Needs no explanation nor identification.....a London icon
We are on #12 bus, traveling to Trafalgar Square and Piccadilly Circus. We are on Westminster Bridge passing the Parliament Buildings. There are several bridges which cross the Thames: Lambeth, Westminster, Hungerford, Waterloo, Blackfriars, Millennium, Southwark, London and Tower. Of those, the Hungerford is a pedestrian and train bridge and the Millennium is foot only.
We just happened to see a display of cars which have been in movies....don't we all recognize the Batmobile?
and Herbie?
Our only picture thus far of Trafalgar Square......there was an enormous once a year West End Festival going on ALL DAY in to the evening with TV cameras, stages, lighting....impossible to get a picture of the Square......we will be back! However, a story about the rooster....there are four corners for statues in the Square. The fourth corner rotates every 18 months; it is awarded to a different contemporary artist each time.....there is a rumor that when Queen Elizabeth passes, the fourth corner may become a permanent statue of her...
Piccadilly Circus is the middle of central London, surrounded by theatre, statues, neon ads, museums and thousands of tourists. It is one of the busiest locations in London and certainly one of the most well known names.
McKenzie's favorite statue in all of London, Eros.....or Cupid as we know him/her
Our destination for the afternoon was neither Piccadilly nor Trafalgar, but rather Regent St., hosting the Year of the Bus (note the logo on top of the bus stop) Cavalcade. Last year, 2013, London featured the 150th anniversary of TheTube....this year, 2014, the Year of the Bus, "Love Your Bus"...showcasing 185!!!!!! years of busses, 1829-2014.
David and Kenz were excited to see that these busses served their Camberwell Green 100 or more years ago!!!
And Bus #12 is the one we rode today.....although it looks a bit different today!
There are 19,500 bus stops in London, about 13,400 have shelters and 3,500 are solar powered
There are currently 7500 busses in operation with 600 new busses introduced each year! (Assuming some are retired)
In 2013/2014, the busses carried over 2.4 BILLION passengers!!!
There are currently 24,500 bus drivers
We took a break from the Bus Calvacade and the crowds to wander a few side streets..
this Whole Foods Store was the largest we have ever seen....and we search for Whole Foods in the States, but this is the first one we have seen outside the U.S. And the first we have known to deliver!
Random shots!!!!
Carnaby Street is a small neighborhood off Regent St., filled with cute shops and pubs....like most of London!
About six years ago, David began collecting t-shirts (yes, t-shirts) from a man nicknamed Johnny Cupcakes. David found the designer online, read Johnny's biography, and liked the various designs. In short, Johnny is one year older than David, promotes a drug-free lifestyle, and started his t-shirt business out of the back of a van while his band was on tour. Fast forward almost a decade and Johnny has an online store and brick & mortar stores in Boston, LA, and London. Once a t-shirt design has sold out, it never gets reprinted. Each store looks like a bakery, and visitors often pop in thinking they're going to get a cupcake - nope - just t-shirts!
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| David's wearing a London exclusive shirt in this picture, in front of the store. |
The entire bus stop is made of Legos.....the ENTIRE bus stop!!!! Maps, seats, stall, signs.....quite a show stopper! The kids were all lining up to make the same thing in a smaller version in the store!
This one is for you, Sam!
Back to the Bus Cavalcade....this time with Owen and Celia.....very good friends of David and McKenzie. Owen, pictured below with Tom was in David's wedding and David was Owen's best man in May of this year.
Celia, below with David, is a high school teacher....she and Owen have lived in London for more than 10 years!! We enjoyed "Sunday Roast"(roast chicken and gravy) with them for lunch!
A GREEN bus.....in the early days, the busses were owned by a variety of private companies and their route/ownership was designated by the color.....in 1933, London Transport was formed by the city, consolidating all the private companies....the retained the most popular color = RED
There are 700 different routes spanning the capital city, 116 of which operate around the clock!
This one is for you, Linda Swiler!!!!
A collection of James Bond cars just around the corner from the busses in Leicester Square down the street a bit from the busses. Leicester Square is the movie theatre center of London...
The Odeon is only one of four movie theaters in the Square....it seats 2,000! The four theaters rotate the new blockbuster movies by rotating them one to another!
This statue of George Washington lives in front of the National Gallery. Washington said after the Revolutionary War that he would never set foot on English soil again. He kept his word. However, when Virginia presented this statue to Great Britain and Ireland in 1921, they placed Virginia sod under the statue!
This is the Hungerford Bridge....the pedestrians have double access on either side of the railway in the middle....
Two good shots of Big Ben as we walked across the bridge.
Kenzie's graduation will take place here on July 14, 2014
Tribute to Nelson Mandela
Since we had a big, late lunch, we just snacked for dinner....venison sausage, serrano ham, four different cheeses, tapinade, and olive bread
and each retired to our own electronic device before
watching more World Cup!
