Sunday, and it’s gorgeous here in London! Sunny, not hazy, +20, and a light wind. Hyde Park is packed, everyone is out…. But I’m getting ahead of myself. I woke up early today (on my own, the upstairs neighbors were conspicuously quiet this morning), but didn’t leave my place until around 9:45. I took the Central line from Lancaster Gate (which I just figured out yesterday was a block away and closer than Paddington!) to the British Museum. No surprise, but I got a little lost between the tube and the Museum but, after taking a minute to look at my map, I was soon on the right track and headed to the museum and got there around 10:15. It was already busy, but I think I can thank the nice weather for it not being a total zoo in there.
I started off by wandering around the main court and, for once, taking pictures! This was the first museum I’ve been in all week that didn’t jump all over you for taking pictures – I attributed that to the fact that the exhibits are mainly artifacts and not paintings/documents that are vulnerable to repeated flashes of light. The Rosetta Stone was almost impossible to see, but the Lord Elgin Marbles were a nice treat. I had an audio guide so learned a lot about what I was seeing. I wandered around for a couple of hours seeing the famous (and not so famous) treasures of the British Museum. My favorite gallery though had to be the Enlightenment Wing. It was just a hodge podge of various collected items, some housed in class encased bookshelves, others in little cases, and still others on pedestals. I can only assume that gallery used to be the home of the King’s Library (that has since been moved to the British Library), as the Museum used to be the Library’s home. I could have spent hours in there, very happily, had I been allowed to look at the books. I guess I’m going through book mould withdrawals…
By 1pm I was over the whole walking and learning thing (I’m fickle, what can I say?). I headed out looking for somewhere to eat. All the pubs within a block of the museum were packed, but I found a burger restaurant only a block and a half away that kicks The Works’ ass. I realized while eating that I haven’t actually had a decent serving of meat since getting here (just fish and chips and lots of salads). After lunch, I headed back to the Tube station and back to Lancaster Gate station. I wandered into Hyde Park for an ice cream cone and a bit of a walk, but after a few minutes the heat and my long day caught up with me, so I headed back to my apartment only to meet up with the cleaning lady in the hallway who told me she wasn’t done in my room yet (at 3pm!).
All I can say, is that I’m looking forward to the classier establishments I’ll be staying at for the next week. I’ll leave here tomorrow morning for the first hotel of my tour, but I’ll have the day to do what I’d like. Monday is a bank holiday here, so I’m not sure what will be open and closed, so I think I’ll be taking my book and wandering through the city’s parks (it was supposed to rain, but this morning they were saying it’s supposed to be nice…. Thanks Met Office, you wankers). I might see if the National Portrait Gallery will be open.
Best random moment of the day:
-I saw a young woman, about my age on the tube, wearing a full out 1980s-style cream coloured silk wedding dress. She didn’t appear to be on her way to a wedding, but you never know….
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