Oct 29 Monday - The Armitage

An earlier start today as we headed out to see the two displays at the Armitage Museum, an affiliated museum of the Armitage in St. Petersburg. Due to the ongoing renovation of the Van Gogh Museum, a large collection of his paintings are on display at the Armitage along with a large collection of Impressionist paintings belonging to the Armitage. Unfortunately, I was not permitted to take any photographs at the museum (strictly verbotten as the sign said), so you'll just have to take my word for the impressive collection that took us nearly two hours to see, plus another two to see the Armitage's Impressionist paintings.

In London

The collection of Inpressionists was vast including works by Renoir, Monet, Cwzanne, Gaugin, Rodin, Laurens, Rousseau, Pissarro, Sisley, Moret, Degas, and Hoffbauer. We were particularly attracted to the painting by Hoffbauer titled, "In London", an Impressionist piece that maintained a strong bond to the Academy rules and allowed Hoffbauer to show it at the annual Salon in Paris.

The weather did not cooperate and our walk back to the hotel was cold and wet, although we did find a delightful chocolate shop on the walk and bought some treats to eat on the way. Before we had walked a block, we returned for a larger selection to bring home.

For dinner we ate again at Lucius. Donna had a full dinner of mussels and I had the turbot, both excellent as well as a bottle of the same sauvignon blanc we had last night. We sat next to a couple from New Jersey who have been coming to Amsterdam twice a year for the past 10-years. Lucius is one of their favorite restaurants -- I concur.

Chocolate Shop

The "Five Flies" Restaurant

Oct 28 Sunday -- Amsterdam & Rijksmuseum

So here we are on our first full day in Amsterdam. Slept in really late and finally got out of the hotel around 10:30am. Had a late breakfast at a small cafe just south of the hotel. Donna and I shared an omelet which the Dutch seem to prefer stuffed into a long hard roll. We chose to eat it on the plate, but they offered no butter or jam, so the roll was a bit of a waste.

We went back to the hotel so I could Google Map our route to the Rijksmuseum, under renovation for the past 10-years and scheduled to reopen in 2013.  It has the largest collection of Rembrandt's and Vermeer's in the world, and while under renovation has on display some of the most famous of the paintings in a wing that is open to visitors.  The paintings on display are spectacular, including Rembrandt's famous The Nightwatch, an imposing and magnificent painting (1642) that justly deserves its praise and regard. We spent over two hours viewing the offerings and were disappointed only in the fact that only two Vermeeer's were on display, and one of them we saw in Seattle at the Vermeer Exhibition at the Seattle Art Museum in Seattle. It would be worth a trip back when the museum reopens just to see the vast collection that was not on display.

We dined near the hotel at an exceptional fish restaurant, Lucius, just a block away. We had some of the best mussels I've tasted, these from Zeeland, an area in Holland as well as pickled herring, both as appetizers. I've never had such fresh herring, and the pickling was very mild. It was served with chopped onions and a tiny pickle which was all eaten together.







For our main courses, Donna had a plate of mixed poached fish in a heavy sauce, and I had three fillets of baby dover sole. Both were exceptional. We sat next to a man from Atlanta, Georgia who makes it his mision to eat at Lucius every time he comes to Amsterdam, which he seems to do regularly for business. We had a bottle of Domaine de Corbillieres Savignon Blanc by Touraine (2011) which was a highly drinkable wine, but not particuloarly memorable.

Night Watch

Oct 27 Saturday -- Depart for Amsterdam

Vasilis took Philip for a morning soccer game at the park, so we had our goodbyes and got ready for our pickup at 11:45am. The driver was right on time, and we made it to Heathrow in about 30-minutes. There was almost no traffic. I had to repack some items at the airport as I forgot I was allowed only one carryon, and my briefcase was considered too big to qualify as a computer bag. Everything fit into my checked bag, including my briefcase, so it all worked out without having to spend an additional 45 pounds for a second checked piece.

The KLM flight was a short hop of only 55 minutes, and with the one hour time change we arrived at 5:05pm. Our luggage arrived quickly, we found the cab stand, and were lucky to have a very well informed taxi driver who gave us some interesting history and tour commentary on the way to the hotel.  He drove us past the Ann Frank house which still had a block long line-up to enter.  We'll likely skip that tour.

The hotel is lovely, and our room delightful. I'll have some pictures shortly. The hotel clerk suggested we try a local favorite for dinner, Long Pura, an Indonesian restaurant that serves only one specialty item, an assortment of dishes called rijsttafel or rice table, very popular in the Netherlands. Actually just a lot of spicy boiled meats in tiny bowls. Not anything either of us would want to try again, although it wasn't bad, just not very interesting.

Oct 26 Friday - Greenwich

National Rail Line Platform

Took the train to Greenwich with Carolyn and Philip. We were pleasantly surprised to find that our Oyster Cards were good for the Railroad and our only transportation cost was for Philip, for while he was free on London tube and buses, anyone over 5-years needs a ticket on the railroad.

Cutty Sark

Inside the Cutty Sark Museum Shop and entry

It was a quick 25 minutes to Greenwich and the train station is less than a 10-minute walk to the harbor. The weather had turned much colder (as the pictures show) and we all glad we had brought along warmer clothing. Our first stop was at the restored Cutty Sark sailing ship, an mid-19th century clipper ship that first saw service in the tea trade between London and China, and later as a wool merchant ship sailing between Sydney and London. It is now a fully restored museum ship. Carolyn and Philip took the tour while we waited in the gift shop. It had started to rain and we had little interest in walking on the exposed deck of the ship in the rain.

Observatory Entrance

Donna Straddling East & West Longitude

From there we walked to the Royal Observatory, one of the highlights of our trip for me. I've read the book, the Longitude by Dava Sobel, and was eager to see John Harrison's H4 clock, the most important invention of its time that finally allowed for the determination of a ship's longitude (or anyone for that matter) with a fine degree of accuracy. Up until Harrison, the most accurate clocks were accurate to only one second per week. Harrison's clock was accurate to one second in 100 days and won the 20,000 pound prize established by the Longitude Act of 1714. Harrison worked on the clock for over 40 years and was finally awarded the prize in 1772, shortly before he died in 1776.

Philip on the Prime Meridian

Harrison's First Clock

This was our final day in London and we walked into Kennsington for dinner at a neighborhood Italian restaurant. The rest of the evening was packing for our departure on Saturday.

Harrison's 4th Time Keeper - Won the Prize

Fast Disappearing Phone Booths



Our Apartment in Chelsea

Oct 25 Thursday - Borough Market

Carolyn took Philip with her for an early morning meeting near her office, and they spent the day together at various markets and at the London Zoo.  Donna and I took the tube to Borough Market, the largest open air food market in London and the one of the largest, we are told, in the world. We couldn't begin to explore all of it, and after wandering around the stalls for about an hour decided have a fish and chips lunch. We shared a fried haddock lunch that was excellent, not greasy at all, lightly floured and flavorful without any fishy smell.

We found a stall selling Turkish Delight, even better than the candy we had in Turkey. Bought much too much of it and ended up leaving most of it in the London apartment when we left on Saturday. That was about all we managed on Thursday. Carolyn, Philip and Vasilis were late getting back to the apartment and had just a few minutes to get ready for the dinner reservations we had in the theater district.


Dinner was fine, an Italian restaurant, and we walked to the Palace Theater to see Singin' in the Rain. It was delightful, and Philip was obviously enjoying it, perhaps a bit too much for the lady sitting in front of him as he stood laughing at several scenes.

Oct 24 Wednesday - Victoria & Albert Museum

Carolyn stayed Tuesday night at a hotel near Gatwick Airport, and Vasilis left very early (as ususal) for his office, well before we woke up. It was just Donna, Philip and me for the day together and we had it planned out pretty well.  After breakfast we headed to the Victoria & Albert Museum. The Museum has a special exhibition of Hollywood costumes that we thought Philip would enjoy seeing. We didn't realize that entry required tickets with specific times for entry. The earliest available for us was 12:30 pm, nearly two hours away. We decided to buy the tickets and spend the time wandering around the museum, which we did. Their is an extensive section on early clothing with some remarkably preserved items from the 15th century on.

Glass Sculpture

We saw several examples of sarcophogi lids, carved in the likeness of the inhabitants. The entry has what looks like a Chihuli glass sculpture hanging from the ceiling, but I didn't check out the artist.

Henry VIII Writing Box

The Hollywood exhibit was interesting, with the costumes from what seemed to be just about every famous movie made, from Charlie Chaplin's Tramp, Darth Vader, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Harry Potter, Gone With the Wind, and of course, Judy Garllands dress and red slippers from the Wizard of Oz.

15th Century Ark

Philip in Fron of Light Box

Harry Potter Costume

Judy Garland's Dorthy

Ruby Slippers

Steam Engine from Textile Mill

Victoria & Albert Museum



Early 19th Century Locomotive

Enigma Machine

Globe at Science Museum

We had lunch at yet another Lebanese restaurant in the area and afterwards went to the Science Museum. I wanted to the see the origina Enigma Machines that were made famous by Alan Touring as the man who broke their code and saved untold thousands of lives and helped bring the war to a close. The museum has extensive holdings of early technology in Great Britain and I wish I could have spent more time there, but the day was already late and we had dinner reservations at Cafe Spice Namaste, one of the best Indian restaurants I've ever been to. I know I'll regret eating as much as I did, but then, I usually do.



Did I tell you about the apartment?

Oh yes, I think I forgot to really tell you about the apartment we're staying in. It's a 4-Star facility with exceptional service. But did I tell you that it takes 85 stairs and 8 landings to reach our front door.  You really don't want to forget anything once you leave in the morning -- it's a hell of a hike to get back.  But the service staff seems to do it with ease.  Daily maid service brings in fresh linens and towels daily, fully cleans, and seem to manage with smiles on their faces.  I have trouble smiling until after I can catch my breath.

The apartment is dated, but then everything in London seems dated. I think the building is 19th century, and the apartments have been updated to post WWII. The baths and kitchen are very new and adequate. There's even a washing machine in the kitchen,but no dryer. We're drying damp clothes on the radiators (which have also been recently updated).  I would definitely stay here again, but would plead for an apartment on a lower floor.

Oct 23 Tuesday - Westminster Abbey

Today I joyfully slept in to 7:30am. Vasilis had left for his office of course, but then I'm not sure when he sleeps. Carolyn was getting dressed, Philip was sound asleep, and Donna made it to 9:00am. By the time we finished breakfast and got out of the apartment it was nearly 10:30am.  We walked the two blocks to the bus stop heading to China Town to buy tickets for Singing' In the Rain at the Palace Theater box office.  We wanted tickets in the 40 pound range, which according to the seating chart at the box office would place us in the rear of upper balcony. The ticket agent however offered us main floor, 11th row center seats for 40 pounds each. That was about 40% less than the listed price, but as we later learned, most of the theater in London is discounted at third party ticket offices. I was surprised that discounted tickets were offered at the box office as well, especially as we are two days from the performance.

 

 

Philip wanted to see the street performers at Covent Garden which was a short walk from the Palace Theater. We entered the Market just as a street magician was preforming a straight jacket, chain and rope escape.  After wandering around the market for half an hour we ate lunch at Union Jacks, a Jamie Oliver restaurant.  As I would expect from Jamie, the offerings were excellent. I had a tandori chicken and Donna had grilled salmon.  We watched a unicycle artist just before leaving Covent Garden for a walk along the Strand to the Parliament Buildings, Big Ben and Westminster Abbey.

 

Along the Strand we saw the large ferris wheel called the London Eye. I believe a similar ferris wheel is being constructed in Seattle. We arrived at the Abbey entrance at 3:00 pm just 30 minutes before the last entry of the day. They charge a hefty fee for visitors, 16 pounds (about $27) which includes an audio tour of the Abbey. They gave Philip a four page quiz to complete which was rewarded with a chocolate coin at the gift shop. I could hardly find the answers to the questions and we gave up after page two. 

 

The Abbey is truly amazing, having been started over 1,000 years ago, although it wasn't until the 13th cnetury that the current architecture was established and building continued for several hundred years. Pictures were not permitted, so I have nothing visual to share.  Sorry.

 We caught a bus back to Sloane Square whcih left us off almost directly in front of our apartment. Vasilis picked up Philip to have dinner with his friend, and Donna and I went back to Al-Dar, the Lebanese restaurant a few blocks away that we ate at our first night here.  We tried several nearby French restaurants, but all were booked. This area is loaded with restaurants, many that we would love to try but know we won't have the opportunity (this trip).