London, Day 3

Paddington Station

 
Wednesday - a quiet day.  Virginia headed off to Bath Spa to catch up with an old friend and I decided to take myself to the West End to see a show.  The trip to Bath Spa, for Virginia, meant going down by train on the Great Western which departs from Paddington Station.  Of course, the most famous bear in the world is associated with this station and it would be remiss of Great Western were there not some image of Paddington Bear so,  there is a statue of the charming little creature at the station.

Paddington Bear

Since we arrived at the station well before Virginia's scheduled departure, we had a chance to wander around this historic site which has served as the London terminus of the Great Western Railway and its successors since 1838. Much of the current mainline station dates from 1854, and was designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel. So, in addition to the statue of Paddington Bear, there is a statue of Brunel.

Isambard Kingdom Brunel

At the moment there is a great deal of work going on in London because of the 2012 Olympics.  Obviously the city is going to be on show and there are lots of souvenir shops opening up with all sorts of kitsch goods on sale. There is, of course, an official shop which can be found at various locations in the city and one of these is at Paddington Station.  The official mascot is an odd looking, one-eyed creature named Wenlock, while the official paralympics mascot is Mandeville. 

Wenlock and Mandeville

The Olympic Shop in Paddington Station

Once Virginia was on her way I hopped on the tube and went to Victoria Station and the Apollo Victoria Theatre.  The last time I was in that theatre was way back in 1985 when I went there to see Andrew Lloyd Weber's "Starlight Express."  It now is the home of "Wicked," a great musical about the witches in The Wizard of Oz.

The Apollo Victoria Theatre

I must say I thoroughly enjoyed the show and recommend it highly.  It has played, I believe, in both Melbourne and Sydney and I know it is scheduled to have a run in Adelaide.  It really is "not to be missed."

After the show I caught the tube at Victoria Station and met Virginia at Paddington Station.  A pleasant drink at a local pub ended the day for us.

Victoria Station