The Gift of London

This year, a friend and I decided against the mad dash to find presents for each other. Instead, we booked tickets for a matinee performance of The Lion King in the West End and another episode of the Obscure Tube Stop Game.

"The Obscure Tube Stop Game?" you say. What is that? Well, my friend and I observed one day that though both of us had spent a considerable amount of time in London, neither of us had actually seen London. So three years ago, we decided we would pick tube stops that intrigued us and go there, check them out, see what secrets they may be hiding.

For this particular Christmas 2006 trip, I chose Gloucester Road and my friend chose Stamford Brook. Gloucester Road was a real treat. One platform was playing host to an art piece by Chiho Aoshima, part of the Platform for Art series commissioned by the London Underground.

Stamford Brook was a tad disappointing; only a string of restaurants (including a Russian restaurant which seemed to have its priorities a bit mixed up) and a bizarre cat greeted us on our exit from the station. We did get slightly lost and tried walking down this little alleyway but realised that the only thing we would find would be an ancient Alfa Romeo and not much else.

After all the travelling around and switching trains at various stations we still had our cups of tea. There are NO bins in London! When we did find one it was such a relief that I had to take a picture of it.

The Only Bin in London

It was about time now to head to the Lyceum Theatre where the Lion King is staged. This was my third time watching it, yes, its that good.

If you haven't seen it, I highly recommend it. It gave me goosebumps all over again. Apart from the couple next to me who kept snogging and elbowing me in the process it was an enjoyable experience. You may feel like if you've seen the movie you've seen it all but really, though the story is the same, its a very different experience altogether. Its put together in such a unique way, very artistic and the songs are really beautiful when performed live. There are a couple of songs in the play that aren't in the movie in fact.

Once the show finished we headed towards Leicester Square, stopping through Covent Garden to pick up a Secret Santa gift. The Christmas decorations were fabulous and there was a mahussive tree that I couldn't photograph fully. We stopped off in China Town for some dinner and then made our way home. London really is very beautiful at night, especially at this time of year. The gift of London is definitely a great alternative to anything you could find in the shops.