Tuesday. Almost not worth mentioning as I was going to go back home to Haverfordwest . The train from Paddington was strikingly fast and it looked like we were in Bristol in no time. It feels like ages when driving.
However I was supposed to change trains in Newport, Gwent and they have done some modifications to the station and platform assignments meaning I had to cross to the other side using lots of steps to reach the footbridge.
Saint Paul's Cathedral
Monday. Did some more walking round London and did the touristy view of St. Paul’s Cathedral. The Fat Tyre bike tour guide told me that the view from the top of the cathedral was much more impressive than from the London eye. I surely was not disappointed. The tour was not that bad.
Village Deli in Bermondsey
The one thing I wanted to do on this day is to go for lunch in Bermondsey .
BT Tower captured from Oxford Street
Sunday. Nothing much planned for this day. Did do some shopping but came to Oxford street to early – nobody told me they opened the shops at twelve so I spent some hard earned money at a well-know American coffee franchise called Stardollars or something. The best was left for last as I went to the Natural History Museum and put on a pair of skates after about 17 or 18 years and didn’t fall once.
Westminster Hall
This was a Saturday and the big part of the day was dedicated to the John Rutter ’s Christmas Celebration at the Royal Albert Hall . This was the second one I have attended and even though the last one I went to was last year it did not feel like a repeat from the previous year. The only difference was to be the Christmas dinner I signed-up
You know when you sleep in a strange bed and it takes a night or two before you get used to it. That was exactly what I was doing when at about 6am the first morning the hotel, where I was staying, had its fire alarms go off. When I got into the hall outside my room I saw a lot of sleepy-looking heads popping out from behind the doors trying to find out what the hell was going on.
London Paddington station during rush hour
The trip I did last year took quite a bit out of me as I took the car from the deepest and darkest :-) parts of Wales right down the M4 to central London. Now this wouldn’t be otherwise to bad but for the whole visit being very active and at the end of it was completely exhausted. Not to mention the cold I was nursing at the time.
A shark in the big tank in the London Aquarium
Not feeling very well in the morning of the last day, this cold has been getting the better of me and running around London does not help it getting any better. Drugging-up with anti-inflammatories not helped either.
The London Eye - close to the top
First port of call was the London eye I booked the previous day on-line. Looks amazing when standing underneath it and the views of London once you are right at the very top are stunning.
The Cabinet War Rooms
I started the day a bit more relaxing by taking a slow breakfast at the local Starbucks at London Bridge station opposite Guy’s Hospital. A friend told me I had to try the frappucino and their panninis. The guy at the counter asked me twice if I was sure about the frappucino? It is apparently and ice-cold drink and it was the middle of December plus I was bearing a very deep and cold-ridden voice so I wisely opted for a warmer beverage - in this case for a mocha.
Fat Tyre Bike Tour
After only sleeping a few hours as I only went to bed at 4 am as a consequence from the previous night’s walkabout London I had a Fat Tyre bike tour planned for the Saturday morning. The tour takes place on bicycles you get from the tour company and it starts at 11am just outside the Queensway underground station. Its a great way to see the city as you can see different parts of it without walking large distances.
I soon realised my satnav is going to make me drive down the M4 right into the centre of London - no ifs or butts. Wasn’t that bad really, all I had to do is to imagine I was driving downtown Ljubljana - just on a much bigger scale. And it really went very well except at the very end one of the roads was closed and I had to make up a detour on my own - only to get myself even more stuck into the dreaded London rush-hour traffic jams.
