Thought I'd share a few pics from a recent trip to London.
It'd been a long time since I'd been to London to see the sights, perhaps 35 years. It's a place I'd told myself I needed to avoid as it didn't fit with my love for all things wild and natural, most especially the mountains. I'm also not a fan of busy places preferring a bit of solitude.
I did have one sprint trip in 2014 but it was a dash in dash out affair. I was selected along with two others to represent our RAF station at a prestigious gathering in the centre of London. Knowing that parking would be epic, on the drive across I got busy phoning various police stations seeking permission to park a Service vehicle and to get changed into our Number 1 uniform. I found one with minutes to spare, parked up, dressed up and walked the last half mile to the gathering feeling rather vulnerable in my best blues. All went ok though, the canapes were delicious, and the pleasantries were, well, pleasant.
So, to this trip...
We jumped on the train in our home town, arriving at London Euston after a few changes. A short Underground ride took us to Waterloo Station where we walked across the road to the Union Jack Club, a Sgts' Mess style hotel on London's South Bank that veterans and serving members of HM Forces can stay at. It was our first stay here and it was superb. The walls are dripping history including the pictures of every VC winner. Using the UJC as a base we explored London; Bucky Palace, Westminster, Nelson's Column, Covent Garden, Imperial War Museum, Natural History Museum, 10 Downing Street, and the London Eye were pretty much all we could fit in. Despite my previous misgivings we had a thoroughly brilliant time and we're already planning our next trip back.
Here's some pics...
The London Eye
Looking north from Waterloo
The Natural History Museum
It'd been a long time since I'd been to London to see the sights, perhaps 35 years. It's a place I'd told myself I needed to avoid as it didn't fit with my love for all things wild and natural, most especially the mountains. I'm also not a fan of busy places preferring a bit of solitude.
I did have one sprint trip in 2014 but it was a dash in dash out affair. I was selected along with two others to represent our RAF station at a prestigious gathering in the centre of London. Knowing that parking would be epic, on the drive across I got busy phoning various police stations seeking permission to park a Service vehicle and to get changed into our Number 1 uniform. I found one with minutes to spare, parked up, dressed up and walked the last half mile to the gathering feeling rather vulnerable in my best blues. All went ok though, the canapes were delicious, and the pleasantries were, well, pleasant.
So, to this trip...
We jumped on the train in our home town, arriving at London Euston after a few changes. A short Underground ride took us to Waterloo Station where we walked across the road to the Union Jack Club, a Sgts' Mess style hotel on London's South Bank that veterans and serving members of HM Forces can stay at. It was our first stay here and it was superb. The walls are dripping history including the pictures of every VC winner. Using the UJC as a base we explored London; Bucky Palace, Westminster, Nelson's Column, Covent Garden, Imperial War Museum, Natural History Museum, 10 Downing Street, and the London Eye were pretty much all we could fit in. Despite my previous misgivings we had a thoroughly brilliant time and we're already planning our next trip back.
Here's some pics...
The London Eye
Looking north from Waterloo
The Natural History Museum