Skip to content

Rambling London

  • About
  • Creative Writing
  • Australia
  • Europe
  • New Zealand
  • North America
  • Memoirs
  • Thoughts on…

Tag: United Kingdom

Death at the National Gallery

November 2, 2018

I know it sounds morbid, but it’s still sort of Halloween, right? And over the centuries humanity’s obsession with death and what happens after we shuffle off this mortal coil has had a continuous and exciting influence on art.
Here are just a few examples… … More Death at the National Gallery

18 Comments Death at the National Gallery

My blog straight to your email - how exciting!

Follow Rambling London on WordPress.com

Instagram

The tip top of Monument, completed in 1677 to commemorate the Great Fire of London which had ravaged the area just over 10 years before. It’s an impressive 202ft (61m) high because that’s also the distance between the Monument and the starting point of the fire. • • • #londonmonument #cityoflondon #greatfireoflondon#sirchristopherwren #touristdays #exploringthecity #citylife #londonlife #londonbylondoners #homesweethome #beautifullondon #londonadventures #londonarchitecture #lovelondon #instalondon #visitlondon #ig_history #lovehistory #historynerd #researchday #thisislondon #londonist #ig_london #instarchitecture #instalondon #tourguidelife #londontours #londonguide #bluebadgetouristguide #ramblinglondon #ramblinglondontours
What a beauty! Funnily enough, that dome you can see isn’t the same dome you marvel at on the inside! The outer dome is just wood with a lead cladding and then the inner dome is smaller and closer to the ground so that worshippers could appreciate the stunning interior designs. • • • #stpaulscathedral @stpaulscathedrallondon #beautifulchurches #cityoflondon #sirchristopherwren #milleniumbridge #harrypotterlove #movielocations #touristdays #londonbylondoners #beautifullondon #londonadventures #londonarchitecture #lovelondon #instalondon #visitlondon #ig_history #lovehistory #historynerd #thisislondon #londonist #ig_london #instarchitecture #instalondon #tourguidelife #londontours #londonguide #bluebadgetouristguide #ramblinglondon #ramblinglondontours
The Walkie Talkie (aka 20 Fenchurch) and home to the Sky Garden! You can enjoy free entry to London’s highest garden - just book a slot on their website! • Funnily enough, when it opened in 2014, it briefly earned the nickname ‘Walkie Scorchie’ because the combination of the curved facade and the reflective glass meant that the pavement of Eastcheap, the street just in front, were reaching temperatures of over 60°C! People were frying their eggs on the street! 🍳 • • • #walkietalkiebuilding #beautifulbuildings #cityoflondon #oldandnew #modernbuildings #modernarchitecture #touristdays #researchday #londonbylondoners #beautifullondon #londonadventures #londonarchitecture #lovelondon #instalondon #visitlondon #ig_history #lovehistory #historynerd #thisislondon #londonist #ig_london #instarchitecture #instalondon #tourguidelife #londontours #londonguide #bluebadgetouristguide #ramblinglondon #ramblinglondontours
The base of Monument, commemorating the Great Fire of London in 1666. And can you spot the dragons at the corners? 🐲 That tells us we’re in the City Of London which started as Roman Londinium all the way back around 50 AD! • • • #londonmonument #cityoflondon #greatfireoflondon#sirchristopherwren #touristdays #exploringthecity #citylife #londonlife #londonbylondoners #homesweethome #beautifullondon #londonadventures #londonarchitecture #lovelondon #instalondon #visitlondon #ig_history #lovehistory #historynerd #researchday #thisislondon #londonist #ig_london #instarchitecture #instalondon #tourguidelife #londontours #londonguide #bluebadgetouristguide #ramblinglondon #ramblinglondontours
My group was slightly dwarfed by the magnificent St. Paul’s Cathedral so I had to split it into two posts! • Architect Sir Christopher Wren’s most famous work, it was completed in 1711 to replace the cathedral that burnt down in the Great Fire of London, but there’s been a church on the site for over 1,400 years! • • • #stpaulscathedral @stpaulscathedrallondon #beautifulchurches #cityoflondon #sirchristopherwren #milleniumbridge #harrypotterlove #movielocations #touristdays #londonbylondoners #beautifullondon #londonadventures #londonarchitecture #lovelondon #instalondon #visitlondon #ig_history #lovehistory #historynerd #thisislondon #londonist #ig_london #instarchitecture #instalondon #tourguidelife #londontours #londonguide #bluebadgetouristguide #ramblinglondon #ramblinglondontours
This old girl, dating back to 1862, is standing proudly in front of one of London’s newest skyscrapers, The Walkie Talkie (aka 20 Fenchurch). 13 Philpot Lane was built as an office for spice merchants and she’s still as eye catching now as she was then! • • • #philpotlane #beautifulbuildings #cityoflondon #oldandnew #victorianstyle #victorianarchitecture #touristdays #researchday #londonbylondoners #beautifullondon #londonadventures #londonarchitecture #lovelondon #instalondon #visitlondon #ig_history #lovehistory #historynerd #thisislondon #londonist #ig_london #instarchitecture #instalondon #tourguidelife #londontours #londonguide #bluebadgetouristguide #ramblinglondon #ramblinglondontours
The Queenhithe mosaic also has some lovely examples of the wildlife that you sometimes find in the Thames. I imagine this is Sammy the Seal who sometimes hangs out at Billingsgate fish market 😋 • • • #sammytheseal #queenhithedock #docklife #londonstory #queenhithemosaic #artandhistory #handinhand #southwarkmosaics #anglosaxonhistory #lovemycity #historiclondon #londonadventures #riverwildlife #londonwildlife #londonnature #cityoflondon #instart #ig_history #lovehistory #visitlondon #thisislondon #ig_london #instalondon #londonbylondoners #londontours #londontourguide #tourguidelife #bluebadgetouristguide #ramblinglondon #ramblinglondontours
Got to take a group to the wonderful Queenhithe Dock on Sunday! It might be all concrete nowadays, but it’s a hidden gem! An Anglo-Saxon dock tucked away in the heart of London 💙 It’s had a long history - when the tide is out you can even spot some of the lasting infrastructure from when this was used by the Victorians as well. • • • #queenhithedock #docklife #londonstory #queenhithemosaic #artandhistory #handinhand #southwarkmosaics #anglosaxonhistory #lovemycity #historiclondon #timelinequeen #londonadventures #sharingiscaring #lovelondon #cityoflondon #alwayslearningnewthings #ig_history #lovehistory #visitlondon #thisislondon #ig_london #instart #instalondon #londonbylondoners #londontourguide #londontours #researchtrip #tourguidelife #bluebadgetouristguide #ramblinglondon
Went to the beautiful Queenhithe mosaic yesterday. Been meaning to take a trip down there for ages and finally got round to it! 💙 It was completed in 2014 and charts the history of London and Queenhithe Dock, arguably the most historic dock in the city. • • • #queenhithemosaic #docklife #londonstory #mosaicart #artandhistory #handinhand #southwarkmosaics #stpaulscathedral #lovemycity #historiclondon #timelinequeen #londonadventures #londonarchitecture #lovelondon #cityoflondon #alwayslearningnewthings #ig_history #lovehistory #visitlondon #thisislondon #ig_london #instart #instalondon #londonbylondoners #londontourguide #londontours #researchtrip #tourguidelife #bluebadgetouristguide #ramblinglondon
Incredibly special birthday treat planned for me by @heard_in_london and @danitheguideldn yesterday. Can’t believe it, but it was my first time ever up the Walkie Talkie! @sg_skygarden ♥️ • • • #viewsfordays #thewalkietalkie #skygardenlondon #birthdaygirl #modernlondon #touristdays #londonadventures #londonarchitecture #beautifullondon #londoncityworld #lovelondon #visitlondon #ig_history #lovearchitecture #historynerd #ig_london #thisislondon #rafaelvinoly #instarchitecture #londonist #timeoutlondon #cityoflondon #instalondon #instalondon #londonbylondoners #toursoflondon #londontourguide #londontours #tourguidelife #bluebadgetouristguide
I wasn’t the only one to appear in the world on the 31st January! 🎉🎁🎂 These beautiful creatures, the Trafalgar Square lions, were unveiled on 31st January 1867 (so a little bit older than me!) 🦁 I knew there was probably a reason why I’ve always loved these guys so much! ♥️ • • • #birthdaygirl #birthdaylion #bigbirthday #feelingspecial #trafalgarsquarelions #lovemycity #victorianhistory #londonsculpture #urbansculpture #londonadventures #londonarchitecture #londoncityworld #lovelondon #trafalgarsquare #trafalgarsquarelondon #ig_history #lovehistory #historynerd #visitlondon #thisislondon #ig_london #instart #londonist #timeoutlondon #instalondon #londonbylondoners #londontourguide #londontours #tourguidelife #bluebadgetouristguide
Some of the unusual architecture of the Royal Geographical Society that I spotted the other day. I’ve gone past it so many times, but today I decided to look up! • The Royal Geographical Society was founded in 1830 for the advancement of geographical sciences, but it wasn’t until the early 20th century that they moved into the Victorian Lowther Lodge here. • • • #royalgeographicalsociety @rgs_sg #lookuparchitecture #southkensington #albertopolis #victorianhistory #albertmemorial #londonbylondoners #walkingthecity #exploringbyfoot #londonadventures #londonarchitecture #londoncityworld #lovelondon #ig_history #ig_architecture #lovehistory #historynerd #visitlondon #thisislondon #londonerslondon #londonisopen #ig_london #instarchitecture #londonist #timeoutlondon #londontours #londontourguide #tourguidelife #bluebadgetouristguide
That’s the Bloomberg Building on the left and No. 1 Poultry in the background. Both pretty incredible buildings! • 🌸 The Bloomberg Building: probably the most environmentally sustainable building in this country with a BREEAM (environmental assessment) rating of 98.5%, the highest ever given. It was completed in 2017, making it one of London’s newest buildings, however it hides an extraordinary 2,000 year old secret! Underneath it, and accessible to the public, are the remains of the Roman Temple of Mithras, a mysterious religious cult centred around the god Mithras which appeared in Rome in the 1st century AD! 🐓 No. 1 Poultry (right): a brilliantly colourful, unapologetically postmodern building completed in 1997. It is mostly office space but also has a restaurant and amazing roof terrace which looks out over Bank and the City of London. In 2016, it received a grade II* listing, making it the youngest listed building in England. • • • #bloombergbuilding #normanfoster #no1poultry #jamesstirling #modernlondon #cityoflondon #touristdays #beautifullondon #londonadventures #londonarchitecture #postmodernarchitecture #londoncityworld #lovelondon #instalondon #visitlondon #ig_history #lovearchitecture #historynerd #thisislondon #banklondon #ig_london #instarchitecture #londonist #timeoutlondon #instalondon #londonbylondoners #toursoflondon #londontourguide #tourguidelife #bluebadgetouristguide
This is ‘Tracy’ by @dreph_. She is part of his 10 part ‘You Are Enough’ project. Each one focuses on an inspirational black woman who Dreph knows from his own life. This one especially. Her name is Tracy Blackstock and she is the mother of his son. An amazing woman who has dedicated her life to charity work and the care of children and young people who have fallen on hard times. • • • #hiddenlondon #fashionstreet #dreph #streetart #youareenough #londonstreetart #shoreditchstreetart #londoneastend #artonthestreet #eastlondon #towerhamlets #instart #londonadventures #londoncityworld #lovelondon #ig_streetart #bricklane #arthistorynerd #visitlondon #thisislondon #londonartscene #ig_streetart #streetartisrty #ig_london #besttravelbloggersofig #londonbylondoners #tourguidelife #bluebadgetouristguide
A glorious, illuminated St. Paul’s in the twilight 💙 Architect Sir Christopher Wren’s most famous work, it was completed in 1711 to replace the cathedral that burnt down in the Great Fire of London, but there’s been a church on the site for over 1,400 years! • • • #stpaulscathedral @stpaulscathedrallondon #beautifulchurches #londonchurches #cityoflondon #sirchristopherwren #baroquearchitecture #touristdays #londonbylondoners #beautifullondon #londonadventures #londonarchitecture #londoncityworld #lovelondon #instalondon #visitlondon #ig_history #lovehistory #historynerd #thisislondon #backpackerlife #ig_london #instarchitecture #londonist #timeoutlondon #instalondon #tourguidelife #bluebadgetouristguide

Follow the Yellow Brick Road

  • Instagram
  • Twitter

The number of people interested in my nonsensical ramblings...

  • 4,487 hits
Lonely Planet Pathfinders badge image
Blog at WordPress.com.