Trip Reports - Photos of London - February

I took these photos this past February, on a 4 night mid-winter trip to London. Airfares were cheap, the pound was down, who could resist? I will be doing something similar next week - airfares are not down but I will earn double miles on United, pound is going back up again - oh well - and this upcoming trip will be only 3 nights. I do expect marginally better weather though.

I spent a large part of this trip just walking. Jetlag be damned (the first day for me is always a killer but I walked no less than 6 miles and likely closer to 8 the first day) and rain and chill be damned - I spent most of the days outdoors, taking chill-breaks in museums and sit-down meals (and nice hot shower before dinner). I rarely took the tube or bus, instead, when I got sick of walking I raised my hand and the magic cab would arrive to whisk me to the next stop.

It was surprising to see the number of people sitting at cafe tables outside despite the chill. Throughout Covent Garden and Soho I saw a lot of people bundled up and sipping their coffees or beers at outdoor tables. Look out Paris!

These photos show some of my trail over the days. The Strand, Fleet Street, St. Paul's, Millennium Bridge, South Bank up to Westminster Bridge, Borough Market, Royal Horseguards, Cabinet War Rooms, Trafalgar Square including a few by night (I took my tripod) and finally the Changing of the Guard. I haven't watched that since my first visit to London in 1993. My last half-day in town was sunny and 60 (it figures) so I wandered over to the British Museum around the corner from my hotel until my cab arrived a little after noon. This time I'm going to stretch my cab-time to 1 PM so I can fit in a London Walks at Westminster Abbey that Monday morning.

I hope you like the photos. Enjoy.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/skywalkerbeth/sets/72157613941677481/show/

What a great selection of photos! Speaking as a Londoner, sometimes you don't look up enough and treasure the detail, colour and contrast of your own city.

What did you take them with?

Thanks for posting...

^

^Again wonderful pictures. Loved the night shots. Maybe it is the weather and dark clouds but the day pictures of Paris looked livelier.
Thank you for posting .

BTW what camera(s) did you use?

WOW!
Excellent composition!
And wonderful detail.

Thanks so much for sharing!:D

pound is going back up again - oh well

Bzzt...down from 1.68 to 1.58 in the last 3 weeks....things are pretty good again! ^

Thanks for sharing those photos. I lived in London for 3 years, actually in Southwark, so the photos of the Millennium Bridge, St. Paul's, Blackfriars, and Fleet Street bring back many memories. Truth be told, I actually very much disliked living in London, but I now do fondly look back at my time there. Having some very dear friends in London certainly make it easier to return for (VERY) short visits:D

What a great set of photos. I work just off Fleet Street and so see most of this on a daily basis. Your photos really do capture the area perfectly.

What a great set of photos. I work just off Fleet Street and so see most of this on a daily basis. Your photos really do capture the area perfectly.

I used to work in this area too and agree with your sentiments. Great photos. ^

To those asking Flickr is reporting these were taken with a Canon / EOS 30D

Jakester, thank you! I have a Canon 30D and a Canon 24-105 F4L IS lens. It was my constant companion.

Smart51, I agree - but Paris was so much warmer! February in London is coooooold.

Flyingfox, thank you!

Ironmanjt, thank you for the heads up. Slightly less spendy, then...

Luxury, baggageinhall, moomba, now when a local tells you that you nailed it, it really says something, thank you so much!

What is funny is that I also posted my Paris photos, then London, on Fodors... the Paris ones took off immediately with a lot of comments, and the London ones took a little while but eventually picked up. Here on FT, the Paris set I put up a few days ago did not draw much attention but these London ones are drawing more attention.

Thank you again everyone.

Great pictures.. I like London in general... always have , will always do ! :)

thanks!

Excellent pictures! Thanks for posting your slideshow.

What a great selection of photos! Speaking as a Londoner, sometimes you don't look up enough and treasure the detail, colour and contrast of your own city.

I'll second that! Amazing pics. Indeed, walk by some of these places regularly....and will appreciate them more!

you're very kind, thank you.