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January 03, 2006
London
Flooded grandly in spotlight, the Big Ben and the adjoining Parliament building basked magnificently by the flamboyant Thames River. For more pictures, click here.
December 19, 2005
Reached Heathrow Airport at 12pm. It was a really hectic time of the day, and by the time I emerged out of customs checkpoint I was thirsty and travel weary (due to 5-hour jet lag). Changed those familiar green notes into interesting multicolored pound notes and real heavy pences. I ended up with 150++ pounds. Thereafter, the eye-opening trip on the tube to Bayswater Station where Eden Park Hotel was situated showed the transversion of tradional English countryside to busy city outskirts to real hectic city center. The weather was great. No snow, no chilling wind. I felt out of place wearing my turtleneck sweater coupled with wool jacket, not to mention thick gloves and a beanie (it was really cold in Chicago).
It's easy to find the hotel as it was just a stone throw away from Bayswater Station. After checking in, I called my brother but unluckily he wasn't in; On a second attempt, it got through. I was so relief to know that Joyce, Eric and Sin Yi were all under his care. Finally, we met up in the hotel lobby and had a proper rest.
At night, after dinner at McD, we made a tour to Westminster District. Stepping out of Westminster Station, I was awestruck (yeah bro, you were right :P); Big Ben loomed majestically right across the street. The ancient sculptures and carvings on its wall encapsulated the mighty reign of King George's monarch. 4 round clocks with roman numerals surrounded the cap of the tower. Lit up with golden lights, Big Ben resonated with magnificence (btw, it was named after the bell residing in it).
We took photos while we strolled across a bridge to the next big thing: London Eye. It's a humongous ferris wheel overlooking the opposite bank of Thames River. We didn't ride in it for 2 reasons: firstly, it was closed; and secondly, it costs 12 quid per person. Too much. On the way back we passed by a gallery showcasing Dali's masterpices. There were statues and carvings also. Although I'm not a big fan of his works, the statue of a man with a 'melted' clock on his shoulder and an ant on his leg was intriguing enough.
Next, we walked back to the Parliament building adjoining Big Ben. It was closed though, but we made a discovery on the paveway opposite the building. There was a huge meridian circle carved into the pavement. There's a line in the middle, with all the 12 months situated at different positions on it. As solstice has varied lengths of day and night, both June and December occupied the 2 ends of the line, while equinox March and September are situated in the middle. It is said that if a person stands on the line in the position of the month he is in, he can observe not only the current time but also the length of day and night.
After that, we went to Trafalgar Square by the famous double decker bus. It was a short cursory tour as we were all tired and our bladders full. Took the tube back to hotel, and bro bid goodbye, promising more fun the next day.
To be continued>>
Posted by peixin at January 3, 2006 12:58 PM