After a couple day rush through Edinburgh, we hopped onto a sleeper train to London. We opted for the cheaper reclining seats rather than a berth. Mistake! My dad was the only one able to sleep. But the sleeper train does get us down there without having to worry about a hotel, and ensured we got a bright and early start on our day.
As we ran around London we made extensive use of the tubes. They are phenomenally well done; you never wait more than a minute or two to hop on. We did catch it at rush hour a few times, where you are packed in with no room to move much, but it is only for a short time. They are well placed, and you can get everywhere really easily for cheap (a day pass is £8; in some of the towns around Scotland you can pay £4 for a single bus ride)
After picking up some discount theatre tickets first thing, we took advantage of some of the free things to do in London. We ran by the National Gallery, which has a phenomenal collection; all the museums we went to are large and you could spend a week in each of them. We kind of blew through the highlights like a cartoon by Da Vinci, Raphael, Michelangelo, Vermeer, and Rembrandts. The British museum was astounding; the building itself is an awesome dome supported by roman-esk pillars. We only spent time in the Egyptain exhibit, but notably saw the Rosetta Stone, some remarkably preserved statues and wall carvings that are 2500 years old, and fascinating mummies (including a section on animals; cats, birds, and fish). After a quick rest at our hotel, we took a walk through Regents park into Kensinton gardens, grabbed a lovely dinner and hit the Theatre District. We went to see a production of the 39 steps, which was a 1912 movie that Hitchcock adapted into a film. It is a farce of the Hitchcock, and was wonderful physical comedy. Very well done and enjoyable.
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