lemon juice) and then walk around the market stalls. Some are not open yet, but look at that cool artwork!
After a bit more shopping (check out the loot at the end), I take the bus back to the hotel. (Where I have the left over chocolate cake from yesterday by way of dinner;)
My room (4273) was about as far from the elevator as you can get. Such a maze!
SCORE! skull and bones chain, papercut cards and SHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOEEEEEEEEEEEEES. I'm gonna put those on for my date with Kevin Spacey. <3 Time to move again! We're taking the same bus in the other direction: to Waterloo!
View from the bus; crossing Waterloo bridge, now look at the other side...
...can you see the Elizabeth Tower (with Big Ben?)
The Old Vic theatre, where I will meet up again with Kevin *sighs*
What's that, dear? Oh, you'll be on stage, I'll be in the audience? Whatever, it's a date. :-p
Djeepers! A round stage and I'm waaaaaaaaaay up high, but what a great view; I can see everything that's going on below:)
Great play. (Did I mention I love Kevin Spacey?) There is still some time to get groceries for tomorrow's trip back home before taking the bus back to the hotel.
I love doubledeckers; they give you such a different point of view of the city...
... I never would have noticed this statue near the roof of that building from streetlevel!
A healthy lunch/diner combo for the bus home tomorrow. (Shut up, it has dairy and wheat and meat and fruit and chocolate; all the food groups are there.;)
Another bubble bath and then a good night's sleep. What a day.
Day 2: Saturday May 31Travelday 3: more sights!
Only a couple more photos, I promise;)
{Have seen enough? Click to comment (and go home;)}
Deja vu, but I just so love the English Breakfast *munches*
Packed and ready to go!
Departure was supposed to be 10:30, the bus left about fifteen minutes late and got stuck in traffic a little, but who cares when you get a final chance to wave goodbye to London:)
This time we're crossing the Channel through the Tunnel, woohoo.
Still a bit of a drive ahead though. England is so pretty.
Look at that: right next to the entrance of the station is the gorgeous hillside with the fabulous Folkestone White Horse.
A final view before driving onto the platform.
I've shown this before, but it's just SO COOL. Check it out...
... the bus goes right onto the train!
Gotta love that tiny turn, it's like magic:)
It totally looks like a space station, doesn't it? So scifi and it's real!
Upon arrival at the other side, the separation panels open again and we drive out...
...right up to the highway...
onwards to Brussels and beyond! (Time to eat the last bit of left over lemoncake, omnomnom)
This is Antwerp (I waved at you, tanisafan:) Het Steen is a medieval fortress build between 1200 and 1225.
I tried to capture the Euromast in Rotterdam, didn't even notice the Norsk Sjømannskirken (1914) in the foreground until I checked the photo. (This one is for you, bflyw:)
And a couple of windturbines and old fashioned windmill, with love from Holland;)
Finally the Zeeburg area in Amsterdam, where I can catch a tram to the station for the train hoooooooooome.
Thanks for coming along. I apologize for the random foodpics and selfportraits *grins*. Hope you enjoyed the trip anyway.
Back to working on my BigBang art!
J.
P.S. Please let me know if you can see the photos as LJ keeps messing up my preview:(