[Travel Diary] London, we're watching you!

As already mentioned, Hel and me went on a trip to London. Our first time stepping on British ground! And here is what we got to see from England's big capital.
Oh but first of all, let me tell you that I'm not a London tourist guide and on top of that we didn't have a tourist guide to show as around. In conclusion I'm not going to give you all the historical facts...but if you're out for an honest overview on some of London's tourist attractions - then keep reading! ;)


~ Mary ~

LONDON EYE

A huuuuuge ferris wheel, one of Europe's biggest (if I'm not mistaken)! By night the gondolas are lit in blue which does look really impressive. The gondolas are pretty spacious. To all of you who plan to have a romantic ride à deux: The possibility to ride a gondola all by yourselves will be rather rare (under normal conditions). Still surely is nice to sit in there and have a view on London from above!

BUCKINGHAM PALACE

The official residence of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II! Seemingly a very popular tourist attraction (judging by the huge crowd of people from all over the world standing in front of the palace)! Sadly we couldn't see Queen Elizabeth herself. I don't know if it's just me, but I really wanted to see Her Majesty's graceful waving...I'm serious guys! Not even a change of guards was taking place on the day we went to Buckingham Palace. The change of guards is said to be a must-see event in order to catch a glimpse at Her Majesty's royal guards as they follow their daily routine. 

QUEEN'S GUARDS

On our way to Buckingham Palace we were surprised by a bunch of horse-riding guards crossing the streets towards Hyde Park. Here's a random thing I noticed, maybe you haven't heard of this yet: The traffic lights' sign doesn't show the typical "walking/standing man". At these crossroads you could see a "riding/standing" horse on the traffic lights. Wouldn't it be fun if the horses themselves were to be able to read the traffic light signs...hahaha.

And standing right in front of Buckingham Palace's gate were those two guards. I'm sure you all know these guards from pictures and movies where you usually see them standing there all quiet with a invincible pokerface on. BUT if you imagined those guards to be tall, handsome, well-built British gentleman (well we kind of had that image in mind) then you'll be disappointed. Even from afar you can tell, that those guards are not meant to walk on the runway...

Oh and also, you are not at all able to get close to them. I remember a scene where Mr. Bean (Britain's famous comedian, I'm sure you all know him!) came up to one of those guards trying to distract him with all means in order for him to lose his pokerface. Must have been fun to try that out...but basically the tourists and the guards standing right in front of the palace's entry were separated by the massive golden fence that surrounded the palace and its huge front court. So, no guard teasing possible!

VICTORIA MEMORIAL

A beautiful golden memorial right in front of the Buckingham Palace. To be honest this statue caught my eye even before I noticed that Buckingham Palace was right next to it! The statue is pretty tall and I as a lover of amazing art pieces couldn't help but stare at the memorial before noticing anything else.

BIG BEN

A massive architectural masterpiece! The moment you exit the Westminster underground station you'll see the giant tower right in front of you. Coming out of the station you'll be standing opposite of Big Ben which gives you quite a good angle for some fullsize pictures! With all the clouds and some spots of blue sky right above the tower the view was especially breath-taking as it gave off a misterious, supernatural vibe.

HYDE PARK

London is known to have some of the most beautiful parks and Hyde Park is indeed a large spot of greenness and fresh air in the midst of London's busy traffic. Some sort of marathon event was taking place the day we went to Hyde Park. Quite a large number of joggers were gathering in front of a beautiful pavilion. And here's another random fact: We noticed that the pigeons in the park were strangely quiet, almost super relaxed and care-free. Even walking up really close to them would not scare them away. In fact the pigeons here in Germany seem to be way more hysterical. Hyde Park seemingly is a peaceful place - even for birds! 

KING'S CROSS

For all of you Harry Potter fans we went to King's Cross station where the entrance to Hogwarts is located at Platform 9 3/4! I easily got through the wall and went on a short trip to visit Hagrid in Hogwarts but...on my way out my luggage cart got stuck in the wall...ha ha ha

Of course, this was by far not everything that can be seen and admired in London. As for us, we only had 2 full days to explore the city. Not much for a large city like London. So in order to explore more of London you should take your time and wear a super comfy pair of shoes!!