London then and now

I love London and have for the last 25 years. Hopefully I will for the rest of my life as well. Endless are the hours spent walking with friends and by myself looking at buildings, sites and landmarks. It's not just the big things I find interesting. Au contraire, it's the little things I find most interesting and how the city has changed over the years.

Last week having some time over before meeting a friend for lunch I wandered into the National Gallery. I hadn’t been there for ages, and it was just so nice and relaxing to walk around watching paintings without a real plan on what to see. Leaving I of course had to stop by the museum shop. Shops at big museums are usually very good and you can find so many interesting things there and of course the National Gallery was no exception.

One area was dedicated to London with colouring books and tiny Paddingtons for the little ones, guidebooks for the tourists and history books for the real London buffs. It was there I found London then and now. A photo book with photos from late 1890's-1920's and photos from exact same spot today. Quite a little gem for the London lover. So for the last couple of days I've been comparing the then and now pictures and sometimes even I have looked at the map to make sure I know exactly where that spot/building is located. Probably a bit crazy or maybe a lot crazy, but that's what you do when you love things...