A Georgia Girl in Germany

The London Eye is a huge Ferris wheel that was formally opened by then-Prime Minister, Tony Blair, on Dec. 31, 1999, although it was not opened to the public until March 2000 because of technical problems. At 443 feet, it is the tallest Ferris wheel in Europe. We arrived at dusk and enjoyed watching the changing colors in the night sky.

The courtyard outside the ticket area was decorated with blue lights -- I’m not sure if it’s always decorated like that or if it was for the beginning of the Christmas season (it was late November, after all). In either case, I thought it had a classy look.

From the London Eye, we had an awesome view of the city lights that only became more and more amazing the higher we went. Of course, I had to take photos of Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament. However, it was very difficult to get a good shot since our capsule was constantly moving as we climbed.

The unique thing about the London Eye is that the capsules do not suspend from the wheel’s frame. Each capsule has two tracks that go around it from bottom to top that guides it higher above the skyline -- you can see one of these tracks in this shot.

Benjamin had to have his photo made with Big Ben in the background -- it was impossible to have both Bens in focus, so I kept my favorite Ben in focus. :-)

Once we were back on the ground, we walked across the Thames River on our way to the subway stop across from Big Ben, which allowed for a wonderful night shot.

Here’s the London Eye from the bridge across the Thames. Just like the Eiffel Tower in Paris, the locals didn't originally like the contraption, and wanted it torn down following the World’s Fair/exhibit. With ticket prices triple what they were when it first opened, I doubt that will happen -- it brings in too much revenue.

Our next stop: Hamley’s Toy Store. Benjamin had to stop to enjoy the window display and almost didn’t want to go inside. If you’ve never been to London, Hamley’s is roughly the equivalent of New York’s FAO Schwartz Toy Store. In layman’s terms, and straight from Benjamin’s mouth as he reached his arms up high, Hamley’s is “the biggest toy store ever!” Yup, that’s about the gyst of it.

There were lots of activities and toys to discover and explore in the store’s six stories. Benjamin had to sit down to take in the Thomas the Tank Engine selection.

Zachary was practically drooling over Harry Potter’s Firebolt broomstick. MacKenzie even wanted Hermione’s vine wood and dragon heartstring core wand when Zachary asked if he could get Harry’s holly wand with phoenix feather core.

After exploring almost every nook and cranny in the store (except the little baby section), Benjamin cuddled up with a new friend. Doesn’t he look cozy? Fortunately, he selected a slightly smaller friend as his souvenir -- a white polar bear he appropriately named “London.”

Labels: Benjamin, England, Travel, Zachary