OUR FIRST SATURDAY IN LONDON!
We decided to do something touristy for our first stop in central London, so we thought we would go to the Tower of London, then make our way to Big Ben, and then finally go to Hyde Park for the Winter Wonderland Fair. Once we got off the tube at the Tower of London, we stopped at a cafe overlooking the tower. It was really nice to get a coffee (we hadn't had one in days) and a parfait as we gazed at the historic tower and bridge.
Next, we went on a tour of the tower. We were super excited to get a student ticket which gave as a few pounds discount and were also lucky that we caught up with the last tour going out for the day. The tour guide, who is part of the royal guard for the tower was dressed in traditional guard apparel. He joked and said that even though he is called a beefeater, no one knows for sure how that term came to be! The guards also live on the tower grounds and have other various duties such as being an official fireman. Our tour guide was really funny, interesting, and informative.
The London Tower is known for... well, killings. Anne Boleyn, Simon of Sadbury, and Lady Jane Gray were murdered for their infamous "transgressions" on Tower Hill. It is also the site of the presumed murders of the two boy princes, Henry V and his younger brother Richard. After they were claimed illegitimate by their uncle, they were sent to stay in the Tower of London. By declaring the children illegitimate, their uncle became King Richard III. After that day, the princes were never seen again. Hundreds of years later, when a building was being torn down in front of the White Tower, two skeletons were found that were identified to be boys of the ages 10 and 12. Both were the same ages of the missing princes. Oooo creepy!
In addition to stories like these, the tour guide told us about different legends that affect the tower to this day. One of them is why the tower keeps ravens on the grounds. There was a myth at the time of the Tower's conception that if 6 ravens weren't kept on tower grounds that the walls would come crumbling down along with the monarchy. Since then, the tower always ordered that 6 ravens be kept on the grounds. Today they hold 8 just for safe keeping and clip their wings to ensure they don't fly off.
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| Ravens on the grass |
In one of the towers they also hold the crowned jewels. They were beautiful! The collection houses some of the largest diamonds, mounds of gold and other precious metals, and thousands of gems. The most spectacular "bling" which is how our tour guide put it (something is so funny about American slang being said in a British accent) is the Cullinan diamonds. Cullinan diamond one is over 500 carats and Cullinan diamond two is over 300 carats. They are so impressive that they seem unreal. Finally, we took awhile to gaze at Tower Bridge. We pictured the Olympic rings hanging from the bridge like they were just this summer. Everything in London just becomes ten times more beautiful when it gets dark and everything lights up. The bridge was no exception.
After our tour of the Tower of London, we headed to Westminster to see Big Ben and the London Eye. We got off at the tube station and walked to the street excitedly scanning the skyline for Big Ben. The Eye was right in front of us but Big Ben was nowhere to be seen, surprisingly enough. However a second later, (and this was my favorite part of the day) I looked up and Big Ben was directly over my head! Although people may say that Big Ben is impressive from a distance and makes for a perfect view with the Houses of Parliament and the Thames, I was most in awe when it was right above me. The surprise when I discovered that the whole time it had been over my head made the moment even more exciting. Big Ben is such an iconic part of London and something that has always been on my "must-see" checklist but I couldn't believe I was actually staring at it. It still feels like I didn't actually see it. With it that close I could see all of the details put into it, especially in the clock face. Although Big Ben is beautiful in pictures, nothing could ever compare to seeing the real thing.
Every time I see Big Ben, whether it be just the top of it from Trafalgar Square or at a distance as I walk along the Thames in the South Bank, I can't stop staring at it. I'm sure I look like such a tourist, but I could never get tired of looking at Big Ben whether it be raining, sunny, foggy, day, or night (which is my personal favorite since it's lit up). After FINALLY seeing Big Ben and spending quite a bit of time taking pictures with it in the background, we headed to Hyde Park for Winter Wonderland. The next day was its final day open which is why we had to make it there in time to see all the rides, the decorations, and try some food. The park was really crowded with it being a Saturday night, but it made it more exciting.
People were buying handmade items such as wooden Christmas ornaments, lanterns, and leather journals while kids were going on all of the rides. There were so many rides that the fair seemed to go on forever. Every corner we turned there was just more and more!
We decided to eat there because the large choices of food (and the smell!) made it hard to resist. Tara and I ended up getting two different meals so that we could try each others. It turned out to be a really good idea! I knew stew was a popular food in England, so we got turkey stew that came with a bap, which is just a type of bread, and then we got a turkey dinner sandwich. Both were amazing but the sandwich was unlike anything I've had before. It had of course turkey, along with stuffing, bacon (and not the thin American kind), apple chutney, and cranberry sauce. I wish I could have another one now! So far with the food, we have really liked everything so I'm glad we're not finding it hard to find good food here. After filling all of those activities into only one day we were so tired but excited that we had seen so many things that we had always dreamed about.
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