Wanting to travel to a place known specifically for its wealth and the price of its products and attractions is unnerving due to the daunting knowledge that your hard worked wages can very quickly dwindle. So what can be done to make sure a day out in the capital is something that would be fun, intriguing and worth making memories for? Besides travel which if in advance, super-off peak and via another station can bring the cost way down, the spend can be minimal. Another small cost would be food which again, can be bought the night before and prepared. Most convenience stores have products heavily reduced between 8 and 9pm saving a small fortune on branded foods.
In terms of actual places in London itself, there are a few places that are predominantly free. The museum district easily accessible from South Kensington Tube Station is abundant in interesting places to visit. One such place which we started off at was The Natural History Museum. After navigating a few streets in the affluent borough of Chelsea we arrived to a building, although currently being under renovation on the outside, that is bold with features of grandeur that not only fit with the area but with its historical purpose. Aside from the slightly temperamental weather, the cue on the side entrance to the building seemed to go through relatively quick and was a pleasure to be in due to the excitement of the accompanying study groups. Due to sheer size of the building that would have to have a whole day accommodated to it to complete, me and my partner decided to visit the Dinosaur and Human Biology sections of the museum whilst swinging by the main hall to see the Blue Whale.
Situated behind about 5 minutes walk The Natural History Museum is Science Museum. Again with entry completely free, another one of London's gems is still in the same area and gives a variety to the day if you don't specifically just want to know about the natural world. With a strong focus on technology and vehicles, this rather marvellous spectacle of a museum has you wowing at every turn. Personal highlights from the trip to the Science Museum includes seeing an actual piece of the moon and Tim Peake's actual spacecraft. Also featuring and entertaining were several levels of technology explained. Some of these floors were filled with interactivity and are not only fantastically appropriate for children but interesting for adults also! You not only learned about space but were taken on a journey through time with technology such as computers, TVs and even clocks. Although busy inside, again, on a summer holiday weekday, the cues were very short and were taken through security with fantastic customer service and a smile as we walked round. It truly was wonderful to see the people that worked there showing passion for their evident love.
To finish off the day we travelled again due north to the vast open green space that is Hyde Park. A lovely natural oasis amidst the concrete jungle that surrounds it, Hyde Park is a wonderful place for people to go for the simpler things in life. My partner and I planned on having a picnic whilst perching on the fields whilst enjoying the sun. Unfortunately for us the British weather lived up to its reputation and sure enough a bright green plastic festival-style anorak had to make an appearance to keep the persistent rain at bay. We did however walk around the Serpentine Lake and settle underneath a pillared shelter to eat our bargain lunch. We then complete our round journey of the lake as the weather eased up to a gusty wind. Only then did we take in the wonderful local nature that calls Hyde Park home. Abundant in squirrels, swans, geese and various other birds and creatures, these tame animals always seemed as curious to see you as you did them. Due to the Super-Off peak ticket, we caught a train shortly after 7pm making use of the quieter carriages towards the front of the train whilst reminiscing on the cheap but wonderful day of memories we had. We did London on little.
See the 'PHOTO' page for few highlights.
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