Day 7: 7/6, Paris - Restful morning and touring the left bank

Day 7 - 7/6

With Versailles being cut from our agenda, we took a much needed restful break for the first half of the day. We woke up around the later hour of 9 am, a good indication about how necessary this break was needed, and slowly made our way to the kitchen. For breakfast we had some brewed coffee (yay!), yogurt, and baguettes with brie. Olivia had a hard time understanding the concept of how to eat the cheese and bread together.

I spent a majority of the late morning and early afternoon writing while Janine read and watched Olivia play with the toys of our host’s son. At 12:10 we were interrupted with air raid sirens coming from outside. At first, we were a little concerned about the noise but noticed everyone walking on the street were unphased, so I turned to Google for explanation. It turns out that this is a routine siren test they perform on the first Wednesday of every month at 12:10pm. Here is a video by another traveler. I wrapped up my work around 1pm and we headed out to grab lunch and do a self-guided walking tour around Paris’ left bank. We grabbed a couple of bagel sandwiches from a nearby shop and made our way to the bus stop. One thing we learned was that Paris’ metro system is not stroller friendly, so we stuck to their more accommodating bus system for our time in Paris.

Left Bank Walk

The left bank of Paris refers to the half of the city residing on the left bank of the river Siene that runs through the city. With its winding medieval streets and historical role of playing host to many artists, poets, and intellectuals the left bank is considered the free wielding creative half while the right bank hosts logically planned housing, government buildings, and wider streets. It is said that each bank represents both sides of Paris’ traditional and liberal groups. Our walk through the left bank of Paris was originally intended to be an two hour jaunt through the old streets of the city, but toddler delays and underestimating our tendency to linger made this a four hour tour.

Left: Abbey of Saint-Germain-des-Prés Top Left: Luxembourg Gardens Bottom Right: La Procope cafe

We started our tour on the Pont de arts bridge looking over the river Seine. I was glad they finally got rid of the cheesy love locks on the bridge after a panel fell off into the river due to the sheer weight of the added metal. Our tour walked us through haunts and homes of famous creatives such as Oscar Wilde. It also took us to an old coffee shop called La Procope, although it's now ran as a higher end restaurant. This joint played hosts to the likes of Voltaire, Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin,  and Napoleon (rumoured to still have an unpaid tab). I was really tempted to walk in for a coffee and be enamoured with the historical decour, but we were edging towards dinner time and I felt my shorts and t-shirt wouldn’t go well in there.

We then visited Abbey of Saint-Germain-des-Prés, is the oldest church in Paris and was once one of the richest in France until the French Revolution. Afterwards we strolled over to see St. Sulpice church that looked very similar to St. Paul’s in London before landing at the Luxembourg Gardens. Olivia had fun running around the wide promenades and attempting to make friends with Parisian children (although being rebuffed). At some point the day began to wear on Olivia and we needed to get dinner.

I found a nice place nearby called Boucherie Roulière. Our waiter was very friendly to us and patient with a cranky Olivia. This would also be our first time noticing that children are rarely seen at Parisian restaurants, which made it more awkward when Olivia would jump around or cry. The dinner itself was fantastic and possibly the best we would have for that leg of the trip. I had the steak and frites with peppercorn sauce while Janine had the roast duck. Olivia had, but didn’t end, a cheese ravioli dish in a cream sauce. After dinner we made a fruitless attempt at getting diapers only to find that all drug stores close at 8pm and the one that would be open till 9 had moved elsewhere, so we made our way home and got back at the late hour of 10.

Day 6: Cheers London, Bonjour Paris!

7/5/16, British Library and Paris

Like my other visits, I am a little sad to leave London. There is never enough time to take in and savor this city. I am however, not sad about leaving our apartment. I will not miss lugging Olivia up and down the six flight of stairs. I have to admit though, my endurance did improve and this will be evidence in an upcoming story.

After packing and cleaning up, we left the apartment and had a late breakfast in front of a cafe at the ground floor of our building. Janine enjoyed the European take on waffles, which is sweeter and more dessert like than the American faire. I had the restaurants Continental Breakfast that came with fruit, yogurt, and a couple of pastries served on a tiered tea tray. Olivia shared off both of our plates.

After breakfast, I loaded up all of our gear like a pack mule and hauled it to the Tottenham Court Station en route to St. Pancras station where Eurostar departs. It definitely felt like a feat of strength moving through crowds with two heavy pieces of luggage. Once we arrived to St. Pancras we left our luggage at a storage shop for a small fee and hopped on over to the neighboring British Library.

British Library

(Photo: Wikipedia)

The British Library was the final destination for many of the books and works that were moved from the British Museum’s reading room. The British Library hosts many of the country's literary treasures and puts some of them on display for visitors. This is not a normal library in a traditional sense, think of the British Library the same as the National Archives.

Patrons who would like to look at works for research must register and reserve an item in a designated reading room. Upon arrival, all backpacks and marking items (pens, highlighters, etc) are checked in and the patron is given a clear plastic bag to hold their laptop and other acceptable belongings. This is all done to protect the integrity of the works as well as prevent theft.

Treasures Gallery

Non-researchers flock to the library for their Treasures Gallery. This room holds many of Britain’s notable literary treasures. Photos were not allowed in the exhibits, so the following pictures will be borrowed from the web.

(Photo: British Library)

The collection consists of various books, maps, and letters from around the world. Some notable items for me were the Gutenberg Bible, Oldest known copy of Beowulf, and personal letters by famous Brits.

Guttenberg Bible (1454-55)

(Photo: J. Katrencik)

This wasn’t the first or second time I have seen the Gutenberg Bible, but I enjoy my encounter with the book each time. There is a chill that goes down my spine knowing the significance of this book not just for Christendom, but Western Civilization. The Gutenberg Bible (1454-55) was the first major book published using a printing press. Prior to this time Bibles and other books had to be made by hand, thus making them prohibitively expensive for the common person to enjoy. With the introduction of the printing press, the Bible and other works were made cheaper for anyone to grab a copy and study for themselves. The ease of access and mass producing of knowledge helped propel Europe from the Middle Ages to the Renaissance and allowed people to further question the world around them.

Beowulf Manuscript (Story: 700-1000 CE, Manuscript: 975-1010 CE)

(Source: Wikipedia)

The oldest copy of Beowulf has a place in my heart more so from my college years then for teaching purposes. Beowulf is an old English epic poem telling the story of the namesakes’ heroic feats of defeating three different monsters. The copy displayed in the library is the oldest known manuscript and is shown singed and re-mounted on pages from a fire in 1731. Due to technological limitations of the time, well intentioned efforts of restoring the manuscript made further permanent damage to the copy. This book has significance for me because I had to study this epic for two different classes while in college. I spent a lot of time studying and getting to know this work (using the Seamus Heaney version, of course) and trying to connect it to the life of an englishman during the Anglo-Saxon invasion. On a personal level, Beowulf is an inside joke between my wife and I as an awesome name for our first child. I lost this battle, but I have high hopes for number two.

Famous Letters

There were various personal letters on display from various famous Brits. One from Henry VIII enquiring about the divorcing process to one of his wives. Another from Admiral Horatio Nelson with the last unfinished letter to his wife. These primary sources represent not only major movers and shakers of their time, but how they reacted to the major events going on around them. At face value, a lot of it is mundane discussion, but reading in between the lines and the Nelson’s ominous “we heard of the French gathering near Trafalgar.” Turns a simple letter home into a treasured document.

Unfortunately, the most notable item was not on display since they were “resting” it, the Magna Carta (1215). I have seen it before, but I was a little upset that it wasn’t on display. Last year there was a celebration for the Magna Carta’s 800 year anniversary with a lot of new material exploring the significance of the document. With all the fun last year, it was best to let document rest from public view for a year. Maybe next time.

By this point Olivia had long since been awake and we were taking turns watching her while the other explores the documents. Before leaving the library we made a pit stop at their latest pop-up exhibit on Punk Rock:

The exhibit featured various photos, artifacts, and listening stations of various bands who founded early punk rock. The exhibit primarily featured the Sex Pistols, without diving much further into their historical context. I am not a huge fan of punk, but I was hoping for a better story to be told beyond the explanation of some memorabilia.

Train to Paris

We left the British Library and walked back the short distance to St Pancras station for our train. We stopped by the station’s Marks & Spencers to pick up some lunch items and grabbed our bags from the luggage holding shop. We wasted a few minutes waiting in front the baby changing room for a woman who did not have a baby, but prefered not to wait in line. Knowing we had a train to catch, we left but not after giving a strong passive aggressive knock on the door. That’ll show her.

We made our rush for the train platform. This is when things get hectic and confusing. It’s usually at this point Janine and begin to have arguments about where signs are and what they mean. We figure out where the departure entrance is and begin the screening process. We are split up two different sides of the screening lines and rushed through. I emptied my pockets of all my gadgets and gizmos (Pebble Time watch, 2 iPhones, and a Fitbit One) and put my backpack through scanner. I picked up my backpack on the other side and met up with Janine. Our journey through border control was pretty smooth and we ended up on the platform in front of our train. In a sigh of relief I lifted up my wrist to see how much time we had to spared and realized it was still missing. Oh, s**t! It’s not there. I immediately check my pockets for my iPhone, gone too. I left my stuff at the security gate! I told Janine to stay there and I bolted for the nearest exit, which was at the end of the platform a reasonable distance away. I heard her behind me in the distance “No matter what, we won’t board this train!” I was in flight or fight mode and had a singular direction, but as I was running the fastest I had in awhile (should thank the daily six story climb!) I didn’t think of the consequences of running like a madman through a security controlled platform. As I was dashing down the long escalator ramp reality began to return and I heard a voice from behind me scream “Oy! What are you doing!? You can’t go down there!” and I stopped. I then began my slow awkward jog in the reverse direction of an escalator passing by the angry platform agent standing above me and meeting a nice attendant waiting for me at the top wondering what I needed. I tried to defuse the situation with a corny joke “running on this is like going to the gym!” Don’t think it worked. I explained to her my situation and she said, “oh! You should have just asked us.” we then walked back across the platform near Janine and went down a nearby elevator (felt super foolish by this point). I gave her a detailed explanation of my missing items.

The attendant and I proceeded back through the waiting room, through border control, and let back into security where I saw all my items waiting for me. The fellow at the desk asked me to use my password to open up both phones as confirmation that they were my property and I was then allowed to retrieve the rest of my items. The attendant and I then made our way back to the platform. As we were both standing on what seemed like an extremely  slow moving escalator I asked her if I am the only jackass who does this. Thankfully, this is a fairly common occurrence. In fact she told me that people will leave entire bags and even children at the security checkpoint. I met Janine at the top with a few minutes to spare before the train departed. We got on the train, found our seats, and sat there for a short time while I caught my breath. The train began to make its way out of the station and we were on our way to France.

We began to unpack our lunches and I drank through most of my water from my previous early afternoon wind sprints. I have to hand it to the Brits, they know how make good potato chips (er, crisps). We sat their quietly munching our meal and observing the other people in the car. We saw the rare American family traveling with a 4 year old and 10 year old. We also overheard the story of a couple next to us that sounded a lot like a mail order bride situation. That dude made at least two grabs for her butt whenever she got up. The train made one stop before crossing the channel where we met the gentleman who would ride with us in our quad chairs. The fellow was very gracious with us and our cranky toddler. He offered to let me move over to the spare seat on his side to spare us from dealing with a lap child. We spent some time chatting about his work in IT and how he uses this train often to meet with clients in France and Belgium. He believed that his services are a lot more effective when working face to face with clients whom English is their second language.

The train pulled into Paris and took a cab to our new AirBnB on the left bank. Janine and I were overjoyed to see that this place had an elevator. Our dinner consisted of frozen pizza and a salad from a small store across the street from us.

Our host greeted us with a bottle of wine

After putting Olivia down for the night we discussed tomorrow’s plans and read about how the palace of Versailles wouldn’t allow for strollers through the house. This would make life very miserable and loose any meaningful value from that visit. Despire the fact the gardens would allows strollers, we agreed that Versailles wouldn’t be a viable option and tomorrow. As a consolation, we finished the night off with me showing Janine various 360 interactive panoramas of Versailles on a projector in our bedroom.

Day 5: Last day in London

July 4th, Princess Diana Memorial Playground and British Museum

Princess Diana Memorial Playground

Our day started began mid-morning with a trip to Princess Diana Memorial Playground located in Kensington Gardens. The playground’s design was inspired by Peter Pan with playground equipment resembling teepees, pirate ships, and dinghies for the little ones. Olivia (and us) thoroughly enjoyed the park and their thoughtfulness in the design of the layout. Each area of the playground has equipment that is age appropriate and surrounded by bamboo or a hedge to prevent our toddler from seeing whether or not the grass is greener on the other side (which it was). They are also very particular about making sure that no adult may enter unless there is a child to accompany them. I noticed most of the children there were foreign nationals accompanied by their mothers. Olivia enjoyed the swings and exploring the sandbox. We had trouble trying to explain to Olivia that unlike daycare, she wasn’t allowed to go up to any unused toy to freely play with it.

Burgers

Since today was the 4th of July we felt it was our duty as American citizens to have at least one hamburger, so we went to Byron’s for dinner. I had some fantastic bacon typer burger while Janine got a classic cheese burger. We split an order of onion rings and fries while Olivia barely touched her Mac N Cheese. My patriotism and stomach were bursting by the end of the meal. The meal was good, but it did taking time out of our next stop…

British Museum

This is on the list of museums I never have enough time to see and my frustration hit peak levels as our best laid plans of touring the galleries were foiled by an awake toddler. We began our tour with an accident induced frantic search for a diaper changing stall. Once that crisis was solved, we made our way to the Egyptian wing. Olivia knocked out not too long after we moved past the hordes of people admiring the Rosetta Stone. I am not much for Egyptology, but there were a few sights that I found interesting. I saw a good example about the profound effect a conquering nation/culture can have on their subjects. The classical Egyptian burial would often look like this, but as Egyptians began living under Greek, and subsequently Roman, control they shifted away from their traditional methods. This resulted in painted portraits on their sarcophagus, which is often called The Fayum Mummy Portraits. I was largely impressed with the interactive model of the famed Gebelein Man. I had seen this exhibit before, but since I have returned they had completed a CT scan on the remains to allow museum goers to go through there different levels of tissue and bone of the deceased and walk through the cause of death. I always enjoy when history and science come together in cool ways!

I found myself growing frustrated that the little time we had left in the museum was being eaten away by the large tourist groups swarming around particular items. This also didn’t help the fact that the large number of tourists happened to wake up Olivia thus making our time/attention split between dodging people, claiming a toddler, and enjoying the museum. Halfway through the Egypt wing we had to play smart and figure that 90% of these groups probably don’t clamour for Assyrian art, so we cut our losses and went to Nimrod...er...Nimrud! As expected, not a busy section of the museum, but we still had to deal with our daughter who was increasingly angry that we wouldn’t let her touch/climb/smack whatever she wanted in the museum. This too had to be cut short.

In our last desperate attempt for making this trip worth the frustration, we went to the Greek exhibits. Funny enough, Olivia began to chill out as we toured the Elgin Marbles. We left the Greek wing and made our way back to the center of the museum. I wanted to try to poke my head into the reading library where Karl Marx, Lenin, and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle studied, but it was closed. It would have most likely been an empty room anyways since they moved all the books to the British Library awhile back and use it for special exhibits and random events.

The larger importance of the British Museum for me isn’t so much what is inside the museum, but how the items were acquired. The museum really is a testament to British Empire and their ability to acquire items from places they have been around the globe. The Elgin Marbles, in reality should be called the Parthenon marbles, are a perfect example of this. The story behind how Earl Elgin acquired the marbles under Turkish approval is a bit shady, but the British at the time whole heartedly believed that it was their duty as the torch bearers of Western Civilization they needed to protect the culture and heritage. Of course, Greece does not see it this way and it has been a sore spot in Anglo-Grecco relations. With most items in the museum, I often find the story of acquirement the most interesting.

Once we left the museum we walked back to our apartment and made a quick stop in the Tesco for an easy dinner. On the menu for that night was ready made mash, microwaveable peas/carrots, oven ready Toad in the Hole, and a oven ready Cornish Beef Pasty. Bon appetit! As we prepped our meal and began discussing plans for our big travel day tomorrow, we noticed that there was a lot of activity outside that night. We watched crews assemble screens and barricades for the following night’s London premiere for Tarzan.  As you may recall, Leicester square’s Odeon theater is the major spot for London major film premiers.

Tomorrow would be a big travel day for Paris with a pit stop at the British Library

Day 4: Cranky Ken Staying Local

7/3, National Gallery and Westminster, London

Rough Morning

Chalk it up to time zone adjustment or something else, but I could not fall asleep last night until 2am. Unfortunately for me, my 2 year old alarm woke up at 6:30am. Janine tried to do the kind thing and get Olivia ready for the day elsewhere while I slept in, but there was a severe diaper accident and screaming that echoed through the bathroom and into the bedroom. This awoken the sleep deprived version of myself, who is not very pleasant to be around. This would set the tone for the first half of the day where my patience was short, my words were negative, and my appreciation for fine art was lacking.

We left the flat around 10:00 am and grabbed a quick bite to eat at the nearby Costa Cafe in Leicester Square. Janine got a mocha and I had an Americano, by this point I am beginning to miss my tried and true American brewed coffee. I did, however, enjoy the (British) bacon and brie baguette sandwich.

National Gallery

We left Costa and had a short stroll to our backyard neighbor, the National Gallery. The gallery holds the most comprehensive collection of western art spanning from 1250 up to 1935. They have added a new entrance since we were last there that was a little disorienting at first since we weren’t sure where to start. Once we got reoriented, we made our way to the main gallery and grabbed two audio guides to start the tour. We also used Rick Steve’s guide as well to provide an alternative and more colorful critique of some famous works as well. This would be my fourth visit and Janine’s second to the gallery. Typically, there is always something new to appreciate or fall in love with again whenever I visit the National Gallery. The sleep deprived version of myself, however, struggled to muster much enthusiasm for the works displayed. I did however spend a lot of time in front of Uccello’s “Battle of San Romano” (c. 1438-1440).

The struggle was evident in seeing the work of someone who was so close from breaking the mold of Medieval flat art and into Renaissance perspective, but not quite make it.

Olivia enjoying the art scene

We made it as far as the Baroque era before I had to call it quits. I told Janine we needed to leave so I could eat and nap before doing any more touring. We stopped by a Pret near the gallery and grabbed some lunch and made it back to our flat for lunch. After scarfing down my meal I took an hour long nap and woke up refreshed. After apologizing to my wife for being a jerk, we made our way back to the gallery to finish what we started. It was a great convenience to be able to be so close to the gallery and being able to exercise the option of taking a break.

Returning to the gallery felt like an entirely different experience. Paintings were interesting again and I found myself less annoyed with the increased afternoon crowds. We started the tour up again with Caravaggio’s “The Supper at Emmaus” (1601).

I am a sucker for Caravaggio and this is one of my favorites. The use of light and dark, the uncompromising realistic grit of the faces, and the jutting out hand that seemingly breaks the fourth wall makes me want to spend so much time in awe.

We continued our tour up through the Impressionists. I enjoyed getting a foretaste of Monet and Manet before Paris and made our way out since the museum was closing soon and the increased crowds were starting to freak out Olivia.

The museum itself is a great reminder about Europe’s progress in the arts and sciences witnessed in the development of style of art. It is also a visual representation about how art can reflect the historical mood during that time.

The Westminster Walk

After some family photo ops in Trafalgar square, named to celebrate the great victory against Napoleon’s naval forces by Admiral Horatio Nelson, we made our way down Whitehall towards Westminster.

We took a quick detour so Olivia could see the promised horse guards, but we were too late and all that was left were horse droppings. Afterwards we continued our walk to Westminster bridge with Rick Steve’s audio guide loaded on our phones. Janine and I reached our peak frustration with crowds at this point. There were tourists walking and looking up at Elizabeth Tower (note, not Big Ben) and not at the stroller in front of them. Again, Olivia was freaking at the swarms of people surrounding her and wanted to reach higher ground.

We decided it best to take a break and go to Parliament Square so Olivia could stretch her legs and run around. News crews had cleared out of the square since last week when they occupied it for the post-Brexit wrap up.

After about thirty minutes in the park we began looking for food options (and diaper changing options) nearby. I found a nice mediterranean cafe behind the London Aquarium. Janine and I both got a mixed plate of various kebab meats paired with a sampling of red and white Turkish wine. We absolutely loved the lamb kebab and the staff were really friendly with Olivia.

After finishing our meal, we made our way back to the walk up Whitehall. Its always amazing to think how so much power resided in such a small area during the high of the British Empire and how so many historically significant decisions and events occurred on or near this street.

TL: Elizabeth tower (not Big Ben) TR: 10 Downing St, home of soon-to-be ex-Prime Minister, David Cameron BL: Approx location of Charles I execution site BR: Statue of Churchill, note the lack of bird droppings

Before heading we we stopped by Trafalgar’s Tesco Express for provisions and breakfast items and huddled in for the night. This time I made sure to take some melatonin and get to bed at a reasonable hour.

Day 3: St. Pauls, Imperial War Museum, and in Between

St. Pauls, the Millennium Bridge, and the Imperial War Museum, London

Today we had the realities of traveling with a toddler come into full force and learned some hard lessons in planning for sightseeing. Our original intention was to do breakfast, Thames walking tour, St Paul's, and Imperial war museum. A plan that was waaay too ambitious for our daughter and she let us know in the loudest way she can. It was around the 150th outburst of tears during breakfast that we realized we needed to slow down and cut out the Thames tour.

One of my must-do things whenever I am in London is to have a proper English breakfast and the only way to do that is at my favorite,  Regency Cafe. The set breakfast is cheap, good, and filling, but that is not what draws me there. The establishment is reminiscent of another era where blue collared workers would come in to grab a meal a cheap filling meal before heading to work. The gal at the counter has a deep penetrating voice that can puncture through the windows and be heard across the street. It is no wonder that the Regency will have a line out the door on any given morning. The traditional English breakfast includes a fried egg, (heinz) beans, rasher of bacon, and sausage. There are also fried tomatoes/mushrooms and black pudding, but I can't go full English.

Olivia insisting on having Mom's plate to herself.

St. Pauls Cathedral

After our heavy breakfast, we waddled over to a bus stop and made our way to St. Pauls Cathedral. I was looking forward to visiting this site since my first time in London back in 2007, but the church was going under extensive restoration and was closed. As I return to the freshly cleaned site, I have a deeper regard for the church especially as a symbol for the Londoners during the Blitz. Note: St. Paul's doesn't allow for photography, so I am using this from Wikipedia.

Source: Wikipedia

I was glad to finally be able to come inside and appreciate Christopher Wren's architecture. Learning that this was his first ever architectural accomplishment made me appreciate the building more. Visiting the American memorial chapel provided a somber glimpse into the appreciation of US servicemen who died protecting Britain. Lastly, the St Paul's crypt is the final resting pace for several heavy hitters in Britain's history including: Horatio Nelson (defeated Napoleon at sea) and the Duke of Wellington (defeated Napoleon on land).

The Duke of Wellington, source: Wikipedia

We didn't make it up to the top of the dome due to an afternoon event and, more importantly, a sleeping toddler to drag up with us. After leaving the church, we made our way to a nearby Tesco and picked up a lunch to enjoy at the IWM's outside garden. After grabbing our picnic meal we returned to the front of the church for some quick photos...

... we made our way across the Millennium Bridge and towards the Imperial War Museum.

Click here for 360 view

The walking bridge spanning the Thames dropped us off at the waterfront by the Tate where we found ourselves in the middle of a "Furry" meet up. If you are unfamiliar with this group, i'll refer you to here. Olivia enjoyed watching these costumed critters interact with passers by. At some point we gave up on the idea of having lunch at the IWM and figured that a bench in front of the Thames was just as nice for a lunch.

Imperial War Museum

After lunch we took a bus from Black Friars bridge down to IWM. Janine and I recieved the best complement from an older couple that was lost and needed directions and thought they would ask a couple of "locals" to help them out. Luckily, I had Google maps on hand and got them on their way, but it was nice to know that we didn't stick out too much like a sore American thumb.

IWM - First World War Exhibit (again)
My first trip to the exhibit would be best described with the biblical adage, "the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak and jet lagged."... or something like that. My second trip to the IWM proved to be much more fruitful in moving my gears as to how I might teach WWI next year. There were several moments of inspiration in how I could present information in such a way that could be half as engaging as the museum's brilliant display. The unfortunate part was that the museum had many more people touring and became harder to navigate with the summer crowds. Before entering the exhibit had a good talk with a couple of the docents about the WWI helmets that proved to be enlightening. For example, the pickelhaube (aka German spikey helmet) was a brilliant design in that the spike was able to deflect any cavalry swords to the head, but became useless during the age of mortar shrapnel.

Top left: British amputee recovery photos. Bottom left: WWI German Stormtrooper. Top Right: Sign warning soldiers that if they are hit, others will be harmed retrieving them. Middle right: A recreation of a trench with a British Mach V tank in the background. Bottom right: another trench sign warning solders

Holocaust Exhibit
After finishing the WWI exhibit my wife and I decided to check out the Holocaust exhibit. In my most jaded moments, I feel like I know everything there is to know and that this display will not affect me. I am always wrong. The museum did an excellent job chronicling the lead up to Hitler's final solution. The tragic and horrific atrocities committed upon the European Jews are chronicled in this display. Museum goers begin with what everyday life was like for German and eastern European Jews prior to the Nazis and slowly build up to the wholesale extermination at Auschwitz.

Although there were other great exhibits, time was against yet again as we heard the 15 minute warning announcement that the museum would close. As we made our way outside, the museum employee warned us that there was "spit outside." I looked at him in confusion and he immediately translated, "its raining." This was an understatement! Outside we were pinned down by rain with nowhere to go but forward. By the time we came to our apartment, our clothes were soaking wet! I also realized that in my hurry to get a sweater on that I had it on inside out. From the time of writing this, I think it may have nearly dried out by now.

After drying off, resting, and changing clothes we set back off and headed to a pub nearby. It is only fitting that we started the day with a proper English breakfast and that we ended it with some English pub grub. I enjoyed a Steak and ale pie and washed it down with a Sam Smith Hard Cider while Janine enjoyed a Chicken and ale pie. Our dessert was a warm sticky toffee pudding with a scoop of ice cream (again, couldn't go full English with the custard).

Tomorrow we will see the National Gallery and tour around Westminster.

Day 2: New sights outside of London

Greenwich Village and the Docklands, 7/1

I woke up from my previous night out at the late hour of 9:30am, much later than anticipated for our ambitious first day out. Our day was spent at Greenwich Village and the Docklands east of London. Having been to London before, I have seen most of the major attractions, so it was a refreshing experience to go somewhere new.

The Cutty Sark, Greenwich Village

We took the tube and changed trains to the DLR into Greenwich Village. A short stroll from the DLR station brought us to the famed clipper ship, the Cutty Sark. The Cutty Sark spent its career sailing across the world hauling tea, sheep, and other goods in record time from 1869 through 1922. The engineering and efficiency of the ship is a testament to why Britain dominated trade during the 19th century. The boat was restored in 2012 after a major overhaul of the ship that brought it back to its original state. The unique, but controversial, display of the ship raised up and protected by glass allows visitors to walk underneath the ship.


The exhibits provided a modern interactive look into the day to day operations of a tea ship. We were impressed with the various exhibits for all ages.

As we made our way through the exhibits starting in the cargo hold and making our way up top side, we learned about the varied life of this once great vessel.  I could see myself using this ship as an example about Britain's dominance in sea trade as well as the realities of technology and how this once record breaking clipper had to give way to the steam ship.

National Naval Museum, Greenwich Village

We left the ship and had a quick lunch at a Nando's nearby, one of my favorite places for chicken, and then made our way to the National Naval Museum. We are strapped for time and had to cut our exploration short, but it was important that I see the famed Painted Hall. I used my phone to make 360 degree panorama shots of the rooms. Click on the linked images for a more immersive view.

Click here to see 360 Panorama

Click here to see 360 Panorama

Completed in 1727, the famed Painted Hall was originally intended to by a dining hall for pensioners, but was deemed to nice and became a place to show off Britain's might to visitors. A friendly docent gave us a full tour of the ceiling and how this became a propaganda piece against Britain's enemies, France and Spain. I was glad to finally see the famed hall used often as an example of Britain's rise to global dominance.

Painted to honor William and Mary of Orange. Note the crushed French king Louis XIV at the heel of king William.

We did a quick pop into the chapel across the courtyard and made our way to the Docklands. Unfortunately, we had to cut out the nearby Royal Observatory due to time constraints. Theres always next time!

The Docklands

Much like the Cutty Sark, the Docklands was the hub for Britain's global trading empire. This was where most goods from the empire came to or left from. As time lurched on, the port and surrounding area became synonymous a a decrepit crime riddled wasteland, but the 1980s brought a boom in redevelopment. We took the DLR from Greenwich into the Docklands and made our way to the Docklands Museum.

The first exhibit of the Docklands Museum

The museum offered an immersive and interactive look into the history of the docklands, the inner mechanics of Britain's trading empire, and a greater history of London. Some notable exhibits including a full recreation of nearby dockland streets during the Victorian period and a deep introspective look at the darker side of Britain's early success, the slave trade. The museum continues on with the downfall of the docklands during the blitz as the Luftwaffe destroyed this shipping area and included a recreated bomb-shelter from the time period. The tour is wrapped up with the fall of port to deep water cargo containers and its eventual redevelopment during the 1980s as an alternative to downtown London.

Top left: carving of the coat of arms for the East India Trading Company. Top right: Olivia inspecting the bomb shelter. Bottom left: a recreation of a docklands street during the victorian era. Bottom right: Entrance to the exhibit on London's role in the slave trade.

After the museum, we made our way with a brief walking tour of the Docklands and weaved our way through the crowds of business people enjoying a pint after a day's work in the surrounding financial district.

Top: Confronting old and new at the docklands Bottom: Walking tour of the business district of the Docklands