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Jan's Holiday Diary - England 2007 (week 6)

Sunday 1 July 2007
My final comments? Well, the trip was fabulous but expensive, meaning that I spent more than I thought ok. Business Class was definitely worth it for the senior's discount price I paid. I was reasonably frugal, but everything cost more than at home, and accommodation was expensive for a single traveller. Still, I saw nearly everything that was on my list. There were several highlights and a couple of disappointments, but these need not be discussed here. Six weeks was both sufficient and enough, and I was happy to be going home. I probably could not have kept the pace for much longer. This trip has satisfied my desire for travel for a while, and I am happy to stay put at home now (till next time . . .)

Saturday 30 June 2007
I got up at 9:00am this morning, so felt I had a decent sleep. I decided four hours was enough out in the heat and humidity, so planned a walk to the market, the History Museum, and Chinatown. Photo 1 is the mosque in the junction of two rivers, photo 2 is the museum, and photo 3 is an old colonial building. I saw lots of trinkets and stuff (probably not the best word) that I liked, but there was always a good reason why I should not buy it (too big, too heavy, customs might object, is it useful, etc etc. I enjoyed the time looking though. Got back to my room about 3:00pm, and cooled down in the airconditioned room. Showered and caught a taxi to the KL Sentral rail station, and the KLIA express to the airport. The Malaysian Airline's lounge here is a welcome place to spend time waiting to be called for the flight.

Left the airport at 11:30pm Adelaide time, but the airline still insisted on feeding us a four course dinner. It was nearly 2:00am before we could try to get some sleep.

Friday 29 June 2007
I landed about 7:30am local time, and managed to get about five hours of very light sleep. It has been enough to get me through the day, but I will be in bed early tonight. I arrived at my hotel after being met at the KL airport and transported with others in a taxi. The hotel is nice enough, but is in a very average part of town, and close to an area of very average shopping centres. The humidity was ok, so I walked to the twin towers and spent quite a while wandering through the massive shopping centre there. Photo 1 is just part of the centre, and photo 2 is part of the Twin Towers. After lunch, I walked to a Light Rail station and caught a train to KL Sentral station. The monorail terminal was next to the station, so I caught it back to my hotel. I was hot after about four hours in the streets, so I came back here early.

Thursday 28 June 2007
Off to Heathrow this morning. No opportunity to take photos and I was on a jumbo for most of the day.

Wednesday 27 June 2007
My last full day in London, and I decided to spend it in parts I had not been to so far. I went to the place called Little Venice, north of Paddington Station, in an area officially known as Maida Vale, named after some important battle. I was going on another London Walk. Our guide showed us the taxi driver haven (photo 3) that was outside the station. Only taxi drivers were allowed inside, and these tiny buildings have existed for more than a hundred years, Only twelve remain, and this is one of the better preserved. We heard about the actors and others who lived in the area, and how the area got its name. The Grand Union Canal (photo 1) and Regent's Canal join and pass through this area, and connect with most canals throughout England. You could take a canal boat to Bristol or north to central England. We also saw an old little church and the actual Paddington Green. Paddington Bear that I mentioned from Paddington Station is brought home to a nearby residence each night. After the two hour walk, I decided to take the train to Camden Town. Here is a permanent town market, and the people were out in their thousands. There were heaps of tattoo and piercing parlours, goth and leather clothing, and lots of other way-out clothing stores too. Nothing quite took my fancy.

I had a late lunch and decided to take a narrow boat trip back to Little Venice. Not cheap, but very much worth while. We travelled along about 4km of canal, including going through a lock at the start (photo 2). We travelled through Regent's Park, and through a 200 metre tunnel, which was only wide enough for one boat. The skipper had to watch carefully before entering. Back to Warwick Avenue station, and I travelled to Moorgate station, just east of The Barbican. I walked north to Old Street station, including a stroll through Bunhill Fields Burial Grounds, where several headstones had dates in the 1700s. By now it was 5:00pm, so I braved peak hour tube traffic to get back to Earl's Court. We sat motionless for several minutes near South Kensington, but we eventually continued to our destination.

Tuesday 26 June 2007
Today my goal was to finalise and buy the gifts I need to bring home with me. I achieved my goal except for one, which I will complete tomorrow. I first went to Piccadilly station, and walked the area to the north and west. I walked through much of Soho and Mayfair. I visited Hamleys, Liberty, Fornum and Mason, Carnaby St, Bond St, Regent St, and many of the stores on Oxford Street. Photo 1 is from Old Bond St, and photo 2 is St James Church on Piccadilly.

A few days ago, I saw a shopping centre near Canada Waters in the Docklands area. I went there to have a look, but it was a bit of a waste. I took a different way on the tube to get back to Earl's Court, and saw some different parts of the network. Tomorrow is my last full day in London, so tonight I will check what else is essential to see. My holiday is almost over - it has gone so quickly, but I think I can say I have used my time to the full.

Monday 25 June 2007
Today it is forecast to rain again, so I decided to defy the odds and walk along the south bank of the Thames. I caught a train to Monument and walked across the river using London Bridge. My first stop was Southwark Cathedral, not far from the bridge. It was smaller than many cathedrals, but had parts dating back to the thirteenth century (photo 1). It was only created as a bishop's seat in 1905, so its cathedral status is quite recent. I walked past a replica of Drake's ship, 'the Golden Hind', on my way to Shakespeare's Globe Theatre. I joined a guided tour of the wooden building and learnt about its construction and operation (photo 2). It rained while we were on the tour, and experienced how some of the audience might have felt during a performance.

Onwards to Tate Modern. It was with some trepidation that I entered this old power station, and I was rewarded. With hordes of people and incomprehensible works. I wandered the galleries for an hour or so, and then had lunch before venturing outside - into the drizzle. I walked further along the river, past the Theatres, London Eye and the London Aquarium. I thought carefully about visiting the Aquarium, but decided the cost was too expensive. Instead I took a photo of the Houses of Parliament, wandered a bit further along the river, then caught a train back here

Sunday 24 June 2007
The main goal for today is to attend a walk around the Thames and the Houses of Parliament. 'London Walks' run many walks, and I decided to attend the 'Underground' walk. While the walk stays above ground, it focuses on what is below our feet. About 15 souls started the two hour walk, and we heard about the many secret tunnels, the sewers, the underground roadways and railway tunnels, including many closed tunnels and stations, and how the Embankments came to be. He showed us a small square opposite Big Ben that is in danger of subsiding still, and the 'secret' Cabinet War Rooms that were so close to the surface, they could easily have been destroyed. Photo 1 is of the Thames, taken while I waited for the tour to begin.

I then walked from The Mall to Piccadilly and towards Leicester Square. This was Sunday and I expected a fairly quiet day. No! Leicester Square, China Town and Covent Gardens were teaming with people. Even Trafalgar Square was awash with people. I braved the National Gallery, and there were just as many people inside. The art did not make any sense to me so I stayed only a short time. I wanted to go for a wander along Charing Cross Road for the big bookshops here. Foyles bookshop was monstrous, even bigger than Borders. By now it was nearly 4:00pm, and I had not even bought a book. I opened lots, though! The Walk guide suggested we get on and off trains to see the new stations on the Jubilee Line extension. I did, and these stations were big, spacious, creative and all different. Apparently, several different designers competed to do one station apiece. I also found another shopping centre I might come back to if there is time. I still had to circumvent the rail closures to get back to Earl's Court, and managed on very busy (full) trains.

See my diary for earlier weeks - week 1 | week 2 | week 3 | week 4 | week 5

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This page last updated on 30 June 2007.

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