London's Calling the Alpaca!

The Traveling Alpaca wanted to see ancient Greece. So naturally, he headed to London! Where else but the British Museum (http://www.thebritishmuseum.ac.uk/) can you see the leading collections from Greece, the Roman Empire and Egypt? Nowhere we can imagine. And certainly not in those countries. Plus, where else can you get THIS up close and personal with the city clock? The picture is of Traveling Alpaca mocking it by calling it "Medium Size Ben."

The Natural History Museum's (http://www.nhm.ac.uk/) palaeontology and entomology collections were great fun, and surprisingly not overrun with kids. We finished off the day with dinner at Lou Pescadou (241 Old Brompton Rd., Tube: Earl’s Court). We had duck breast and lamb, each of which came with a side of vegetables.

After a stroll through Kensington and Kensington Gardens the next day, we opted for chocolate in lieu of lunch. At Pierre Marcolini (http://www.pierremarcolini.co.uk/index2.html), we bought three pieces of very rich dark chocolate: one piece of chocolate was made entirely from cocoa beans from Venezuela (this was the most bitter and rich – and delightful); another was purely Ecuadorian (sweeter, but also sheer bliss); and the third was from Madagascar (and was sweet and flowery, with only mild bitterness). Heavenly. The pieces were small, and the total was £2, but it was well worth the price.

We then made our way to the Victoria and Albert Museum (http://www.vam.ac.uk/), where the architecture and Asia exhibits have always been particularly strong. Dinner that night was at Brasserie St. Quentin (243 Brompton Rd., Tube: Knightsbridge, http://www.brasseriestquentin.co.uk/). This was one of the very first brasseries in London, now re-acquired by one of its original partners, Hugh O'Neill. The tomato tart with rocked salad and parmesan was delightful. The salad with beets was fresh and organic, and the beef bourguignon tender and well-prepared. Crème brulee was a perfect ender, but the profiteroles with blood orange sauce and ice cream didn't hurt. Service was impeccable.

The next day we headed to Kensington Palace and Kensington Gardens (http://www.royal.gov.uk/output/page563.asp), where we took a long but detailed tour of the grounds and former royal residence. Up next was a visit to the rather disappointing and out-of-the-way London Zoo (http://www.zsl.org/london-zoo/), which I remembered as being much larger and much more impressive than it apparently was. Our stay was limited to some quality time with the monkeys and some with the bears, and a brief walk through the other sections. The next stop was the Royal Opera House (http://www.royalopera.org/) and the London Transport Museum (http://www.ltmuseum.co.uk/), next to Covent Garden Market, where we wouldn't have gone were it not for our museum pass. However, it was interesting to see old methods of transport (including an 1829 omnibus and a steam locomotive). The last museum was the very cool (and beautifully housed) Courtauld Gallery (located at the Somerset House, http://www.courtauld.ac.uk/). Although surprisingly little known, the Courtauld contains a fabulous wealth of paintings, including one of the world's greatest collections of Impressionist works outside Paris (and masterpieces by Monet, Manet, Degas, Renoir, Cézanne, van Gogh, and Gauguin). The gallery also has a superb collection of old-master paintings and drawings, with works by Rubens, Michelangelo, and Tiepolo.

The next day brought a visit to the infamous Tower of London (http://www.toweroflondontour.com/), a tour conducted by a very knowledgeable and tremendously entertaining beefeater, and the tower's greatest attraction, the Crown Jewels (the world's most precious stones set into robes, swords, scepters, and crowns - absolutely delightful and awe-inspiring). Next was a brief stop at the HMS Belfast, then on to London Dungeon (http://www.thedungeons.com/), which describes itself as "Cruelty! Torture! Pain! Death! Pressing! Boiling! Beheading! Drowning!" In actuality, it was not that impressive. With the museum pass, it was worth our while, but without one... I would skip it.

En route to lunch at Pret a Manger (a popular chain of freshly pre-packaged healthy food stores, http://www.pret.com/), we also visited Southwark Cathedral (http://www.southwark.anglican.org/cathedral/), where Shakespeare and Chaucer worshipped. After Pret, we made a beeline for the Tate Modern (http://www.tate.org.uk/). Although not as cool as the Centre Pompidou in Paris, the collection was unique and interesting. Given that admission is free, I would definitely visit, if for no other reason than to laugh at the hilarious displays and videos. When we were there, we saw an old naked guy beating himself up on video (much funnier than it sounds), an upside down piano and an installment of library cards.

The classical dome of St. Paul's dominates the City's square mile, and we weren't about to miss it or the panoramic view of London from the top of the dome. A stop at the London Aquarium (one of Europe's largest and most spectacular displays of aquatic life, http://www.londonaquarium.co.uk/), then to Big Ben & Parliament, would round out the evening's sight seeing. Afterward, we had dinner at Vingt Quatre (325 Fulham Road, Tube: South Kensington). The swordfish, which came with a wonderful blueberry sauce and broccoli, was lovely, and the steak was pretty good but not brilliant. The chocolate mousse cake with cinnamon ice cream, however, was.

Stops at Westminster Abbey, the Jewel Tower, Red Lion Pub and the Banqueting House took us right to the marginally interesting National Gallery (http://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/) and the moderately more interesting National Portrait Gallery (http://www.npg.org.uk/live/index.asp). After another lunch at Pret and a bowl of creamy tomato soup at Pret-style eatery EAT (the sandwiches and salads are outstanding, as they are crisp and fresh, and the soups at EAT are equally good), we went on a cruise along the River Thames for a tour and breathtaking views of London's vest loved attractions. Dinner was a delight at celebrity and politician favorite Coq d’Or (254-260 Old Brompton Road, Tube: West Brompton, http://www.london-eating.co.uk/1857.htm). The service was phenomenally good, as was the food (the prix fixe menu is surprisingly inexpensive and extremely delicious). The only other restaurant that came close was Michelin's three-star chef, Nico Ladenis's Incognico (117 Shaftesbury Ave., Tube: Leicester Sq., http://www.london-eating.co.uk/1813.htm), where the pumpkin soup was velvetty smooth, the salmon wonderfully flaky and the duck perfectly crisp and beautiful single Michelin star L’Escargot (48 Greek St., Tube: Leicester Sq., http://www.lescargotrestaurant.co.uk/), where the duck on lentils is to die for and the veloutte of artichoke soup is probably among the best in the world.