We headed off to the British Museum today. Adam’s primary goal was to see the Rosetta Stone.

 

 

 

 

 

 

We also saw some other really cool things today. There were many Egyptian sarcophagi and mummies of sorts. I particularly liked the Roman and Greek rooms full of statues, monuments, and relics. In many of the rooms, there is a museum employee at a “hands on” station with replicas of objects for visitors to touch, and they will explain what they are and what we’ve learned from them. We were able to touch a little chunk of stone that had Cuneiform on it, which is the oldest written language. There was also a set of merchant weights for us to play with. In West Africa, each merchant had their own set of weights, in the same ‘image’ or ‘shape,’ but with different weights to measure out gold dust. We also found out that in Islamic societies of the past, donkeys got to wear necklaces! The necklaces were worn for protection, and usually had the number five incorporated into the pattern in some way, as five is a lucky number.

After spending a solid five hours or so at the museum, we started our daily game of “Blue Plaque Go!”TM. It’s like playing Where’s Waldo, but better. While we were near a park, I was heading back to Adam and saw a cute puppy over yonder. I casually pointed it out to Adam, and he got a big grin on his face with happiness. The male of the couple with the dog saw Adam and said to his girlfriend, “Hey, over here, look at this guy’s face, he wants to pet her!” They brought the little girl over to us, and it made my night! The guy asked where we’re from, and we said Minnesota, USA. He said, “Hey, I’ve been there! Minneapolis, right?” Apparently he came to town at one point to see where Purple Rain was filmed.

 

 

After “Blue Plaque Go!”TM, we headed to the London Tower and Bridge to watch the bridge raise up for a small ship going through. This meant another ride on the tube. Adam thinks it’s funny that we’ve only been here a week and I already have “British tube rage” over people with bad manners in the stations and on the tube.

 

 

 

 

Once we were content with our river views, we headed to dinner. We decided to hit up Little India again, because we enjoyed it so much on Sunday. This place was busy tonight! Adam and I are in agreement that they have given us the best service in any restaurant that we’ve ever had before. Seriously, 5 stars, these guys are awesome. Food is good, service is beyond excellent, and we would recommend them to anyone heading to London. As Adam says, “If you dropped your fork, you would have a new one before it even hit the floor.”

Blue Plaques today:

• Randolph Caldecott – An artist and book illustrator that lived from 1846-1886.
• Sir Joseph Rotblat – Worked on-site and was Polish. He was the co-founder of the Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs, and won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1995. He lived from 1908-2005.
• John Nash – Lived 1752-1835. An architect that designed the terrace on-site and also lived there.
• Bertrand Russell – A philosopher and campaigner for peace. He lived on site from 1911-1916, and died in 1970 (born in 1872).
• Isaac D’Israeli – An author that lived from 1766-1845.
• Dr. Robert Willan – A dermatologist that lived from 1757-1812.
• Thomas Henry Wyatt – An architect that lived and died on-site. Born in 1807, died in 1880.
• John Thelwall – A political orator, writer, and elocutionist that lived and worked on site from 1806-1813. Lived from 1764-1834.
• Sir Hans Sloane – A physician that was also the benefactor of the British Museum. He lived from 1660-1753, and lived on-site (and just a few blocks from where the museum currently is) from 1695-1742.
• George Du Maurier – An artist and writer that lived on-site from 1863-1868. He lived from 1834-1896.
• Ram Mohun Roy – Lived from 1772-1833. He was an Indian scholar and reformer.
• The site where the Bedford College for Women (within the University of London) was founded in 1849 by Elizabeth Jesser Reid.
• Sir Anthony Hope Hawkins was a novelist who lived on-site from 1903-1917. He lived from 1863-1933.
• William Butterfield – An architect that lived from 1814-1900.
• Thomas Wakley – A reformer and also the founder of “The Lancet.” He lived from 1795-1862.
• Thomas Hodgkin – Lived from 1798-1866. He was a physician, reformer, and philanthropist.
• Sir Harry Ricardo – Lived from 1885-1974. He was a mechanical engineer and was born on-site.
• Lord Eldon – Lord Chancellor, he lived from 1751-1838.
• The location where the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood was founded in 1848.
• Dame Millicent Garrett Fawcett – She lived from 1847-1929 and was a pioneer of women’s suffrage. She lived and died on-site.
• Lady Ottoline Morrell – A literary hostess and patron of the arts. Lived from 1873-1938.
• James Robinson – A pioneer of anaesthesia and dentistry. He lived and worked on-site, and lived from 1813-1862.
• Robert Aickman – An author and co-founder of The Inland Waterways Association. He lived and worked on-site. He was born in 1914, and died in 1981.
• Honorable Henry Cavendish – Born 1731, and died 1810. He was a natural philosopher.
• A location was marked as being where Charles Kitterbell had lived, as related by Charles Dickens in sketches by Boz, “The Bloomsbury Christening.”

 

Total steps: 16,430

 

ttfn

Emily and Adam