The City of London: The Tower, Buckingham Palace and More - 14.08.08

Our virgin voyage to England's "first city" together, so it was difficult to resist going to all the must-see sights of London - exhaustion ensued! Mum and Dad had bought us a Great Palaces pass as a gift, which today got us into the Tower of London. I don't think either of us had appreciated the scale of the castle complex and found it occupied us for a good few hours. This did not help our quest to get to all the iconic buildings of the southern city but we didn't give up trying. The city is beautiful on quite a grand scale - architectural masterpieces galore, most notably those of England's most famous architect, Sir Christopher Wren. An AA walk took us on a tour of only a handful of his magnificent creations, including the pièce de resistance, St Paul's Cathedral, which we somehow managed to wander into without paying the £20 for two entry "donation". This was followed up by a brief tour of Houses of Parliament, Westminster, Downing Street (which we couldn't see for scaffolding), St James's Park and Buckingham Palace. Short walk and a one hour train journey to our campsite on the edge of London (within the M25 circular).

Really, a day in London only told us that we need to spend many more days, exploring its galleries, churches and theatres, not to mention the beautiful parks and fantastic restaurants. The fact that small sections of The Tube (subway) took us a reasonable time to cover is proof of London's impressive size.


The Great Tower of London




Site of execution for 6 of the more "privileged" prisoners (only one male), within the Castle walls, away from public gaze - Wives of Henry VIII, Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard, were beheaded here and were buried in the chapel just a few yards away.

Tower Housing The Crown Jewels





Henry VIII's Armour - from his later, more gluttonous years.

The "Gherkin" - lerking in the background
Tower Bridge - making way for a tall ship


Wren Tour










The Monumental St Paul's Cathedral - rebuilt after the Great Fire, 1666, designed by Wren


Guildhall




Houses of Parliament - tower containing Big Ben (the bell)




Westminster Abbey

St Margaret's Church, Westminster - adjacent to Westminster Abbey


Have you guessed where we are yet? Bl**dy tourists!

St James's Park





Buckingham Palace

Henry VIII, I am: Hampton Court and Windsor Castle - 13.08.08

Hampton Court was originally the home of Henry VIII's Chief Advisor, Cardinal Thomas Wolsey, but was later claimed as a Royal residence, following the Cardinal's failure to gain the Pope's approval for an annulment between Henry and his first wife, Catherine of Aragon. It is, in my opinion, one of the grandest homes in Britain.

On our way back from Hampton Court we popped via Windsor, to have tea with the Queen, but the gates were locked, so we had to settle for wandering round the wall edge, like everyday tourists.








Costumes from The Other Boleyn Girl - as worn by Scarlett Johannson and Natalie Portman


Real Tennis Court - a game with unfathomable rules.






Chertsey Campsite - with Mum and Dad



Windsor Castle - Elizabeth II's favourite weekend residence.



Spotted this opposite the castle...Wonder if the Queen pops here for lunch!