View of the Tate Modern art museum from the Millennium Bridge. The building that now houses the art museum was formerly the oil-fired Bankside Power Station, which closed in 1981. As a grad student at the LSE, I was lucky enough to live in the Bankside dormitory that was located directly behind the Tate Modern.

During a family holiday to Ireland we took a tour of County Wicklow, where Lough Tay is situated. The estate in the photo belongs to the Guinness family, who imported the white sand, thereby making the lake appear to be a giant pint of Guinness.

This is one of the guards who protects Windsor Castle, an official residence of the British monarch. I’ve always thought these guys sport one of the coolest uniforms out there. The “cap” they wear is 18 inches tall, weighs 1.5 pounds, is made from the fur of the Canadian black bear.

Every evening, a group of French veterans rekindles a flame at the Arc de Triomphe that honors an Unknown French Soldier killed in World War I. This is the group of veterans waiting for the ceremony to begin.

These dragons mark the boundary between the City of London and Greater London:

“The City of London is a small area within Greater London, United Kingdom. It is the historic core of London around which the modern conurbation grew and has held city status since time immemorial. The City’s boundaries have remained almost unchanged since the Middle Ages, and it is now only a tiny part of the metropolis of London, though remains a notable part of Central London. It is often referred to as the City (often written on maps as “City”) or the Square Mile, as it is just over one square mile (1.12 sq mi/2.90 km2) in area.”

A Republican mural in Belfast showing solidarity with the Palestinians. In addition to the murals, many Palestinian flags were on display throughout Republican neighborhoods. Taken during a July 2005 trip to Belfast.

Despite living in London for a year, I never made it out to Oxford. I finally ventured out there during a January 2010 trip to London, the day after a major snowstorm hit the region. While it was a pain navigating the snow-covered streets and sidewalks, the scenery was incredibly beautiful. This structure was built in 1737–1749 and originally housed the Radcliffe Science Library at the University of Oxford.

The first time I walked by the Texas Embassy, I did a double take. Surely Texas doesn’t have its own embassy in the UK? That would be bizarre, but not completely unexpected given the inflated ego of the state’s residents (and I say this as a Californian ). Well, as it turns out, it is just the name of a Tex-Mex restaurant near Trafalgar Square. My friends and I spent our 4th of July here in 2005 when the soggy London weather forced us to cancel our plans for an Independence Day barbecue. If you can’t have hot dogs, you might as well celebrate our country’s independence from the Brits with margaritas and nachos.

Photos from my January 3-11, 2010 return to London, with day trips to snow-covered Oxford and Gloucester.

Yeah, these photos are over two years old (September ’05) and I just got around to uploading them. I’ve only got 100+ more to go.

These were all taken during my last week in London, when I decided to make one more quick visit to some of the sights in the city.

Buckingham Palace, view from the backyard

As to be expected, the Queen has a ridiculously large backyard

Hanging out in the palace backyard after tea with Lizzie.

A royal swan in Round Pond, Kensington Gardens.

I didn’t want to get to close to the swans as they might recognize me from previous “incidents” and maul me, or something.

Tributes to Princess Diana on the gates of Kensington Palace, her former residence

Last night in the old ‘hood