London-town

Sunday was a walking day.

The Strand Palace Hotel is situated one block north of the Thames and one block south of Covent Garden near Charing Cross. We were able to walk to many of the city’s most well-known locations; Leicester Square, Piccadilly Circus, Buckingham Palace, Westminster Abbey--all were but a short jaunt away. I’d photographed all these places, familiar to almost everyone, on previous visits.

We were also close to the Temple district, where Dickens tells us that the heads of the executed were once displayed in pub windows, and where Jaggers managed Pip’s financial affairs.

After dinner on Sunday, we went flying.

Across the river from Big Ben is London’s newest landmark, the London Eye. This giant Ferris wheel, which its supporters liken to the Eiffel Tower, may be something of an eyesore, but it carries its passengers hundreds of feet above the city for a remarkable perspective. You enter and exit the capsule while it is moving slowly. A capsule holds more than 20 people, with glass all around and a central bench. One revolution, or “flight”, takes 30 minutes, during which you can locate many of the sights in the central city.

We watched the sun set over the West End.