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Post by lugg on Feb 21, 2013 11:48:07 GMT
Travelling from Hereford to London by train is not that great an experience as the direct return train ( Paddington to Hereford) is jokingly known by staff and locals alike as the Paddington to Malvern as it so often ends up disgorging the passengers here and leaving them to their fate. This is the result of the last 11 miles into Hereford being single track. Looking at route planner I decided that it could not be that difficult to drive to the South side of London where our rented apartment was situated; the route avoided central London city itself. Unfortunately I realised that my Sat- Nav had not read route planner as I navigated Marble Arch trying to avoid tourists on Boris Bikes. Anyway we arrived safe and sound, parked up for the weekend and then spent the rest of the time travelling by Shanks’ pony or on the tube as any ideas that I had about renting a bike had been completely dismissed. Taken from the car as we travelled to our destination; The apartment itself was great situated in Borough and I would definitely stay again. It is a modern building so not for those looking for atmosphere but clean, large enough for us all to have space and the location was good; two mins walk to Borough tube , quite a residential area with lots of places to eat. www.marlinapartments.com/empire-square-apartments.htmlViews from the balcony; A distant partial view of the London Eye and the tower of the Tate Modern? lh4.googleusercontent.com/-NDdOEZbK8XE/USTWU0o84mI/AAAAAAAAODg/sJ-AGBFw_74/s400/IMG_3225.JPG [/img] This building is known as the Razor or the Owl - it especially looks like an owl when it is illuminated at night.
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Post by lugg on Feb 21, 2013 12:14:48 GMT
First we headed for Borough Market , walking down to Southwark St along Borough High St which was the site of the original market. Once was the only route into London from the south so ther were many coaching inns located here ( according to Wiki – 23 in total )The George is the last surviving galleried coaching inn from these days although it is half the size it was originally, now owned by the National Trust. Not all the buildings are as ancient of course
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Post by lugg on Feb 21, 2013 12:50:44 GMT
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Post by bixaorellana on Feb 21, 2013 13:23:09 GMT
Oh, Lugg ~~ what a super report, layout, & absolutely brilliant pictures. Your photos from the moving car are so beautifully framed that they constitute a perfect stand-alone series. And then the market -- wow! The steam in the paella picture wafts right out of the monitor.
Was the market so crowded & the food lines so long because it was the weekend?
Can't wait to see more.
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Post by lugg on Feb 21, 2013 13:38:41 GMT
Thank you Bixa. I have to admit that my niece and sister took those photos from the car as I firmly kept both hands on the steering wheel. ;D
I think that Borough is usually busiest on a Saturday but one of the stall holders said it was exceptionally busy that day. Not sure why, probably a combination of factors including that schools were out for half term, the weather was good and it was British Fashion week. However next time I will go on a Thursday or Friday early am.
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Post by lugg on Feb 21, 2013 13:51:05 GMT
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Post by lugg on Feb 21, 2013 15:02:55 GMT
Coming out of the theatre we spotted another London Institution, the Ivy, perhaps more famous for the celebrities that frequent it rather than the standard of the food. Anyway I stood and watched for a while as I was waiting for my niece to come out of the theatre but did not spot any celebs, perhaps it was too early for them. I wonder if any were lurking behind the stained glass windows? We decided to catch the tube back to St Pauls from Leicester Square and then walk home across the MiMillenniumFootbridge stopping to see what was exhibiting outside at the Tate Modern on the way. I think St Pauls is particularly magical at night The Millennium Bridge is a footbridge which links South and North sides of the Thames from St Pauls to the Tate Modern. I had never been across it before and I think that night time was possibly the best time to first appreciate it and the views . en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Millennium_Bridge,_London Half way across Looking upstream towards Blackfriars The Globe theatre First glimpses of the outside exhibition at the Tate We did not really understand fully what we were viewing in this "immersive installation" by Tony Oursler , “The Influence Machine” but the effects of the smoke and the holograms, as people were walking through were very spooky and atmospheric. It engaged many of the senses not just visual and auditory but also olfactory. Later I read it is about the development of telecommunication, including some of its more sinister aspects. www.tate.org.uk/whats-on/tate-modern/display/tony-oursler-influence-machine-0I struggled to capture it on film but unfortunately the results are not too good, Moving on we walked alongside the south bank of the river, looking back at the Millenium Footbridge Past the Globe And on towards Southwark Bridge regal in purple Finally, dinner from a great little BYOB Indian close to the apartment and so to bed.
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Post by lugg on Feb 21, 2013 16:14:27 GMT
Next day started misty but later became quite lovely with lots of sunshine [/img] [/center] Sunday am and the tube was blessedly quiet after a couple of nightmare journeys yesterday. We were heading first to Covent Garden and later the West End for a late lunch/ early dinner at Hix. Covent Garden is undoubtedly a tourist trap but I always enjoy visiting and watching the street artists, looking around the markets and shops and seeking out the Pearly Kings and Queens. Street entertainment here has its roots many centuries ago. [/img] [/center] I think it was K2 who posted some images of padlocks symbolising love being locked onto bridges in Paris ? Here in Covent Garden it has become a commercial enterprise [/img] [/center] A UK charity Action For Children were holding a major fund raising event to raise money to provide food for UK children who do not get enough to eat. Bizarrely, ( at last to my mind) this was in partnership with Lindt chocolate. However the children seemed to get a great deal of pleasure from seeking out the 101 eggs placed around Covent Garden . Here are all 101 … just a sample. This display is moving to other cities across the UK before returning to Covent Garden at Easter. That is all I have for now from London city except for this one of London’s own modern miniature Flatiron building. To follow ... some photos and impressions of Kew gardens which we visited on our final day.
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Post by tod2 on Feb 21, 2013 16:34:41 GMT
Thoroughly enjoying your photo-report lugg! Can't wait to see your phots of Kew Gardens - wonder if you took a ride on the little train?
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Post by bjd on Feb 21, 2013 17:00:57 GMT
Lugg -- have the Pearly Kings simply become a tourist attraction? what where they doing there?
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Post by htmb on Feb 22, 2013 0:28:26 GMT
Oh, what fun, Lugg. I almost felt like I was along on your little trip!
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Post by lola on Feb 22, 2013 1:14:38 GMT
I especially love the ones of Southwark Bridge and Millenium Bridge/St. Paul's at night.
The Shard is fun, isn't it, piercing the clouds, and those blue men are great.
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Post by lugg on Feb 22, 2013 10:48:10 GMT
Thank youall
Tod , no, unfortunately we did not get to ride on the train this time.
Bjd, Pearlies are long associated with Covent Garden , they are there to raise money for the particular charity they are supporting.
Htmb, it was really such a fun trip.
Lola , think the night views of the bridges and St Pauls are probably my favourites too. I must admit we all liked the Shard , it seems to be not popular amongst London regulars. I did toy with the idea of going up to the viewing platform but at £25 plus per ticket it seemed excessive. Maybe next time. Also it was a great landmark helping us find our way home.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 22, 2013 14:35:47 GMT
This is a great report and even more useful for me since I will be going to the Globe in May -- £80 for the train and £80 for the hotel for a £5 theatre ticket! -- and a grand total of 30 hours in London. I have been scoping out access to the Globe since it is not right next to any tube station, and crossing the Millennium Bridge did seem to be one of the best alternatives. I'm sure we are going to be seeing more and more photos of the Shard in coming years -- everybody has already lost interest in the Gherkin because of it. I always love market photos -- so much to see and so many things going on! Great cocktail of sights and sounds. It looks like you were quite lucky with the weather although it clearly was not super warm.
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Post by auntieannie on Feb 23, 2013 0:48:33 GMT
oh, nice pics! it makes me want to spend more time vsiting, but when I go to London, I tend to hide near uni for the duration of my stay and then scurry across town to take a train home.
thank you for making me want to do more touristic activities around London, Lugg!
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Post by nycgirl on Feb 23, 2013 2:34:50 GMT
Theses photos make me really want to see London again. There's so much I didn't get to do, plus so much has changed in the last few years. The Shard wasn't around when I was there. It looks really nice.
Your nighttime photos are magical. I also like the "new vs. old" shot of St. Paul's reflected in the shopping mall.
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Post by cheerypeabrain on Mar 1, 2013 20:06:50 GMT
Great fun...lovely atmospheric shots of the river and St Pauls too...
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Post by bixaorellana on Mar 1, 2013 21:39:07 GMT
Chiming in quite late to say how much I'm enjoying this fabulous, like-being-there report.
What a sweet & thoughtful thing to do for your niece -- something she'll always remember.
I adored your night shots, but all of the pics are great. That noitcelfer is >>wow<<. It's a big thrill for me to see things in this report that I've only read about before.
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Post by lugg on Mar 2, 2013 11:00:57 GMT
Thank you all. Cheery and Annie - yes I often used to just visit for a conference and pass straight in and out . However a few years ago I decided that I would try to go for a " touristy weekend" once a year because , although I love my rural life sometimes I just need "a bit of city " Although of course there are other great cities in the UK there is just something about London that I love.
K I think that all of the stops around the globe on the south bank are prob just about equidistant , however the walk across either the Millennium or Southwark bridge would be similar distance . I guess it depends where you are coming from.
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Post by lugg on Mar 2, 2013 16:04:38 GMT
On our last day we spent a short few hours in Kew Gardens before heading home . Again it was another lovely day, sunnny with some actual warmth, hinting that Spring will soon be sprung. Unfortuntely, my camera's battery gave up soon after we arrived and so the majority of the photos were taken on either my phone - (rubbish )or my son's i-phone -( better.) We saw a tiny proportion of the massive 160 acres or so but had a few ideas of what we wanted to do niece and son - the tree top walk and I wanted to visit the Marianne North gallery and see some of an indoor exhibition by David Nash who does magical things with wood, so we made the most out of of short time. Some of you already know about my joy at seeing this tree. and the tell-tale knees lh4.googleusercontent.com/-asrloTeZ9HY/UTIcBxc--qI/AAAAAAAAOW8/qRMZT4Ammeo/s400/IMG_0568.JPG [/img] An outdoor Nash sculpture , this one made of cork The Palm House
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Post by lugg on Mar 2, 2013 16:24:46 GMT
The worlds largest indoor plant. The Tree top walk way, I actually I felt quite nervous as I walked around - it was quite springy and see through. young children were racing around and taking great delight in jumping on the particularly springy areas which did not help. From the top 18m Looking down That is it for this visit , just one last photo guys -- I must go back soon with fully charged camera
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Post by mich64 on Mar 2, 2013 22:21:14 GMT
What a fun weekend this must have been and to spend it with your niece, joyful. I enjoyed seeing the inside of the theatre, have read many accounts from reviews and trip reports of how lovely they are inside but I think this is the first time I have actually seen inside one. Some day I hope to visit the Borough Market, the photos from Lola and yourself are just fabulous for me to scour through. The expressions on the children's faces makes me smile with all their amazement looking up at those massive eggs. Wonderful to see some plants sprouting out of the earth, I still have about 3 feet of snow on top of my gardens. The lofted walkways look sturdy enough but with children running back and forth I can imagine the spring in the floor!
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Post by Deleted on Mar 2, 2013 23:04:55 GMT
Really great tree at the end!
I haven't seen much sprouting in Paris, but I know that it is only because I haven't looked yet. Now that we are in March, I'm sure there are things already even blooming.
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Post by bjd on Mar 3, 2013 7:35:51 GMT
We just got back from the coast, where it's a bit milder than here. The camelias had been in full bloom when the cold/snow hit and there were lots of big bushes with brown flowers. The mimosas were blooming too but didn't seem to be affected. And there were narcissus and daffodils out. Getting home I find only the hellebores blooming away. I should add that I'm glad to see that even at Kew Gardens they don't manage to get all the dead leaves off the flowerbeds.
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Post by lola on Mar 4, 2013 20:44:25 GMT
Oh, nice ones of Kew, lugg. The treetop walk looks like a blast for kids.
We have had snowdrops since around then, and when we returned from London January 12 our yard was full of early crocuses. More today, which reminds me I should be out there pruning trees right this minute.
Thanks for a fun report.
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Post by bixaorellana on Mar 6, 2013 2:11:15 GMT
Fabulous, Lugg! Some parts are even the bee's knees. Even though you complain about the photos, some of them are absolutely delightful. The one of the crocuses (?) coming up through the green, green grass under the trees is a joy. Well, I'm actually glad you weren't totally happy with your pics, since you say you'll be going back. What is that round thing in the first photo in #19 please? Usually I can give myself over to art, but must say the Nash sculpture escapes me. How was it in real life?
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Post by lugg on Mar 9, 2013 10:39:46 GMT
Thank you guys , it seems that Spring is beginning in many of our homes. Bixa , the Nash sculptures in real life were generally wonderful, the intricacy of the coiled cork of the dome is not captured well by my photo. However although I enjoyed the outdoor pieces it was the indoor pieces that I really love. Here is a link to the exhibition, www.kew.org/visit-kew-gardens/whats-on/david-nash/works/shirley-sherwood/index.htmThe " world's largest indoor plant " is a Chilean wine palm and was planted as a seed in 1843. I guess it must be one of the oldest indoor plants too.
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Post by mossie on Mar 9, 2013 14:52:36 GMT
"The " world's largest indoor plant " is a Chilean wine palm and was planted as a seed in 1843." That's 170 years , I can't seem to get mine to survive 170 hours ;D Thanks for this walk through Kew Garden Lugg
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Post by htmb on Apr 10, 2013 21:28:13 GMT
I'm just reading through this wonderful thread again and plotting.....
I do believe that cypress tree by the lake must be very old. Cypress grow very slowly and I don't recall seeing many of that size ( am judging by the branches since te whole tree is not in view).
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