Imperial War Museums

Last night I went on the Jack the Ripper tour with a few new friends. It was pretty cool to hear all of the gruesome stories where they actually took place, but it's a shame that most of the original buildings are gone from heavy bombing during WWII. Afterwards, I took my friends to Fleet Street (an area that I am now becoming quite familiar with) and returned to Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese to have a pint. After the pubs closed, we made our way to the Thames embankment and walked towards Westminster. At night, most of the buildings are lit up and look really pretty.

Today was a marathon day for me. I spent the afternoon in two museums, both part of the Imperial War Museum.

First, I went through the Cabinet War Rooms used by Churchill during WWII and the Churchill Museum. They are in the basement of a building filled with offices right near Westminster, and have been well preserved. Throughout the war, the bunkers remained a secret to the Germans, and the phones ran 24 hours a day for the course of the war. In my favorite part, you see a door marked "lavatory" that was always locked, and all of the men (except for the PM) thought it was just Churchill's private bathroom. Turns out, it was a secret phone room that had a direct line from Churchill right to FDR. There was also a museum detailing Churchill's life and personality which was really interesting. I spent about 3 hours there, and I can easily say that this is my favorite museum so far in London. Upon leaving, I was handed a brochure for another Imperial War Museum not too far away that had a Holocaust exhibit and free admission, so I headed over there.

From the tube, I walked through some not so nice looking neighborhoods, and I found a small market run by some African nuns. They were dancing around and blasting music, and, this is for you Mikey P: I felt straight out of Sister Act.

After I found the other War Museum, I went in and saw some great exhibits on both world wars. The picture to the left is of the entrance to the war exhibits, and as you can see, it's a pretty modern museum. They also had exhibits on children in the war, a simulated trench from WWI, and a simulation about the 1940 Blitz on London. From there, I went to an exhibit on Secret Soldiers, which told me all about MI5 and MI6 operations during the wars. Eventually I made my way to the Holocaust exhibit, which was really well done. It was not too crowded for a free museum, and I would definitely go back again.

After I got back into Kensington, I went to Harrods for the first time. It was pretty crazy. I spent a little time in the De Beers diamond room and then went to the designer gallery. I tried to take a picture of a £5,000 Oscar de la Renta gown and got yelled at. I went on the Egyptian escalator and saw the Diana memorials. Finally, I found a Krispy Kreme stand in the basement, got a doughnut, and headed over to Hyde Park.

At Hyde Park, I saw the west end of the park, where the Serpentine and the Princess Diana memorial are. The Diana memorial (on the right) is a circular fountain which is also a wading pool. I ate my doughnut with my tired feet in the memorial, and then stayed there to read for a bit. When I was sufficiently rested, I went to Kensington Gardens across the street. Here, I saw the Peter Pan statue, Kensington Palace, and a few more memorials. Eventually I found a tube station and headed back home.

I feel like I am finally getting my bearings in the city. Today, several people stopped me for directions and I was actually able to help them. Although I was on my own again today (my flatmates did Buckingham...too crowded for me...), I feel like I see more that way, and I definitely am better oriented. I'm not ready to ditch my map anytime soon though...