45 Days in London: Day 2

Michelin to the Albert Memorial. 

We spent the bulk of the day checking students into their flats. Nine of them were detained in Texas and won't arrive until tomorrow. Visions of sleeping in airport terminals danced through our heads, briefly. Poor lost souls.

In the afternoon we explored the neighborhood on foot again, this time widening our geographic circle. We took a walk from one of the cards in our box of London City Walks: Adventures on Foot. 

Our first stop was the Michelin Tire Building. Who knew the Michelin Man was immortalized in Stained Glass on this Art Deco architectural wonder?

Next up was the British Oratory, an old church used as a dead letter drop by the KGB, once upon a time.

We headed down a cobbled path through Ennismore Garden Mews. Another cool old church was on the right, with a grand stone gate at the entrance. The inscription reads: Thy Word Hath Quickened Me. Such a great reminder, just there at the end of the walkway.

Next Jeff took this cool panorama shot of apartments lining an alleyway. We loved the color palette.

A few more blocks and we were at the Royal Albert Hall (and yes, I did verify that Queen Alexandra's is still there, just as I remembered it!)

And right across the street was the entrance to Hyde Park. Excellent.

We strolled down one of the footpaths and wound up at the Albert Memorial. What a lovely symbol of strength and unity. Each corner represents a different segment of the world.

The sky looks like a Turner painting. So much drama in the color and the clouds!

And a perfectly suitable ending to our little 'adventure on foot.'

And back again.

When we got back to the flat we took the students to dinner at a fabulous, very authentic Italian restaurant called Rocca. Highly recommended!