Exploring London: A Tale of Walking and Crowds

Food Notes:

The Modern Pantry
48 St. John's Square
Innovative, tasty food. Friendly waitstaff and interesting atmosphere.

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So far, I absolutely love London. It's a gorgeous city that has a little of everything, from history and culture to great food and nightlife. My flat is (more or less) within walking distance of many major sites, and I'm equidistant from 3 tube stations for those locations that are not easily walkable.

Yesterday, I was hoping to travel outside my little walking bubble and see more of London. I wrote down a few interesting locations and their nearest tube stations. Although first, I had to run over to Argos to pick up a few essentials (yes, I accidentally bought a 12 pack of teaspoons. I thought it was a flatware set. Who needs 12 teaspoons?).



Argos is this incredible store that sells EVERYTHING, and it's cheap. Cheaper than IKEA. Amazing, right?

Well, anyways... Once I leave for my adventure, I quickly discover that 3 tube lines are not running on account of track repair. I don't have a bus map on me, so I decide to change my plans. I'll walk to the Hunterian and British Museums today and figure out the bus routes for tomorrow.

The Hunterian Museum is INCREDIBLE. It's sort of like the Mutter Museum but with a stronger emphasis on science. The museum is part of the Royal College of Surgeons and has many specimens used to study various abnormalities. In addition, they also have Charles Babbage's brain, Churchill's dentures, and the skeleton of a Dodo.

It had some more gruesome exhibits; for instance, there was an exhibit on the start of plastic surgery in World War I, which had some pretty morbid pictures of face wounds from the war. For the most part, the museum was educational and interesting. Also, it was free. Win!

Next, I went to the British Museum. Honestly, the British Museum is incredible and immense. But it was packed! Some of the exhibits were manageable, and I was able to look through the Parthenon exhibit.


(from left to right, unidentified reclining male, Hermes, Athena, Poseidon, Iris, ???, Amphitrite)

I was excited to see some mummies, but it was impossible to get near ANY of the cases in the Egyptian wing, and I resolved to come back on a weekday. Outside, it was snowing pretty heavily, so I came straight home.

I'm exhausted from walking and unpacking and getting all set up. When I woke up this morning, I felt a little sniffly, so I decided to stay in and take it easy. I went to brunch down the street, and now I'm going to relax.

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Here's a traumatizing British ad about not taking unmarked taxis.