We chose the coldest and windiest day of our time in the UK so far to visit the very exposed Dover Castle! Ava's romantic views of castle life were quickly blown away! Entry should have cost us over £30, but came free with our apartment. There's a lot to see and do in the castle area, but much of it includes outdoor queuing. We did one of the tunnel tours, but passed on the newest attraction as those brave souls waiting an hour in line for it looked frozen. We gave it few hours in total but were happy enough to get back to the car and return.
Jiajia and I drove to Canterbury today, using my parents' car, lent to us for the week. The cathedral - Jiajia's third in a fortnight - was quite expensive and very busy, but had lots to see inside. The cost of parking in the city was even pricier though. Jiajia bought lots of fruit and I had my first Burger King in a couple of years. We'd thought about joining a tour of the river but, having seen one of their punts from a bridge, decided not to bother and headed back to our castle. A second day in London today, starting with a spin on the London Eye - fast changing from a "must-see" to a "not worth the silly price". After lunch with my friend Cathy, Jiajia and I wandered down the bank of Thames to the Tate Modern art gallery. As ever, there was the usual mix of thought-provoking items and absolute tat (should that be the Tat Modern?). I particularly enjoyed "piece of paper and a biro" (I kid you not). Actually, I tried to take a photo of "chair and fire extinguisher" but the gallery attendant told me it was just where he sat and not art. What does he know? Jiajia, at least, was taking it all seriously and got very excited on spotting a painting by her all-time favourite artist, "Modigliani". Later we crossed the Thames on the "formerly wobbly" Millennium Bridge and arrived at St. Paul's moments before it closed for tourists. I let Jiajia explore alone however, as the £15 entrance ticket seemed very steep for somewhere I used to go for free in my youth. Ironically, people claiming to "simply want to worship" were still let inside, and for free. Any liars could always ask for forgiveness once inside, I guess? Jiajia and I spent our first day up in London today. We just managed to get to Buckingham Palace in time for the changing of the guards, but Jiajia wasn't that impressed. Nor for the Palace itself or Hyde Park or Trafalgar Square. However, we hit gold dust with the National Gallery. As an art graduate in China, Ava had only seen world-class oil paintings in books. She loved seeing them up close, and it was a struggle to drag her away after a few hours. Covent Garden also hit the spot, with the "Lush Handmade Soap" shop parting her with a wad of money. Out with history and culture then and, next time round, we'll stick to oils (and lotions to remove oils). |
AuthorPaul Hider lives and works in Kunming (SW China) and regularly updates this blog about his life there. Past blog entries
April 2024
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