London Calling

I know this is post is incredibly delayed, but hey, better late than never :) While on my quick visa trip to Guildford, England I was able to spend a day in Central London. Now anyone who has ever been to London (and I am guessing there are quite a few of you out there) knows that there is no way to see London in just one day, but I did my best to see as much as I could.

After taking an early train into Waterloo Station I started my day by heading over towards Westminster Abbey. The weather was as I would expect it to be in London . . . rainy and chilly. But I wasn't letting the weather slow me down - I was on a mission to see as much of London as possible before my afternoon train back. On the way to Westminster Abbey I saw my first big sight: the London Eye (note that this picture was taken later in the day when the rain cleared up).

The Eye wasn't open yet, so I kept on moving towards Westminster Abbey. On the walk across the bridge I saw probably the most iconic London sight, Big Ben and Parliament.

After stopping for a few pictures I walked another block or two and ended up at Westminster Abbey.

I went inside and took a tour, which was incredible, but unfortunately I couldn't take any pictures. After a quick stop in the gift shop I headed out towards Buckingham Palace. The route brought me across the British Horse Guards, which I hadn't actually intended to see. However, I saw a huge group of people staring at something, so I figured I would cross the street and check it out. I got there just in time to see the changing of the guard, which was a pleasant surprise!

I then headed through St. James's Park and followed the Diana Princess of Wales Memorial Walkway, where I caught my first glance of Buckingham Palace.

I had hoped to take a tour of the palace or catch the changing of the guard in front of the palace, but unfortunately the palace was closed and the guard changes every other day and I was there on the wrong day.

However, this opened up some more time in my day, so I was able to walk around and see more sites. I stopped by Trafalgar Square next . . .

. . . where they were taking down the Lion's Scarves. I didn't know what that was all about, but I did some research when I got home and learned that knitters from all over the country knit the scarves as a major charity project.

After seeing Picadilly Circus and Downing Street I decided to get off my feet and return to the Eye for a relaxing ride. The views were amazing and I posted a ton of pictures on our Yahoo Photo Site. I then started to ride the Tube to see a few far lying sights. I am sure that many of you know that I love the Harry Potter books and movies, so I had to take a train into King's Cross Station.

Though no trains were loading at the time I was determined to get on the platform and take a picture of the wall all Hogwarts students must run through to ride the Hogwarts Express. I was promptly yelled at for being on the platform, but I got my picture :) A few interesting facts for Harry Potter fans. First, the wall they run through is actually between platforms four and five. Second, the station only has 8 platforms, so there is no platform nine and three quarters. I also took the Tube to London Bridge so I could take a picture of Tower Bridge.

I think many foreigners believe that Tower Bridge is London Bridge (or at least I always thought it was), so I learned something! After Tower Bridge I was exhausted and had to head back to Guildford to make sure I could get my passport so I could return to Russia! However, I left London feeling like I packed in as much as I could. I can't wait until I get to return to see so much more!