I’ve been watching the Get Back documentary about The Beatles and it reminded me that I walked across Abbey Road last year in London just like The Beatles did in 1969 for their iconic Abbey Road album cover. If you are a Beatles fan, you know how monumental this was to walk the same steps the Fab Four did on August 8, 1969.

I’m a Beatles fan at heart. I wouldn’t say I’m a die-hard-own-every-album-ever-made-fan. But I did buy The White Album on CD back in the day. I also know they sing “Frere Jacques” in the background in the song Paperback Writer. And if you ask me what is my favorite Beatles song, I would not be able to pick just one. So coming here was a true happy moment for me.

We stumbled onto all of this after leaving the Sherlock Holmes Museum where next door was a very cool Beatles store. I bought something there for an uncle who, out of all my uncles, reminds me most of The Beatles. While in the store I asked the cashier where is Abbey Road. She replied it is right here in London just a short walk away, and then gave us a map and showed us how to get there. I thought Abbey Road was in Liverpool where the band originated, which is 212 miles (341 km) from London. I didn’t realize it was right there in London. After purchasing some black & white Beatles postcards, we made our way to Abbey Road.

Abbey Road is an average working road, and the crossing is a working pedestrian crossing with no stop light. The people that drive on this road are well aware of the significance of this cross walk and the pedestrians have the right of way. It seems going between late morning and early afternoon is a good time to go, in between rush hour traffic. We arrived. Then we walked back and forth for a bit. Then we people watched for a bit. Have you ever visited a site that you’ve always wanted to go to, and once you are there, you don’t want to leave? For me, this was one of those places. We stayed in this area for about 30 minutes, just enjoying the walk back and forth, as odd as that sounds. Sometimes I had the walk to myself. Sometimes I strolled across with other crossers. Some people got in teams of four and tried to mimic the same steps The Beatles did back in 1969.

It just so happened the place where we stayed earlier in the year was less than a mile from Abbey Road (and Abbey Road Studios which are still in operation). I had no idea how close we were back then.

This was a highlight of the trip for me. If we had not gone to the Sherlock Holmes Museum we would not have seen the Beatles store. And if we had not gone into the Beatles store, we never would have learned that Abbey Road is in London.

It’s a good thing we went to the Sherlock Holmes Museum. 😏