Spending a couple of days in London with my two oldest boys has been a fun experience. I myself have not spent some time in this historical city since I was a teenager. Arriving at the Heathrow Airport was a simple process and from there we were able to easily connect to the London Tube (Underground Subway).
It took about 40 minutes to get to the centre of London from the airport. Our hotel (Best Western Burns Hotel) was located conveniently about a 2 minute walk from the Earl’s Court Station which is also on the same Piccadilly line from the airport. Following the directions provided we were relaxing in our hotel room in no time.
Although a bit exhausted from our flight and early morning wakeup, we were too anxious to enjoy the city of London. We headed straight towards the London underground station closest to Trafalgar Square. Upon arriving we discovered that the entire square was filled with people celebrating Chinese New Year. As a result we didn’t see much of the square that was standing room only so we slipped into the “National Gallery” art museum. Admission is free and perhaps due to the nearby festivities, was very busy inside. We had a chance to see some incredible works of art over the past couple hundred years.
Following our visit to the Gallery we headed for “The Mall” which is an impressive boulevard that leads to the Queen’s residence of Buckingham Palace. The street is flanked by the beautiful green space of St. James’s Park. For some reason on this particular Sunday, the Boulevard was completely shut down to traffic and so we were able to take a leisurely stroll without any vehicles around. Following a few photos at the palace gates we walked along the opposite side of St. James’s Park to Westminster Abbey with a quick stop for photos at one of the many iconic Red London Telephone booths along the way. Westminster Abbey is next to the House of Parliament and Big Ben so we finished off our first day listening to the clock strike 6 before looking at the London eye. We finally heading back to our hotel with a good idea on what we would spend our time doing in London over the next few days… lots of walking.