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A walk around London, England... (LOCALISM FEATURED)

I guess this would be a Localism post, but my neck o' the woods doesn't feature on Localism. That's one of the downsides of being a British gal posing as an Anaheim resident! But I thought I'd give y'all a little insight into my part of the world anyway, the glorious capital of the United Kingdom! Maybe this will even be the first of a series of London posts? Who knows. Thanks to Carolyn for the inspiration!

I live and work right by here, Tower Bridge. It's one of our most iconic landmarks so it can be battle to get around sometimes, but I shouldn't complain...I go tourist crazy when I'm abroad! I took this photo on my cellphone so I was quite impressed with the quality. Right next to here is the Tower of London, where all the grizzly executions took place and where the Crown Jewels are still kept. There's also a great burger restaurant right here too, but that's not quite so famous ;-)

The streets closest to my apartment are steeped with history, the most famous past resident being Jack the Ripper.

You can see how old these streets are, check out this front door...

You can imagine Oliver Twist running through all the cobbled lanes. And people do actually live in these houses too!

Poking out in this photo is Christ Church. It was built in the 18th Century and if you've seen the Johnny Depp movie 'From Hell' then you may recognise it. Jack the Ripper used to drink in the pub next to it before attacking his victims. I think the grey sky make's it look fantastic, but trust me the grey skies in London get tiresome :-(

This photo is from Highgate Cemetery. It's a very old cemetery and the tombstones are magnificent, Karl Marx and many other noted people are buried here. It's great to visit in Autumn.

This is one of the fountains in Regent's Park. It's a great park because it's so manicured, it's a really peaceful place for a nice walk in the sunshine.

And this last picture I just couldn't resist! In all the Royal Parks you'll spot pellicans, and they're so greedy! There was a very famous YouTube video last summer of a pelican eating a live pidgeon, you can view it here if you havn't seen it before. I love this action shot as the fish gets thrown into the pelican's mouth, they're very funny creatures.

And I guess that's all for this post! Hope you enjoyed my little trip round London, I'm going to take my camera out more so hopefully I'll be back with the next set of snaps soon :-D

Fancy a pad in London? A British home to call your own? Check out:

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Posted by Poppy Dinsey ~ London, UK on 07/14/2008 11:41 PM

Comments (80)

london, localism, england

Post is included in group: Club Chaos

80 Comments on A walk around London, England... (LOCALISM FEATURED)

JUL

2008

Good photos; I'm sure your city is a lovely place and I would love to visit. Must be a carnivore Pelican.

Thanks Shelia, I think you're right about the pelcian, I wonder if he realises he's eating a member of his extended family?!

Poppy,

Thank you for the tour and I look forward to more in this series.

Don R.

Don - You're very welcome :)

Oh my word! I am sooooooo into eye candy! This is such a cool treat! I WANT MORE!!!!! Thank you, Poppy!

Poppy ~ Thanks for the tour! It has always been one of my dreams to visit England. The picture of the tower bridge is fantastic, especially for a cellphone camera.

Kathy, I swear, the moment I saw that photo I said to myself, "I have got to get a new cell phone!" (LOL) Who knew they could do that? That shot is absolutely beautiful. Makes me want to run out, buy a huge canvas and start painting...

Hey Poppy D., can we get a peek at Zoomf one of these days? Pretty please?

Poppy - Loved the little tour of London and your commentary. You snapped some great shots that revealed the flavor of your neighborhood.

Hey guys, click the link to Highgate Cemetery, I just finished reading the Wiki on it. You should see the interments list of famous people deposed there. Wow! There's more pics too. (I just did a cover on Maple Grove Cemetery this morning-- what a treat to see Highgate!) Very Gothic! Mad Cool!!

Those are absolutely beautiful photos. London is one of the few places I haven't yet been to in Europe, and I'm dying to go. I worry, though, that I'll pick up an accent. LOL.

Elizabeth with a brittish accent... I think that would be fascinating... Hmm... :-)

Kathy - Thanks, that's even my old cellphone! We have such great cameras on our phones these days.

Carolyn - There will def be more! As for a peek at Zoomf...do you mean the office? It's kinda huge with a pingpong table :)

Norma - Glad you liked it, it made me appreciate where I live!

Hehe, I don't think our accent is that addictive Elizabeth ;-) I'm gonna try and make some video posts so you can all hear how silly mine is!

Good stuff as always Poppy!

Derek

My dearest Poppy D., I will take any view of Zoomf you are pleased to give us a peek of. Seriously! :-)

Hey Derek! Nice to see you here!

Poppy - I need to make a trip to London someday. These are some terrific pictures!

Jason - We'd look after you nicely, come visit :-D Austin is on my list of places to see.

good stuff, thbanks for the post

Wow. That first picture is incredible, especially for a cellphone. I love London and can't wait to go back someday. I guess I'll just settle for your pictures for the time being.

JUL

2008

Congrats on the feature, Poppy! London is one of the few cities that the Las Vegas Strip hasn't replicated, so it's great to see your photos. Did you know that the old London Bridge is just down the road from us in Lake Havasu City, Arizona?

The pelican eating the bird was a little gross, but your pics are fantastic! I hope you do keep this up - looking forward to it.

Oh my goodness, what wonderful photographs! thanks so much for those. you obviously have a talent for that! I've been to a lot of places around the world, but never to london.

I love to see places that have so much history! Great pictures, and some interesting trivia too! I never know that Karl Marx was burried in London!

Poppy,

Great to see you took an initiative to carve out a little localism for your neck of the woods. Who knows, with this type of ingenuity you probably have gotten some more gears turning at A/R headquarters.

Today Localism sweeps North America, tomorrow Localism goes Global?

No less brilliant things have been known to happen:-)

Look forward to more posts.

Poppy - thanks for a great tour and those are some terrific photos. Looking forward to the next post.

Poppy- These are wonderful photos. Thank you for sharing and congratulations on your featured post. They need to have a European Localism section. I lived in Germany for 4 years and traveled to London a few times. We saw the Royal Guard perform. It was always foggy and grey when we went there. I know a lot about Marx ( with great animosity) and did not know he was buried there. My mother and her parents escaped Stalin in Latvia and immigrated to the U.S. I know a lot of Latvians have moved to England to work.

We love your pictures, that is amazing that your phone camera took that quality of photo. What a beautiful bridge, thanks for giving us a glimpse of your lovely country.

Too cool! It looks like you have stolen my vacation pics! I loved it! My husband's parents were born and raised there. His mother is still there.

Need a little help- My married last name is odd in the states. I never heard it once until I met my husband. He said it is common in England. I cannot believe I didn't pick up a telephone book when visiting. Botting- Is he pulling my leg?

One more thing- The best Indian food I have ever had was in London. I have never been to India, however.

Michelle - Thanks! I've got a new phone since that one and the camera is even better, apparently the UK has always been really ahead when it comes to cellphones. We change ours every 6months/year to the latest model, I'm a Sony Ericsson gal :-)

John - I can't wait til the day I get to the see the strip, I still have to take you out for dinner for setting me up with @zappos!

Virginia - Yeah I should have put a warning with that video! Glad you liked the pics.

Michael - Thanks for stopping by, you should come to London, it's great! And my boss is called Michael Carter, so he could look after you hehe.

Pam - I don't think I even knew he was buried here til I visited the cemetery, we're lucky to have so much history here.

Rebecca - Thanks :-) I'm going to do lots more I think, I'm going to Liverpool this weekend so I may do a Beatles post! Hey Washburn if you're reading, hook me up with a UK Localism just for me :-) LOL!

Venancio - Many thanks, hopefully there'll be some early next week!

Nestor & Katerina - It's always grey and miserable here :-) Well not ALWAYS but booking a trip here in July/August does not guarantee sunshine by any means. You are right that there are lots of Eatsern Europeans here. I just completed my degree at the School of Slavonic and East European Studies (part of University College London) and pretty much all my friends are Russian/Polish/Bulgarian!

Patty & Scott - You're very welcome, I'm glad you liked them :-)

Melody - We definitely have some of the best Indian food, although technically the 'Indian' food we eat here in the UK is actually Bangladeshi in origin. I'm going to take some pics of the Bangla area where I live, it's very colourful! As for your surname, your husband might be right in other parts of the country...but I have never met or heard of a Botting in the South East, sorry!

What a great post!

I love London and actually can't wait to go back again.

We are planning an office trip their for October.

The pictures were amazing too.

Thank you so much for sharing that with us.

Sarah - Thanks for the kind words, glad you liked the photos. When you get here all the trees in the parks should be a nice golden brown :-)

Featured @ Club Chaos

(BTW, we second the motion! We're voting for your London, UK and European AR/Localism spot! Start flagging and emailing people!)

My friend lived over there for a few years because of business. He said it really didn't bother him with all the fog. He spent most of his time in his flat when he had time to rest but he did get out and see some sites too.

Poppy-I'm a huge fan of London and the UK in general. Of course it helps that I've been there at least 10 times and that my daughter lives there now. Looks like my next trip will be the end of September!

POPPY - This was a fascinating tour around London. Those are by far the best photos that I've ever seen taken with a camera phone. Thanks for sharing a very interesting localism post, even if it can't be posted internationally.

I don't know about that Adam, the Internet is pretty global... I bet if the corporation get enough requests and we flag it (pretty please, people), the AR staff may consider it.

IMHO, I see Neighborpedia as a future global neighborhood encyclopedia and if we play our cards right, it will rival Wiki (and go into territory no one has ever seen). I'm talking real estate eye candy Heaven here, people. You guys know I am a very visual person and I bet you are just starting to figure out exactly how much I really do like my eye candy (LOL).

Thanks for the tour -- the price was right. I am definately going to have to visit in person one day.

Poppy -- Post more pics, please! That was really cool.

Great shots Poppy - my daughter just got back from London and loved it:)

Neal - The weather and fog are what make me yearn to be your next door neighbour :-)

Cindy - Where does your daughter live? You sound like a seasoned traveller!

Adam - Thanks so much! I take a lot of photos on my phone now, my video quality isn't great but the camera does fine.

Joan - Glad you liked it.

Clint - I will, watch this space!

Courtney - I'm glad she had a great time.

These were really beautiful pics...

O.K. - Maybe I just stepped into an old Jimmy Stewart film where he had a pet rabbit named Harvey. He could see it, but others could not. No pics.

Fascinating... AR must be tweaking/updating something if the pictures are disappearing on your end. I still have them visible here. Hmm... Kevin, you might want to try again, or check your browser settings just in case... They really are lovely and I do hope you get to enjoy them.

Poppy, good to see your post. I loved going to London, and the Tower area was an experience for me... BTW, don't carry an open camera bag and reach into it for a stick of gum while in the crown jewel room... The history is amazing, however I was disappointed that my week there was ALL sunny and no fog (ok, it did rain one day... still no fog.

I need to go back and reload my London Story options

Ahhhh, the memories. I lived in the East end of London to train as a nurse many years ago, before moving to the US, and lived in a house that was built to protect the nurses from Jack the Ripper. It was a riot! We celebrated passing our exams in a carvery right by the bridge on your photo. Terraced houses in that area were selling for $20,000 back then, what are they going for now?

Having grown up in Plymouth as a Brit serving in the Royal Air Force for 10 years in the 70's and 80's I spent many times in London and surrounding area. For the last 20 years I have been living and selling Real Estate here in Colorado aka God's Country. I haven't been back to England since 1993. Some day I'll get back there and see how much it has changed.

THanks for the view inside, I lived in london for about a year and it brings back some great memories. i would love to see more.

Poppy - wow, who can compete with a Localism feature like your historic town of London. Awesome picures and a great blog.

Aloha Poppy,

London is one of my favorite cities in the world and I think Londoners are a charming and lively people. I can't wait to return and ride the Eye. I hope you continue the London serial considering the current architectural design trends in London are phenomenal and their is a lot going on in London Real Estate that might be of interest to ARians. My contacts at King Sturge keep me keen about towne. You must miss living there, save the weather of course.

Peace,

Your pics are marvelous. i've never been there, but have a long family history from London and especially the Windsor area.

I am writing a historical novel about that specific area, hope you can post some more pics of Windsor Castle etc. You are welcome to email me and tell me more about the area because I am not able to get there myself and would appreciate your eyes and other info you could share.

Thanks ahead of time. Judy

Thanks Poppy,

I'm a transplanted Brit too and you took me home for a while. I loved to visit Highgate cemetery to look at the wonderful headstones.

Aloha!

Poppy

I loved the pictures. Please send more because I really enjoyed my trip through London. I especially loved the fountain. It is really beautiful. Thanks for sharing and I am looking forward to the next set.

You and me both Laura! :-)

Hello Poppy, thanks for sharing your Localism post. Maybe a category for your area will be added soon. I love the pics and the Tower Bridge shot is just amazing!!! Keep up the great work!

Poppy, incredible photos thanks for the tour!

JUL

2008

Great photos. The buildings may be old, but they sure are beautiful!

I just had to show everyone in the room the pelican eat that pigeon. Did you notice that other bird that chased the pelican. In California he'd be saying "Dude, your not suppose to eat your bro..." Not sure what the British caption would be. :)

Looks like too many Brits obey that sign at the end... Throw them a crumb for goodness sake!

Haaaaa! Too funny! Sandra, that was fascinating... :-D

Poppy, I really enjoyed the photo's, I'm from London and miss it terribly, how about some photo's of Covent Garden and Soho? Heck, you could really get into this, I am going to subscribe to your blog to see what other photo's you post. Thanks for the trip around LDN. Keep up the good work.

sorry I was not signed in when I wrote the last post, as you can see it is a little early!!

Lane - I haven't actually been inside the Tower...typical isn't it? You've been inside and are half way across the world and I live next door and have never stepped foot inside! It's on my to do list.

Janet - I don't know how far East you were to compare prices. But where I live in Whitechapel a one bed apartment is well over half a million dollars. Really!

Alan - You'll probably be surprised by how much it's changed!

Scott - There's more to come, watch this space!

Petra - Thanks! So kind :-)

Kimo - Aloha! I know King Sturge :-) Look out for more London pics here soon...

Judy- Family from Windsor...you're not a royal are you? ;-) Let me know if there's anything you want to know about, I haven't been to Windsor for years and years but I'm in London (obviously!)

Barbara - Nice to know I gave you a touch of home!

Laura - Next I'll be doing Liverpool and Chester...but there'll be more London v.soon. Glad you liked the tour.

Vickie - Hopefully! A section just for lil old me lol.

David - You're welcome.

Sandra - ROFL! We should start feeding them our crusts, stop them turning to caniballism!

Alison - I'm going to do every area I think, make it a really huge series. There'll def be Soho and Covent Garden :-)

I second the motion! WE MUST GET A SECTION FOR POPPY D! Seriously! (LOL)

Poppy, you gotta go... I say that, and there are things here in Atlanta I haven't done... but the list is getting shorter.

Maybe i'll come visit and we'll get all "touristy".

Hey Poppy,

Your pictures are so good! I have never been to England but it sure looks nice.

JUL

2008

Your pelicans are more colorful than ours. I love the pink and blue in their beaks. In Florida, our skies are blue but the pelicans are grey =P

JUL

2008

Hello Poppy D. I hear you introduced my wife to twitter. Carolyn, computer geek that she is, now tweets. As if the beeping coming from her computer was not enough -- what were you thinking? (LOL) BTW, she is crazy about your work (and you) and you have a huge fan on your hands (me). We happen to love James Bond. You do a mean 007 chicka! You must let us know when you are coming to NY. I hope you get here before we move to FL. Then again, you could always visit us in FL as well. As Carol likes to say, "enjoy your day." Looking forward to sending you the preliminary sketches of your bridge when she actually does one she likes. She has canvass and sketch pads everywhere! It is not easy being married to a creative wife when you can barely draw stick figures. Let's not even go into the handwriting... Nice to meet you on-line, PD! I've got to go pick on say hello to Audrey and Cindy. :-)

JUL

2008

M, I see you found your fav model. You should join twitter and "tweet" with me, Poppy and CC. :-)

Poppy, kewl shots, thanks for sharing the eye candy around town.

JUL

2008

EVERYONE - Your comments are soooo kind :-) So kind in fact that I did another tour for y'all, this time it was Chester in the North East of England. Take a look here.

Poppy, thanks for the tour. It's hard to believe such a beautiful photo of the tower bridge came from a cell phone! I'd love to visit London some day.

JUL

2008

Beautiful, one day I will break down and come visit. I still need to get a passport first.

SEP

2008

What great photos here, makes me remember how much I love London! Have written my own step-by-step itineraries, with photos and videos to show others how wonderful this great city is!! Take a look http://hubpages.com/_DB9/hub/London-Three-great-days-Day-One Enjoy!

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