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where Royalty is baptized, the
ball room for Royal engagement
ceremonies, and some other
rooms are open for public visit. It
is rumored that, a couple of years
ago, a curious Brit managed to
get as far as the bedroom of the
Queen. If you want to force your
luck to meet the Queen, here
is a hint; just lift your head and
look up at the Royal Flag to see if
Queen Elizabeth is in the palace.
For the flag is up only when the
Queen is in residence. It is also
fun to watch the Changing of the
Guards ceremony in front of the
palace. If you are lucky and the
weather is fine, the ceremony
takes place at 11 o’clock. For
a photo in your album with an
actual royal guard, turn left from
the palace court and ask get a
picture with the guard whose job
is to be in your photos.
The next spot, the Taksim of
London, is for the ones saying
“we have turned the city upside-
down, still no Trafalgar Square”.
The name commemorates the
Battle of Trafalgar, a British naval
victory under the command of
Admiral Horatio Nelson during
the Napoleonic Wars with France
and Spain. The square is mostly
known for celebrations, mainly
in New Year’s Eve. Again, having
the magical touch of John Nash,
at the center of the square is
a pillar honoring the victorious
seaman Admiral Nelson, with
his statue on the top. If you still
seek more art and museums, the
National Art Gallery will be the
answer. Chronologically exhibited
2200 paintings by European
artists dating back to 1250s is
not a Louvre or a Prado, but still
a principal spot for art-lovers…
Walk along the Thames, seeing
the Big Ben on the horizon, on
your right is famous 10 Downing
Street, the Prime Minister’s
humble office. Around sunset,
walking along the Whitehall
towards Westminster and having
a souvenir photo with the Big
Ben is not such a bad idea. The
sunset means it is the evening, so
it is free time.
The next day will start with a
museum visit once again, but this
time it is for fun. As is the case in
other popular places, it is best to
buy your tickets on-line to save
both time and money. Surely you
have heard; Madame Tussaud’s
Wax Museum. Madame Tussaud
(1751-1850) started her career
making death masks of the
famous victims of the French
Revolution. The museum is close
to another giant city park on the
north of Zone 1, the Regent’s
Park on Marylebone Road and
the nearest underground station
is Baker Street, at the junction
of Metropolitan and Circle lines.
Yes, it is very touristy and maybe
somewhat meaningless but
still a London-classic. It avoids
being mundane with constantly
updates life-like wax statues of
famous figures from all over the
world, politicians, even some
cartoon and movie characters.
Everyone who is anyone is
there; Hollywood and Bollywood
stars, famous soccer players,
musicians, directors, politicians,
athletes, and even E.T, the Hulk,
and Shrek! Certainly Mustafa
Kemal Atatürk has a wax statue
in the museum. The previous
version was not liked by the
Turkish visitors, so the Koç Group
sponsored and had the statue
was replaced in 2005. Since
then, Atatürk, joined by two other
significant men of peace, Gandhi
and Mandela, enjoys his spot
with the doves in the background.
You can have a souvenir photo
with all of them. After seeing the
wax statues, you can experience
the mediaeval torture devices
on the 3rd floor, where Jack the
Ripper and Dr. Crippen became
more scary thanks to successful
light and sound effects. Later
on, you can shake off the horror
watching the 3D movie with
chairs that tremor, fog and other
special effects. Finally, the Spirit
of London tour; inspired by the
characteristic Black Cabs of
London, the two-person cars take
you on a short tour of London’s
history. While you move along
the streets of London, the voice
from the speaker accompanies
you. First the monarchy, then the
plague followed by the Great Fire
of London, the reconstruction of
London, Victorian period, The
World Wars, and finally city with
neon lights and entertainment,
the modern London.
We turn north after our visit to
Madame Tussaud’s. We are
at Camden Town, the north of
Regent’s Park. On the black
Northern Line, as per its location,
when you get out of the tube
