Central London and River Thames stroll
A short walk from Piccadilly to Leicester Square and Vauxhall, Jan 2008.
(Photos/words © urban75, 5th January, 2008)

Sporting my eye-wateringly expensive brand new Nikon D300 digital camera, I took a leisurely, hangover-clearing stroll around central London.

Here's some of the photos from the Saturday afternoon walk - if you fancy doing the same 4.3 mile walk, you can view the route in Googlemaps here.


Alighting at Green Park tube station, we headed east along Piccadilly, along the arcaded walk of the Ritz Hotel.

Named after famed Swiss hotelier César Ritz, the hotel opened on May 24, 1906 and was built in a Louis XVI neoclassical style.


A view of Piccadilly Arcade from Jermyn Street.

To the left, you can see the frontage of New & Lingwood Shirtmakers, founded by in 1865 by a Miss New and a Mr Lingwood, who later married.

Formed in Eton to serve the scholars of Eton College, their Jermyn Street shop opened in 1922, and the company continues to sell, "bespoke and ready made shirts, the finest quality piped pyjamas, and bespoke shoes and boots."


Sergios Sandwiches, 3 Eagle Place is a fine old school cafe that seems miles away from the hustle and bustle of nearby Piccadilly Circus.


A view of Eagle Place looking towards Piccadilly. Note the fine old Cigarettes and Cigars sign for M. Landaw, newsagents.


Funfair, Leicester Square. The outrageously high ride reaches hundreds of feet in the air.

Leicester Square is one of the busiest squares in London, with over 22 million people visitors every year. We wouldn't recommend it, unless battling through tourists is your idea of fun.

(Note to visiting Americans: it's pronounced 'Lester' and no 'Li-cester.')




These two seemed to be stuck up in the air for ages waiting for the ride to start. Can't say I'd fancy it.


Unveiled by Sir Ralph Richardson in Leicester Square on April 14th, 1981 is this near life size bronze statue of Charlie Chaplin.


Ready for the off!


Christmas swing ride in Leicester Square.

The central pillar featured paintings of famous pop stars, and I was pleased to see no less than two fellow Welsh folks spinning around - Shirley Bassey and Tom Jones. There's lovely, isn't it!


Detail of the highly decorated Merry-go-Round.


Another view of the swing ride. Other stars featured on the central column included Tina Turner, Robbie Williams, Madonna and someone who could have been either Rod Stewart or Barry Manilow.




We stopped off at the Photographers' Gallery for a spot of lunch and enjoyed a fantastic home made banana cake. Great work Mrs Billy!


Browsing the books at at St. Martin's Court, a small pedestrian-only thoroughfare famous for its new and second-hand bookshops and antique dealers.

See also the nearby Goodwin's Court and Brydges Place, the narrowest alley in London.


A look along the Georgian terraced houses of Northumberland Street, by Trafalgar Square.


We crossed the Thames by the southern Hungerford bridge.

If you like watching people dressed in ludicrous ensembles standing still all day as a means of busking, then this is the place to be.


The austere concrete exterior of the South Bank building. It's not pretty, is it?




London has one of the finest river walks anywhere in the world, and there's always lots to see.

These enterprising fellows create sculptures out of the sand at low tide.


Adding the finishing touches.


Looking north east with St Paul's Cathedral, a splendid Baroque church designed by Sir Christopher Wren in 1673, in the background.


A couple look out across the Thames at dusk.


The Millennium Wheel.




Houses of Parliament and Westminster Bridge.


Walking along the south bank of the Thames, close to Lambeth Palace.


Another view of the Houses of Parliament.


The slightly bonkers Vauxhall Cross bus station


A last view before we headed off into the adjacent Vauxhall tube station.

Incidentally, in Russian, the word for a major railway station translates to 'vokzal,' which some suspect was adopted after a visiting delegation in 1840 mistook the name of the station to mean a generic station. Or maybe not.



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