1982 Madame Tussaud's and London Zoo (7/8/1982)

Thursday, July 8, 1982

We checked in for two more nights after breakfast, and set off at 9:00 on another sunny and now hot day. At the South Kensington Station we got 40 pence/70 cent tickets from the vending machine to take the Circle Line tube to Baker Street. At Madame Tussaud’s Wax Museum we had to check our backpacks and were given a single well-worn stub. Upstairs we purchased the 2.75 GBP/$5 ticket while a wax figure bobby stood guard.

Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum ticket

We had to take an elevator up to be deposited in a Victorian lobby. Entered a dark room where you could wander amongst the life-size wax figures of celebrities, some were originally done in 18C and 19C. You could take a close look to see wrinkles and facial hairs. There was the life-size three-dimensional painting (“And When Did You Last See Your Father?”), Queen Victoria when she learned she was queen, the Brontë sisters, etc. In the center was a Sleeping Beauty who was breathing! Went into a hall of heroes, Pelé in sports, Agatha Christie in writers, Liza Minnelli and an old Charlie Chaplin in movie stars, and some British figures we didn’t recognize. In another room Elton John was talking (a movie playing on his face made his mouth seem to move and his eyes to blink), Elvis played “Love Me Tender,” Kojak held a lollipop, a funny-looking Humphrey Bogart said, “Play it again,” and John McEnroe was brighter than Björn Borg. Went through a room dedicated to "Dr. Who," a TV series with space aliens. Took a red-carpeted staircase down to see famous personages of kings and queens and King Henry VIII standing with all six wives. The current Royal Family was shown as at Charles and Diana’s wedding. Several U.S. Presidents were there: George Washington, Ike Eisenhower, John F Kennedy, Lyndon B Johnson, and Ronald Reagan. Members of Parliament, Prime Ministers including Benjamin Disraeli, Winston Churchill and Margaret Thatcher. Also bishops of the Church of England, and Pope John Paul. William Shakespeare and Charles Dickens, Pablo Picasso. Next we headed down into the dungeon for the Chamber of Horrors (prefaced by Adolf Hitler) showing methods of execution including two represented by the U.S.: shooting and the electric chair. Walked down an eerie street past animals and a victim of Jack the Ripper, then through prison block D1 with modern criminals standing in front of their cells. Entered Admiral Nelson’s ship and you could feel and smell the heat of battle and look out the portholes at the battle of Trafalgar. Nelson had lost his arm. The Beatles pointed the way to the gift shop and the restaurant had crazy mirrors and a palmistry hand on the wall. After deciding I do not have a life line, we continued past Neil Armstrong in a spacesuit, two men reading newspapers, and W.C. Fields. There were pence/penny arcade games where now 5 pence/9 cents got doors to open, graves to open, etc. as a little show. We retrieved our backpacks and walked down Baker Street, stopping at the “Jaws” sandwich shop to buy a can of tuna, a half pound of cheddar cheese, and drinks to have with our breakfast rolls for lunch as we sat in Regent’s Park. We also had apples. A couple joggers went by.

At 12:30 we walked to the top of Regent’s Park to the London Zoo, and got 3.50 GBP/$6 tickets and Sue bought a guide.

London Zoo ticket

Camels, giraffes, zebras, llama, antelope, birds in a large aviary with several environments, owls and missing otters, parrots and beavers.

Storks with eggs in the aviary

Then to the main part of the zoo! Monkeys, panda, gorillas (carefully watching the people!), a shy 21-year old orangutan (her whole life spent in captivity), lions and tigers and bears.

Panda

More birds, seals, small mammals, and nocturnal animals (it was dark down there!).

American Flamingos

Elephants, hippos, and rhinos, and every other one had a baby. Boars and mountain goats.

Barbary Sheep

The sun was hot and unrelenting and we found we had to sit and rest more frequently. We watched the sea lions being fed, and seagulls tried to snatch their fish.
At 16:30 we left to find the Camden Town tube station, buying 60 pence/$1 tickets for the Northern Line to Leicester Square. We changed to the Piccadilly Line to Knightsbridge, and walked the block to the department store Harrod’s in a stately old building on Brompton Road, decorated with flags and light bulbs. Although the store hours on the door said 9-6, they were closing today at 17:00. We window shopped and walked down to Beauchamp (pronounced Bee-chum) Place to window shop at the boutiques. We were really tired and stopped at the Bunch of Grapes Pub. Had to wait 5 minutes until they opened at 17:30 and sat down. However, we weren’t being served. You had to go to the central bar to order. Sue had cider and I had Schweppes Bitter Lemon. Most of the patrons were watching a football (i.e., soccer) game on the telly. It looked like most of the players were just trying to lie down on the ground.

We walked all the way back to our hostel for a rest. At 19:30 we went to Brompton Road to look for a fish’n’chips place. At Sea Farer’s we ordered cod and chips with tea (with milk!) for Sue and 7-Up for me. Total cost was 4.03 GBP/$7 and we left a tip. We slowly walked back to the hostel, approaching it from another direction. We noted the empty glass bottles set out for the milkman on front steps as we had on Sunday night. We’ve seen milk, cream, and cheese orders sitting on window sills, and sometimes slips of paper in empty bottles.