| Page Views: 847 Last Visit to London: July, 2009 | Another Continent. by breughel - last update: Jul 17, 2009 |
London is the capital of a sixth continent | Trooping the Colour - Welsh Guards 2006 |
London is the capital of a sixth continent: the British islands.
I discovered this evidence on my first visit to the UK in 1958 when I was asked from what part of the continent I was coming. They were from an Island-Continent and I was from that other continent called Europe.
The contrast was much greater than now. They completely ignored the decimal system.
They would juggle with twelve pence in a shilling, twenty shilling in one Pound, and -the cherry on the cake- one Pound plus one shilling = one Guinea.
It was a great moment in my life when British friends initiated me to the mystery of the guinea = 21 shillings. I can tell you that prices in shops were announced in guineas.
I think that such a monetary system was a summit of civilization.
Furthermore there were these delicious British social habits. For example when preparing tea: put first the sugar in the cup, than the milk and only than the tea.
The British were so special, so polite, and so kind that I started to like them and never halted.
Nowadays many things have changed as they are no more on an island nor physically, nor socially, nor mentally. |
| Trooping the Colour - 2006 |
|  | Magnificent Military Parades. Fortunately some good old traditions are kept alive. One of them is that magnificent military parade of "trooping the colour" in London at Whitehall.
By courtesy of my friends of "Welsh Guards Online" please find a travelogue with some photos of the 2006 parade by the Welsh Guards regiment.
If one day you see some Foot guards or Horse guards parading in London don't forget that these soldiers have always been fully operational elite soldiers in WW I, WW II and are now most often outside the UK on operation in dangerous countries. |
| Crowds of tourists here on sightseeing busses. |
| | NATIONAL GALLERY. I was surprised to find only 90 reviews on VT (compared to 200 reviews for the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam) for the National Gallery which is one of the best paint museums in the world.
Same fate for the British Museum with 250 reviews on VT compared to the 800 of Le Louvre.
I think that London merits much more interest from the cultural tourist than those low figures for its main museums.
OK, I shall add a few.
In July 2009, I went back to London. It was time to visit again the National Gallery which is for me the best paintings museum in the world.
There were huge crowds of tourists at all monuments and museums but, as many Londoners had left for vacation, the public transport was not overloaded as usual.
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 Comments for breughel about London | | | | |
Nemorino Sun Oct 25, 2009 20:29 UTC
Me again, coming back to look at the new tips and updates that you have added since August 2, 2009. I haven't been back to London since my daughter's graduation, must go again soon. (But nothing definite planned yet.) | Jefie Wed Aug 12, 2009 12:01 UTC
Nice additions to your London page! Very original and informative, as always. Vous semblez avoir fait un bon séjour malgré les foules! | scottishvisitor Thu Aug 6, 2009 09:21 UTC
What an educational tour you present in your tips! The changing of the guards will always go on despite the recent wars. Submit your beer complaint to the government!! | jo104 Tue Jul 28, 2009 16:54 UTC
I really enjoyed your new London tips, sundays at hyde park is still speakers cnr the trafalgar sq expo is strange & pointless. I went to the holocaust exhibit at Imperial war museum one of the best I've seen must write up tip! |
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