Tuesday around London - part 1

Tuesday we decided to take London transit around to visit different places and to enjoy using the transit system.

Just a little ways from our hotel we saw a UPS "jitney" (or maybe enclosed golf cart?).

The local grocery store near our hotel -- we got a few things in this store during our stay.

Moorfields Eye Hospital was near our hotel too -- note the clock over the front door in the shape of an eye.

As we headed into the tube station at Old Street, Carl got a picture of London's Rail and Tube service. It is quite extensive!

Onboard the tube, there was a Central London Tube map. On each train, there would also be a larger map of the specific line on which we were traveling, and there were information displays that displayed the name of the line and the next station stop.

We took the tube to Kings Cross / St Pancras. We wanted to scope out St Pancras International station as we would be taking a train from there on Thursday to Dover, and wanted to figure out how to access it without steps (as we would have our luggage).

After finding the right platforms for our train, we decided to walk to the British Library. 

Entrance to the British Library

From https://londonist.com/london/features/british-library-50-years-tour-secrets:

Strolling across the piazza towards the entrance, you are actually walking on the roof of a four-story building — stepping over the top of 14 million books. While an institution with a name like 'The British Library' sounds as storied as a bottle of claret from the mid 1700s, it's only been around since 1973, as a result of the British Library Act. Before then, many of the nation's books and manuscripts were held at the British Museum.

We didn't see a specific sign identifying the building, but this had some information and "British Library" on it.

I had wanted to visit the library to see the "Treasures Gallery", a free exhibit with items like the original Magna Carta and original pages by William Shakespeare and handwritten music by Ludwig van Beethoven. There are probably more pictures here than anyone wants to see, but... you might find some of them interesting. I've included the text documentation as well as a picture of the objects. 

Obviously a composer has to write the score, but so fascinating to see the original writing by Handel.

Original writing by Beethoven

Original copy of Beowulf

Jane Austen's notes, spectacles, and spectacles case

Virginia Woolf's Mrs Dalloway

Handwritten script for Monty Python's famous Spanish Inquisition sketch

There were also writings from the Beatles, but no photographs allowed of those.

There was a special display for USA's 250th anniversary... 

Proof sheet for half-penny stamps required by the British Parliament's Stamp Act. These would be used on newspapers.

A map of the siege of Yorktown...

"The Field where the British laid down their Arms"

A 1819 engraving of the Declaration of Independence

A folio of William Shakespeare's works 

First edition of Romeo and Juliet

Notes by Leonardo da Vinci

Additional notes by Leonardo da Vinci

There was a display of several items by Sir Francis Bacon, but I found the description of this item to be particularly interesting.

An illustrated Dutch translation of the Bible from around 1431 -- richly illustrated -- the following two pictures are of the illustrations on these two pages.

One of 4 surviving originals of the Magna Carta from 1215

Outside the Treasures Gallery, there was a collection of old books...

... called "The King's Library"...

... collected by King George III.

It was a glass enclosed, climate controlled room ...

... several stories high.

In the lobby, Carl found a book-bench on which to sit....

From https://londonist.com/london/features/british-library-50-years-tour-secrets:

One of London's coolest benches — Bill Woodrow's 'Sitting On History', a book-shaped sculpture attached to a ball and chain — is said to 'refer to the book as the captor of information which we cannot escape'.

Outside in the courtyard, a statue of Sir Isaac Newton.

We enjoyed our visit to the British Library, but there's even more we did on Tuesday! Part 2 coming!