London Day 2.2 - Feet sore but fancy free

Our second day in London was epic. The weather was perfect. It was unseasonably warm, beautifully sunny, and simply teeming with people. We walked, trained, and sailed all over the city. My feet, well I still can't feel my feet.

Here some observations about this city:

• People seem to be from everywhere else but London. If you stand still and listen you hear the world. Russian, French, Italian, Arabic, and American English (yes I'm counting that as a separate language) spoken at every corner. Very few people are native English English speakers. 
• Recent and/or temporary immigrants seem to run/staff the tourism/service industry here. From barmaids to hotel staff, everyone is from somewhere else. 
• Having said this, many of the tourists are English. 
• Europeans dress well, at least the city folk. This is especially true of outerwear. Everyone seems to own really killer coats and jackets. I seem to be the only one walking around in only my short sleeve shirt...but hey it's nowhere near cold here and I'm from Canada. 
• The women are (for the main part) not skinny (in a good way). I feel almost normal (take that you super skinny size 0s - people are supposed to have curves).
• On the other hand, people have big feet. Women's shoes start at US size 7. Very hard to find anything under that. I'm apparently an English size 3. I feel tiny.
• Bond and Oxford street on a Sunday afternoon is scary and not for the feint of heart. For some reason many of the shops organize their sales items by colour not size. Very confusing.
• There are relatively few English Asians of the ecru variety. Significantly, more English Asians of the South Asia Sub-Continent variety.
• Public transportation is awesome and efficient. Rush hour travel should be avoided at all cost. I not nearly aggressive enough to push myself off a train. 
• Architecture is stunning and varied. Some old, some new but almost always avant-garde. Buildings come in all shapes and sizes (circles, triangles, spheres, upside-down triangle, right-side up triangle, etc.). Weird and wonderful. And sometimes both. 
• Food, so far, has been great. We haven't ventured anywhere exotic so I'm going to reserve judgement. 
• Elevators at the Underground stations are vertigo inducing. They are steep and deep. I need to keep staring at random ads on the wall the keep from freaking out. I've skied less vertical.
• Traffic is insane. Cars move fast and with purpose. Pedestrians do not have the right of way. 
• Having said this, the native seem to like crossing against the light at intersections. They hop from one street island to another. Suicidal if you ask me... but then again by the end of our first full day, AK and I were following suite. Crazy making.
• The word "alight" is in common usage. Go figure.

Here's a rundown of what we saw today (photos to follow as still missing camera to computer cable): 

• Started the day off at London Bridge (which, ironically, is not the London Bridge of song). Nice enough bridge though...with a spectacular view of Tower Bridge (which is the London Bridge you imagine when you hear the song of the same name).
• Walked along east along the north shore of the Thames River to Tower of London. 
• Ate an Oyster (a delicious fake soft-serve ice cream made of a white cream-like petroleum product served between two clam shell-shaped edible styrofoam waffles half-dipped in chocolate and sprinkled with nuts) at 10am in the square next to the tower. AK had this weird plastic cone of fake ice cream with a gum ball at the bottom (apparently a nostalgic childhood favourite). No judgement please, I'm on vacation. Note: in their natural habitat, AKs can track and locate a soft-serve ice cream truck faster than I can say "what ice cream truck". 
• Saw the breathtaking "poppy" installation. Over 888,000 ceramic red poppies are currently being "planted" to circle the Tower complex. It will be complete by November 11, in time to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the beginning of WWI. Each poppy represents a English soldier lost during that war. 
• Across the Tower Bridge (the one that evokes the bridge from the song) and back towards the London Bridge. We got lost looking for a Tesco's or rather a bottle of 7-up for AK. Ended up at a M&S food outlet. Almost bought a fruitcake but decided against it due to its weight. Lugging a 3 pound (weight not cost) loaf of preserved fruit goodness seemed a bit daunting. Settled instead on a 320 gram tin of Sea Salt & Black Pepper Cashews in stead. Delicious. 
• To rest our feet, we decided to take a boat to the London Eye from near London Bridge (not of the song). Got to say, it's my new favourite way to travel. $16 CAD pp for a ten minute boat ride what's not to like.
• Along the ride, we caught a glimpse of the Tate Modern; went under the Millennium Bridge, sailed past the Globe and National Theatres; and whizzed by Somerset House.
• Got off at Embarkment Pier and walked over the Golden Jubilee Bridges to the London Eye.
• Took a wee by the river at a swanky public toilet. Admission to the toilet was 50p but since I lacked the correct change (and the automated entrance thingy didn't give change) I plastered myself against AKs back and gatecrashed. I'm such a crappy rebel.
• I don't care what anyone says, the London Eye on a sunny day is spectacular. You can see everything. It's one thing to orient yourself to London by using a map, it's another to get a bird's eye view. Note: I highly recommend paying a little extra to get fast track access. Yes it's ridiculously pricey but it will save you hours of waiting in line. 
• From the Eye, across the Westminster Bridge to see Parliament Building; the clock tower (aka Big Ben, although that's the name of the giant bell inside the tower not the building itself); and Westminster Abbey (tragically closed on Sundays to non-believers and heathens).
• Up Whitehall to, well, Whitehall and its various ministries.
• Passed No. 10 Downing. You can't actually go up to residence like you see on TV or in the movies. The whole street is protected and cut off with security gates on each end. It's an apt metaphor for government - PR makes it look accessible but in reality members of the public are kept well away from the seat of power by pointy iron gates, a metal detector, and dour security guards with automatic weapons. Note: the security guard who draws the short straw is pimped out by his fellow guards to be on "have their photo taken with the tourist"duty.
• Next to 10 Downing are the Horse Guards. Like the RCMP musical ride, except without the music or the ride. Beautiful black horses, looking miserable, standing stock-still, guarding nothing. The guy on top looked proud though. My money is on the horse being the brains behind the operation. 
• Walked all the way down Whitehall to Trafalgar Square. Admiral Nelson stand proud atop a giant marble penis. Since he won against the French and Spanish, I guess he's entitled. 
• BTW Canada House, which is on one side of Trafalgar Square, is currently under renovations. I didn't get to see the actual building as it was under tarp, but it is huge, really huge. We could probably pay off our national debt by selling off the real estate. 
• Passed by the National Gallery (must go back to see what's on the inside). BTW not sure what's the heck is up with the Giant (and I mean Giant) Blue Cock that's currently in front of the gallery. It's impressive, really really blue, and located just behind the Nelson phallus. Not sure if it's a metaphor for anything. Hmmm???
• Did you know that feeding pigeons in Trafalgar Square is an offence. You could be fined up to 500 pounds? So unlike Paris or Rome, there aren't any avian rat swarms or touts trying to scam you into taking photographs with them on your head. Yeah London for taking positive action against the pigeon mafia. I HATE pigeons.
• Cut around the National Gallery to Leicester Square. Bought myself a ticket for tomorrow night to see War Horse in Covent Gardens. I'm told it's a big horse puppet spectacular. Can't wait.
• Back down to the Mall and straight down it to Buckingham Palace. Along the way we passed, St. James Park, Carlton House, Malbourough House, and St. James Palace (Lancaster House + Clarence Houses). All I can say is that's a lot of houses for a single family. Not sure why they keep building one "house" next to another. Surely, given the thousands of rooms per building, they could have just shared one.
• Buckingham Palace is a lot smaller than I'd imagined. I mean the building is huge but somehow anticlimactic. It does however have an impressive super shiny, super tall, woman on top, phallic display in front of it which is pretty. The marble effigy of Queen Victoria makes her look formidable but constipated. How come statues are never smiley?
• Across Green Park, back underground to Oxford and Bond Street. By far the biggest crush of the day. Nearly got pushed off the sidewalk onto the street by the crowds. More people here than at all of the historic sites combined. Consumer culture at its best.

What a day. Hopefully tomorrow will be a bit slower. Need to catch my breath and sit still.