I was awake early with the anticipation of a Skype call with one of Tim's teachers which didn't work out as the teacher couldn't access the Skype room at the Distance Education College - it must be a popular time to Skype! But early mornings are good for being productive and I was able to do some "paper work" before Tim, Luke and I went to our local park to use the gym equipment.
As we are in the routine of morning
school at the moment, I am finding it easier with Luke as he applies
himself a little better. Our school room is the kitchen table in the
tiny apartment with its cheap as chips plastic fold up chairs which are
really no good for a boy who fidgets! He ends up on the floor several
times a morning. I know we are budget travellers, but some of the
places we stay in really need a very small amount more spent on them to
improve them hugely and chairs would be one thing which would help this
place.
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| Making use of the freebie! |
It has been a beautiful day in London,
white clouds only, plenty of sun and pleasant temperature. I was glad
that the big kids joined us for our afternoon exploring along the
Thames. We started at Waterloo, where I was banned from singing the
Abba song which came to mind! Despite getting a little disorientated as
we exited the station, which worked in our favour as we came across a
freebie offer of the new green Coca Cola, we finally found the way to
the South Bank.
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| Coca Cola selfie! |
I
really don't like Coca Cola and we generally say "no" to it because of
its sugar content. The new green stuff is partially flavoured with
stevia and has less sugar (but still a huge amount) and so we accepted
the freebie as the kids had been eager to try the new brew! Pretty
disgusting according to my taste buds but I don't like Coca Cola anyhow
so I was not a good judge.
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| Tim pointed out this shot and it was indeed a goodie! |
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| Laurence Olivier |
There
was a large second hand book market under the bridge and we scoured it
for Enid Blytons to top up our supply and found a few. We bought one
Famous Five for Luke for 2 Pounds, but the fact is that we just can't
carry any more stuff than we already have.
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| The River Thames |
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| St Paul's Cathedral |
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| OXO Building |
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| Old and new everywhere you look! |
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| Bridging history! |
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| Looking grand! |
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| Silently screaming! |
Tim was eager to walk to the Millennium
Bridge after seeing it in one of the Harry Potter films. It was such a
pleasant walk along the river side looking at the river traffic, the
buskers, the people sitting around and checking out the bridges and
contrast in architectural style between the old and the new. That is
what really grabbed me about London's landscape today: the difference
and contrast and seeming good blend of old and new.
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| Millennium Bridge versus St Paul's Cathedral |
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| Bridge after bridge...Tower Bridge |
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| Good perspective. |
Quite
close to the Millennium Bridge is the precinct of St Paul's Cathedral.
We walked around the magnificent exterior but were horrified at the cost
to look at the interior. It would be too costly for us and I am sure
the price turns away many. Luke was particularly disappointed. We sat
on the grand steps and shared a pack of ice creams from the nearby
Sainsbury's and then continued our walk.
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| The dome of St Paul's Cathedral |
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| Quite a few of these signs about... |
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| Old versus new again |
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| Looking up the great pillars of St Paul's |
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| Mary-le-Bow Church - and my Dad was right about the number 4 on the clock! |
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| Interior of Mary-le-Bow - from here the Bow Bells toll. |
Soon enough, we heard the Great
Bells of Bow sounding 4 O'Clock. I explained to the kids about Oranges
and Lemons and that being the big bell referred to in the nursery rhyme
but it seems that I have neglected my motherly duty and they never
learned that nursery rhyme! We did go into Mary-le-Bow Church,
another Christopher Wren design which costs nothing and was lovely. Luke had seen his church for the day and he was happy.
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| Well, fancy that! |
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| St Helen's Church, Bishopgate |
Karl was eager to see the Gherkin, and we were getting closer to it. 30
St Mary Axe, opened in 2004. It is impressive and unusual and stands
180 metres tall. It is mostly office space. We talked to one of the
security guards there but couldn't go in.
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| The Gherkin! |
On to the Tower Bridge, easy to identify as we approached it!
The Tower of London, nestled by the river, looked dwarfed by the big
structures around it and we will go there in a few days time. Our goal
today was to walk over the wonderful bridge and we did. Luke was
fascinated by the division in the bridge which actually opens up. Karl
was fascinated by the catenary of the bridge and I learned a new word! A
catenary is "the curve that an idealized hanging chain or cable assumes under its own weight when supported only at its ends" (en.wikipedia.org/wiki).
It is good to learn a new thing every day! The Tower Bridge is a great
example of such and has held up well for quite some years! It was
constructed between (1886 and 1894).
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| The Tower Bridge |
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| Tower Bridge shield |
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| Catenary on the bridge |
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| Luke checking out the joins of the bridge |
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| Here's hoping the bridge doesn't open right now! |
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| A really old VR postbox! |
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| Great catenary example! |
From
there we walked along the river side past the HMAS Belfast, for which
the Tower Bridge would need to open, and on through Hay's Galleria.
What I love about London is the surprises at every turn! In the vast
cavern of Hay's Galleria is a great quirky sculpture called The
Navigators. We moved with the peak hour throng to London Bridge Station
and entered the Tube for our journey home. Phew!
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| Hay's Galleria: The Navigators |
Annika cooked a delicious chicken casserole for dinner. With just a stove top and no oven, our meals are limited, but we eat well. Our fridge is smaller than the average bar fridge one would find in a caravan, so we have to shop fresh most days and have got into the swing of doing this, The volume of people in our local supermarkets is mind-boggling and the queues for the checkouts are long at any time of day. I suppose, apart from the sheer number of people living in London, many have small kitchens and limited pantries so they have to shop frequently, too. I guess we are living like many Londoners do and, that, is the whole idea of our slow travel experience!
Your days are busy! Don't forget the old classic backpackers trick - if you want to see the insides of a church with expensive visit tickets, go instead to a Sunday service. Then you get to see it with beautiful music (and lots of rich people too)! :-).
ReplyDeleteWe have thought of that..the trick is they usually use a little chapel somewhere off to the side and there's the crowds, too...but thanks for the tip!
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