UK - London

London is the city frequented by lots of travelers throughout the year for pleasure and/or for business purposes. In 2009, I did both, in July for work and August for vacation. Both visits are memorable experiences for me.

During our stay in London, we visited a number of London’s popular tourist attractions; Chinatown, The Buckingham Palace, London Eye, Westminster and we even watched the Lion King musical.

Is London's Chinatown any different from those that I’ve visited in Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok, Manila, New York, San Francisco, Sydney and Yokohama? Frankly, no because you will be greeted with Chinese style street furniture, pagodas, merchandises, food (we had most of our meals here) and there are always lots of people.

Buckingham Palace has served as the official residence for Britain’s sovereigns since 1837. It is the pride of the Monarch and is a major tourist attraction. Buckingham Palace's 19 state rooms are open to public in August and September when the Queen makes her annual visit to Balmoral. The state rooms are an epitome of luxury with the Kingdom's greatest treasures which includes the best of paintings by Vermeer, Poussin, Canaletto, Rembrandt, Rubens, and Claude, sculpture by Canova and Chantrey, some exquisite examples of Sèvres porcelain along with some of the finest representation of English and French furniture in the world. The end of the tour takes us to the south side of the Palace's garden. Having just seen Catherine’s Palace in St. Petersburg, it is very hard to be impressed by what I saw in Buckingham Palace.

The London Eye has now become one of the iconic sights of London and is the most popular paid attraction. It’s visited by over 3.5 million people a year. The wheel design was used as a metaphor for the end of the 20th century, and time turning into the new millennium. It weighs 2100 tonnes, 135m/443ft high and has capacity for 800 passengers per revolution. There are 32 capsules attached to the wheel which travels gently at a speed of 26cm per second. Each rotation takes 30 minutes in which time you can marvel at the views that span up to 40km in all directions (depending on the weather). I was told that on a clear day, you can even see Windsor Castle.

Big Ben is located at the north-eastern side of the Houses of Parliament building. Named after the tower’s largest bell, it was originally called St. Stephen's Tower. It is the largest four-faced chiming clock and the third tallest free-standing clock tower in the world.

When Parliament is sitting at night, the light at the top of the tower will be illuminated.

The Houses of Parliament (also known as Palace of Westminster) are undoubtedly a Gothic masterpiece. In the middle of the 11th century, King Edward the Confessor had moved his court to the Palace of Westminster. In 1265 a parliament was created with two houses; the Lords and the Commons. The House of Lords met at the Palace of Westminster while the House of Commons did not have a permanent location. After King Henry VIII moved his court to Whitehall Palace in 1530, the House of Lords continued to meet in Westminster. In 1547 the House of Commons also moved here, confirming Westminster as the central seat of government, a position it still holds today. In 1834 a fire destroyed the Palace of Westminster, leaving only the Jewel Tower, the crypt and cloister of St. Stephens and Westminster Hall intact. After the fire, a competition was organized to create a new building for the two houses of parliament and the design by Sir Charles Barry and his assistant Augustus Welby Pugin was chosen from 97 entries. They created a large but balanced complex in neo gothic style and incorporated the buildings that survived the fire. The whole complex was finished in 1870. It includes the Clock Tower, Victoria Tower, House of Commons, House of Lords, Westminster Hall and the Lobbies.

I've always enjoyed watching Disney's animation, The Lion King. This trip, Ghee and I went to watch the Lion King musical at the Lyceum Theater while our friends watched Wizard of the Oz and Phantom of the Opera.

The Lion King musical features actors in animal costumes as well as giant, hollow puppets. The props are very well done and the singing, very entertaining. We had a good time.