Here, There, and Everywhere

And if you know the significance of that title, you'll know where our first stop was on our first day in London.  Bucket List moment...along with a whole lot of really annoying "I'm the biggest Beatles fan on the planet" types.  The ones who need to cross the road fifteen times assuming different poses for each photo.  The saving grace today was that there is some road construction happening, limiting traffic to one alternating lane.  So there were actual breaks in the traffic flow to allow for a quick photo op without pissing off the general motoring public too badly.  Except for those annoying "I'm the biggest Beatles fan on the planet" types who were pissing off everyone, motoring or not.

And then it was tacky tourist time. And no, the zebra crossing on Abbey Road does not count as  tacky tourist.  But the red phone box with Big Ben in the background sure does.

On the topic of Big Ben -- holy crap!  I had no idea it would be so...BIG!  I mean, we walked out of the tube station and there it was in front of us, right smacking there, and I was blown away.  I don't think I will ever lay eyes on something man made that is so shockingly impressive on first sight. There is just no way for a photo to do it justice.  But here's a couple anyway.

Next stop -- the London Eye.  Definitely worth a whirl to realize the sheer size and spread of the city and to see the buildings in their entirety, especially the Houses of Parliament.

We walked a circuitous route back to our hotel taking in Trafalgar Square, Piccadilly Circus, and Hyde Park.  A little trivia -- the smallest police station in London is located in Trafalgar Square.  It was installed in a lamppost in 1926 so police could keep on eye on protestors.  I peeked inside...just some electrical boxes and garbage.  No more direct line to Scotland Yard.

Not bad for a first half day.  

And tomorrow promises to be magical.