After purchasing mobiles, we ventured to Goodge Street tube station at 14:55. After swiping our new oyster cards, we became intimidated by two massive elevators that seemed to lead nowhere. We were confused, so we asked an elderly British bloke which route we should take. Under the heavy accent we were able to discern the word “one”. After going down the elevator, and fiercely searching for our stop, we realized “one” actually meant “Warren”. We got off of the Northern line at Warren (which we later learned, was only a few blocks away from the Arran House). We wandered aimlessly through Warren Station, only to arrive at the southbound Victoria line just as train was pulling away. We studied our A-Z map, as we waited for the next train, to familiarize ourselves with the Victoria area. After two stops on the Victoria Line, we followed the “way out” signs toward what looked like a central area. The entire trip on the tube took a mere twenty minutes. We soon realized our destination would include a stop at Buckingham Palace. We used our A-Z map to navigate ourselves towards the Palace, only to realize after about fifteen minutes that we had been walking in the opposite direction. By turning the map we suddenly oriented ourselves and made our way back up past the tube station and continued on to the Palace.
Naturally, we chose to use Buckingham Palace as our monument. The building was constructed in 1703 as a local home. After many additions and renovations, Queen Victoria became the first monarch to reside within its walls. We also came to the conclusion that this is why the Tube stop is named Victoria. We were excited at the possibility of viewing “the changing of the guards” however, we were angry to have found a sign that said the next change would occur the next morning at 11:30. after crying for about a minute we pulled it together and took a few pictures……
We sat on the steps of Victoria Memorial and gathered our thoughts and studied our map. We took a walk over to St. James Park and found a bus route back to Tottenham Court. Our trip back was approximately thirty minutes and we arrived back at the Arran House at 17:00.
Observations: The city of Westminster, where the Palace is located, seemed like a high end area. There were many business men and women walking swiftly through the streets. We also realized the differences in architecture between the old shop buildings, and the new modern high rise hotels. Upon arriving at Buckingham Palace we noticed a stark difference in the type of people surrounding the monument. The monument attracted tourists of all nationalities and classes. After observing St. James Park and Green Park, which was nearby, we came to the conclusion that there was a lot more green space than we were used to for major cities. It was also much cleaner than many of the most popular attractions in the U.S.
It was an easy and fun adventure and a great way to learn the ins and outs of London.
