On my first day in London, I woke up early- around 6am.  This is no doubt related to the fact that I was asleep by 9pm the previous night thanks to jet lag.  Taking advantage of the early start, I was showered, shaved, and ready to go before 7am.  I bought my 3 day tube pass and headed to Westminster right on the river Thames.  Popping out of the train station, several landmarks are in view- the London Eye, Big Ben & Houses of Parliament, and Westminster Abbey in the distance.  I wandered around the area taking the required photos and then proceeded on the "Westminster Walk" up Whitehall.

My sightseeing priorities were to see things that either didn't exist, I don't remember, or I'd appreciate more compared to my trip to London as a kid.   To that end, I planned on visiting the Cabinet War Room & Churchill Museum (CWRCM).  Since it was still before the 9:30am opening time, I checked out stops on Whitehall- 10 Downing St. (where former Prime Minister Tony Blair recorded his lines for the Simpsons), a couple memorials on the street, and St. James park.   As it approaches 9:30, I head back to CWRCM to be there as it opens.

The CWRCM is where Winston Churchill ran Britain's war effort during WWII.  I learned a lot of things, such as that Churchill didn't inhale his cigar, lost the election shortly after the war ended,  and that, like me, he took naps (although, unlike me, he worked 18 hours a day and lived in a bunker).  He also won a Nobel Prize in literature.  Having lunch at the "Switch Cafe" inside the War Rooms, I can imagine all the generals here trying to survive their battle with Germany.  I had a good sandwich and a yummy Coca Cola in a glass bottle.

Finished with lunch and the CWRCM, I headed back up Whitehall towards Trafalgar Square and the National Gallery of Art. Since it was still just past noon, I found the nearby theater district and bought a ticket for the following night's performance of Avenue Q.  I spent the rest of the afternoon at the Gallery which is fantastic and includes one of my favorite paintings, van Eyck's "The Alfini Portrait".  Lots of other good stuff at the museum.  

As the museum is close to closing, I head back to the main Contiki Hotel to meet up with a few other early arriving travelers.  We have dinner at a pub (and to those who told me otherwise, the beer is indeed cold).  Ending the evening we chat at the hotel bar.  By around midnight and after an 18 hour day, I head home to get some sleep.

 (I apologize for any spelling mistakes, no spell check in the internet cafe, plus some of the special characters are in a different place than back home)

View the London photo album.