- Aji Restaurant
- The London Eye
- Uber River Boat (aborted)
- The Household Calvary Museum
- The British Museum
- Crown and Anchor
- Ben's Fish and Chips
- Donutelier
As the first thing getting away from the flat, we decided to ride the London Pass a bit more, adding a few more drive-bys we hadn't seen before.
A note on dust and air born particles here in London. They are extreme. I don't know if it's a seasonal thing, or a constant, but my eyes are constant full of grit and I'm sneezing/coughing. And it's not just me, everyone you see walking around is doing the same. Pollution? Pollen? Shed skin cells from millions of people living here for the last few thousand years? Maybe it's better not to know.
That aside, after the bus ride, we stopped for lunch at a Japanese restaurant on the West side of the river, just over the bridge. The Aji Restaurant serves up traditional Japanese ramen, rice and noodle dishes. It was tasty and in a peaceful environment, in spite of being steps away from a tourist path.
We scheduled our ride on the London Eye (450 ft tall Ferris wheel) immediately after lunch. It was a short walk to the queue. While loading up, we saw a guy on a power wheel chair nearly drive off the ramp and into the Thames while loading into the compartment next to ours. He had a front wheel over the edge and (luckily!) got stuck. They had to lift his chair off of there to get him unstuck.
The ride itself was fine, even though we were trapped in our 20x30 ft egg shaped compartment with a crying baby. Who brings a baby onto the London Eye? Forget about the chance of dropping the kid in the Thames, what about exposing him to the germs and unknown diseases of several thousand people he's passing by? Not to mention the exhalations of 25 fellow passengers, who are trapped in the sealed chamber with him? I don't understand young parents these days.
Once off the Eye, we walked back across the bridge to the Uber Boat pier. We picked a West bound route (seemed like fewer people) and waited to board. After about 10 or 15 minutes of waiting, I suggested we abort. The trip would take us further away from activities, where we'd have to disembark and wait for another boat back. Plus, they were all enclosed boats and appeared very crowded.
So, we walked back up from the Thames in time to see the changing of the Household Calvary guards (video below). Then we checked out the Household Calvary museum. The Household Calvary is considered the King's personal bodyguard and is very active in military engagements. 4 members and 7 horses were killed in a tragic 1982 IRA bombing at Hyde Park.
We then came back for a short break at the flat, then marched off again to the British Museum We got there a half an hour before closing. Not much time to spend in such a large museum, so I opted to sit outside and enjoy a Coca Cola while the other 3 went in to see whatever they could. Honestly, I didn't need any more fuel for my dislike of British empire and their ... "involuntary appropriation" of cultural artifacts (mentioned in the last post).
When the crew emerged, we retired to a pub called the "Crown and Anchor" for a pint and a debrief. Thirst quenched, Yelena wanted fish and chips so she could compare to the Irish version. We went to a Coventry Garden neighborhood shop called "Ben's Fish and Chips" The surrounding was simple... stools and a small table on the sidewalk. But (I'm told) the fish and chips were great. Personally, I ordered a steak and kidney pie, as I had yet to try one of those. I wish I would've ordered the fish and chips.đŸ˜’
As an after dinner treat for our last night in London, we walked to "The Donutelier" and ordered 3 of the fanciest donuts I've ever seen. Mine was the vanilla pecan. Excellent! Natalie had a pistachio and Austin had a strawberry creme.
Video:
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