Second Day...

First off, I just got called back to do some retake stuff on Bob's Burgers, so I'm going through my travel photos wayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy slower than anticipated. Second of all, I like money, so the job will continue to take precedence!

Back to our adventure...

I decided that I would accompany my sister to work the morning of our second day in London. Which turned out to be a good idea since it gave me a starting point to learn the intricacies of the London Underground.

If you're staying in London for more than 24 hours, get a damn Oyster card. Also, be prepared to get disoriented direction-wise every time you come out of a different Tube station. My sister and I had no problems getting to the closest station, getting tickets, and getting on the right train. We exited the correct station at our destination, walked out onto the street and promptly got lost. This is what happens when one obeys the "Way Out" signs very, very literally. We had to stop at a Starbucks so that I could look at a map while my sister asked a cop for directions. After that, we were golden.

Oh, I love London's directness in some matters. In the US, we have "restrooms". In the UK and Europe they don't fuck around, they have toilets. Wherever you go, you can find a toilet. I, having a bladder the size of George W. Bush's brain, appreciated that. Another piece of handiness were the "Look Left/Look Right" signs painted onto the streets, so that dumbass tourists wouldn't get smooshed by speeding cars on the London streets. Those signs saved my butt several times throughout my visit.

When we got to my sister's work, I took a breather before going on my own way. One of my sister's colleagues suggested I take the Tube to Oxford Circus, then walk down Regent St. to Piccadilly Circus. Sounded like as good a plan as any to me, so off I went.

I could walk for days in London. I apparently really like looking at old stuff. I took the sage advice of one of LADD's newer skaters who lived in London for awhile and picked up a London A-Z street atlas while I was at Piccadilly. Then I went a-wanderin'.

Hey, I found Trafalgar Square!

Oooh, St. James Park.

The Horse Guard. Those guys stood out in the damn cold for what seemed like forever before anything happened. Then they did some ceremonial stuff and literally trotted off to Buckingham Palace.

A statue in the courtyard of the Horse Guard house/stable/whatever you call it.

I wandered through St. James Park, came out the other side and accidentally found Buckingham Palace.

See the guard? Back there, by that little guard house? That dude is BORED OUT OF HIS FUCKING MIND.

The amount of tourists constantly taking photos around the area was maddening...yes, I'm a hypocrite since I myself was obviously snapping away, but still.

So I wandered off and found...Westminster Abbey.

I balked at paying the 16pounds to go into Westminster Abbey. I later regretted my fake frugality, as I forgot that Westminster Abbey is chock full of famous dead people that are interned there. DAMMIT. Next time, London, NEXT TIIIIIIIIME.



I spent most of the day wandering around. My sister and I did more wandering closer to our hotel when she got home from work. Again, the dreaded British pub/Thai food combo threatened to make us extremely cranky...and hungry. We finally found an Italian restaurant with semi-decent pizza and delicious wine. On the way back we went to the local market and picked up some more delicious goodies:

Why yes, I am enjoying my vacation. Why do you ask?