Monday night came early and we were glad for it.  We went to bed about 8:00 local and 2:00 “home time.”  After going pretty much without sleep overnight Sunday and then hitting the ground running for a day of sightseeing, we struggled to stay awake that late.  Jackie pretty much slept all night.  I conked out for about 4 hours and then woke up.  I’m no fan of sleeping pills, but I took one and then slept the rest of the night.  We both woke around 8:00am feeling refreshed and ready for the day.

We walked a few blocks to the Canary Wharf pier and to the Thames Clipper into the heart of London, passing under Tower Bridge and seeing many of the famous sights of London from the water.

After taking some photos of Big Ben and Parliament we walked over to the Churchill War Rooms and Museum.  It was here that Winston Churchill lead England through WWII.  It’s quite an interesting place and we surprised ourselves by staying about 2 hours.

We grabbed some sandwiches from a shop that is part of a chain, Tesco Express.  Prepackaged sandwiches, chips and drinks.  We ate, sitting on a wall with many other locals and tourists, right across the street from Big Ben.

From there we hopped on the tube headed for our next destination.  It’s easy to see why Londoners have a love/hate relationship with the tube.  You can go about anywhere on the tube and trains are quite frequent, generally less than 5 minutes apart.  However, the trains are very crowded and not air conditioned.  On one journey we made people were packed in, standing room only.  Hardly anyone speaks and everyone reads the paper or a book – I guess it’s a way to isolate oneself in such an uninsolated situation.

Our other big stop of the day was the British Library.  One room, in particular is worth visiting.  It is full of rare books, etc.  including 400 year old Bibles, original Shakespearen manuscripts, and one of the earliest handwritten copies of Handel’s Messiah.

We found our way back to Canary Wharf, the Wall Street of London.  It also has a huge shopping mall.  At one end we found a big grocery store and bought some supper to take back to the flat.