Place of visit: Westminster, London
It was a sunny and super HOT day today. The temperature reached 25C and my skin became tanner/browner as though I'm not dark enough before :(
Walked the suggested route 'Westminster Walk' (see Map below) that I got from WalkLondon.com. It covers the main tourist attractions in Westminster.
Attractions along the way:
1-House of Parliaments & Big Ben
2-10, Downing Street
3-Horse Guards
4-Banqueting Hall, Whitehall
5-Trafalgar Sq & Nelson Column
6-National Gallery
7-St James' Palace
8-The Mall & Clarence House
9-Buckingham Palace
10-Queen's Gallery & Royal Mew
11-Churchill War Rooms
12-Westminster Abbey
Well, as usual I'm not good at following guides, I either got loss or strayed to other things that looked interesting to me at that time. I started from the mid-section i.e. from Trafalgar Square, which I've seen everyday since Monday. I think it has etched into my long term memory by now :) Next, to the National Gallery.
There were lots of awesome paintings the gallery. I saw Rafael's and Leonardo Da Vinci's awesome paintings. It looked so life-like. I just can't believe someone can paint so well. But unlucky for me, I was not able to view the very famous Van Gogh painting, the Sunflowers, as the room was closed for restoration work. The staff told me that the room will be open on Friday, but maybe some other time.
It took me like 1 hour to finish the whole museum. I'm not into the art so much but at least I've seen the famous paintings once in my lifetime.
I did not rent the audio guide so I was a bit lost. Didn't know what I was looking at except that it were beautiful. There was quite a crowd when I was there, but surprisingly quite.
Truthfully, I was quite bored in there!
Before I know it, it was lunch time and I did not have any breakfast yet. Bought cheap sarnie from Co-Op and coffee from Costa. I headed off to St James' Park through the Admiralty Arch.
Walked along The Mall and stopped by St James' Park where I sat under the shade having my lunch. Will never get to do this anymore in the future.
Continued on to Buckingham Palace. But it was too hot to take a decent picture so I just give up. This is the only good picture of the place that I have (after Photoshop treatment, of course). By this time, I feel it weak due to dehydration. I quickly passed through park to find St James Palace but alas I couldn't find it and I ended up at the end of the garden and I was on Piccadilly road. Hahahahaha... I'm lost again! But what the heck, keep on walking till I reached Piccadilly circus, turned right and walked downhill towards Parliament Square.
Now, the masterpiece of London, Westminster Abbey! Wanted to go in and have a look but the 20 quid price tag is just too steep for a budget traveller like me. I guess the exterior picture is enough and bought some postcards with the interior pictures on it. Job done!
There you go. I completed the Westminster walk in 3 hours, including visit to the National Gallery. Not bad! But I was sun burnt and dehydrated at the end of the walk. Really, if you're walking around London during heat waves/summer, do consume lots of liquids (not iced coffee like I did, it made me more dehydrated).
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| Admiralty Arch |
Before I know it, it was lunch time and I did not have any breakfast yet. Bought cheap sarnie from Co-Op and coffee from Costa. I headed off to St James' Park through the Admiralty Arch.
Walked along The Mall and stopped by St James' Park where I sat under the shade having my lunch. Will never get to do this anymore in the future.
 |
| Buckingham Palace |
Continued on to Buckingham Palace. But it was too hot to take a decent picture so I just give up. This is the only good picture of the place that I have (after Photoshop treatment, of course). By this time, I feel it weak due to dehydration. I quickly passed through park to find St James Palace but alas I couldn't find it and I ended up at the end of the garden and I was on Piccadilly road. Hahahahaha... I'm lost again! But what the heck, keep on walking till I reached Piccadilly circus, turned right and walked downhill towards Parliament Square.
Now, the masterpiece of London, Westminster Abbey! Wanted to go in and have a look but the 20 quid price tag is just too steep for a budget traveller like me. I guess the exterior picture is enough and bought some postcards with the interior pictures on it. Job done!
There you go. I completed the Westminster walk in 3 hours, including visit to the National Gallery. Not bad! But I was sun burnt and dehydrated at the end of the walk. Really, if you're walking around London during heat waves/summer, do consume lots of liquids (not iced coffee like I did, it made me more dehydrated).
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