London

London is vibrant, diverse, historic, scenic, photogenic, and a spectacular mix of modern and old.  The skyline delights in both, and manages to keep the lines open and appealing.  Chris and I spent a couple days there before he flew home.  I returned for a couple more days between Yorkshire and boarding the plane back to California.

One of the highlights of our stays was a rather simple one.  Chris wanted to take one of the historic walking tours, which was a great idea.  And the one he wanted to do was a featured  Isambard Kingdom Brunel and his father,  Marc.  In 2002 Brunel placed second, after Winston Churchill,  in a public poll of the 100 greatest Britons of all time. His engineering was a highlight of the industrial revolution with his contributions to public transportation, including designing the Great Western Railway, suspension bridges, tunnels and ships.  His firsts include propeller-driven transatlantic steam ships, including one of iron which was the largest ship ever built to that time.  As assistant engineer, under his father, he helped build the first tunnel under a navigable body of water.  That tunnel, under the Thames, is still part of the London Underground (subway).  Many of his railroad aqueducts and bridges are still in use, even though the weight of trains is far greater today than when he designed the structures.

Our guide was incredible.  As someone who herself is a guide, who is certified by the National Association of Interpretive Guides, I can only say I was blown away by his powerful presentation.  Robert Hulse, director of the Brunel Museum. held my attention fully for the several hour tour which included walking, traveling on subways and boats, under three Brunel bridges, over two Brunel tunnels, and through the museum.   If that wasn't enough, he invited anyone of the tour who wished, to join him for lunch at the Mayflower Pub for more conversation.  If you are going to London, I can't recommend this enough.   If you think a tour of engineering isn't exciting, think again. 

Links at the ship works

Our group reaches the Brunel Museum.  Still to come, a tour inside and then, at the Mayflower, below, lunch
for those who which to stay.   Most of the group stayed.

Named in honor of the ship that departed, from very close-by, for the New
World.  Lunch was great as was the conversation.

The skyline of London is a mix of old, new and even newer.  The mix of restaurants, museums, parks, theaters, and people was exciting but also a bit overwhelming.  While I recognize it as one of the great cities of the world, and appreciate its accessibility, I found I loved the rural and small towns best on my explorations of the UK.

The skyline is a blend of old ad new and still being constructed

The Centennial Bridge is a pedestrian walkway across the Thames
River.  St. Paul's Cathedral is in the background.

Chris wanted to do the London Eye, something that was not yet built last time he was there. The views were incredible and Chris has an incredible memory and could point out all kinds of London sites from our vantage point.  We did this our first evening in London which was a good orientation.

From on top of the London Eye.  That is Westminster (Parliament) on the right with Westminster Bridge in the foreground.  There are a couple double decker transit buses on the bridge as well as a few cars and lots of pedestrians...Big Ben would be just to the right of Westminster and cut off in this view.  Its is currently covered in scaffolding and won't ring again for several years as major repairs and maintenance are performed.

The  Eye and lights on the Westminster Bridge

I stopped to share a moment with Paddington Bear.  I also experienced famous Paddington Station, a huge transportation hub for trains, buses, and subways. While  stations are large and initially overwhelming, staff of the various transit modes are courteous  helpful, and readily accessible.

This photo and the next two are inside the Tate Museum of Modern Art.  Incredible
museum, and free,  for the people of London and all of its visitors.

A  family enjoying the sunny fall day in Green Park.  This  fountain is the Canada Memorial.
The Royal Parks of London include 5000 acres (8 total parks) including Green, Kensington, St. James and Hyde. I walked huge swatches of those four parks.  More than intended but I  got turned around a couple of times.  

Outside Kensington Palace.  Somehow there was some mishap and my invitation to tea with the
queen didn't come through in time for me to attend.

I missed the changing of the guard, but loved the shadows on the archway.

 A trip for a first time visit to London is not complete without touring the Tower of London.  In my reading I always thought  it was a tower.  It is actually an entire complex of buildings including the famous prison,  There is the Royal Palace and Fortress of the Tower.  There are residences, a chapel, and a variety of buildings covering a period from 1078 until the 1300's with architecture styles reflecting its long history.     The next several views are from the site.

 And finally, two icons of London.  The famous taxi cabs and the double deck red buses.  I rode both.