Watching the world go by.

In these cold days it is hard to imagine, but one of the things I love to do when I am in London is sit somewhere and watch the world go by. I don't sit just anywhere, I have 2 favorite spots that can be found close to another. The first one is Leicester Square, one of my favorite London places. In the summer I love to get a take away Hagen Dasz and sit next to Charlie Chaplin. A slice of pizza will do aswell, from time to time. But i love to sit on the benches to watch everybody pass by. I see the strangest things. In December there is a little fair at Leicester Square, and there for no benches, but still I like to hang around the Square and watch all the people. I always wonder how the people, who win a huge cuddly toy, bring it home. They can hardly carry it, and the people that carry them never speak English. At least, not the times I have visited the fair. I always see Italian or Spanish people walking around with these stuffed animals. I know that they have to take a plaine home, so I almost ask them why they have them. But it is great to see the smiles on people's faces. Leicester Square is a favorite place for me to meet friends. When it is cold there is the Rendez-Vous, where you can get a nice cup of coffee, tea or hot chocolate milk. Sometimes me and my friends keep on chatting and don't come any further. Leicester Square is also famous for film premieres. I have attended one a few years ago, when I won a contest. I saw Stardust at the premiere at the Odeon. Great to see Charlie Cox, Take That (who didn't sing), Michelle Pfeiffer and lots of other stars from the fim on stage there. Funny thing is that I even ran into Charlie Cox a few times outside the cinema. But I didn't recognized him with beard. A missed chance that was made up with a nice signed picture of Charlie as Tristan Thorne. A lot of other events take place at Leicester Square. This summer I saw a small part of West End Live. A 2 day show where the big musicals could present themselves to the people of London, and the tourists ofcourse. I missed Ramin Karimloo of Love Never Dies, but I was able to see Stomp and was very impressed. If you arrive halfway December don't miss the small fair, it is great to walk around the people and it feels Chrismassy.

Another Square I like to see is Trafalgar Square, just around the corner from Leicester Square. I like to sit on the steps, and watch others sit there aswell, or people passing by. Some in a hurry, and some of them in a silly or romantic mood. If you find a good place to sit, you can even see the Big Ben ahead of you. The fountains are giving the people fun and the steps are great to sit on and see what things London has to offer, or to meet friends. And all of that under the watchfull eye of Nelson. At Christmas time there is a huge Christmas tree, and every evening choirs are singing the most lovely Christmas carols. They raise money for charities and hand out little leaflets with the lyrics of the songs. Lots of people always gather there to sing along and get the Christmas feeling. It works for me all the time. It is a great place to stay if you need a break from the National Gallery and National Picture Gallery. You really see the world passing by when you sit somewhere on these squares. It might sound strange, but for me it is one of the charms of London.