London update

I have been busy lately and haven't finished my London tales because I am confused as to what I did on the last 2 days! haha! I remember what I did, but now I have to find the right days I did these things! They were my busiest 2 days that week, so I will be onto them soon!

Then.... the Italy stretch! (yay!)

More on Buckingham Palace

Thinking back, I forgot to write about inside the palace itself! Part of this forgetfulness was the fact I have no photos of this experience because photography was prohibited… like most things you would want to snap! Oh well. It just meant I bought a 10 postcard pack instead…

We walked through what are called THE STATE ROOMS. I remember seeing the Crown Jewels, a display of the queen’s dresses worn from the time she became queen to now, and sat in the seats in the coronation room… The postcards state 10 of the State Rooms we walked through. These were: The Green Drawing Room, The White Drawing Room, The Blue Drawing Room, Throne Room, The Garden Front, The Grand Staircase, The State Dining Room, The Picture Gallery, The Music Room, and the East Front of Buckingham Palace from St. James’s Park.

These names don’t sound very spectacular, do they! But they were definitely an experience! I don’t know anybody else who can say, “I’ve walked the Grand Staircase of Buckingham Palace”! haha! Well I HAVE! It is quite a spectacular experience. What I remember most about the Crown Jewels was that we stepped on to an escalator.

There were 2 escalators going past the display cabinets holding the crown jewels. Unfortunately the escalators didn’t go slow enough to give us a good look, but we DID get to see a lot. The security was understandably high. I have never seen so much gold, silver and jewels in the one room before! There were not only the various crowns worn by Queen Elizabeth and Queen Victoria, and others in the royal family, and Queen Elizabeth’s selection of jewelry. There were also china tea sets and if my memory serves me correctly, even swords and other weapons that contained jewels. It was your typical experience of pewter glasses, dinnerware, necklaces, knives etc… just imagine how much money we could get for all of those things!

The Drawing Rooms were basically large entertaining rooms with antique armchairs and chandeliers. The ceilings were high and decorated with the different queens’ initials in the detail. Queen Victoria had quite an influence! Her initials are just about everywhere, and the stories about the furniture and designs of the rooms mostly lead back to her! Each room has its own detail. The ceilings are different as well as the carpets and furniture. Some rooms have fireplaces, some have sideboards and fancy tables. The name of the room reflects the colour of the furniture and décor (eg, Green Drawing Room has green furniture). And of course, the rooms are spotlessly clean!

My favourite part was probably the Display of the Queen’s Dresses. We walked into a room, and dresses were displayed not only around the walls, but in round sections between the walls. It was a bit crazy trying to see through all the people looking, but I managed to see enough. I found it interesting to see how the Queen’s dress styles changed with her age and changing figure. One thing Margaret and others pointed out… “Red was not her best colour”. There was ONE deep red velvet strapless dress worn when she was very young. It was a simple, but extravagant looking dress that many wouldn’t be able to get away with. But it seems this was the only colour only worn once. The commentary stated that the Queen’s complexion made it easy for her to wear nearly any colour and make it look good.

It was interesting to note that when she was young, she often wore sleeveless dresses/gowns or thin straps. She looked stunning in the pictures. As she became older, her sleeves became longer. It was a gradual change, but we could see how she changed from the elegant straps to the mature sleeves. The dresses really told a story of a stylish woman and how her styles altered as she matured.

The dresses were displayed by colours. There was a blue section, yellow, green, pink, white etc. There was also a section of dresses made exclusively for her visits to particular countries. Some of these were designed either similar to the traditional style of the country, or with elements or patterns relating to the country. She went to so much effort to “look the part” as well as being respectful. Of course, she employed designers to create these outfits.

I couldn’t believe how many jewels, beads, laces and sequins were on these dresses! Some were evening gowns, others less formal. Enlarged photos of the queen wearing certain dresses were displayed behind them. She was quite a beauty in the early days! I enjoyed looking at the photos and seeing inner beauty in those eyes. You don’t see that every day in famous people! There was a real kindness and elegance in her eyes.

I can’t remember the name, but I think it was the Coronation Room – or at least where coronations occur… we were able to sit in the seats and watch a video of some coronations that have occurred in the room. It was interesting being in the same room that is often relayed on tv around the world. I can tell you one thing…the seats were not very comfortable ;) The rooms look a lot larger on tv! They are about half as large as I had imagined.

The only part of the palace tour that was missing was the queen herself. Rumours were that she was in Germany or some other country, but the flag was up, apparently saying she was home. I never quite figured it out. They said the queen usually opens up the palace to the public only in summer. I’m glad I was able to walk through the palace. It was a worthwhile, interesting and educational experience! I also didn’t realise how close to the city the palace was! It is literally in the middle of the city!

This tour gave me a new respect for this woman who seems to hold firm to her beliefs, despite the choices of her family. As a young woman, she was elegant and graceful. Her eyes revealed a deep respect and sense of values. She still maintains the “old fashioned zeal” that many people will never understand. The old fashioned values that many despise, yet without these I don’t believe she would be as elegant. It’s a bit scary to think about her inevitable successor in the not so distant future. Her death will likely see the death of the old fashioned elegance that not only she, but her mother holds/held.

Lessons so far…

* If you know which station you’re near, you can’t get too lost! :) You can walk all over London, and the TUBE stations are EVERYWHERE! Which is great because I was so scared of getting lost! :p

* Don’t ask locals for directions! They either give you a funny look, say they have no idea what you’re talking about, or treat you like you don’t understand English! I had some interesting experiences!

* Internet is cheapest at the Highbury Centre! Only 50p for 30minutes…or L1 an hour.

Day 4, Tuesday 5th September

~ An excursion to Buckingham Palace with Margaret ~

This morning after breakfast I was thinking about going to either the Tower of London or Harrod’s…when I met up with Margaret in the hallway, who seemed like she wanted company, so I decided to go with her to Buckingham Palace…by bus! Because she is vision impaired and prefers buses to the tube. Personally, I learned the tube is the fastest way to get around if you want to get the most out of your day. But it was a nice slower paced day with a nice lady. (I seem to be going out with the Aussies!)

On the bus we met a nice couple (Aussies!) who were leaving the Highbury Centre that day, so gave us their weekly tickets which had one more day on them. I didn’t plan on using the bus the next day, so didn’t take the ticket. I let Margaret keep it to give to somebody else.

We spent the WHOLE day at Buckingham Palace and surrounds...didn't expect that! AND our feet were KILLING us by the end of it! We weren’t allowed to take any photos inside the Palace….so I bought a postcard pack… so sorry, no photos!This is the best I could do ;) We were also security checked before entering the palace. Our bags were scanned and I was asked to take a sip of from my water bottle… because 3 weeks earlier the Heathrow terrorist plan was stopped, I wasn’t too upset by all the security points. Each part of the day included a bag check… Palace, Gallery and Stalls.

We went into the palace and had audio guides (headphones) which were actually really good… then we raced (like tortoises :p) to the Queen Mother's Art Gallery...wasn't as good as the first part, then we went to the “Stalls” where the horses and cars are kept. I found that more interesting than I expected! Our tickets included a session time for the Queen Mother’s Art Gallery. The Palace and Stalls had no time limits. The ticket stated we could NOT arrive late and admission would be refused if late… well, we were late! But not late enough to be refused entry :) It was hard because once we walked out of the Palace, we thought the walk to the Gallery wouldn’t be very far…it took us about 10mins to walk there! But we made it.

Although a slow day, I found Margaret to be so full of information! It was like I had my own personal travel guide… while we were inside Buckingham Palace she gave me extra information… When I mentioned how much she knew, she said she is a Monarchist. So naturally she would be interested in such things ;)

I remember before joining the line to purchase our tickets, she asked a girl where the toilets were…she told us something like “around the corner, about 2 blocks away” and we walked and walked and walked…. And walked… until we found public toilets…which cost 20p! I guess sometimes you just can’t complain when you need the service :p

Then, after our long walk, we ended up back at the ticket area and the lady said,
“Oh, they were much closer than that!” after Margaret told her of our adventure!

It is different walking around the city with a vision impaired person. I felt more aware of the cars, and even a little responsible in the sense that when we were crossing at the pedestrian lights, or even just zebra crossings, I was constantly aware of my position and making sure we could cross without having cars want to run into us!
It did feel like a slow day, but I was grateful for the interesting company.

After the palace adventure, we rode the Double Decker bus back to the Highbury Centre, but stopped at the kebab shop around the corner. We ordered kebabs and then brought them back to eat. We sat outside the centre and watched the possums jumping between the roofs of other buildings surrounding the centre. I have to admit I wasn’t impressed with the hygiene of the food preparation, but I ate it anyway. The man held the wrap with his bare hands and filled it with his hands… and they put something like sauerkraut (red cabbage and vinegar)! I’ve never seen that in a kebab before! I did try it, but ended up picking out the rest because I found the taste too strong.

It was a nice day, even though we returned with aching feet…like REALLY ACHING feet! It was so good to be able to stop walking :)

Oh, I think I had a spearmint “Polo” (lifesaver) lolly for lunch! Which was why I was soooooooooo looking forward to dinner! It came with my plane snack pack, and I thought by the wrapper that it was chocolate…I was very disappointed it was only a lolly! I had a packet, but you can’t just eat lollies! We found ourselves so busy moving between exhibitions we didn’t have time to stop for food!

I wrote in an email to my family: “It was a bit freaky being here on my own, but it's been 3days now so I think I'll be fine to go off on my own tomorrow...am hoping to get to the London Eye and Harrods's... and apparently the Tower of London and Madame Tussauds are worthwhile... “In a few days I'm off to Rome, then I've booked another night at the Highbury Centre before going to Ireland. I found out the prices for Train and Ferry which are quite cheap at the moment - was told to book soon because they're actually cheaper than the bus! (which isn't normal). My only problem now is trying to remember where the info centre is where I spoke to the person! But it shouldn’t be too hard.”

I started to notice the cut on my thumb became infected… David sent me a text asking how Beverley and I are going… Suddenly I remembered BEVERLEY!?! OOPS! She had been hiding in my suitcase and I forgot all about her! Haha! So I pulled her out and asked her for suggestions of what to do next in London!

Lessons so far…

* Don’t ask directions from people under 40. They give you a blank look or treat you like you’re stupid!

* When locals say, “It’s a long walk”, it’s usually only about 5-15minutes.

* Pre-purchase a Phone Card BEFORE you leave home! It took me days to find a card that would call AUSTRALIA!

Day 3 -Part 2

Outside the shop was an Indian-ish man giving out free newspapers. I asked him for directions to the correct tube station… I soon learned I’d approached the wrong person! He was sleazy and looked at my map – a huge one I brought from home, which wasn’t relevant… he asked if I speak English! He asked a few inappropriate questions like where is my husband etc… and suggested I shouldn’t be there if I can’t figure out where I am… I hate when people assume like that! All he needed to do was tell me which station to go to Leicester Square! Which he eventually did! He then shook my hand a few times and said I’m a sweet girl…bleh! [I later realised the station didn’t matter! I just needed the right train!]I figured it out and once I’d found my way to Leicester Square, I couldn’t find Vic’s landmarks!

There were about 4 different station exists and I didn’t know which one I should’ve come out of! I had to call him – got his voice mail, but then he called back and came and collected me from where I was J When he asked where I was, I told him I was across the road from an “American Steakhouse”…which actually didn’t help because he said they were on every corner! He told me to stay where I was and he’d find me. He didn’t take long at all. We had Starbucks juices then went to the visitors centre where I looked at brochures etc, and he used the internet. We checked out a few pubs, looking for dinner deals, and settled on China Town. We shared rice and 2 dishes. It was nice. We had a good chat before meeting Nathan (another friend from home) to go to a pub for a drink.

It was nice to see familiar faces! They had a pint of beer each… I asked for Lemon, Lime and Bitters, and the girl didn’t understand! In the end I gave up and just had lemonade. I didn’t realise LL&B was an “Aussie” drink! Vic had a Guinness, so he gave me a sip because I’d been wanting to try some before I got to Ireland. Not my favourite drink, but I did try it!

I was still a little jet-lagged, so Victor escorted me back to my accommodation. I knew my way back from the tube station, but Vic suggested taking a Double Decker bus for a different experience. It was nice. On our walk to the bus, we saw a ‘lovely’ sight… a transvestite in black bikini-like women’s underwear with fishnet stockings & stilettos…it was so putrid! I couldn’t help laughing because it was a small shock to see... although I found out we were walking through a gay area… and he/she looked like a gay hooker… was sad. Usually I don’t go near people like that. I’ve never seen a sight like that in Melbourne!

Once on the bus it was a nice time, sitting up top, in the front row right at the window, looking at the sights as Vic said, “you would miss on the tube”. We came in to Highbury and I wasn’t 100% sure which street I should get off! So we got off and walked one direction… it was like a fork road… in the dark it was hard to know… we got lost! We asked a few people for directions…they all said, “it’s a long walk”, or “it’s a bit of a hike”… and Vic said, “Don’t worry. The locals think a long walk is about 5-15minutes”…and he was right! I guess for the locals, public transport is so good, they’re not used to walking far. It only took us a ‘long hike’ of about 5-10minutes to find the place! By then it was 11pm! What a night! But we found the place, and Vic was able to go home ok. Silly me forgot the bus has a stop right near the street I was staying in… I basically collapsed into bed that night!

Day 3, Monday 4th September

~Explored London with Peter, Margaret and Family~

(This is a mix of emails and journal entries - hence the 1st and 3rd person narrative jumps!)

I woke up around 5-5.30am, all ready to start the day! But I stayed in bed for a small time before getting up and making my way to the shower. There was only 1 shower in my part of the building. The wonderful thing was that I never had to wait in line. People seemed to organise themselves without even trying! Only once did I have to wait about 5mins for somebody to come out. Every other time, the room was free. There was also a bath, but I refuse to use a bath, especially a shared one.

My accommodation is really nice. All Christians here...at breakfast we have allocated seats, and I've met some really nice people. This morning the seating arrangements were a bit bungled, so the “singles table” was over-crowded! Margaret, the lady in the room next to mine, and I found a table and a few minutes later, a family arrived and discovered they were allocated to the table we chose. They were really nice and from Blackburn (Melbourne, about half an hour’s drive from where I live). Peter and Margaret, and their 3 kids: 2 girls and a boy. Now I feel bad that I can’t remember their names (boy was John?) They were so nice. They offered for me to join them exploring London. We arrived on the same day, and discovered we were leaving on the same day. So we went into town together on the tube which was nice. I was their "4th child" for the day! They were really nice.

Because it was our first day, we decided to go on the Hop On Hop Off Bus. When we bought out tickets, the man said something like, “isn’t it sad about Steve Irwin…” and we were like, “huh?” We had no idea that Steve Irwin had died and he was on the front page of the London papers and also on the news – but we didn’t see the news! Or the papers til the end of the day.

I’d planned on seeing the Changing of the Guards tomorrow…I’d confirmed the dates online, but the tour guide on the bus said it was on today, not tomorrow! So we got off the bus and literally ran to see it… we were a little late and only really saw the end part. We decided it’s not worth returning to see more on another day because apparently we saw the main part anyway. Oh well.

While we were in the onlooking crowd, and English man with funny teeth said, “That’s your gate!” We didn’t realise there was a gate for every country in the commonwealth surrounding the front of the palace. Without realising, we were standing to the side of the Australia Gate! I love it when people state the “obvious” to you when you are oblivious to the facts! If he hadn’t said that I would not have known.

We had to walk through Hyde to get back to the bus, and we saw all these deck chairs…so had a quick sit for fun. Margaret suggested sitting in a chair for a photo, so we did…

Somebody then approached her asking for money… suddenly we were aware that these chairs are not fancy decorations, but actually a money-making scheme! She was lucky because she told the person we were only taking photos and we quickly left and didn’t have to pay. On the way out, we saw the relevant signs! Haha!

We had lunch at an English pub. I had “Topped Wedges with cheese and bacon” which was like mashed potato wedges covered with a slice of bacon and cheese. It wasn’t too bad. I wanted to try something different. I also had lemonade. Peter and Margaret paid for me.
The smoke in the pub was pretty bad, and the lighting very dark, but I noticed the waitress put us in a corner that seemed to be as far from the smoke as possible, so that was nice. I don’t know if it was deliberate, but it seemed so. She was also from some European country – Polish or Netherlands or something. We found most eating places had European waitresses, which to me was slightly disappointing because I didn’t hear many English accents :p But they were nice people. No complaints J

We then went back on the bus and got off at St Paul's Cathedral....veerrry expensive (like everything else here!) It cost L9 (don’t have the pound symbol! About AUS$22-25) just to go inside a church! But it seemed worth the money just to be able to say we came to London and went there…AND we climbed the 530 steps up the dome!!! The view was amazing! Who needs a personal trainer after that workout!!! Hahaha! It took a while… I deliberately took it slow because I was aware of the possibility of re-tearing my tendon, which I didn’t! [I think few days later, my tendon was thanking me!]

It was a beautiful church. It was my first experience of a huge, well known, traditional church. I didn’t like the cost of the experience, but it was worth the experience. It is such a huge church! And in the middle of the city. I have photos showing just how inner-city it is!

Next step, back on the bus to the included Thames river cruise, which was a nice end of the tour. That was my last stop with this family because I had organised to meet Victor, a friend from back home. He has been living and working in a few different countries over the years. We parted ways and I looked for directions to our meeting point. He called me to say he’ll be late, so I did some shopping – the supermarket was like a 7/11 and I couldn’t find much except for drinks, which I stored for later ;)