Saturday in London

First, the tube is a nightmare. L Today, two lines were shut down altogether and a third had a long stretch in which no stops were made. Naturally, the area I decided to visit today was the worst hit. Such is my luck, right?

This morning wasn’t so bad, though. I finally made my way to the Barbican District. I once read a joke that said Londoners get lost in the maze of the Barbican, resurfacing only after years of foraging for food and thinking that Margaret Thatcher is still Prime Minister. This first led me to think that this was a literal labyrinth (in true London fashion), but it was instead a complex of apartment buildings built in the 70s connected by a series (maze?) of raised walkways that circumvent a pond built in the center. At first, it looks like a simple cube. As I entered from London Wall Street (as one would suspect, the former site of the Roman wall surrounding Londinium), I had no Idea that I would turn right so many times and only find myself in the center. Frustrating? Perhaps. I did, however, find some remnants of said wall. It was a nice little experience. I also found the performance hall, where the LSO plays. Nobody would have guessed that it was a performance hall. 70s architecture seems to mask function rather well.

When 10am finally rolled around (I woke up obscenely early), I made my way to the City of London Museum, which, like the tube and a few other museums around town, was partially closed. The open exhibitions only went up to the Great Fire, which is about where my interests first start. Sad and disappointing.

Shortly thereafter, I went to the Globe Theatre. Even though it was built in 1997 and 150 meters away from the original location, it was still cool. They were rehearsing the end of Macbeth, so no pictures were allowed (bummer.) I guess it just wasn’t the proper time or place for tourism.

I then hopped on the tube in Southwark towards South Kensington (again) to see the Natural History Museum. The queue was long…out the doors and spilling onto the street. After about 20 minutes of waiting to get in, I realized that the place was beyond capacity with children screaming and running amok. 30 minutes was beyond enough for me to give up and leave. I then walked over to the Royal Albert Hall, Royal College of Music, and Hyde Park (the original one.) I walked up to Kensington Palace, realized it was another astronomical fee to see a place of celebrity (plus, it was closing), and walked on. Hyde Park was a beautiful example of English grass, the green of envy to most of North America. On top of that grass, I saw a swan chase after a little girl (don’t feed the swans, they will ask for more.) Then began my quest to return to the city center. The tube station directly next to the park was closed, complete with metropolitan police standing firm, not offering advice as to alternative transportation. I waited for a bus, but even the bus stops were closed. Even if they were open, they were too full to sit comfortably. I walked down a street (which was surprisingly well organized – obviously a city planning product of the 19^th century), eventually finding a District Line station, but it only went in one direction, which was the direction I didn’t need to go. Out of exasperation (and hunger) I walked into a curry restaurant in the near vicinity, much to my stomach’s dismay. It tasted OK and was reasonably priced, so at first I was content. I then proceeded to take three trains in the place of one, only to get to my hostel and feel my stomach churning. I stopped at a grocery store to get some water, drank it and sucked it up to go over to the Tate Modern (which is open late on Saturdays). Midway through the surrealist gallery (and after seeing a quite disgusting film involving mutilated bodies and bar-b-que sauce), I just had to go to bed. And now I’m awake at 1am after the brief stomach storm.

Tomorrow is my last day and is lightly scheduled. I’ll see what I can find.