Aliens, Dinosaurs and Everything In-Between: London Walker

I have been living in London since November 2012. During that time I have been exploring the city to varying degrees by numerous means. Whether it be by car, tube or foot I have seen a lot of Western and Central London. The East and South sides of London are still quite foreign to me. My favorite means of transport is walking. I have walked through much of the city and been able to take some photographs during that time. Now I want to begin sharing some of the places I have visited.

I am going to begin with Buckingham Palace. Last week was the first time I saw the Palace in person. I actually found it somewhat by accident in that I was not looking to go there rather I was looking for the South Korean Embassy here in London. Why I was looking for the Korean Embassy is another story. But I did find the embassy and after I left I began walking up the street and soon found myself on a road called Buckingham Gate. I walked up the road and before I knew it I found myself standing on the south side of the palace though at first I didn't really know what building I was looking at. It wasn't until I walked around towards the front of the building that I saw the signs listing what it was. There was also fair sized crowd in the front of the building and more people approaching it from the east down the main road called The Mall, which comes directly from Trafalgar Square to the Palace.

I found out that the palace has been the official residence of the British monarchs in London since 1837. The building remains functional and is used by the monarchy for its administrative duties. The buildings gates were closed so it was not possible to get very close to it so I have no idea what the inside of the building looks like except though pictures online. But the gates themselves were fun to look at in and of themselves. They were quite detailed and adorned with gold.

In front of the building there is a large statue and fountain called the Victoria Memorial. As one could guess it is a statue of Queen Victoria. She is seated facing northeast towards The Mall, the main road to the Palace. There are two bronze statues on each side of her. One is the angel of justice and the other is the angel of truth. The fountain surrounds the memorial and has stone carvings in it including mermaids, mermen and a hippogriff. The fountain was functional as water poured out the sides of the memorial. There were also a few more statues around the memorial but I did not discover who they were or what they represented though I’m sure one could look it up online.

The Palace is almost completely surrounded by parks. Green Park lies to the north while St. James Park lies to the east and the Palace Gardens are behind (West) the building. It is only to the South, the direction I original came from where the Palace is approached by other city buildings. When I left I walked through Green Park. Green Park is a small park with a few paths and wonderfully large trees. It also has large fields of grass and cloth chairs laid out for anyone to use and relax in.

So if you’re in London definitely talk a walk to the Palace. It’s a great site that my pictures do little justice to.

Buckingham Gate Road