London May 2011
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This picture was from when we were making our way from Picadilly Circus, to the Mall, and onto Buckingham Palace. In this picture, you see the entrance to the Underground - London's subway system. It is easy to use, and a great way to get about town. We used it to get from Heathrow Airport to our hotel, then all around town.
Further down the road you see two things typical of London - the red double decker bus, and the red telephone booth. The phone booths were all over town, but I did not see anyone using them. I imagine this is due to the proliferation of personal mobile devices. Regardless, they are still there. Back in New York City, I think they removed public phones years ago. If I had to find one in NYC, I would not know how. Who would want to? Did you ever use one of the public phones in NYC????
Buckingham Palace. There is quite alot of activity right in front of the palace due to the traffic circle, the guards, and the crowds of spectators.
On this day, Prince Charles was giving awards of honor to citizens, and they were lined up at the gate to get in. All cars underwent a thorough inspection prior to being permitted entry. Here the guards are searching under the hood of this car.
Inside the gates the guards kept their watch. There were guards at each entrance. They would stand firm for a fixed amount of time. Then....
...they would match a patrol across the front of the buiding to the next door....
...upon reaching the next door, he would do an about face, and then return to his post to stand at attention.
Westminster Abbey.This was our first trip to London. Therefore, this is the first time I have ever seen Westminste Abbey. Having seen several other noteable places of worship in Europe, this is a very impressive place, and structure. The history of the abbey dates back to the first century, and had several twists and turns till this date. Although it was constructed in various stages through its ~1500 years of history, the architecture is consistently Gothic throughout the structure.
This is a close up image of the front entrance to Westminster Abbey. While this is the front entrance (by design, and church orientation) the main entrance, is currently at the left transcept (for tourism, and traffic purposes). There is a 16GP/person charge to get in. It includes a paper, and personal audio tour of the building. While the price sounds a little expensive, it is definitely worth it. The Abbey is supported entirely by the proceeds from the tour fees (no royal, or British government aid is provided). Private tours are also available for a slightly higher fee (we did not take a private tour). Oh, one more thing... I did not include any photos from the inside, as video and photography (even without flash) were stricly prohibited inside. The statue figures above the entrance are of noteable figures from history. Just to the left of the peak of the doorway arch is Martin Luther King, Jr.
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This is a photo of the left side of the church, and the left transcept. Note the gloomy weather - I hear this is typical for Britain. While there was very little sunshine, it was great for the amount of walking we did that day (a very cool temperature).
The tower bridge. I always throught it was named that way due to the two towers. However the towers are due to the fact that this bridge is a working draw bridge. River traffic is much less than in past times. Currently, any boats requiring a lift of the bridge are required to give 24hrs notice prior to opening.
This is a picture of the Tower of London. The tower, in my opinion, is really a "castle complex." There used to be a tower, that was part of this complex, known as the Tower of London. It was painted white, and was destroyed by fire many years ago. The grass field between the Castle wall and the outer wall was at one point a moat filled with water. Also (I will need to check the facts here), Lions wandered the moat as well. The royal family had an impressive Menagerie of exotic animals from throughout the world.
