Bloody London and the road so far

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Warning: historical facts and gruesome descriptions are contained below, proceed with caution.

Summer you say? So we're talking sunshine, warmth and blue skies, yes? Hmm, no, this is England we're talking about after all. We finally offloaded the plane after about an hour and a half of circling and sitting on the tarmac after Heathrow was recovering from a very bad storm. I might have been a tad optmistic thinking I would get two summers in one year.

We are currently crashing with the lovely Sian and Adam in Swiss Cottage, and in the midst of job searching and house hunting, we have managed to duck out in between showers and see a bit of yee-old Londontown. Last Saturdya night we caught up with Dana and her parents and went to a Blues bar with open mike night. The music was fantastic, and I was very impressed by the guy with the harmonica as well as an original blues rendition of the Spicegirls' Wannabe.

The following day we caught up with Jen and Mat who were in town from 'Nam (Cheltenham that is) and ventured out and about. Most of us had already done the likes of Big Ben, Westminister Abbey and Buckingham Palace, so we decided to do something new. Enter: The Dungeons. Now, I think we thought it was going to be a bit more 'historic' than it actually was, but rather it was like a disturbed version of a haunted house ride with some gruesome facts of London's bloody history thrown in - just for fun. Lucky James was picked out of the crowd for a demonstration of how they used some old torture methods - you can see from the piccies he enjoyed himself immensely. After being guided through dark passages and being spurted by 'urine' which was actually water, (though they managed to get the smell right in most areas of the dungeons) and given some loose info on torture, the plague, the London fires and Jack the Ripper; the last step was to take a little jaunt on a ride that simulated the drop one would experience if one was to be hanged. Ahh, good wholesome fun all on a Sunday.

Our other venture into the bloody side of London was when we visited the Tower. Though it is reknowned for largely being a prison and the notorious acts that were perpetrated there, it was not orignially built for such a purpose. We joined a tour guided by a Yeoman or 'Beefeater' (they think this name originated from when they were paid for their services by way of meat) and were treated to some hearty stories of the good old days. For example, there was that illegitamite son of the king who attempted to claim the thrown after his father's death. He was caught and be-headed, but not before this executioner/part-time butcher/drunk, hacked at his neck 5 times and failed to severe it. He then resorted to pulling out his butcher's knife and saw the rest off - ahh, again, good wholesome fun.

We stood on the spot where Anne Boleyn, Catherine Howard and Jane Grey were executed on the Tower Green over 450 years ago (3 of Henry VIII's six wives) and all the while the books of Phillipa Gregory were playing in my head (the Other Boleyn Girl - if you haven't read them, I highly recommend them - and don't bother seeing the movie, its crap).

Lastly we saw the Crown Jewels including the only platinum crown in the whole collection which was the Queen Mum's - which I then put on my birthday wishlist for James to take note of. We also glimpsed the world's biggest clear cut diamond, the first star of Africa which is in the sceptre used by the Queen to open up parliament and the likes, and is over 530 carets! It was originally cut from a diamond of over 3000 - now that's a sight I'd like to see. Again, more for the birthday list.

I'm thinking after all this blood and gore, we might venture to the countryside next for a bit of Jane Austen and Mr Darcy. Though who am I kidding, the blood and gore stories are fun too.

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Photos

Tower Bridge
James in front of Tower Bridge, that's right, not London Bridge. The London Bridge is a few hundred metres downstream and is rather boring.

The Dungeons
James looking a tad worried at what she's got in her hand.

Bend over
Yes, they actually used to stick this wee implement up the rear end and yank out your intestines. hee hee, James always gets picked out for this stuff.

Tower
Inside the Tower with the Tower Bridge in the background.

Traitor's Gate
Me in front of Traitors gate, where many came in but most didn't go out.

Jewels
Outside the tower where they keep the crown jewels.

Tower Green
Where 6 private executions were held, including Anne Boleyn. James thought me slightly distasteful here, can't think why...

Guns
The armoury in White Tower.

Comments

[Fiona]

Love the stories & pics
Loving reading about your adventures. Perhaps reading this particular story over my morning coffee wasn't such a great idea, but enjoyed it all the same. Love fi