Local, Near and Far: Our journey of exploring the world.

Tag: London

Chasing Caravaggio: Caravaggios of the National Gallery, Part 2

Every Friday we take a break from our regular blogging schedule to allow the authors an opportunity to feature a certain topic they are passionate about. In the past you’ve read about art, studying abroad, experiencing culture through food, and the great burger adventure. Through this and other future posts we hope you’ll enjoy reading, we hope to share with you our personalities, passions, and interests on a more personal level.

As part of our continuing desire to bring beauty into focus, From Texas to Beyond will periodically feature brilliant pieces of art that have influenced our lives.  We are excited to showcase these universal works of beauty with you.

Today, we conclude the two-part miniseries examining the Caravaggio painting from The National Gallery in London.  As I mentioned in my first post in the Chasing Caravaggio Series, I am on a quest to view all of Caravaggio’s masterpieces firsthand.  Thanks to a short layover at London Heathrow I found three more in The National Gallery.

Picking up where we left off during the previous Chasing Caravaggio, I was standing before three great works of art by Caravaggio in The Nation Gallery in London.  While the first two pieces, Boy bitten by a Lizard and Salome receives the Head of John the Baptist were delightful, my favorite of the three now had my full attention.

The Supper at Emmaus

Caravaggio's The Supper at Emmaus - Courtesy of Wikipedia

Caravaggio’s The Supper at Emmaus – Courtesy of Wikipedia

The final and greatest Caravaggio painting in The National Gallery, The Supper at Emmaus, was much large than I expected.  The scale of the painting accentuates the viewer’s ability to enter into the scene as Christ stretches his hand out of the painting’s surface, directly to us.

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Chasing Caravaggio: Caravaggios of the National Gallery, Part 1

Every Friday we take a break from our regular blogging schedule to allow the authors an opportunity to feature a certain topic they are passionate about. In the past you’ve read about art, studying abroad, experiencing culture through food, and the great burger adventure. Through this and other future posts we hope you’ll enjoy reading, we hope to share with you our personalities, passions, and interests on a more personal level.

As part of our continuing desire to bring beauty into focus, From Texas to Beyond will periodically feature brilliant pieces of art that have influenced our lives.  We are excited to showcase these universal works of beauty with you.

Today, we begin a two-part miniseries examining the Caravaggio painting from the National Gallery in London.  As I mentioned in my first post in the Chasing Caravaggio Series, I am on a quest to view all of Caravaggio’s masterpieces firsthand.  Thanks to a short layover at London Heathrow I found three more in the National Gallery.

As Rebekah discussed in her earlier post, The National Gallery owns countless magnificent pieces of art.  While on a guided tour of the museum, I caught my first glimpse of the pieces I desired to see the most:  all three Caravaggio paintings hung next to each other along a long wall.  Once the tour concluded, we backtracked to Room 32.

Boy bitten by a Lizard

Caravaggio's Boy bitten by a Lizard - Courtesy of Wikipedia

Caravaggio’s Boy bitten by a Lizard – Courtesy of Wikipedia

Enjoying the Caravaggio’s one at a time, I first viewed Boy bitten by a Lizard.  I had previously seen a later version of Boy bitten by a Lizard (from the Fondazione Roberto Longhi) at the Kimbell Art Museum during a traveling exhibition.  Caravaggio’s earlier version was just as good.  This painting was one of the first the artist produced after arriving in Rome, sometime between 1595 and 1600.  While straightforward at first glance, the piece is full of symbolism.  If you listen to most contemporary commentaries on this piece of art, they will mention Caravaggio’s overt interest in young men.  After reading more on the artist, it is hard to believe he did not love men.  However, he definitely loved women as well.  To me, Boy bitten by a Lizard seems to show that something as beautiful as fruit, a symbol of love, may end in unexpected pain, such as a bite from a hidden lizard.

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The National Gallery

With only two hours in central London via a long layover, David and I decided to spend our time at The National Gallery.  We love art and wanted to see the gems that are housed in London.  The Gallery is open every day and is free so it was a perfect fit for us.

Trafalgar Square - View from the Museum

Trafalgar Square – View from the Museum

From the airport, we headed into London via the Tube and after a short walk, ended up in Trafalgar Square at The National Gallery.  When we arrived at the museum, I had to eat something before I could enjoy the art.  We headed down to the café, a little afraid of the prices; to our surprise, it was very reasonable.  The chicken curry sandwich, carrot cake and coffee were delicious and perfect.

Once we arrived, we realized we were right on time for a tour.  Guided tours are offered daily at 11:30 AM and 2:30 PM.  We joined at least 50 other patrons as a docent guided us through the busy rooms.  At first, I was discouraged when the docent stated she would show us only 4 pieces on the hour-long tour due to the large size of the group. But, I can honestly say, it was the best museum tour I have ever experienced.

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An Afternoon in London – Making the Most of Our Heathrow Layover

It was 8:45 PM, and Rebekah and I were pulling away from the gate at DFW International Airport and heading to London.  Seated next to me, Rebekah was tired from all the preparation.  I was trying not to bounce off the walls with excitement.  Sipping a Newcastle Brown Ale shortly after takeoff, Europe was beckoning me! Our time in London would be short.  With an eight hour Heathrow layover,  we would have three hours in downtown London.  An hour delay at DFW Airport now meant 60 minutes less in London. London Telephone Booth You may ask, “Why does an eight hour layover turn into only three hours in central London?”  In short, plan on 5 hours for Immigration/Border Control (1 hour), transportation to the city center (1 hour), and transportation from the city center back to Heathrow (1 hour), arriving approximately 2 hours prior to your flight’s departure time. We found an excellent article on Trip Advisor breaking down the times and possible sight-seeing options. If you only have a few hours, I strongly recommend focusing on one destination in London, and fully enjoy that one destination.  There is no way you can see everything in London in a few hours; we chose The National Gallery.  The National Gallery is free, located in a great part of town with easy connections and we love art!  Plan your itinerary before leaving home, as you do not want to use your precious time looking up options once you arrive.

Step One:  Immigration/Border Control. We were very fortunate here, giving up just 5 minutes instead of the scheduled hour. We were making up some time lost in the flight delay. If possible, check your bags all the way through to your final destination. Since our bags were checked to Prague, we did not have to spend time picking them up. If we had luggage, I am sure our Immigration time would have been much longer. Besides, you don’t want to carry your bags around London.

London Heathrow Train Map - Courtsey of HeathrowAirport.com

London Heathrow Train Map – Courtsey of HeathrowAirport.com

Rebekah and I on the Piccadilly Line

Rebekah and I on the Piccadilly Line

Step Two:  Transportation to downtown London.  Here, you have two options.  The newer, faster, more expensive option is the Heathrow Express (HEX).  The second option is the traditional Underground Piccadilly Line (Dark Blue Line).  See the map of the Underground above for more information.  We chose the latter based on what we had read in the Trip Advisor article.  Following signs from Immigration, we easily found the Underground station, and purchased RETURN trip tickets from a machine for $15.00 each (£8.90). We used a credit card instead of converting dollars to pounds.

Step Three: Enjoy central London. In 45 minutes, we emerged from the Underground station in the heart of Piccadilly Circus. Piccadilly Circus is the Times Square of London. Broadway show posters plaster buildings. Pizza Hut, KFC, TGI Friday’s, Dunkin’ Donuts and other “wonderful” American contributions to Europe cuisine clamor for business. Hundreds of people mill about. Remember, any time you are around crowds, keep an extra careful eye on your belongings. Bypassing the crowds, we headed to Trafalgar Square on foot. Passing a statue of William Shakespeare in Leicester Square, we asked directions from a friendly police officer.  With a few more turns, we arrived at Trafalgar Square.  Staying focused on the goal at hand, we proceeded directly to The National Gallery.  After all this, we had two and a half hours at the Gallery. Heading back to Heathrow, we exited the museum and were greeted with a light rain.  Big Ben came into view for the first time; it will have to wait for our next London visit.

Trafalgar Square and Big BenStep Four:  Return transportation to Heathrow Airport.  We easily found Piccadilly Circus, and boarded our train back to the airport.  Before getting on the Underground, check to see from which terminal your flight departs.  There are three stops for Heathrow, Terminal 1,2 and 3; Terminal 4; and Terminal 5.  Not all of the trains go to all of the stations.  Our connecting flight to Prague departed from Terminal 3, the first stop.  Again, the return trip took 45 minutes.

Step Five:  Security.  The last step for a successful layover trip to London is clearing security on your way back.  Following the signs from the Underground, we made our way through a very detailed security check point.  Once inside the secure area, we sampled gin and tonics at the Duty Free shops, killing the remainder of our layover before making our way to the gate.  At Heathrow, gates are not assigned until 60 minutes prior to departure, so spend time in the mall-like common area.

The Piccadilly Underground Line

The Piccadilly Underground Line

Well, was all of that hassle worth it?  Definitely!  There are risks involved, but overall, we experienced an extra destination for a small amount of money and no extra time.  If you plan appropriately, and leave enough time for the return trip, 3 hours in London will be much more rewarding than 8 hours in the terminal. If you have any questions, feel free to post in the comments section, and we will do our best to assist you with your upcoming plans.

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