Europe, in 9 Walks

Last weekend the New York Times published a piece called "Europe, in 9 Walks."

They missed some beauties in Ireland as "ways" or walks are ubiquitous in the country. The online version of the article has also published reader's stories of walks and one woman sent in a walk along the Cliffs of Moher.

I plan to publish similar article (Dublin in 9 walks) for you over time but we were lucky enough to be in London and to be able to try one of the suggested walks: "The Wobbly Bridge in London."

Here's the text from the New York Times.

They nicknamed it the “wobbly bridge” when it opened, in 2000, because an engineering miscalculation caused it to sway so badly that people who tried to walk across it grew dizzy and even fell down. But after it was modified and opened again two years later, the Millennium Bridge, a pedestrian-only suspension bridge across the Thames, connecting Bankside on the south side to the City of London financial district on the north, became one of the great walking experiences in a city that might have been invented for strolling. 

At 1,006 feet long, the bridge takes just five minutes to cross, and can be a destination in itself. At one end is St. Paul’s Cathedral, and that is where I like to start; you climb up to the top, and get someone to whisper at you from across the Whispering Gallery, and then climb down again. Then you walk straight down to the Thames and the bridge, slender and elegant in gleaming steel. 

As you cross, the noises and bustle of the city fade away, replaced by the caws of sea gulls. It smells like the sea. You think of Dickens, and the character dredged from the river in “Our Mutual Friend.” All of London seems laid out around you: Blackfriars Railway Bridge and Southwark Bridge up- and downriver; the Shard, a tall, thin, new addition to the London skyline, upriver; St. Paul’s Cathedral, with the ovaloid building known as the Gherkin in the distance, behind you; the Tate Modern, a glorious celebration of art housed in an enormous building that was once a power station, directly in front. And next to that, the small and humble Globe Theater, a replica of Shakespeare’s original theater, authentic even down to its thatched roof. There is no better spot than the Millennium Bridge from which to appreciate London as a palimpsest, the new gracefully overlaid on the old, as if every era co-existed with every other era in perpetuity, all at once. — SARAH LYALL 

Unfortunately it was Sunday and St. Paul's Cathedral was closed so we were unable to experience the "Whispering Gallery" which grabbed John's attention immediately. But Johnny and I made a plan with Sheila and Maggie to meet in the middle of the "Wobbly Bridge" at "half twelve". They were going to Madam Tussaud's and we were headed to Sea Life.

\It was a lovely day, the marathon was on and we grabbed the tube one stop over to the Millennium Bridge when we were done. 

The walk was lovely and had the bonus lore for the kids (see the video too):

"In the summer of 1996, Lord Voldemort ordered Cornelius Fudge to step aside from his position as Minister for Magic, with the threat of a mass Muggle killing if he did not do so. Fudge refused to step down, and thus Voldemort ordered Death Eaters to cause the Brockdale Bridge and the Millennium Bridge to collapse. In early July, 1996, the bridge was attacked by Fenrir Greyback and a group of Death Eaters.The cables snapping, the bridge undulated and twisted intensely, pulling free of its piers, ultimately splitting in half and crashing violently into the Thames below, killing about fifty Muggles who were crossing the bridge at the time."