We did some evening birding in Hyde Park, a short walk from our hotel, and we encountered the Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial by the Hyde Park Lido.
It is an unusual memorial in that it isn't an imposing structure or statue. Nonetheless is was full of people enjoying putting their feet in the water, or picnicing in the middle of the fountain. Here we are at one of the sections of the circular memorial.
At first impression it didn't seem to be much of a memorial. But you quickly find yourself being engaged by it's many dimensions.
We decided that we should pick a sunny day to travel by boat to Hampton Court Palace. So we altered our itinerary to travel there earlier in the week as the forecast called for a brilliantly sunny day on June 22nd. We then had to alter our itinerary for June 23rd because I was incredibly sunburned.
So, what's a good place to visit in London where it's cool and dark? The British Library! A London double-decker bus went direct from in front of our hotel to the British Library entrance.
Photos are below.
Only at the British Library can one see such an extensive collection of ancient (2000+ years old) and medieval manuscripts, as well as significant historical documents.
We viewed the Magna Carta, Lindisfarne Gospel, Gospel fragments from around 150AD, and so much more. Plus, there was a special exhibition on maps from throughout history and another special exhibit on the South American Independence Movement.
Photography inside the British Library isn't permitted, but you can get a look at their extraordinary collection by clicking here. This will take you to the British Library's website page showing all of their collections that one can view.
After spending several hours at the British Library we took a double-decker bus direct to Harrod's where we did some shopping. Then we hopped on another bus which took us back to our hotel via Marble Arch (and the northeastern corner of Hyde Park). You'll see photos of us outside Harrod's, and at Marble Arch, below.
We had superb views of the Changing of the Guard from the Victoria Memorial. Afterwards we went to the Queen's Gallery to view the special exhibition of "Victoria & Albert - Art and Love". An absolutely amazing exhibit!
Here are some photos of the guards inside the grounds of Buckingham Palace. After these photos you'll see a link to the Victoria & Albert: Art & Love exhibit at The Queen's Gallery at Buckingham Palace.
As we walked over to The Queen's Gallery at Buckingham Palace (on the spot where the private chapel was located until it was destroyed by a German bomb in World War II). This exhibit rivaled the Crown Jewels at the Tower of London!
Click on the link below to see and listen to details about this phenomenal exhibit.
And the restrooms at Buckingham Palace are unequaled in opulence anywhere in the world!
Afterwards we did some birding in Hyde Park (one of London's Royal Parks) which is a short walk from our hotel. We saw Great-necked Grebes, Great Tits, Stock Doves, Red-crested Pochards and, of course, Her Majesty's Swans.
And there's also one video of us riding atop the Open Air Sightseeing Bus (we rode today all over London atop the bus in the very front).
Here are two videos taken from the Millennium Bridge, which connects St. Paul's Cathedral on the north side of the river with the Tate Modern museum on the south side of the river. These were taken as we walked to Shakespeare's Globe Theatre on June 21, 2010.
Today's update - our trip to the British Library and Harrod's - will come later.
Did a boat cruise to Hampton Court Palace in brilliant sunshine. I'm quite sunburned. Mom wisely took to the shade on the lower deck periodically and did not turn red as I did.
The 25 video clips I took during the 3 1/2 hour cruise to Hampton Court Palace have been compiled into one video of just under 3 minutes. This video, below, will let you see how the trip along The Thames progresses from the center of London to the open spaces of Hampton Court Palace. It was quite a spectacular trip, and we highly recommend it if you're visiting London, but you'll probably want to do a one-way journey (with a quick return by train as we did) so as to maximize your time at Hampton Court.
Birds we saw along the route included Grey Herons, Swifts, Swallows, Sand Martins, House Martins, Cormorants, Shags, Pied Wagtails and a very rare Montagu's Harrier.
Mom met a dog on the boat ride to Hampton Court. This is at Teddington Locks as we were getting close to Hampton Court Palace.
Here's an inner courtyard at Hampton Court Palace. We saw a Pied Wagtail in the grass here!
Our return journey to Waterloo Station in London stopped at Wimbledon where we took on passengers at the tennis tournament (the station is right there at the stadium).
After arriving at our hotel we went out to a local pub where we ate Fish & Chips, drank pints of beer, and joined the crowds in the pub cheering the World Cup game playing on the TVs.
We were able to get tickets to "Henry VIII" at Shakespeare's Globe Theatre. Took The Tube to St. Paul's Station and then walked to the Millennium Bridge, a new pedestrian footbridge that crosses the Thames to the Tate Modern, which is next to the Globe Theatre.
It's quite a spectacular walk from St. Paul's to the Thames, and it's only been since the opening of the bridge that there has been an unobstructed view of St. Paul's from across the river to the cathedral.
And it's a busy bridge, too! Foot traffic between the Tate Modern, Globe Theatre and St Paul's, combined with locals going from one side to the other, makes it a bustling place.
Upon reaching the Globe Theatre we picked up our tickets and then headed to "The Yard". That's where the Groundlings (those who watch from the standing room on the ground level in front of the stage) watch the play.
Although one has to stand the entire time, one is literally just feet away from the actors. And the actors are frequently coming down into the crowd in The Yard during the performance... at times we had the actors performing right next to us!
This is a view inside the open air theatre (fortunately it was perfect weather).
At the bottom of the picture you can see some people standing in the yard. I'll have a video of the yard when it was filling up with everyone a bit later when I have time for extensive uploading of videos.
And here we are waiting to enter The Yard.
Notice I have my backpack. When I realized mom was going to places such as Westminster Abbey, Churchill Cabinet and War Rooms, etc., with her binoculars in her purse ("I don't know why my purse is so heavy?") I started taking my backpack with me so that I could fit her purse in the backpack and lighten her load.
Makes quite a difference!
After the outstanding performance we walked back across the Millennium Bridge.
Evening comes late in London, and we had a wonderful view as we approached St. Paul's Cathedral.
The picture simply doesn't do justice to the Robin egg blue sky and the pale pink clouds above the cathedral.
And one walks around the cathedral to get to the Tube stop. From there it's about a 15 minute ride to our hotel.
For starters, we've seen some very interesting life birds. Birds such as.... the Coot. Yes, the British Coot, though identical (to us) in appearance to the North American Coot, is a different species.
We've also seen these life birds:
White-headed duck
Kingfisher
Blackbird (looks like a grackle, acts like a thrush)
Wood Pidgeon
Magpie
Grey Heron
Robin (looks like a warbler, acts like a junco)
Carrion Crow
Ringed-neck parakeet
White Pelican (really, they were white. This isn't a BP joke)
And here are some videos of some "royal" birds we saw at Kensington Palace.
And we also saw "Britain's Favourite Bird" the Robin. This special Robin lives at Kensington Palace.
And though the Mute Swan may seem ordinary, this one is owned by The Queen.
Follow along with us (mother and son) as we go on a London birding adventure in June 2010!
Our companion birding blog sites are:
birdinginiceland.blogspot.com
birdinginlondon.blogspot.com
We'll try to keep you up-to-date on where we go, what we see, and bird finding tips we discover as we travel.
