We had read in several travel guides to be ready for strike actions. Not likely, eh? Well on the way back from Windsor, this unintelligible message came over PA on our train… “…if the strike action goes forward…Wednesday evening…garble garble..”
Later at our room a quick internet search confirmed and explained the loudspeaker announcements in the stations, tube workers would strike from 18:30 Wednesday for 24 hours. It looked like the overground train would be ok for Thurday, so no worries, right? Well, Wednesday 10:30 we got off the tube, walked through Green Park (haven’t figured if it’s namesake was someone called Green, or it’s just a green park) took up our advanced position for changing of the guard and stared people enjoying crowd and Bobby watching. .
London police do a great job being authoritative and simultaneously polite with crowds of tourists. Helps if you’re on a horse, but they don’t absolutely need one. And the tourists are up to the usual stupid tourist tricks:
- Maybe he won’t notice I climbed back up
- Gutter is close to on the curb
- I’ll pretend I don’t hear her, no speak English
- I can put my buggy/pram/luggage here, right?
- On and on
The changing of the guard is fun if you’ve never seen it and like band music and horses (e.g. You enjoy those parts of parades, as we do). It was splendidly done and we have a gallery with a few photos and also videos of tired Foot Guards and Horse Guards retiring to their barracks for you to view.
As noted the police were also stars of the show and we resisted having our pics taken after with the bobbies up on our monument as they were busy answering questions posing for photos with the post event stragglers.
Our next stop at 13:15 was the Buckingham Palace state rooms, where the Queen does her thing representing Britain to dignitaries and recognizing contributions to the country and culture with knighthoods, etc. Highlights included the banquet room which was (unusually) exhibited set up for dinner, the 200th anniversary of Waterloo drawings including Napoleon’s surrender note and the China (dinner service) museum. No pictures from inside but we have some of the grounds, Including this post visit one at around 17:00, where we are enjoying ice cream made from milk of the royal herd at Windsor.
17:00?! Wasn’t the deadline to complete travel 18:30? Didn’t they say that the hours prior would be impacted? Ok, better walk back across Green park. How bad could it be? Ooh,uphill. In the station, loudspeaker announcements begin, “Don’t panic…” and note that trains are running every minute, that if you can’t get on you can get the next one. Well, we got on, just barely cramming in with the door brushing my arm. At the next stop no one got off and 5 more people got on! How did we do that? Cary and I are now crushed together with other riders. Unfortunately not being right by the door so we could step out departing riders had to slide across us. A few stops later this let up and we were able to sit before we got to our stop. Phew. In the end we decided admiring the grounds and especially the ice cream was worth the crush.
Next day we got a surface train to meet our friend for Magna Carta (British Library) and Rosetta Stone (British Museum) meanderings.
We also got a great pub experience nearby at Skinners Arms, recommended and accompanied by our friend!
Long day and we got back on our uncrowded overground train pretty late, finding this smart crack from the little snack shop on the platform.
Great couple days.