Travelsmartplanet

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Elton John’s crown made by Swarovski crystal.

Tags: art, Austria, celebrity, collection, CostSaver, crooner, Crown, crowns, crystal, dynasty, Elton John, Europe, Innsbruck, King, Museum, royal, royalty, sights, sightseeing, singer, sir elton john, sparkle, star, Swarovski, Swarovski crown, Swarovski Crystal, Swarovski Crystal World, swarovski Kristallwelten, Swarovski museum, tour, tourist, Trafalgar, travelblogger, Wattens

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Death becomes her when she’s made out of crystal.

Tags: art, artist, artistry, artwork, Austria, collection, collector, CostSaver, crystal, crystal collection, crystal scupture, crystal skull, cystal art, death, design, Europe, Innsbruck, landmark, sculpture, sights, sightseeing, skull, sparkle, Swarovski, Swarovski Crystal, Swarovski Crystal World, tour, tourist, Trafalgar, travel, travelblogger, Wattens

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World over it’s known as the Opera de Paris however it does have a real name, the Palais Garnier named for its architect, Charles Garnier, and was built from 1861 to 1875. It became even more famous because of Gaston Leroux’s 1910 novel The Phantom of the Opera and, especially because of the later adaptations in films and the popular 1986 Broadway musical. It is as much a symbol of Paris as Notre Dame Cathedral, the Louvre, or the Sacré-Cœur Basilica.

Tags: adaptation, architect, Basilica, Broadway, Charles Garnier, CostSaver, Europe, famous, film, France, Garnier, Gaston Leroux, landmark, Le louvre, Louve, Louvre Museum, Musée du Louvre, musical, Notre-Dame Cathedral, novel, opera, Opera de Paris, Palais Garnier, Paris, Phantom of the Opera, Sacre Coeur, Sacré-Cœur Basilica, sights, sightseeing, symbol, tour, tourist, Trafalgar, travel, travelblogger

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How delightful to walk into living history at the Tower of London. It’s so much more fun when you learn the stories of the people who “lived” or were imprisoned there. Did they lose their heads?

Tags: Britain, British, captive, castle, city, England, Europe, fortress, Great Britain, Her Majesty, historic, History, imprisoned, landmark, living history, London, London City Pass, London Pass, London view, reenactment, River Thames, Royal Palace, sights, sightseeing, sttory, tour, tourist, tower, Tower of London, Trafalgar, travel, Travel blogger, UK, United Kingdom

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Pubs are inexpensive places to grab a bite and a beer in London. Some of them are hundreds of years old. Notice the wrought iron bell above The Old Bell tavern and the caricature of Punch on Punch Tavern. Many people back then were illiterate so objects were hung to create easy way for them to find shops and pubs. We passed these on Fleet Street while aboard the Hop On Hop Off Bus which was included in the London Pass.

The Bell Tavern was built by architect Sir Christopher Wren in the 1670’s while he was working on the churches nearby. Since it is located on the famous Fleet street which was the epicenter of the newspaper industry, the writers and inkies(printers), penned their copy here while probably perennially hammered.
Punch Tavern got it’s name in the 1840’s as Punch magazine had its office here on Fleet Street. There was a pub here even before then called the Crown and Sugar Loaf.

Tags: architect, beer, bell, Britain, British, built, bus, caricature, church, city, copy, Crown, England, epicenter, Europe, Fleet Street, food, Great Britain, History, hop on hop off, Hop On Hop Off bus, illiterate, industry, ink, iron, landmark, London, London City Pass, London Pass, London view, magazine, newspaper, objects, office, Old Bell tavern, penned, printer, pub, Punch, Punch Tavern, shop, shops, sights, sightseeing, Sir Christopher Wren, Sugar loaf, tavern, tour, tourist, Trafalgar, travel, Travel blogger, UK, United Kingdom, writer, wrought iron

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Sometimes while riding along, you just snap the shot at the exact right moment – this one was on the Hop On Hop Off bus in London and captures the amazing mosaic of architecture found in this city.

Tags: architecture, Britain, British, buildings, bus tour, city, England, Europe, Great Britain, History, hop on hop off, Hop On Hop Off bus, landmark, London, London city, London City Pass, London Pass, london street, London view, mosaic, sights, sightseeing, tour, tour guide, tourist, tower, Trafalgar, travel, Travel blogger, UK, United Kingdom

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You get two photo ops for the price of one in London because Big Ben (in the re-named Elizabeth Tower) stands right next to the Palace of Westminster (Houses of Parliament). Big Ben is the name of the largest bell. When built, in 1859, the clock was the largest and most accurate four-faced striking and chiming clock in the world. In August 2017, renovation work began in order to include a lift, and to re-glaze and repaint the clock dials. Though the clock could chime throughout the work being done, it was too loud for the workers so the bells will remain silent except for such occasions as New Year’s Eve and Remembrance Sunday. Here we caught it from the top of the Hop On Hop Off bus with the tour guide telling us about it.

Tags: bell, Big Ben, Britain, British, bus, chime, chiming, city, clock, Elizabeth Tower, England, Europe, Great Britain, History, hop on hop off, Hop On Hop Off bus, Houses of Parliament, landmark, lift, London, London City Pass, London Pass, London view, New Year, New Year’s Eve, occasion, palace, Palace of Westminster, Parliament, Remembrance day, Remembrance Sunday, renovation, sights, sightseeing, silent, tour, tour guide, tourist, tower, Trafalgar, travel, Travel blogger, UK, United Kingdom, Westminster, work, worker, world

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When in London, kids make a pilgrimage to the Kings Cross tube station where Harry Potter left for Hogwarts on special platform numbered 9 3/4. When we first visited this spot, a decade ago, there was the simple sign on the wall. It was a real treasure hunt to find it in the station.
Nowadays, it’s very easy. Just look for the giant lineup of kids and their parents willing to pay to take photos in front of it – AND- the very busy shop next door selling everything Harry Potter possible. You don’t need to pay to get into the Tube to get to this part of the station.

Tags: 9 3/4, Britain, British, children, city, decade, England, Europe, family photo, Great Britain, Harry Potter, Hogwarts, hunt, kids, Kings Cross, landmark, lineup, London, London City Pass, London Pass, London view, memorabilia, parent, photo, photo op, platform, shop, sights, sightseeing, sign, souvenir, station, tour, tourist, Trafalgar, train, train station, travel, Travel blogger, treasure hunt, tube, UK, United Kingdom, wall

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Who would expect flowers to be growing on the wall of the 72nd floor of a building? Great photo op at the Top of the Shard in London.

Tags: Britain, British, building, city, England, Europe, flower, flower wall, from the top, Great Britain, History, landmark, London, London City Pass, London Pass, London Shard, London view, Nature, photo op, shard, sights, sightseeing, The Shard, tour, tourist, Trafalgar, travel, Travel blogger, UK, United Kingdom, wall

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Beyond the regal London, you might come across a dragon in the sky when you take the Hop On Hop Off Bus. This one was on the way to St. Paul’s Cathedral and the Tower of London. Free ride when you buy the London Pass.

Tags: Britain, British, bus, bus tour, cathedral, city, City Pass, city view, double decker, double decker bus, dragon, England, Europe, Great Britain, History, hop on hop off, hoponhopoff, landmark, London, London City Pass, London Pass, london sights, London view, monument, ride, sights, sightseeing, St Paul's Cathedral, statue, tour, tourist, tower, Tower of London, Trafalgar, travel, Travel blogger, UK, United Kingdom