June 22, 2010 - River Thames Cruise to Hampton Court Palace

It's July 2nd and I'm still adding updates (and re-formating pages so the paragraphs are differentiated).

Do check the index in the lower right column of this blog to visit individual posts, many of which have recently been edited with new pictures and videos!

You'll see a bird species list update when the blog has been completely updated.

In the meantime, enjoy a compilation of video clips taken on our cruise from London's Millennium Pier to Hampton Court Palace.

Prince Albert Memorial

On our last evening in London we did some birding in Kensington Gardens, across the street from our hotel.

At the opposite end of the park we came upon the Prince Albert Memorial. Quite an elaborate and imposing structure!

Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial

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.

June 23, 2010 - The British Library and Harrod's

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can one see such an extensive collection of ancient (2000+ years old) and medieval manuscripts, as well as significant historical documents.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.

June 25, 2010 - Changing of the Guard

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.

Victoria & Albert: Art & Love

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).

June 21, 2010 - The River Thames & Millennium Bridge

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.

Oh... USA 1, Belgium 0.

Enjoy!

June 22, 2010 - Hampton Court Palace, Wimbledon and World Cup

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.

A very exciting day!