Monday, April 24th, 2023 London, UK
Updated: Jul 31, 2023
Buffet breakfast was included in our hotel price; the set-up is designed to provide a large number of guests with basic breakfast in a short time – it’s convenient and takes away what can sometimes be a lengthy search for the first meal of the day. Suitably fortified for the start of the day we headed downstairs to the underground station.
Though it can appear to be quite complicated, and there is a huge network of stations, navigating within the tube system is not that difficult. Tickets are available at machines within the stations, there is also a convenient “Oyster Card” that can be purchased and topped up as needed – if you are going to use the tube a lot it’s worth getting the card as it allows you to skip the ticket purchase for each trip. I’ve also been using a phone App called Tube Map that gives you information on the best way to get from one point to another within the network, including the stations where you need to change trains and also the estimated journey times. Our first destination was Westminster, so we took the Bakerloo line, changing at Baker Street – about a 14-minute journey at a cost of 2.70 GBP.
Emerging from the tube station we found ourselves directly across the street from Big Ben and half a block from Parliament Square, with its famous statues and ever-present protestors. With only 10 days to go before the coronation of King Charles III construction of barriers and viewing grandstands was in full swing. We made our way over to Westminster Abbey on the off chance that we’d be able to get in, but after battling through the crowds we discovered it was already sold out for today – which was the last day the abbey would be open before the coronation. No matter how many times I visit I’m always impressed when I visit this area of the capital – the architecture and sense of history are amazing.
Crossing Westminster Bridge to the south bank of the Thames we headed for the London Eye, the gigantic Ferris wheel that was installed in 2000. We had pre-booked our tickets and paid a little extra to join the “VIP” line and were soon boarding our capsule. The wheel has 32 capsules, and each can hold up to 25 people; the design, with lots of glass, offers almost unobstructed views across London. The wheel moves very slowly, taking about 20 minutes for one rotation, and the views are amazing - especially looking down onto the Houses of Parliament.
A short walk along the south bank, with a stop at an ice cream van, and we were crossing the pedestrian Millennium Bridge to the back to the north side of the Thames. Soon we found ourselves in the beautiful Victoria Embankment Gardens with spectacular displays of spring flowers, especially tulips, and interesting statues. Heading inland away from the river we walked to Covent Garden, famous for its opera house and markets – and close by was Balthasar Restaurant where we had a reservation for lunch. Balthasar is a lively bistro-style French restaurant located in a classic old building – we’ve eaten here a couple of times in the past and today it was just as good as we remembered.
Our final stop for the day was the Tower of London. We took a taxi from Balthasar for the long ride down to the Tower via Fleet Street, passed St. Paul’s Cathedral and through the City of London – all the while I was worried that we’d miss our timed entry for the Tower, but our driver did a great job battling traffic and rain to get us there just in time. The tower was founded toward the end of 1066 as part of the Norman Conquest. The White Tower, which gives the entire castle its name, was built by William the Conqueror in 1078. As a whole, the Tower is a complex of several buildings set within two concentric rings of defensive walls and a moat.
After entering the Tower complex we headed for the Waterloo Block, the building that houses the crown jewels. Several rooms within the building are basically a gigantic safe with huge metal doors and the main jewels are held within thick glass cases that are viewed from moving walkways on either side. Unfortunately no photographs are allowed within the jewel rooms and several of the most important pieces had been removed to be prepared for the coronation, size adjustments etc. Nevertheless the jewels we saw were impressive and it’s well worth a visit.
Following the visit to the crown jewels we took a walk along the top of the walls of the tower buildings; this is a great way to see both inside and outside the tower complex – several smaller towers along the walls are set up with great historic exhibits.
The church of St. Peter ad Vincula is a very small chapel located within the tower complex; the current building dates from 1520, though the church was established several centuries earlier. The Chapel is probably best known as the burial place of some of the most famous prisoners executed at the Tower, including Queen Anne Boleyn, Queen Catherine Howard, the "nine-day Queen", Lady Jane Grey and Sir Thomas More. Through her ancestry research Sandra discovered a distant relative who was christened in this chapel and so we always visit whenever we come to the tower.
By the time we left the tower it was getting into early evening, the rain was coming down, it was cold and we were running low on energy – so we decided to take the tube back to Paddington, eat in the hotel bar and have an early night.
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