The London Traveler

Big Ben recently celebrated his birthday -  and so I thought it was time for a post on possibly the most famous of all London icons.
Lots of people call the big clock tower of the Houses of Parliament ‘Big Ben’. But this is wrong; it’s the bell, all 13 tons or so, which is called Ben.
No one knows for sure how he got his nickname. (Officially he’s “the Great Bell”.) He’s said to have been named after Sir Benjamin Hall, who was the commissioner of works for the new Palace of Westminster, rebuilt after a disastrous fire in 1844; but …read more

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You probably don’t think of London as a great place for a wildlife holiday. But the London Wetland Centre offers a chance to go on safari through the reed beds and pools, spotting both native and migrant birds, with a fair number of other interesting creatures.
It’s worth visiting several times in the year, if you get the chance, as the kind of birds you’ll see varies by the season. At the moment, you’ll see wintering ducks (teal and gadwals), and flocks of siskins; redwing and fieldfare. The bittern and water rails are easier to identify by their sound – …read more

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The Romantic City – I’m in lurve
You can’t have failed to notice that Valentine’s day is coming up. And if you’re in love, and want to show it, what could be nicer – London can be one of the most romantic cities in the world.
Now you could, if you wanted to, take a Valentine’s trip on the London Eye. It’s been decorated with a huge heart for the occasion, and offers special ‘Red Rose Flights’ and ‘Champagne Flights’. But it will cost you – £20 for the red rose and £33/35 for the champagne one.  Or, from the same site, …read more

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If you want to see the best of the royal palaces in London, in my mind there’s only one choice. Ignore Buckingham Palace, don’t bother with St James’s – take a trip out of town and spend the day at Hampton Court.
 

Hampton Court is practically two palaces in one. First of all, there’s the fine red brick Tudor palace started by Cardinal Wolsey – the last flush of the Gothic style. And secondly, there’s the fine baroque palace by Sir Christopher Wren – an English rival to Versailles.
Wolsey began the palace in 1514. It wasn’t just his private residence – …read more

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Charlie Wilson’s War has been a film sensation in the United States, and the UK premier will be taking place in London’s Leicester Square on Wednesday, January 9th.
The film is the story about how a Texas Congressman, Charlie Wilson, conspired with the CIA to assist the Afghans fight the Soviets after their 1980 invasion of Afghanistan. Tom Hanks plays against type as Charlie Wilson, the playboy Texas Congressman. Julia Roberts plays a socialite, and Phillip Seymour-Hoffman plays the CIA operative.
The premier will be taking place at the Empire Cinema on Leicester Square. If you arrive in the …read more

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There is one exclusive ceremony in London that, with prior planning, anyone can experience. That event is the Ceremony of the Keys at the Tower of London.
This ceremony has been performed daily for around seven hundred years. Originally a very practical event, where the Tower was locked every evening, it is now a very private ceremony. The ceremony has in fact never been photographed. (There are one or two photographs that have been taken, but those were of practice ceremonies.) It takes just around five to ten minutes, and is really quite simple.
A …read more

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Everyone that visits London should visit the Tower of London. Built initially by William the Conquerer nearly a thousand years ago, it has served as a home for kings, a zoo, an armory, a prison (with torture devices), an execution site, and now as the home of the Crown Jewels. You can check out a lot more history of the Tower of London on its Wikipedia page.
The Tower is one of the best tourist attractions in London. There’s history, the highly entertaining Beefeaters (Yeoman Warders), the Crown Jewels, and more. I highly recommend planning to spend …read more

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Many tourists that visit London want to see as much as possible, in as short a time as possible. Bus tours are a way to make that happen. They travel past all the major sites, you can get on and get off as you wish, and with live guides on board, they can give you a real feel for the way London looks and point you in the direction of what else you might want to see on your visit.
There are two major tour bus operators in London: the Big Bus Tour and The Original Tour. I’ll …read more

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One of London’s more unique museums recently opened after a two-year and £22million renovation. One week ago today, the completely re-designed museum opened to the public. If you’re at all interested in the systems that make up London’s public transportation infrastructure (trains/tube, buses, trams, etc.), then it is certainly worth a visit!
Here are photos of just some of the new exhibits:

If you’re not all that interested in the museum, but instead just want to relax for a bit, you can do so in the museum’s new cafe:

The building itself is in the heart of the Covent Garden area, …read more

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Rockefeller Center in New York has a famous Christmas tree, (most likely because of the NBC studios there!) London has a famous Christmas tree of its own every year in Trafalgar Square, one of the best public areas in the city. (Lots of statues, fountains, big lions, and views down to Parliament and Big Ben.)
Each year, Norway gives a Christmas tree (over 20 metres, aka 60 feet high!) to the city of London as a sign of gratitude toward British support to Norway in World War II. The official lighting ceremony of this years’ tree will take …read more

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