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Roman...err...London Holiday- Finding Love While Playing the Tourist
With over 15 million tourists in 2007, London is one of the most visited cities on the globe according to Euromonitor. Whether you have spent your entire life in the city or you are only coming up for a day trip, seeing the tourist sites is great way to have a date in London.
Most of the traditional sightseeing possibilities are located along the Thames, stretching from the Borough of Westminster (location of the Houses of Parliament) to Tower Bridge (sometimes confused with London Bridge). This is the perfect distance to do an afternoon walk that will give the two of you time to get sidetracked by sites. Audrey Hepburn and Gregory Peck would be proud!
What You Will Need
- A camera- Every tourist wants to capture their holiday!
- A map- To pull out when lost.
- Comfortable walking shoes- (The scooter is definitely optional)
What You Will Need
- Begin on the north side of the Thames at the Tower of London.
- Cross Tower Bridge and take the River
Walk west.
- On the River Walk you will pass the HMS Belfast, Hay's Gallery, and the Southwark Cathedral.
- After the Cathedral you will come to the reconstructed Globe Theatre and the Tate Modern (free admission!).
- From the Tate, cross the Millennium
Bridge to the North side of the Thames and take the pedestrian thoroughfare up to St. Pauls Cathedral.
- Go west on Cannon Hill (turns into Ludgate Hill, Fleet Street, then the Strand). You will end up at the Royal Courts of Justice.
- Following the Strand west you will find yourself in Trafalgar Square, location of the National Gallery and St. Martins.
- From the square go south on Whitehall (A3212), passing the House Guards and No. 10 Downing Street (home of the Prime Minister).
- Following Whitehall for a bit will leave you staring at the Houses of Parliament and Westminster Abbey and Cathedral (if you get to the Cathedral around five, you can listen to the boys' choir for free during the evensong service).
- From here you can see the Thames again. Across Westminster Bridge are the London Eye, the London Aquarium and the Florence Nightingale Museum.
This walk of London can take you an afternoon, if you just want to see everything, or a series of afternoons, if you find yourself lost in museums and cathedrals. Tube
stops are littered around this area so if you realize that you have spent hours at the Tate and don't quite make it to see the Prime Minister's abode, you don't need to sweat it. There is always a second date to explore and a tube station to take you home. Either way -tourist for a day or for several days- you can find love as Audrey does, with or without the scooter.
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