D04: London

After arriving early in London we caught our bus transfer to our hotel. While we could've caught the train,  I find it so much easier to have land transport that drops you off right at your destination without having to drag your luggage all over.  We didn't have to wait too long at the airport before we were off on our way.

We arrived at the hotel, but as it was so early we couldn't check in.  So we quickly freshened up and left our bags before setting off to explore.  It actually felt good to be back in a place I was familiar with, so I became mum's official tour guide for the day.  We started off by catching the Number 9 bus from Kensington High Street down to Piccadilly Circus.

Mum at Piccadilly Circus

From here we wandered down to Trafalgar Square  where we saw Nelson's Column, guarded by four lion statues at its base. 

From here we wandered down Whitehall and checked out the Household Cavalry Museum which is a living museum that sits within Horse Guards in Whitehall, and is still the headquarters of the Household Cavalry and consists of the two senior regiments of the British Army – The Life Guards and the Blues and Royals.  These unit have two roles: as a mounted regiment (on horseback), to guard Her Majesty The Queen on ceremonial occasions; and as an operational regiment serving around the world in armoured fighting vehicles. 

The Life Guards Uniform (Red) - The Blues & Royals Uniform (Blue)

From here we continued down Whitehall where we came across Downing Street.  We were going to call in and say hello to Gordon Brown but.....

I wonder why they wouldn't let us in

Next it was off to see the Houses of Parliament & Big Ben.  I still think that mum can't believe she is actually here and seeing all these things that she's only ever seen on TV.

And across the river we spotted the London Eye (like you could miss it).

From Westminster Pier we caught a City Cruise Boat down to the Tower of London.  Last year when mum was sick, this was one place she really wanted me to visit, so it was great that a year later she was able to see it for herself.  We actually arrived just in time to join a Yeoman Warder (also known as "Beefeater's") guided tour.  Our guide (can't remember his name) was very entertaining and kept the very large crowd entertained with tales of intrigue, imprisonment, execution, torture and much more…  After the tour we joined the queue to get into see the Crown Jewels.  Thankfully it didn't take too long to get in. 

The Legend of the Raven - If the ravens leave the Tower, the kingdom will fall…

After leaving the tower we grabbed a bite to eat and then boarded the City Cruise boat to head down to Greenwich.  While we were on board, my friend Mel rang to say that she'd missed her connecting flight and was in London.  So we arranged to meet back at Kensington High Street tube station.  The boat trip, with all that gentle rocking, probably wasn't the best plan for two people who were trying their best to keep awake.  But anyway, we arrived back at Westminster Pier and then caught the tube to Kensington High Street were I met Mel for a quick catch up before she had to head off back to Heathrow for her flight back to Dubai.

Mum & I then headed back to the hotel.  As I'd stayed there last year, I did my best to prepare mum for how small the rooms would be.  It wasn't quite as small as the single room I had last year, but there wasn't a too much spare space.  It had been a pretty big day so we had a fairly early night and I know I slept like a log...

(For the rest of my Day 4 photos - click here.)