Monday has been a glorious day! It began with a journey to the Tower of London..a place of history and childhood dreams. The Crown Jewels are magnificent in all their splendour and the Brits show them off well. Lots of Americans here ogling lol. The ravens are huge and ugly but legend says if they leave the Tower will crumble. The site of royal executions and prisoners reminds one of the fears of authoritarianism! Walking the ramparts provided beautiful views of the Thames and the Tower Bridge as well as HMS Belfast the WWII destroyer.
Next was a visit to Christopher Wren's gorgeous,St Paul Cathedral. The mosaics on the ceilings sparkled in the sunlight and the plethora of memorials paid tribute to a proud nation's history. Unfortunately I could not photograph any of them!! The most moving was the needlepoint altar cloth created by wounded WWI soldiers as part of their healing. It was a splendid tribute and so touching; the stories of the indivual men who created it were also included. The crypt was the British version of the Invalides in Paris with both Nelso and Wellington interned. Hundreds of plaques commemarated British heroes.
We then began our long walk that would finally conclude at Victoria Station. Along the way we found treasures from the small church, St Clement Danes damaged in WWII bombing that was rebuilt as a tribute to the RAF! I was photographing the statues out front of the Air Marshalls when we're decided to venture inside. Every inch held plaques and reminders including a ten volume book honor roll of names of those who served to the embroidered individual kneeling pads in each pew. The small church is a living memorial as when we visited a couple was planning their wedding service. We then proceeded past the church dedicated to the WWII WRENS or Womens royal naval service members. We continued to Trafalgar Square which for a lon time in history was the center of the world for the British Empire. Admiral Nelson looks out from his column over a vast array of people from all over and the languages one can hear are marvelous.
We then meandered diwn Whitehall to the heart of British government. The Admiralty reflected the height of British power in the past and the statues to British generaks of WWII symbolized the pluck of the empire while the Cenotaph reflected the sorrow and devestation of WWI. We lucked into arriving at the Horse Guards as they were changing guards at the evening hour! We were able to video and photograph this moment among a small crowd. The British can out on a spectacle with such easy aplomb lol. As we walked by 10 Downing Street we saw cars unloading dignitaries and then going into buildings for an evening gathering of members of the Commonwealth. We finally completed our walkabout at Buckingham Palace again with small numbers of folks present and then a car pulled into the Palace! What a day!! Of course the feet took a beating but the history obaerved was truly magnificent!
