LONDON IN WINTER: Museums and More, Part 1

British Museum of Natural History, London

Why go to London in January, when it is cold, wet, and dark?  As long as you dress warmly, carry an umbrella, and plan mostly inside activities, it is a terrific time to see this great city when it isn’t jam packed with summer tourists--and there are more exhibits, plays and concerts than you could possibly see in one visit.  We were in London for a week in mid-January, opting to stay in Kensington because of its central location.  Here are some highlights from my diary:

The Cranley Hotel, Kensington, London

Saturday-- We arrived at our hotel, the Cranley, at about 8:30 pm, after walking through light snow from the Gloucester Road tube station. Checked in.  Very genteel--living room with fire and drinks available.  The desk person made a reservation for us for 9:30 at the Bumpkin, a pub about five minutes down the Old Brompton Road.  The dinner was surprisingly good.  Fresh organic food.  Art had a chicken pie and I had squash with brown rice risotto.  We also ordered an onion tart as an appetizer–an artfully presented slab of pastry, red onions, topped with cheese.  We had no room for the sticky toffee pudding on the menu.  Maybe we’ll go back. (We did.)

Statue of Charles Darwin, Museum of Natural History

Sunday– We walked to the Natural History Museum, on Cromley Road, about 10 minutes away and got tickets for the wildlife photography show–100 stunning prize winning nature photos, including a number of penguins photographed underwater by Flip Nicklin (seen in the recent National Geographic.)  On the way to the show we passed the ichthyosaurs and plesiosaurs found by Mary Anning. [See my post for Feb 11.] After lunch in the museum cafeteria we went to see the statue of Darwin, who presides over the main hall.  At the other end is a giant sequoia slice, brought from CA in the late 1800's, and nearly 2000 years old. That evening we went to a piano concert at Wigmore Hall.

Easter Island Moai

Monday–Took the tube to Kings Cross, walked to a pub called The Driver to see the  Patrick Blanc vertical gardens, then stopped for a Cornish pasty and sausage roll at the station for a late lunch before going to the British Museum.  The entrance hall there is huge, and filled mainly with an enormous gift shop.  First we went to see the Easter Island moai, (made of basalt so the details of the carvings on the back were especially fine).  We then went upstairs to view the mummies, and spent most of our time in just two rooms–all the Egyptian rooms extend across the width of the museum.  Our last stop was to see the Elgin Marbles on the main level.

(Continued next week.)