Coddiwomple Stardate 181203
Our first visit in London was going to be the Natural History Museum. The tube was filled with school children heading for the same museum. Quick change of plans and we went to the V & A museum. V & A is an acronym of Victoria & Albert. It is free entry but they always encourage donations which we always pay. A guide quickly pounced on us advising us what to see. She mentioned a free tour at 11.00am in 15mins time. Only hearing the word free we made our way to the meeting place. It ended up being a tour all about the building itself. Our guide explained about the concept conceived by Prince Albert and the history of the building from its construction in 1852. There have been many extensions to the building and each has its own unique architecture. The tour lasted for over an hour and we both loved every minute. We ended up spending over three hours here and only saw a fraction of the 5000 years of history.
Thursday we attempted the Natural History Museum. Lots of school children again but another large building for the children to get lost in. Before entering Sharon & I were in ore of the architecture of the building. It was built specifically to house all the exhibits of natural history collected up to the time of its opening in 1881. The front fence and building had all varieties of animals depicted in it. Once we stepped inside to the Hintze Hall we were impressed. We didn't worry about the exhibits we just loved finding all the art built into the building. We absolutely loved the Museum of Natural History in New York and we felt like we were just duplicating what we have already seen.
Friday we made our way to Covent Gardens to meet up with Peter, someone we met through a mutual friend. We also met up with Peter last time we were in London. We had two hours to fill in before meeting him. We started to just wander around. Sharon checking out all the sparkly shops before coming across Choccywoccydoodah. As the name implies it is a chocolate shop. After a very expensive indulgence in chocolate we left. With lots of sugar racing through our veins we came quickly across a Christmas Market in Leicester Square. Sharon was attracted by the shiny stuff again. We then stumbled on the National Portrait Gallery. Another donation. The gallery has the original portraits of many historical figures. It was fascinating finding portraits of people we have been following throughout the UK. Then it was time to meet Peter and spend the afternoon and early evening with him.
Saturday we needed to walk off all the indulgence from the previous day. I decided to walk to Hampstead Heath Park. From the park we made our way to Kenwood House. Sharon realised the building was used in a scene from Notting Hill. Then to Spaniards Inn for lunch. This is the oldest pub in London Est 1585. It was originally the entrance for the Bishop of London's Estate. Our walk ended up being a leisurely 11km.
Sunday with a full day ahead of us we made our way to the Churchill War Rooms. We had booked a time slot of 12.30pm. With limited space in the underground rooms a time slot is necessary to control the vast amount of people who want to see the rooms. Once in, you can stay and wander around as much as you like. With war imminent the Cabinet War Rooms began its construction in June 1938. They became fully operational on the 27th August 1939 one week before Britain declared war on Germany. The cabinet war rooms were first used on the 15th October 1940 one day after a bomb hit 10 Downing St. All the clocks are set to 4.58pm which represents the time of the first war cabinet meeting. The war rooms were then manned 24 hrs a day 7 days a week until the Japanese surrendered on August 14th 1945. All the staff just left and some of the rooms are left exactly the way they where on that day 0ver 78 years ago. There is a museum dedicated to the life of Winston Churchill and many rooms set up as they were over 80 years ago.
Next on the list was an organ recital at Westminster Abbey by Alexander Hamilton. He played music by Cecilia McDowall and J.S. Bach. It is a half hour free recital every Sunday. Last time we were here we had not long been in London and had been awake for over 35 hours. I think I snored through that one. This time I stayed awake to enjoy the music.
Then it was onto Whitechapel. Yes the place of the infamous Jack the Ripper. The cost of the walking tour was $17.50 Au and went for nearly 2 hours. It is probably one of the cheaper touristy things to do in London. Our group had about 30 of us in it. We were only one group of many that night and every night. So Jack the Ripper should be payed royalties. The first of his murders was on the 3rd April 1888 and the last was 13th February 1891. There could of been up to 11 murders relating to Jack the Ripper but only 6 confirmed. Originally called the Whitechapel murders by police. It wasn't until the police started to receive confessions by thousands of people the name changed. One letter was signed Jack the Ripper. Although it was dismissed as the true murderer the media ran with the name. Although old converted warehouses can now sell for up to $7,000,000 Au the area was once the cesspool of London. It was where many immigrants ended up seeking a new life. If you wanted somewhere to sleep you had to pay 4 pence per night to sleep in what they called a coffin. It was a box just wide enough to sleep in, filled with soiled hay. For 2 pence a night you got to sleep sitting up with a rope in front of you to prevent you from falling over. I was expecting to walk down dark alleyways as always depicted by movies. Unfortunately it was all well lit and most of the buildings don't exist anymore. We were shown photos of what the area looked like back at the time. As usual Hollywood has portrayed the events of a well educated man that was well dressed murdering prostitutes. The truth is far different. The only genuine letter from Jack the Ripper was written by a poor educated person. The letter had many spelling errors. I wont go into details with this blog but it was a disturbing way they knew the letter was genuine. There were some witnesses to Jack the Ripper and he was not in a coat and top hat. We were also shown pictures of the murdered women which I will also not describe here. Many people in the group could not view the images and the name Jack the Ripper is very appropriate. It was a very informative walk. Sharon and I both came to the same conclusion. The murderer must of been a butcher which explains how he could of done so much damage to a human when at one time he only had a 12 min window of opportunity. Which we think explains how no one would of taken any notice of him covered in blood.
Monday, Sharon and I went our separate ways. Sharon left to catch up with friends. Her 1 1/2 hour trip turned into 3 hrs. She didn't have her navigation guide with her (me). I went to the Imperial War Museum. Last time I was in London it was closed for renovations. The war museum opened while the 1st world war was raging in 1917 and has the usual 1st & 2nd world war and all the other conflicts UK have been involved in since the opening of the museum. It is very well layed out and much information available to read. There is one level dedicated to the holocaust with many narrations from survivors. The one exhibit that did catch my attention was the front section of a Lancaster Bomber. This bomber had flown 49 missions and had an Australian crew. The plane was called Old Fred. I remember my Uncle over 40 years ago talking about piloting Lancaster Bombers during the second world war. The name Old Fred even sounds familiar. So I'm hoping my cousin who reads my blog may even be able to add to this story. Four and a half hours later I left.
Tuesday, we decided just to go to the movies to see Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald. Sharon and I were the only ones in the whole cinema. Both standard tickets cost us $53.30 Au and wondered if this was the reason no one else was in the cinema. We did enjoy the movie but the price left me feeling bitter.
Wednesday, our last full day in London was spent at Hampton Court Palace. Originally leased by Cardinal Thomas Wolsey until falling out of favour with Henry VIII who bought the land in 1520's and kicked out Wolsey. Henry VIII then started to expand it into a elaborate palace. We arrived at 11.00am just in time to join a tour about the history of the palace and the three courts inside the walls. Our guides were in period costume. After this tour we joined another one with the same guides. This time it was more like a pantomime about a brother and sister related to Jane Seymour one of Henry's wives. We wandered the vast gardens walked through the maze and after nearly 5 hours we left. Certainly a place you could spend more time at.
Thursday we caught the SW train down to Bournemouth to meet the next two puppies we will be looking after in December. Their names are Rex and Rocco two miniature Schnauzers. Their owners are Craig, Dawn, Olivia & Sophie.
Friday, we walked to the car rental company much to Sharon's disapproval. Craig offered us a lift but I declined it was a nice sunny day and only 1 hr away by walking. This time our car is a dark blue Renault Clio with only 1000 miles on the clock. One of my gripes about many of the cars we have rented is the push button start. I like the start button but none of the cars have had somewhere convenient to store the huge key fobs until now. The Clio has a flat key like a remote contol and has a slot in the dash you can store it. So clever.
Saturday, 1st of December we were invited to help the family put up the Christmas tree. Which Sharon was very enthusiastic about helping Olivia & Sophie. It will also make it very Christmassy for our stay here. That night was a cocktail party for neighbours that Craig & Dawn where hosting. There were 25 people who attended, all well dressed up in Tuxedo's and ball gowns except us. Sharon at least had a nice dress plus she bought more shoes for the occasion. I wore my hiking boots. It was a great night and Craig's cocktails were a hit. Sharon and I now know many neighbours and we shouldn't get strange looks by people in the street. I also found a few to share a beer or two at the local. I have been promised real ale from wooden casks.
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