Our first full day in London we woke up fairly early. After a few trips to Europe, we’ve gotten a lot better at adjusting to the time change. We had a large English Breakfast at our hotel (with Heinz Beans, of course), and took a train into the city centre.
From there we jumped on a bus, and wound up exploring the British Museum first (as seen above). It’s difficult to describe just how impressive this free museum was. Such an overwhelming amount of history under one roof is something we had never experienced before. The English spent a good deal of their history plundering historical artifacts from all over the world. A great many of this artifacts are lovingly stored in this impressive collection. England’s possession of these items has become something of a controversy, but, to their credit, they have preserved and shared these treasures where they might have otherwise been lost to time.
Probably the most famous item in the museum is the Rosetta Stone. It’s hard to argue with the historic significance of this single piece of rock. It was bit disheartening to hear someone say, “Why are so many people looking at this?” It’s also interesting to see how many people do flock to an item like this, while simply walking by other items that are equally impressive, and probably more educational because you don’t yet know their story!
One example of something we knew nothing about was the Nereid Monument. A tomb, moved nearly in its entirety, thought to have been built in the fourth century B.C. by a people known as the Lycians, in what is present day Turkey. We spent quite a bit of time in this impressive display, learning about a people we previously knew nothing about. These are the kinds of things I love about travel. It truly opens your mind to see how other cultures exist, and existed. It really has taught me what a narrow world view too many have. Something I have been guilty of myself.
We saw other amazing exhibits; the remains of the Parthenon, Cleopatra’s mummy, and a truly awe inspiring display of what remains of the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus. The Mausoleum display featured some of the largest sculptures I have ever seen, in a room that almost everyone walked right past. It was incredible, and described as one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. It’s incredible to imagine how amazing this Mausoleum must have been. Yet a great may visitors missed it entirely. In part, that is a testament to the unbelievable collection housed at The British Museum.
We spent many hours at the museum, and despite our best effort, it was more than we could see. After a quick lunch outside the museum at a hot dog food truck with some of the most aggressive pigeons I have ever encountered (don’t fee the pigeons!), we hopped on the Tube to visit one of the most famous apartments in the world.
221B Baker Street was something I had never thought I would see, but have wanted to since I was in school reading Sherlock Holmes. We weren’t sure if we would pay the rather hefty sum (20 Pounds at the time) to see a recreation of a fictional apartment, but in the end I knew I would regret it if we didn’t go in (thanks to a lot of convincing from my amazing wife).
The inside of 221B is decorated with items taken from classic Sherlock Holmes stories. It’s something I think a fan will take a great deal of pleasure from (I couldn’t help but grin like a fool the entire time), but those without an affinity for the worlds most famous detective (or maybe that’s Batman?) could get enough by visiting the gift shop. The apartment only allows small groups in at a time, which is great, but does result in a long line. Once inside, we lingered longer than anyone else in our group, and the kind attendants did not once make us feel rushed, and took the time to snap our picture sitting in Holmes and Dr. Watson’s chairs. It was special experience, and I’m grateful to the guides for it.
Afterwards we walked through nearby Regents Park, a beautiful park in the heart of such a crowded metropolis. We then took a quick Tube ride to nearby Speedy’s Cafe (another Sherlock Holmes landmark of sorts), only to find it closed. Not to worry, we would return.
After a long day on our feet, we decided to head back to the hotel. We visited a nearby grocery store (a Lidl, something like an English Aldi) to pick up some supplies for our room. One of our favorite things to do in a new city is visit a local grocery store. It really gives you a feel for the city, the people, and the way residents live.
As we walked in the dark, it started to rain, which once again felt right in a way that is difficult to put to words. It felt just as I had always imagined life in London would be like. We headed back to the hotel, small bag of groceries, and giant bottle of water in tow, under our shared umbrella and I felt very much at home and content. It’s funny, but the photo above is one of my favorite from the entire trip, and I almost didn’t take it. My wife said, “What are you talking a picture of?” “London,” I believe I replied. There’s no landmark, no Tower Bridge. It was a quiet moment when we were nearly the only ones on the street, after a busy day of so many crowds and tourists. I can still smell the crispness of the cool autumn air, and hear the sound of light rain on the cobbled streets.
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