Travel to the four corners of the world with Rowan's Travel Blog! Explore the Eiffel Tower and learn about the Louvre! This will be one experience you'll never forget!
6:04 pm
SECOND TO LAST DAY HERE! Well, technically, the last full day, considering we're leaving in the morning tomorrow. But, oh, what a day! In the morning we went to Highgate Cemetery, where a bunch of famous people are buried there, including Douglas Adams, Karl Marx, and many, many more.
Here's a video of me with Douglas Adams' grave:
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Sorry, can't put the video right on the website. Here's a link: youtube.com/rowanathighgatecemetary
After Highgate, we proceeded to take a narrow boat ride on a London canal system, built 200 years ago for industrial purposes, to Camden Lock Market, where I bought a new watch. We explored the Lock a little bit, got a few gifts, and then went home and started packing.
5:39 pm
Our second-to-last day here! I can't believe it! In two days we'll be off to Bristol! It seemed like such a short time!
Anyway, today we went back to the British Museum and saw some mummies of people (and animals, see my Pictures page). They were really wrapped and looked very mummified.
A cute little kitty mummy
Big, old person mummy (King Tut?)
After the British Museum, we thought we would check out the Victoria & Albert Museum (V&A) but we decided to go to the London Natural History Museum (LNHM) instead.
The history museum was so cool! There was an escalator to the center of the Earth (really!) and a simulator for a famous earthquake. Also, there was a cute bird exhibit:
An adult male Ostrich
A peacock spreads her wings
Cute little ostrich babies
And, oh, the dinosaurs! So many raptors, T-Rexes, triceratops, and so many more!
A T-Rex skull
We met the dinosaurs from Jurassic Park
A Raptor on the wall!
A full Triceratops skeleton
Here's me in front of a huge T-Rex:
Pretty cool, huh?
Well, gotta fun. Farscape is on in a few minutes. Toodles!
10:22 pm
Today, we were planning to go on the London Walks Tour of Stonehenge (we did the Shakespeare-Dickens Walk a few days ago. See this post), but it was too much money so we decided to just go ourselves.
It was AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Here's a bunch of photos I took:
Those are some pretty big stones
There was a special name for this one...
My brother and I at Stonehenge
I am your leader
The power of zoom
Stones from afar
The Stone Show
A little bird on one of the fallen
Here's a little vid I took of me at the Henge:
Here's another one, long overdue, from the Eiffel Tower...
If you can't hear what I'm saying, e-mail me at marphclon@gmail.com and I'll send you a transcript.
Stonehenge was built over 4,000 years ago by ancient people (some were even buried there!). In the visitor's center museum, they had a recreation of the head of one of those people. He was between 35 and 40 years old when he died! They even had his skeleton.
There were different stones: one of them was called the Slaughter Stone. It's not really for slaughtering, though...
Check out this website and see if you can find out more about Stonehenge. E-mail me with some more facts!
Through my eyes, it was very interesting. The audio guides gave detailed descriptions of each segment of the sculpture (or whatever it was meant to be).
Anyway, yesterday also saw us going to Salisbury Cathedral and climbing on the detailed sculptures.
My brother and I crawl on one
The Cathedral
We went home on a 1½ hour train ride and then home on the Tube. I got the summer edition for Total Film (see cover below) from WH Smith for £3.99.
Tomorrow we'll be going to the Victoria and Albert Museum, named for Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. Plus, the British Museum and downtown walks.
6:14 pm
This morning, we boarded a train at Waterloo Station for a 35-minute train ride to Hampton Court. At Hampton Court was the Palace where Henry VIII and William III lived. We saw their apartments, Henry VIII's kitchens, the chocolate kitchens, the Palace Gardens, and much, much more.
I saw a video about Henry VIII's six wives. SIX WIVES! Can you believe it? They were Catherine of Aragon (divorced), Anne Boleyn (beheaded), Jane Seymour (died), Anne of Cleves (divorced), Kathryn Howard (beheaded) and Katherine Parr (widowed). Also, here's a handy rhyme to find what happened to his wives:
Divorced
Beheaded
Died (pause)
Divorced
Beheaded
Survived
Funny, right?
After we explored the Palace we attempted to navigate the Hedge Maze. It was the oldest in the UK still standing, and we had a fun time trying to find the center.
After we got back, we got ice cream, went to Megacity Comics (I got the Doctor Who comic strip collection The Cruel Sea) and ate dinner.
9:01 pm
It was quite a day! First, we went to the Portrait Gallery at Trafalgar Square where we saw a bunch of interesting people from two or three hundred years ago. Then, we went on a Shakespeare-Dickens walk.
Here's our guide, Andrew, talking about a Shakespeare memorial
It was very educational and interesting. Our guide talked about a very violent and murderous book called Martin Chezziwick by Charles Dickens. I got it free for Kindle and have yet to read it.
After that, we headed toward the London Eye for our 5:30 ride. We had Ultra Fast Track tickets, so we got the front very fast. The ride was awesome. Here's some views:
Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament
Another car
The view from the top
Me with London behind
After our trip we went across Embankment Bridge to get to the Charing Cross Tube station. My brother and I got lost, so we went back on the bridge. My brother found my parents, but I got lost again. So I went back to the Eye, where there was security, and came to them with this simple statement: "I'm lost and I can't find my parents anywhere."
I expected them to say something like, "Hi, Lost, I'm Ross" or something, but they found my parents and I got to ride in a British Police Car!!!!!
Now I am home safe and sound and everyone is proud of me. I hope you are, too.
P.S.: Here's a little video about the London Eye at the New Year's Fireworks in 2012. I just had to include it:
11:32 pm
In the morning, we watched Trooping the Color on television. Trooping the Color is Queen Elizabeth II's birthday ceremony. It happened a little late this year, but it was worth watching. Here's the full ceremony, as it happened last year:
Then we watched an episode of The Simpsons and met my mom at the farmer's market. But then we had to get ready for our train to Knebworth. We were going to visit my mom's old friend Lara and her partner David, plus their kids Imogen and Alex. We ate dinner, played cricket, swung on a zipline, played football (or soccer as we call it in the USA) and then watched TV. In total, we saw one and a half Doctor Who episodes, most of Percy Jackson: The Lightning Thief and part of Despicable Me.
7:37 pm
Friday the 13th! Can it be more unlucky? (Actually, it was REALLY unlucky, but we won't mention that).
Anyway, we took the tube to Westminster Abbey today, where a bunch of dead famous people are buried, including Isaac Newton, Charles Darwin, Henry VII, Elizabeth I, Mary I, Mary Queen of Scots and much more.
I did a little children's trail (I know it may sound babyish, but both me and my brother got HUGE souvenir chocolate coins after we handed in our completed papers. It was so delicious!).
After that, we went to Trafalger Square and climbed the lions (great view) and made bronze rubbings at St. Martin. I made one of a skeleton.
After that, we took a Double Decker bus back to our street during Rush Hour (don't remind me).
6:27 pm
In the morning, my parents were considering taking a tour of London with a special guide, but it turns out it isn't really kid-friendly. So we sauntered over to the Museum of London.
It was SO COOL!!!!! There were intricate dioramas full of detail and even a short movie about the Great Fire of London in 1666 with a working, electronic model of London that lit up. Here's what it looked like:
There was also a changing, projected diorama: Caesar's camp in Heathrow about two thousand and sixty years ago changes to Heathrow Airport today.
There was also a Victorian walk, to show what that area was like two hundred years ago.
After that, we went to the Camden Lock Market. So many things! I saw a really cool comic shop with collectible action figures. There was the 100th issue of Doctor Who Magazine and over 25 action figures! There was also a 1963 £195 Dalek! Can you believe it?
If you don't know what a Dalek is, watch his short clip:
Come over to my "Pictures" page and see some of my awesome photos from my adventures! Oh, and be sure to check out my June 11 post as well. Wouldn't want to miss the stuff that's there.
Here's a quick photo sampler:
The Welsh Soldiers perform the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace
For the first three and a half hours of our traveling morning, we went to the Tower of London.
It may not sound very exciting, but the Tower is actually very cool. We had a guided tour from one of the Yeoman Warders (guards) and got a 60-minute, fun-filled, full of jokes extended tour. We didn't get to go to the Crown Jewels on the tour, but I'll mention that later.
Our tour guide, Andy
The Crown Jewels are a collection of famous crowns, weapons, armor and dresses worn by royalty and occupants of the Tower of London.
Famous inmates of the Tower include Sir Walter Raleigh (stayed their for 13 years in a luxurious room with his wife and children, wrote a book, performed science experiments, and played pranks on his guards [not really, I just made the last one up]), Elizabeth I (then Princess Elizabeth, locked up by her first cousin once removed Mary Queen of Scots, who was later beheaded by the monarch), some guy who tried to escape (his rope was too short, and he fell into a pile of poo).
After our experience in the Tower, I got to try on part of a knight's armor:
A historian teaches me sword-fighting
Nice hairstyle, don't you think?
Lookin' proud with a heavy sword and a dinky shield
P.S.: Here's one more picture from Madame Tussaud's: Just felt like I should share it with you!
With the woman herself, Madame Tussaud
Can you guess what she's doing?
(Hint: It involves bloody heads in the French Revolution)
Visit my Pictures page to see more!
All photos on this page copyright Tim Wood, 2014 except Madame Tussaud
In the morning we set out for Kensington Park, where there was an giant Peter Pan-themed playground with a full-size pirate ship. Everyone was having tremendous fun climbing to the crow's nest.
After that, we took the Tube (that's what they call the Metro in England) to Baker Street, where Sir Arthur Conan Doyle set most of his 19th century Sherlock Holmes stories. He lived at 221B, where they had the official Sherlock Holmes museum.
Our current President
Striking a pose with Michael Jackson
But then came my favorite part: Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum. Hundreds of figures made entirely of wax. It takes about three months to make one figure, but Madame Tussaud's has been going on for a long time, ever since the original Madame Tussaud made wax masks for the executed royals in the French Revolution. Here's a few pictures:
Me with Shrek
The Dalai Lama
After Madame Tussaud's, we went to Abbey Road, where the Beatles walked across for their album cover. Here's a picture of that:
And here's a picture of us at the exact place they did that:
After that we took the Tube and then the London Overground (bus) back to our semi-neighborhood.
