It’s our last night in London, and today has been, as expected, a whirlwind of more sightseeing. More history, more London streets, and the pedestrian crossings that cross them (well at least a specific one). But before I get there, let me backtrack through the highlights of the last few days.
We hadn’t really had any intentions of doing much fine dining while on this trip, but after we booked into the B&B we stayed in near Battle, they had suggested we might want to consider booking a table at The Curlew – a nice relaxed restaurant in the next village. Sounded good, but sounded better once I read that it had a Michelin Star. How could we turn down that opportunity? It ended up being easily the best meal we’ve had in England (and really didn’t cost that much more than some of the less enjoyable ones).
The reason we were in Battle was to see the 1066 related sites – the battle field and the abbey. If you’re not up on your English history (I certainly wasn’t beforehand), this is where William the Conqueror took on King Harold, and, spoiler alert, he won, Harold being killed by an arrow to the eye. The field was partly closed, but we were able to get a good sense of where things played out. There is another walking trail that we could have done – the band Keane have their own list of significant places in Battle; in fact the official Battle tourist brochure has the Keane Trail marked out with ‘K’s on the same map that guides you through the 1066 locations. Maybe next time…
On our way back to London we made a detour via Down House – the former home of Charles Darwin. The study where he wrote “On the Origin of Species” has been left pretty much intact, and some of the experiments that he carried out in the garden have been recreated (or in the case of his study into the speed at which worms lower soil, are still going). The audio tour by David Attenborough certainly lent it all a bit more gravitas than previous sites.
So, back in London, and this time we’re staying in Earl’s Court. Holly decided she’d like to check out some markets, so we headed to Greenwich. The markets left something to be desired, but thankfully there are a few other things to do around there – first it was into the Old Royal Naval College (designed by Christoper Wren), to see a building called the Painted Hall, featuring a huge painting on the ceiling and walls. Then being in Greenwich, and being nerds, we had to go to the Prime Meridian, AKA Longitude 0°. Next door was the Royal Observatory (another one of Wren’s – what an overachiever), and while I did get to touch a 4.5 billion year old meteorite, I was disappointed by the distinct lack of Professor Brian Cox.
After a quick visit to Westminster to see the Houses of Parliament, Holly was done with walking, so she retreated to the hotel, leaving me to my own devices. I’d been debating heading to Abbey Road, and now that I was a free agent with time on my side, it seemed like the right thing to do. I really pity anyone who lives around the studio – the non-stop pilgrims must get a little tiring, especially if you were trying to drive. Of course as a pilgrim I was more than happy to hold up the traffic to get my obligatory photo on the crossing, though in the absence of a willing accomplice, the above is the best I could manage.
Having scratched one fanboy itch, it was time for another. I walked down to Baker St, looking for 221b – the home of Holmes. The Sherlock Museum I found said it was 221b, and the plaque on the street said it was 221b, but I think everyone was ignoring the fact that it was actually 239 Baker St, and that 221 was part of a building that ran all the way from 219 through to 229. Anyway the real Sherlock highlight was getting into the Baker Street tube station and discovering it was decorated throughout with Sherlock tiles. Top that Cityrail.