Weekend in London

View of the London Eye, London Cab and full bloom tulips from The Mall.

Rain or shine, London is beautiful! I was there last weekend, enjoying the April spring weather of rain, rain and rain and some sunshine. That is London weather for April. Who knows what the weather will be in May? Anyhow, London's sights are still standing and beautiful, it never fails to captivate. London is the city to visit this Spring and Summer for their numerous major events. This coming June will be the celebration of the Queen's Jubilee-60 years on the throne and the 2012 Summer Olympics in the end of July 2012 for two weeks. London is getting ready for all of these events with some road constructions and the people getting excited for the coming events. During my trip there, London was definitely busy with events, last Saturday was the 86th birthday of The Queen, Trafalgar Square also had the celebration for St. George's Day then last Sunday was the world renowned London Marathon. Last weekend was also the last presentation of  Queen Elizabeth II by Cecil Beaton's photographs at the Victoria and Albert Museum. As I mentioned in my previous blog post, Hello from London, I had a busy itinerary but definitely enjoyed this beautiful city of London.


View of Big Ben from The Mall and St. James Park.

The Mall.

The changing weather in London is evident here at the Victoria Memorial. Sunny then gray cloudy skies then rain.

Buckingham Palace and the Changing of the Guards.

Beautiful and colourful full blooming tulips at The Mall.

Victoria and Albert Museum.

The Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) presented the Queen Elizabeth II by Cecil Beaton: A Diamond Jubilee Celebration.  I enjoyed the exhibit as it presented Queen Elizabeth with her parents, sister, then her marriage to Prince Philip, her Coronation and informal pictures with her children, all photographed by Cecil Beaton.

Inside the V&A Museum was filled with Art from the Classical period to the Modern Times. Just like the Roman sculptures, the Renaissance Art and Modern Japanese Fashion.

Kensington Palace was a Royal Residence since King William I to Queen Victoria where she was born and grew up and then the late Princess Diana. The palace is still a royal residence with some of the Queen's relatives still living here, most notably, the new residents, Prince William and his wife, Catherine,Duchess of Cambridge.  My aunt, her friend Claudette and I were just visiting the newly renovated Kensington Palace.

Statue of King William I.

 

Inside Kensington Palace.

 

View of the Orangery where we had lunch and a view of the gardens. My gracious aunt treated Claudette and myself to a lovely and delicious lunch at the Orangery.

Postcard effect photographed by myself  of  Kensington Palace Gardens.

Stroll along Hyde Park in clear sunny weather.

A not so centered picture of the Prince Albert Memorial. I photographed this site from inside a moving London cab. The Prince Albert Memorial is at Hyde Park.

The London Eye.

London Eye: Up and Down.

From the London Eye, here are snapshots of major sights around London: The Parliament Building with Big Ben, Thames River,  St. Paul's Cathedral and the  London's skyscrapers.

 

Tate Gallery which currently presents  the Picasso and Modern British Art Exhibit.

 

Trafalgar Square which was the venue for the St. George's Day Celebration and the countdown to the upcoming 2012 London Summer Olympics.

Finally, my dinner at a Traditional British Pub near Trafalgar Square. I enjoyed eating my meat pie with carrots, broccoli and mashed potatoes with gravy. I had Gin and tonic as my drink for that night. Thanks to Claudette for our delicious dinner at the Pub.  It was a weekend well spent. I hope you had fun with me traveling around London.

Have great weekend!