Staying at the same hotel each year (sometimes several times) not only makes you feel at home, it also makes you look around more annd more, reach out for events and getting curious about what is more to see.
For a while now I wanted to go to the British Museum, but being Dutch I thought it must be very expensive.
In the past I have been in Westminster Abbey for free, exploring every corner, much to the delight of one of the priests who was ready to feed the curiosity of the 11 year old and have a good talk about the war with the RAF veteran.
I had a great time learning about architecture, history, religion and more. When I returned to England I wanted to re-visit, only to discover that money had overtaken everything, including the Abbey's welcoming attitude.
So I got a huge surprise finding out the British Museum was open for everyone.
Son2 wanted to go too, mainly for the Egyptian items.
He was convinced that the Petrie Museum (Egyptian and Sudanese items) was the same as the British Museum. It's not!
So we walked there.
On our way we walked through Russel Square Park. A few squirrels were playing there. It was so funny, with the pidgeons walking around like they were in a different world.
Then a small dog came. Wanted to play with the squirrels, who ran off. Such a pity.
On the other hand...how long would we have stayed there?
At first I thought the people were standing in line in front of the museum, but that was not the case. We could walk in straightaway. Had a superficial bag-check.
The museum is huuuuuuge!!!
And the items are so interesting!
And there was so much walking, as they never intended the building to be for people with mobility issues.
So I often sat down on one of the benches, while my son enjoyed a few of the thousands of items or tried to figure out the map of the museum.
For a while now I wanted to go to the British Museum, but being Dutch I thought it must be very expensive.
In the past I have been in Westminster Abbey for free, exploring every corner, much to the delight of one of the priests who was ready to feed the curiosity of the 11 year old and have a good talk about the war with the RAF veteran.
I had a great time learning about architecture, history, religion and more. When I returned to England I wanted to re-visit, only to discover that money had overtaken everything, including the Abbey's welcoming attitude.
So I got a huge surprise finding out the British Museum was open for everyone.
Son2 wanted to go too, mainly for the Egyptian items.
He was convinced that the Petrie Museum (Egyptian and Sudanese items) was the same as the British Museum. It's not!
So we walked there.
On our way we walked through Russel Square Park. A few squirrels were playing there. It was so funny, with the pidgeons walking around like they were in a different world.
Then a small dog came. Wanted to play with the squirrels, who ran off. Such a pity.
On the other hand...how long would we have stayed there?
At first I thought the people were standing in line in front of the museum, but that was not the case. We could walk in straightaway. Had a superficial bag-check.
The museum is huuuuuuge!!!
And the items are so interesting!
And there was so much walking, as they never intended the building to be for people with mobility issues.
So I often sat down on one of the benches, while my son enjoyed a few of the thousands of items or tried to figure out the map of the museum.
The people at another bench saw what happened and moved closer together, freeing up space for me. So kind!
I was really impressed by all I saw.
We went to the shop, where I found the coin I wanted for a while: the Queen Elizabeth II Commemorative Coin.
After that we went to the Egyptian department.
I sat in front of Amenhotep III. Feeling watched by a kindred soul.
There is some doubt if this statue is him. I agree. He looks far more friendly than other statues of him, and the form of the face is different.
After we left son2 went to do something else, and the girls came to the museum to meet me.
They wanted to go to a certain shop.
I had walked such a lot in the museum, including stairs, that I had not much walking left. So I sat down in the restaurant, while they tried to find what they wanted.
When my other daughter and her friend went back to their hotel, we went back to our area.
We decided to buy the cap one of our friends really wanted.
While my daughter was deciding a large group of schoolkids had to wait for the traffic lights. One of the teachers was standing nearby and we got into a conversation. They came from Kent. No place to sit on the train.
They were going to the British Museum. "Go straight to the Egyptian exposition and they will stay calm I expect." The teacher smiled. Told they had a special project about Egypt and they were going there... LOL!
The cap was bought, shopping dome at the shopping center and then we went home.
It was a bit early to eat.
Later son2 met his sister at the Itsu shop, where they fetched the food.
We ate it at the hotel, watched the series...
Fell asleep!
Photos here.
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