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Gardens of Tulips
in St. James Park brightening this beautiful spring day in London.We had a few errands that we needed to do in London so we caught the train from Chatham and went in for the day. Chatham is well connected to anywhere due to the train station in town. Fortunately we were able to “shop around”and were able to find reasonable priced tickets for the trip.
We didn’t have a plan for the day but the train dropped us at Victoria Station so we decided to walk around the area. It quickly led us to the Horses Guard Parade and we were fortunate to catch the last part of their ceremony that they perform daily. The Guards definitely make quite a statement mounted on their majestic horses in their regal uniforms.
We walked up toward Trafalgar Square which we have been to many times in the past, but it was still fun to sit on the steps eating our lunch and “people watching”. With such nice weather the tourist were out in force although we have never been here when there weren’t crowds.
We walked by Big Ben admiring this icon of England with its clock face 23 feet across atop the 315 foot tall tower. The Elizabeth Tower,
The Statute of Horatio Nelson
tops the column making it a height of 170 feet standing in the center of Trafalgar Square. the official name of the clock tower, was completed in 1859 but was not the first tower at this spot. Many preceded it with the first being built in 1288. The current House of Parliament (also called the Palace of Westminster) in its neo-gothic style was built after the previous one was destroyed by fire in 1834.
Westminster Abbey which is across the street is an equally spectacular building. This has been the traditional place of coronations and burial sites for English and later British monarchs. Construction of the present building was ordered by King Henry III and began in 1245.
We took this last chance to visit the British Museum again and tour another part of the Asian section with its huge collection of Ming dynasty china, it's beautifully rebuilt Korean tea house and many other fascinating objects they had on display. We visited this museum 4 times since being in London this winter and barely scratched the surface.
There is still so much that can be seen in London – much of it for free or very inexpensively. We would definitely recommend a visit to this city if you get a chance.
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