2007 Visit to London

Overall I spent about 5 days wandering in London, taking a hop-on-hop-off bus, catching a boat down the Thames from above the Tower Bridge all the way to Greenwich, and walking, walking, walking. London is one of the great cities of the world, at least in my humble opinion. Much cleaner than it was in 1979 when I last visited. And waaaaaaay more expensive!! I stayed in quite a good little hotel in Sussex Gardens near Paddington, which made getting fro and to Heathrow very simple, and was great for buses too. But it wasn't a "budget" accommodation except for size of the room and size of its bathroom.

It was fun to see all the holiday decorations and lights with the major shopping streets--Oxford, Regent, etc.--each having a theme. The upscale retail stores go all out in window displays, which this year seemed mostly in blacks and metallics. I was able to get to the lighting of the official London Christmas tree in Trafalgar Square, accompanied by brass bands and chorale singers. The Prime Minister Gordon Brown also attended, but he neglected to come round to shake my hand.

I also saw two plays:

The over-the-top farcical Boeing, Boeing in which Jean Marsh (Rose of "Upstairs Downstairs") played Bertha the maid and Kevin McNally played Bernard; he was Gibbs, Johnny Depps' 2nd-in-command, in the three Pirates of the Caribbean films.
The clever Avenue Q, a brilliant and unique combination of human actors and puppets of the ilk of Jim Hensen's Sesame Street characters. But don't get the idea it is Sesame Street for adults ... far from it. As one description states: The show is set in a mythical NYC block occupied by an endearing, oddball collection of people (and puppets); kooky Christmas Eve, hapless hubby Brian, sloppy Nicky, closeted Rod, lost soul Princeton, lovelorn Kate, porn-happy Trekkie Monster, and bimbo-licious Lucy The Slut! They swear like sailors, engage in kinky puppet coitus, and even impart valuable and/or absurd life lessons. These folks wouldn't be at home on Sesame Street -- heck, they wouldn't even be welcome on Sesame Street.

Rain poured down a couple of the days; fortunately, the Evening Standard was handing out free umbrellas with purchase of its tabloid paper for 50 pence, well worth it. Other days were sunny, but quite frigid ... 1 degree Centigrade and windy to boot. Really bone marrow chill. But the street fairs and shoppers and buskers still went full tilt and it was fun to be part of the bustle.

Picadilly Circus needs a sign ordinance!
London's "Eye" with each of the pods able to hold 25 people. Circling quite slowly, it's reputed to be a most outstanding view of the city and far beyond (on a clear day). Did I try it out, you ask? NOPE!
Punch and Judy show in St. Pancras tube station.

London's not immune to the flights of fancy of modern architects. The locals have dubbed this one the erotic gherkin.

And this one--the new city hall--is known as the leaning tower of pizza. Sometimes said with affection, sometimes with derision.
The old mills and piers along the Thames are largely converted to flats and condos now, or torn down entirely to make way for such. All the way to Greenwich, one can have a terrific little Thames-side hideaway to laze about in and watch the boats and people ... and it will only cost you a million or two British pounds. At the rate our US dollar has tanked in value lately, double those numbers for a price conversion!