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Published: July 18th 2017
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Geo: 51.5002, -0.126236
Our morning began with a relaxing breakfast in the hotel. After a few days of travel and moving from Ireland to England it is nice to stay put for 3 days in one location. During breadfast we planned out the rest of our day and the sights we wanted to take in.
Our first destination was Big Ben and the Parliament Buildings. Everything is so old yet so well maintained. All the buildings are huge in size, some of them covering, in comparison, to an entire city block. Many of the buildings have pillars and carved statues in front as well as steeples.they're not just plain brick or galss facades. From the Westminster Bridge we were also able so view the London Eye which is a huge ferris wheel with enclosed cars. Also in this location was the monument honoring Queen Boadicea who was the queen of Iceni who headed the people against the Romans. She died in A.D. 61.
We moved on to the Westminster Abbey. It was very ornate and massive in size.St. Margaret's Church is located here in the courtyard. It was before 10 0'clock in the morning and the lines to get inside were already huge.
Our next stop was the Buckingham Palace. This was very impressive. We arrived there during the practice run of the parade for the queen's birthday in two weeks. They do an actual run through, with the empty carriages of the queen and her party and all the military guard and marching band. They also brought in police from all over the London area to practice for the the actual ceremony. Many of the guards are friendly. The one standing near us inquired about our travels and wondered what it was like living in America. The crowds here were shoulder to shoulder. This was just a practice and it was pretty spectacular. Some people believed it was the real thing and were asking the guards when the queen would be coming out.
We passed through St. James' Park, Guard House Park, and saw a statue commemorating the military who lossed their lives in World War II.
Westminster Cathedral was one of our stops. This church was part of the lyrics in a popular Beatles song. It is the Mother Church for Roman Catholics in England and Wales.
Trafalgar Square was overrun with Barcelona and Manchester United Soccer fans. There was a
large water fountain in the center of the square and a prominent building that was the National Museum of Art. The square had plenty of police standing guard trying to control the crowds.
Eventually we made our way to the Strand which is a popular shopping and theatre district in the center of London. We visited the Twining tea shop, which is popular because it was owned and operated by the same family for over 300 years.
We saw many historic churches, some of them were St. Paul's, St. Martin in the Field, and St. Bride's. These churches are all still active. In two of them we saw a wedding and then a baptism at another. St. Bride's is famous because they claim the tiered wedding cake style originated from the shape of it's steeple.
Tonight's dinner was at the Lucas Room. We had British Beef and Ale pie with mashed potatoes and peas and a mexican chili basket. It's interesting how many bar restaurants where there is no table service. You read the menu and place your order with the bartender.
Tomorrow we'll be sight seeing on the west end of London.
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