Along the Thames ~ LONDON

Friday, August 28

We started the day with a walk/ bike ride along the Thames. There is a hire cycle stand a couple of blocks from the hotel, so we started off there and rode south and east until we reached the river -- near the Battersea Bridge. Once at the Thames, we decided to walk, the better to see the sights...

such as this old church, All Saints, with its statue of Thomas More.

I also liked this old building, with all the weather vanes. A Google search informed me that this is part of Crosby Hall, which was an office of the British East India Company.

(I found another photo on the internet, below - the website has many more pics -- it really is an interesting and unusual building.)

"CrosbyHall London 08" by Edwardx - Own work. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 viaCommons 

As you can see, it was a gorgeous day -- sunny and around 20 C -- perfect for sightseeing.

I love the contrast found everywhere in London -- looking in one direction, there are old buildings, from the 1200s to 1600s, but then you turn around and see some of the most modern buildings you can imagine.

Chelsea Bridge and signs of progress

And the bridges -- I love the way each bridge has its own character -- these are two of the more modern ones. In this way, Edmonton is sot of like London -- we also have a lot of bridges over the North Saskatchewan River, and each is unique.

The Albert Bridge

Having so many Buddhist monks as ESL students, things like this statue always catch my eye; apparently it is called the Peace Pagoda.

We also saw the Royal Hospital Chelsea -- another impressive building, built by Sir Christopher Wren in 1692. It's a huge place; even standing across the road, I couldn't get the whole building into the photo. The grounds are quite extensive and well-protected by a wrought iron fence and security guards.

Just two of the statues we saw as we walked along the river -- a  boy and dolphin cavorting in front of a Mercedes Benz dealership, and Thomas Carlyle, below.

And of course I notice bike lanes. We rode in this one -- mostly it is just paint -- bright blue paint that screams out to drivers: "Stay out! This is a bike lane. Duh!" 

On some of the curves, there were plastic water-filled barriers, just to make sure motorists don't get confused. This is such a simple concept; I don't know why our own city has to make things so difficult. 

We crossed to the south side of the Thames at Lambeth Bridge and rode past St. Thomas' Hospital. I didn't get any photos of this place, but of course it is famous for Florence Nightingale's School of Nursing, so it was kind of cool to see it.

From over here, we also had a good view of the Houses of Parliament: