I am finding plenty of time to be a tourist in London. Here are some of my recent adventures!
Changing of the Cavalry Guard and Buckingham Palace
The Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace is a spectacular affair to say the least. So much fanfare, and every single day! The horses on guard out the front have been known to kick and bite tourists trying to capture the ultimate photo (or at least that’s what the signs say). I survived a photo with the horses without incident, much to my relief.
The Palace was spectacular (my photos just don’t do it justice). And the flag flying indicated that the Queen was in residence which was just a bit exciting (along with the four white horses at the changing of the cavalry guard). Biggest disappointment, though: there were no guards with furry hats outside the gates to get a selfie with, or to try and make laugh (probably because of annoying tourists like me in the past that had the same idea)!
St James Park
Walking through St James Park towards Buckingham Palace was an adventure in itself. The first task was to find a squirrel. People in London tend to think of them as pests, much the same way as a lot of Australians think of possums. But squirrels are so cute and the ones in St James Park are not scared of people, especially when you bend down and hold out food. Note: London squirrels do not like sandwich crusts that have mustard on them (he spat it out in disgust, before running off towards the little girl who had the forethought to bring nuts).
Next was walking down towards the body of water to see the swans and pelicans. They are huge—definitely bigger than those in Australia! The pelicans were not overly wary of humans either, judging by the crowds surrounding them. There was one young boy posing dutifully next to a pelican, looking a little more fearful with each step he took to get closer—all at the encouragement of his mother. He certainly got the shock of his young life when the pelican turned and bit his arm while he was smiling at the camera. Then there was the ducks, and geese, and daffodils. I have never seen so many daffodils as I have since arriving in London.
So far, very impressed with what London has to offer!