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Published: October 3rd 2007
Today was a sightseeing bonanza. The day started with a trip to the Globe Theatre where Shakespeare’s plays were first shown. The Theatre is a reconstruction of the original building which was used in the 1500’s. The current building was built using the same materials and methods as the original which has resulted in creating an atmosphere that brings you back in time. It was cool to here some of the interesting facts during the tour given by one of the actors, for example, the theatre was built outside the city limits, seated over triple the amount of people, and a flag was flown to indicate that a show was on.
It ended up being another step of Chelby’s journey down the Shakespearian lane. We had visited his birth place, grave and one of his apartments - now where he worked. It’s a shame we cant catch a show - I guess a trip to the Lion King tonight will have to suffice.
Our next stop was a bit of a walk along the Thames to the Tower Bridge. On the way we walked past a replica of the Golden Hind a tall ship with Sir Frances Drake sailed
more than 14,000 miles in the 1500’s. Then we walked past a man with the worlds biggest window washer, the London Bridge, a memorial hall for the two World Wars and a giant swimmer… swimming in the lawn.
The Tower Bridge is yet another engineering marvel, of which we have seen so many of on this trip. The tour takes you through the life of the bridge from its conception, fulfilling a need to cross the Thames - but still allow tall ships to pass, to its use as a landmark during the bombing of London during WWII to the present day. It is amazing that it can raise to allow ships through in under two minutes - and that’s when it was built in the 1800’s!
The Tower of London was next. We entered the area and immediately ran into the only Female guard (who we saw being interviewed on her first day a few days ago), who directed us to a guided tour given by a Beef Eater. Beef Eater is a name given to guards of the Tower, who theoretically were paid in beef back in the day, apparently… I didn’t realise that the Tower
Castle was where the Kings of England lived and was a very impressive fortress. The prison side of things was only a small part of the fortresses history.
We checked out the Abbey where the beheaded corpses of political prisoners (including Royalty) were unceremoniously buried. We then headed to the torture chamber where some original instruments are stored. The Crown Jewels are also kept at the Tower which includes the Worlds largest diamond - a little bit bigger than the diamond in Chelby’s engagement ring. The fortress was in a pretty good condition and the attraction well signed - worth a visit.
After the Tower of London we headed back to the hotel for a quick snooze before our night time entertainment - the West End show of the Lion King.
The Lion King was excellent! The size and movement of the puppets was amazing. I was a little disappointed by the characters dance movements (not as good as Cirque De Soleil), but the singing and music was great (it is a musical after all!) Chelle was thoroughly impressed!
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