The Collective Art, British, Literature, Travel

Nerd Travels, Part II: Accidental Geek Outs

Jet lag sucks.

I’ve been home from London for three days, and my body bloody well refuses to readjust to a proper sleep schedule. Blegh. I’m going on 16 hours of sleep in the last 96 hours.

But, from my hours of not-sleeping, you, dear readers, will reap the benefits, because I have had many hours to ponder what tidbits of travel wisdom to pour into your minds. I considered raving about the epicness of Windsor Castle or writing about how British food is actually quite good or creating a barrage of photographs that would simply serve to make y’all jealous of everything I got to see (I may still do that).

What surprised me most about visiting good ole London for the second time was how easy to accidentally stumble on something awesome and geeky in all the right ways. I may or may not have shocked nearby Londoners when I found these:

The Police Public Call Box

So, one morning, I was taking a leisurely stroll along the Thames, and I found the TARDIS’s long lost little baby.

I gave an appropriately Whovian-esque squeal and proceeded to hug the little baby TARDIS. I had heard rumors that such call boxes existed, but to accidentally stumble across one? What luck!

About twenty minutes later, I found this:

Twins!

Another cry of glee, and now I’m certain that the Doctor is real, and that the TARDIS is out there, procreating little baby TARDISes, so that maybe one day we can all go to Gallifrey.

The Sherlock Holmes

This is a real pub. Check out their website.

In my extensive pub crawling in London (gotta blend in with the natives, you know), I can officially say that this is the nerdiest pub in London proper. It’s called The Sherlock Holmes, so inside you’ll find cool nerd paraphernalia like this:

And in the background, they play old black-n-white Sherlock Holmes films. On the walls, they have Arthur Conan Doyle trivia and bits and pieces of the over-one-hundred-years of Sherlock Holmes fandom.

Even for a nerd like me, I was a bit overwhelmed by just how much effort the establishment makes to be sure that Sherlock Holmes is in every square inch of the place.

It’s pretty darn cool. If you’re ever in London, drop by for a half-pint. I recommend Old Golden Hen ale.

David Bowie Is

There are few people alive who are more awesome than David Bowie. Don’t believe me? Well, he’s got a goddamned museum exhibition in the V&A in London. So there.

Again, I discovered this entirely by accident. I was walking to the Natural History Museum, and there it was: a ginormous poster of David Bowie’s preternaturally gorgeous face. Instead of a girlish squeal, I swooned in a fashion worthy of any Jane Austen heroine.

But, David Bowie must be used to people swooning over him. I bet it’s a bit blase by now. Yet, I digress. The exhibition is only open until August 2013, so if you have any plans to visit London by then, go and bask in the aura of one of the most fantastic men to walk the earth. Although, David Bowie probably glides because walking is too quotidienne for him.

In conclusion, I offer a sincere apology to any Londoner whose eardrums I have slaughtered when I discovered that the V&A gift shop has David Bowie paper dolls.

Cheerio.

-The Collectress

**Disclaimer: I do not own these images. If it is your original work, please contact us. I am happy to give credit where credit is due.

Related articles