We had a seven hour layover in London on our way to Tanzania. We knew we would be tired, but we didn't really want to waste it sitting / sleeping in the airport. So I conned my friend Steve Misek into meeting us at the airport. He shepherded us down the tube and into town, where we got a quick catch-up tour of the waterfront, walking from Big Ben up to the Tower. Dona and I had both been to London before quite a few years ago, and it was nice to see all the coal ash cleaned off the buildings. Dona also enjoyed seeing some of the buildings that were designed using concepts based on discoveries about how mom nature had designed things.
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| Big Ben | St. Paul's Cathedral |
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| Globe Theater | The Shard |
One of the fun things about walking around London is you come upon old buildings, or pieces of them, in odd places. It's kind of a temporary step back in time, and breaks up the ordinariness of a walk down the street. I have no idea what the crane type aparatus sticking out from the building in the picture below is, or was.
I can't remember what the old church wall was. I think it was the archbishop's quarters for St. Pauls, but I'm not sure about that. There's a big hole in the ground where the rest of the building belongs. Maybe there are people buried under there.
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| Arch / alleyway with old Crane | Archbishop's Quarters | |
A bit further on and we came to a replica of Sir Francis Drake's ship, the Golden Hinde II. Apparently it's a full-sized replica of the original. I like old ships, if they aren't dressed up too much as a tourist attraction.
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| Golden Hinde II | |
We didn't have time to do more than walk along the river and play tourist, but it sure beat sitting at the airport. It was good to touch base with my friend Steve. Oh, and if you ever have a chance to hire him, for anything, you won't regret it.
Then it was back to the airport on the tube and an overnight flight to actual Africa.
This page last updated on 2014-04-07.
