We always seemed to end up by the River Thames in London—many attractions are located on the banks of the river, like the London Eye, the Tower of London, the Tate Modern, St Paul’s Cathedral… While I certainly wouldn’t swim in it (I don’t think you can anyway), it’s charming.

The many bridges crossing the River Thames are all different. The Millennium Bridge is a modern footbridge steel suspension bridge leading to the Tate Modern, while the Tower Bridge, with its two massive towers, leads to the Tower of London. The architecture of the London Bridge is more straightforward but it is interesting to watch all the throng of office workers making their way from The City to London Bridge Station at the end of the day.

The River Thames is navigable to large ocean-going ships as far upstream as the Pool of London and London Bridge, where the HMS Belfast is moored. I was impressed by the number of boats on the river at times, it almost matched road rush-hour traffic!

Kids Playing at the Fountain
Detail of a Lamp Post
The Queen’s Walk (by the Tower Bridge)
The Tower Bridge
By the London Eye
Her Majesty’s Battleship
Tower Bridge
Tower Bridge
Tower Bridge
A Crown on a Lamp Post
The Thames
The Millennium Bridge and St Paul’s Cathedral

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9 Comments

  1. kyh July 12, 2010 at 10:24 am

    I still think Paris has got the most charming riverbank scenes! Even though I haven’t been there before. I’m biased, cos I’ve nvr liked London (or England in that matter), but I certainly wouldn’t mind an all-expense-paid trip! 😛

    Reply
  2. micki July 12, 2010 at 8:09 pm

    Beautiful architecture design for different bridges! I would spend a long time just by watching the details. What’s the temperature there? Saw the kids playing at the fountain there..

    Reply
  3. London Caller July 12, 2010 at 8:12 pm

    Right next to Tower Bridge, there’s an picturesque wharf called St Katharine Docks.
    There’s a century old pub, The Dickens Inn there. Apparently, Charles Dickens enjoyed a few pints there too.

    Reply
  4. khengsiong July 12, 2010 at 8:55 pm

    The Millennium Bridge is kind of weird.

    I see the photo in which kids play in the fountain. Is Europe very warm (warmer than past summer) now?

    Reply
  5. Soleil July 12, 2010 at 11:30 pm

    I kind of feel like an idiot for repeating myself all the time, but it’s always true. I love looking at your pictures! They capture the place and mood so well.

    Reply
  6. Linguist-in-Waiting July 14, 2010 at 9:45 am

    It is interesting to note that plenty of cities are centered around a river: Thames for London, Seine for Paris, Moldau for Prague, and so on. Great photos as usual!

    Reply
  7. Zhu July 16, 2010 at 11:07 am

    @kyh – Paris has really nice skyline views from the Seine but I like London’s bridges better.

    @micki – It was very hot in London. Not as hot as in France and a bit cooler at night, but still well above 25C.

    @London Caller – Really? I love London’s pubs, they all seem to have some kind of history… and stories!

    @khengsiong – It’s pretty hot in Europe right now. It cooled down a bit the last couple of days but early July was like a heat wave.

    @Soleil – Nah, I can always take more praise 🙂

    @Linguist-in-Waiting – Isn’t it! I just wish these rivers were a bit cleaner…

    Reply
  8. Vagabonde July 17, 2010 at 6:09 pm

    Je viens de lire tous tes posts antérieurs. Quelle chance d’être à Londres pour le Canada Day. Moi, je n’ai jamais mangé de poutine – c’est bon? Mais les crèpes, cela j’aime ça, et quand je vais en France ma cousine m’en fait à chaque fois. Ce qui me manques aussi ce sont tous les fromages, ceux qui ne sont pas exportés, et aussi le bon cidre. La vue du London Eye doit être “imprenable” Quand je suis allée à Londres la dernière fois c’était en Décembre et il y avait trop de brouillard. Tu sais je suis allée à l’école en Angleterre et je suis une vraie Anglophone. J’aime beaucoup le tube, je devais le prendre pour mes cours d’anglais specialisés pour passer l’examen de Cambridge, et c’était loin, mais j’aimais regarder tous les gens. De regarder tes posts cela me rend vraiment nostalgique pour Londres. Quand j’allais en France voir ma mère je prenais souvent un avion d’Atlanta qui s’arrêtait à Londres, et j’y restais 2 ou 3 jours. Merci pour toutes ces belles photos.

    Reply
  9. Yogi July 18, 2010 at 8:47 am

    Great photographs. The river looks very very busy with boats and such. Lots of stuff to see. One of your photographs has a modern building that looks like a pineapple. That’s intriguing.

    Reply

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