I went into town (London) yesterday for a meet up with my daughter for a business ‘Power Hour’. I am having a bit of difficulty with the business plan for 3 Days in London, so went along to get things in order. She is a genius at unravelling stuff and by the end of the session I felt like finally we had a workable direction….
After the meeting I decided to take a walk along the SouthBank to see the German Market and check out the ice-rink at the London Eye. First though I walked across the Thames via Hungerford Bridge….the view is so fabulous that I can seldom resist if I am in the area.
view of St Paul's from Hungerford Bridge
Then at a quick trot along the embankment…..it was freezing, I whizzed past the stalls absorbing the heavenly smells that whafted through the air. The stalls looked cosy and gay; decorated with lights and tinsel and baubles. There are a number of stalls giving you an array of choices that tempt your tastebuds: crepes, mulled wine, roasted chestnuts, fudge and chocolate.
fancy a Crepe (pancake)? go wild and have one with nutella and cream 🙂
There is a gaily painted carousel, the horses dizzily whirling by; a blur of colour and light and sound, the snow a fitting background.
gaily painted horses whirling by at a dizzy pace
From there I walked up to the ice-rink in front of the London Eye and watched the skaters whizzing around; thrills and spills! Looked like great fun.
thrills and spills on the London Eye ice-rink
By this stage my camera didn’t want to work, it was so cold it felt like I had lost life in my hands; I had no feeling and my face felt like it was going to fall off!
view of Big Ben from South bank
The lamp-posts, walls and sculptures were all covered with snow and looked incredibly pretty. As the light waned it got colder and colder, so at a quickening pace I walked along to Westminster Bridge and back over the river to Big Ben, Westminster Palace
Big Ben at 4pm. the Christmas tree in the forecourt is very pretty
and Westminster Abbey. The Christmas Tree in front of the Parliamentary buildings looks gorgeous and I watched the clock strike 4pm. Then a quick walk over the the Abbey for a photo or two.
Westminster Abbey looking ethereal in the diming light
Then it was back onto the tube and home. It was a delight to step into the house that although cold at the best of times, is a whole heck of a lot warmer than outdoors. It took me about 10 minutes to defrost and a lovely cup of tea helped warm me up 🙂
Hello notjustagranny – I love this post. The South Bank is so lovely and special and I’m dying to go and check out the German market again this year. Friday had to be the coldest day ever – my face froze completely and I think all my toes fell off!
Sunshine