The downside to staying in an area with lots of nightlife? There is a lot of nightlife noise going on all night! Especially on a weekend. Which makes it particularly difficult to sleep. Especially when you're in a new timezone. Especially on a hot summer night. Especially when you need all the windows open.
I woke up at 4am local time. I tried to be quiet, to let the others sleep, and they did for another two hours. During this time I read, wrote in my diary, and watched people out the window.
One group was especially interesting. It was about 4:45am, and this convertible with the top down and two men in the front, and a woman in the back pulled up.
The driver, older, chubbier, hairier (less on top, more on the body), went into the 24 hour store across the road. The other man, this one younger, short hair, appeared to be in good physical shape. He and the young woman got out of the car. She was dark haired and olive skinned, very thin, with legs that kept on going. She was dressed in a very short skirt and a very revealing top.
The two sat, leaning against the car, talking. A few moments later, a young black woman came out dressed in just as little clothing. The two women hugged and got in the car. The new woman got in the front passenger seat, while the other woman and man got in the back. The driver came back out, was introduced to the black woman, and they left, screeching wheels, music blaring. Not sure what to make of it ... booty call or hookers?
One group was especially interesting. It was about 4:45am, and this convertible with the top down and two men in the front, and a woman in the back pulled up.
The driver, older, chubbier, hairier (less on top, more on the body), went into the 24 hour store across the road. The other man, this one younger, short hair, appeared to be in good physical shape. He and the young woman got out of the car. She was dark haired and olive skinned, very thin, with legs that kept on going. She was dressed in a very short skirt and a very revealing top.
The two sat, leaning against the car, talking. A few moments later, a young black woman came out dressed in just as little clothing. The two women hugged and got in the car. The new woman got in the front passenger seat, while the other woman and man got in the back. The driver came back out, was introduced to the black woman, and they left, screeching wheels, music blaring. Not sure what to make of it ... booty call or hookers?
I have a pretty good travel blow dryer and flat iron that I took with me to Southeast Asia last year. I made the choice to leave them at home this year, to bring my much better set instead, figuring I could just use the converter with them. Unfortunately, the converter fuse blew as soon as I turned the dryer on. We figured we could just buy a new fuse and that would fix it. In the meantime, the day would have to be a curly hair day.
The expected numbers were too large for the security the organizers had arranged, and the city was demanding they do more. The organizers couldn't afford anymore security since donations have been down this year due to the economic woes in the UK. So the city refused to let it happen as planned. At the very least, the parade wouldn't be allowed floats or acts, and it could only be a march. The concert, at Trafalgar Square was to be limited to a much smaller crowd, and once the number was reached, no more would be allowed in. At the worst, everything would be cancelled. We definitely started to have second thoughts about whether to spend any of our limited time on it.
Early on Saturday morning, the lanes of Covent Gardens were almost deserted. Stores were still closed, only the occasional restaurant was open. Not even Starbucks was open yet. We began a walk south, past the Seven Dials sundial pillar, to Trafalgar Square, and along Parliament Street.
On this street are many important and historical buildings:
10 Downing Street, the official residence of the British Prime Minister.
On this street are many important and historical buildings:
Whitehall Palace, the main London residence of the monarchy between 1530 and 1698.
Horse Guards Parade, a large parade ground where tournaments (including jousting) were held in the time of Henry VIII and annual birthday celebrations took place during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I.
Churchill War Rooms, a museum including the Cabinet War Rooms, a historic underground complex that housed a British government command centre throughout WWII, and the Churchill Museum, all about Winston Churchill.
At the end of the street we came out onto Parliament Square, around which lies:
Palace of Westminster, the meeting place of the House of Commons and the House of Lords, the two houses of the Parliament.
Big Ben, 316 feet (96.3 m) high (roughly 16 storeys), is the iconic Gothic Revival style clock tower, renamed the Elizabeth Tower in tribute to Queen Elizabeth in her Diamond Jubilee year. It was designed by Augustus Pugin, his last design before descent into madness and death.
St. Paul's Cathedral, 365 feet (111 m) high, once the tallest building in London, designed by Sir Christopher Wren, is one of the most famous and most recognizable sights of London, with its dome, framed by the spires of the City churches.
Churchill War Rooms, a museum including the Cabinet War Rooms, a historic underground complex that housed a British government command centre throughout WWII, and the Churchill Museum, all about Winston Churchill.
At the end of the street we came out onto Parliament Square, around which lies:
Westminster Abbey, a large Gothic church, used for coronations, weddings and burials of British monarchs. This place is huge, and holds the crypts for not just the monarchy, but many important artists, writers, generals, admirals, politicians, doctors and scientists. The most surprising, to me, is the burial of Charles Darwin, buried 26 April 1882.
Palace of Westminster, the meeting place of the House of Commons and the House of Lords, the two houses of the Parliament.
Big Ben, 316 feet (96.3 m) high (roughly 16 storeys), is the iconic Gothic Revival style clock tower, renamed the Elizabeth Tower in tribute to Queen Elizabeth in her Diamond Jubilee year. It was designed by Augustus Pugin, his last design before descent into madness and death.
Once we finished with this area, we decided to take the tube up to The City, a one square mile area that, in the medieval period constituted most of London, but now the metropolis of London has grown to include a huge area. In this area, we saw:
St. Paul's Cathedral, 365 feet (111 m) high, once the tallest building in London, designed by Sir Christopher Wren, is one of the most famous and most recognizable sights of London, with its dome, framed by the spires of the City churches.
Museum of London, which shows the history of London from the Prehistoric to the present day. We enjoyed wandering through the different sections showing the happenings and items from each time period.
London Wall, first built by the Romans around Londinium, and maintained until the 18th century. It is now the name of a road in the City of London running along part of the course of the wall. Until the later Middle Ages the wall defined the boundaries of the City of London. There are still sections of it left standing, and it feels surreal to see new modern buildings built right beside these ancient brick structures.
Top Shop, a British retailer which specialises in fashion clothing, shoes, make-up and accessories. It has shops in around 20 countries and online, but none in Vancouver. We decided to hunker down in a Starbucks for a break and allow Cairo to try on clothing. It's hard to be a 17 year old girl in the fashion capitals of Europe, with parents who don't see the point in spending valuable sightseeing time shopping. So we compromised a bit.
Wandering by a computer shop, we decided to look inside, and found another US to UK converter, and it was very reasonably priced so we bought it as backup, in case our other one copped out again.
By this time, our feet were sore, and the jet lag was getting to us, so we headed back to the hotel for a nap. We got up later and headed out for an 8pm dinner. Unlike North America, Europeans tend to eat later. Plus, we were in a trendy, young, nightlife area, so most of the restaurants were packed at this time. After circling the area, we settled on an Indian restaurant right down the road from us.
London is known for it's great curries, but Vancouver is also home to many, many wonderful Indian restaurants. We found this restaurant to be as good as those we have back home, but not any better. Cairo though, after many complaints about not liking Indian food, discovered she now does like it. It's an important part of growing up, to let go of your childhood food fears, and experiment with tastes that are alien. I'm glad we forced her to try again.
Wandering by a computer shop, we decided to look inside, and found another US to UK converter, and it was very reasonably priced so we bought it as backup, in case our other one copped out again.
By this time, our feet were sore, and the jet lag was getting to us, so we headed back to the hotel for a nap. We got up later and headed out for an 8pm dinner. Unlike North America, Europeans tend to eat later. Plus, we were in a trendy, young, nightlife area, so most of the restaurants were packed at this time. After circling the area, we settled on an Indian restaurant right down the road from us. London is known for it's great curries, but Vancouver is also home to many, many wonderful Indian restaurants. We found this restaurant to be as good as those we have back home, but not any better. Cairo though, after many complaints about not liking Indian food, discovered she now does like it. It's an important part of growing up, to let go of your childhood food fears, and experiment with tastes that are alien. I'm glad we forced her to try again.
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