London Blog Pt. 7 - "The Museum of London"

Today I went to the Museum of London for the first time. It was about time I started learning some of the history for myself instead of using my poor friend like a walking guidebook (seriously, you'd think she'd be sick of me by now!). The museum turned out to be quite fascinating featuring galleries on everything from prehistoric times to the London Olympics. That's a lot of history to cover! 

The contents are very interesting and many of the rooms feature interactive elements or questions for young people that make the museum very kid friendly. Though, at just under 6 months, Alex was still a little too young to fully appreciate that. :) It doesn't take that long to work your way through, though there are several areas that show short films or have interactive computer programs that you could spend more time viewing/playing with. We probably spent a couple of hours walking through and that felt adequate, like we saw what there was to see, but you could easily spend more time there. Once you come out of the galleries there's a nice little cafe (with great coffee and pastries from Benugo). Back by the main entrance there's a larger cafe/restaurant and a great gift shop with lots of cool products. I nearly bought out the shop managed to restrain myself. 

After the museum we walked home. Alicia's mom was flying in on a surprise visit (lucky Alex!) so we waited at the flat for her to arrive. I stepped out to do a bit of shopping. The bright pink sale signs at the Oasis around the corner were calling my name. I found a couple cute dresses and a nice top and then walked around the block a bit before heading home. 

At dinner time we headed over towards Spitalfields Market to find a place to eat and ended up at Bishopsgate Kitchen, an amazing little restaurant right off the main road on the way to the market. It was nice and quiet since it was still a bit early so we were seated right away. The guys working there were super cute very nice and helped set up a baby seat for Alex. The food was fantastic and I had a massive cheeseburger. Yum!

By the time we walked home the weather was gorgeous as the sun was going down and now we've all just had a quiet night at home. Everyone is going to bed, and I'm headed there soon myself. We're thinking of attempting the Tower of London in the morning.

Goodnight from London! 

And now for the photo recap of the day! :) Enjoy.

History of the bicycle in London.

Still no royal baby, but they have a spot on the family tree all ready for them.

Some pre-Roman artifacts.

Looking out of the museum at part of the old London Wall.

An exhibit co-curated by local children comparing their London to historic London.

Model of the old St. Paul's Cathedral (that burned down in the Great Fire of 1666).

Model of the Rose Theatre from Shakespeare's time.

Gorgeous 18th century gown.

Etchings on the wood of an old prison wall that was salvaged.

My "illegal" photo of the gowns inside the Pleasure Garden exhibit. I swear the sign just said no flash photography but apparently they meant no photography at all.

"City street" from the Victorian Walk gallery.

The Lord Mayor's carriage.

Special display for the London Olympics. 

Small cafe area outside all the galleries.

Yum!

So good.

Leaving the museum.

More of the old city wall.

Walking through the Barbican. Isn't it gorgeous!

Dinner at Bishopsgate Kitchen near Spitalfields Market.

This was a pretty epic cheeseburger. Even when I reduced it to just the meat and bun it was still huge.