What's in a name?

If they told us once, they told us a thousand times that Big Ben is NOT the clock, but the large bell that sounds the hour.

The clock is pretty amazing, though and it is understandably, one of the most photographed clocks in the world, positioned alongside the British Houses of Parliament on the banks of the Thames.

Another day, another cathedral…

Westminster Cathedral this time, where another royal wedding took place just a couple of months ago. It is also the final resting place of the remains of many a noble person; kings, queens, princes and princesses and contributors to the arts and sciences.

Within the ancient stone walls of yet another architectural masterpiece, AG and I armed ourselves with audio guides and spent hours wandering the labyrinth of rooms and tombs. Sorry, I can't show you any photos from inside as it is another place of worship - so no photography!

That's me standing exactly where Kate and Wills did on 29th April.

This was taken looking across the central courtyard towards...of course...the coffee shop! What a marvellous setting for a cafe.

On this day...

There are a variety of bus tours for visitors to London, many of which include Thames River cruises and guided walking tours in the price. You can use your ticket over 24 hours and they’re quite good value, until you realize that there’s just so much to see that you’d never fit everything in on one day. I took my place on one of the red double decker buses with an open roof, which is the only way to travel in the warm, sunny weather that London has been enjoying of late. It seemed fitting that the first major attraction on this tourist route was St. Paul’s Cathedral and the date was the 1^st July - Princess Diana’s 50^th birthday.

It was in this church that she married Prince Charles back in 1981. The cathedral is both imposing and breathtakingly beautiful, but being a place of worship, there is no photography allowed inside. I walked up the steps where the 19 year old Lady Diana had revealed her famous ivory silk wedding dress to the world 30 years ago and took a seat on a pew inside.

The vaulted ceilings, carved stonework and spectacular stained glass were awe-inspiring enough, then much to my surprise and delight, it was time for Evensong and the St. Paul’s Cathedral boys’ choir took their places and began to sing. The sound of those voices within the walls of the cathedral was unforgettable. What a privilege!

Pussycat, pussycat, where have you been...

I've been to London to visit the Queen...but she wasn't there. Apparently she's at Balmoral in Scotland for her Summer break. She had plenty of visitors, though, as you can see.

England swings like a pendulum do...

The ordeal of being cooped up in three different sardine cans commonly referred to as planes, seems to fade away with the sights and sounds that make up London. If I'm sounding naive to you, then you'll need to log off now because I'm unashamedly amazed about witnessing all the symbols and icons that I've used to create my idea of London, for the very first time in my life. I travelled in a black London cab from the airport, driven by a real Londoner. Within seconds I'd seen red double decker buses and those royal mail post boxes, black wrought iron fences around city gardens and that big bullet shaped building they call the Gherkin. Oh my god the Tower Bridge is just sitting there, like in all the pictures! I'm blown away! And it's really warm and humid, which is weird. A walk down to a park near the hotel and I saw 2 squirrels within 10 mins. Doesn't seem to impress anyone else, though!

After the initial buzz of arriving, I was overwhelmed with exhaustion, and realised that the dreaded jet lag was lurking. I had always just assumed jet lag meant that you felt tired, but I actually felt like the floor was moving underneath me and my sense of balance was off. A quick check of the time revealed that it was 2am in Australia, so no wonder I was sleepy. Apparently the best thing to do is get out into the daylight and force the body into the new day/night pattern. So I went for a walk and wandered into The British Museum,which is just a city block away from my hotel. It is home to a large collection of Egyptian artefacts that the Poms pillaged from pyramids and other sacred sites.

Up, up and away...

Okay, I admit it - didn't take this one! I actually haven't left Australia yet (3 days to go), but I'm certain those seasoned travellers among you would be bored witless reading about the humdrum of required activities in the days leading up to a long trip away. So here is a preview pic of one very small part of the Suvarnabhumi airport complex in Bangkok, Thailand, complete with a Thai International Airways plane in the foreground. No prizes for guessing that Thai is taking care of the first leg of my trip, which should really be called a tripod, since there are 3 legs! Apologies to those aircraft experts who recognise that this is not a Boeing 777-200ER, which is what I'll be trapped in for the first nine and a half hours of my overseas marathon. I guess its a good thing I like purple...and orchids.

Preparing for countdown...

You would think that in amongst all these bits of paper and brochures commonly referred to as travel documents, that there might be a ticket or two. Apparently not! There are a couple of important reference numbers on a very bland looking piece of printer paper that will enable me to embark upon 6 international flights over the next few months. I spent a good six minutes at the travel agent's office this morning collecting this bundle, presented in a zippered wallet - no fuss, no fanfares. I learned that my luggage will have an itinerary of its own and that I am not required to collect it at either the Bangkok or Amsterdam airports where I will be changing planes. After checking my suitcase at the Brisbane desk, I won't see it again until I reach London. OH GOD I hope it's there when I arrive and that nobody's filled it full of weed a la Shapelle! There are now just eighteen days until take-off, some of which I will spend researching the details of international sim cards, taking medications overseas and restrictions for liquids in carry-on baggage. Nobody wants to appear on an episode of Border Security. Stressing much?