London

My flight landed at Heathrow airport in the evening, and we left the airport at 8 pm to broad daylight outside. It was 6 degrees centigrade and really windy.

London has pretty, red and white colored houses, lined together, and with gardens and parkways. Overnight stay was at Hotel Ibis in Wembley (strongly recommended). Wembley is a quiet neighborhood on the outskirts of London with empty streets and a lot of eat-out options. Sunset was at 9.30 pm with an hour of dusk before it. It was extremely cold, for which reason, we could not walk around on the roads.

I woke up at 5 am the next morning because of the early sunrise (around 4.30 am). Got ready to an awesome breakfast at the hotel. Continental breakfasts are my favorite, and the place had a variety of meat (sausages, salami in pork, chicken, beef and I cannot name everything that was there), fruits, breads, juices, beverages.

Wembley

Starting on a city sightseeing tour, our driver Marcelle was Czech, and had a fully tattooed arm. We drove to Buckingham Palace and spent some time photographing the beautiful square, statues and gates. Too early for Changing of the Guards (a true show with lot of colors and music) which is slated from 11:30-12. The Palace was closed to public and the Queen was at Windsor castle over the long weekend. It started raining, making it colder, and suddenly the sweater and shawl I was wearing seemed insufficient!

Buckingham Palace

From there, we visited Westminster Abbey. The Abbey is beautiful and the buildings around it marvelous and not to be missed, especially by photography enthusiasts. We drove over the River Thames to get a panoramic view of the Abbey and the Parliament buildings nearby. We soon came upon the London Eye, a giant Ferris wheel that gives you a view of London for miles around (which is quite easy, as there are few skyscrapers). Big Ben stands next to Parliament and is actually a clock tower, though commonly referred to by the name of the bell in it. The tower was named after Sir Benjamin, an overweight politician and commissioner of works.

Westminster Abbey

London Eye over the River Thames

The Tower of London, a castle with two defense walls and a dry moat stands on the banks of the Thames. The moat was once filled with water from the Thames river, but that got difficult to maintain due to the silt constantly thrown up by the Thames current. It is a fortress that hosts the crown jewels and the Kohinoor diamond.

The drive took us to Trafalgar Square (and Nelson's Column), a place with beautiful buildings and teeming with tourists. Our coach drove us through the famous streets of London - 10 Downing Street, Piccadilly Street, Baker Street, Oxford Street, Regent Street, Abbey Road, Shaftesbury Avenue; the names, histories and stories of which our guide narrated to us at top speed! The presence of a guard in a fancy red uniform in front of 10 Downing amused the children, while the horse he was sitting on was a fascinating sight! Mary, our guide, told us that these big beautiful horses are reared and trained at Windsor Castle.

Our next stop was at More London Riverside, an office area with modern architecture, glass buildings and a rare skyscraper. From there, we had a clear view of Tower Bridge, which is often mistakenly called London Bridge and considered as the iconic symbol of London. The bridge is detachable at the centre to allow large ships to pass under it. The London Bridge is the next bridge upstream and is, by the way, quite a plain bridge with no arches or noticeable structures.

More London Riverside

Tower Bridge

Next was a ride on the London Eye, situated on the south bank of the River Thames. The giant wheel takes 35 minutes to complete one full round and moves very slowly and steadily, so no need to worry if you are apprehensive of heights or have motion sickness! You can get an awesome view of River Thames and the intermittent white bridges over it, and of London city with its beautiful sand colored buildings. The ride ends with a view of Shakespeare's Globe on the waterfront, a replica of the Globe Theatre where Shakespeare's plays were performed and which was destroyed by fire. Later, we watched a 4D show of London's sights, which was quite entertaining for children.

View from London Eye of London city

Shakespeare's Globe

All of this was covered before lunch (about 1 pm at McDonald's). The afternoon was free for a visit to Madame Tussaud's wax museum. The popularity can be gauged by the long entry lines even on a cold windy day! You are welcomed in various languages as you climb the winding staircase to the 1st level, the Hollywood level. There are life like statues of some actors, Daniel Radcliffe, Leonardo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt, Bruce Willis, JLo, among others. It is said the museum people change the locations and set-up of the statues often. At the time of my visit, one of my favorite actors, Johnny Depp as Captain Jack Sparrow was standing on the deck of a pirate ship.

Madame Tussaud's wax museum

The 2nd level is for sports enthusiasts, the 3rd for historical figures and British royalty and the 4th my favorite, the music section! The 4 Beatles merrily seated on a sofa, MJ captured in a trademark dance step. Queen Elizabeth and the Duke, Prince William and Countess Kate stood tall on a podium and people could stand with them, wear a crown and have themselves photographed. The volunteers at the museum take photographs which may be framed or printed for a few euros. Identifying the statues and getting photographs with them was definitely one of the most 'fun' parts of the trip!

Entry fees for the London Eye, Madame Tussaud's are quite high, so look for combo offers where you pay something like 55 Euros for entry to 4 places.