England-Scotland Day 19 ( Part 1)– Tower of London and Tower Bridge

21 April 2010

We planned 2 and a half days to explore London before our flight back home on 23 April 2010, assuming that flights would be resumed by then. This was too short a time for a place like London.

A call to our travel insurance agent reassured us that we would be paid compensation for any cancellations of flights due to the Icelandic volcano eruption. Not bad. We may be forced to extend our vacation in London but it will be partially funded by our insurance claims.

The plan for the day would be to visit the Tower of London, Tower Bridge and the attractions near the Thames, including Madam Tussauds. This time of year in London, we may get to experience all 4 seasons in a day. Although it was warm when we left the apartment, we lugged our warm clothing along as it would get cold at night.

Journey to Tower of London via subway was easy. Nearest station is the Tower Hill station and from there, a short walk to the Tower.

Outer Walls of Tower of London as we walked towards the entrance.

Trinity Building seen on way to the Tower of London from Tower Hill Station.

Siege weapon  outside the Tower of London – looked quite basic.

Once inside, Yeoman Warders (Beefeaters), dressed in red, will guide visitors and tells interesting and sometimes funny stories related to the places within the Tower of London.

We listened to stories about who gets beheaded and where, ghosts and some stories and legends too. We were also free to walk around on our own.

Raven at the Tower of London. At least six Ravens are kept at the Tower, at all times. There is the belief that if they be absent the kingdom will fall.

Traitors' Gate.

The White Tower with Beefeater.

Fanciful cannon. Is this really a weapon used for war?

A pigeon flying from Ruins to Beauty.

Within the grounds of the Tower of London is the Jewel House where the crown jewels are displayed. No photographs were allowed for security reasons. When I visited this place back in 1986, the attendants at the entrance hung some confiscated photo negatives as a warning…half in jest. This time round, no such gruesome display of violence. Here we get to see some of the world’s largest diamonds.

The armoury was quite fun to visit. Suits of armour and weapons were displayed.

Armoured Horse in armoury museum, Tower of London.

Suit of armour of a king.

One of the two Japanese suits of armour offered by the Japanese Shogun Tokugawa Hidetada to John Saris for King James I in 1613, now in the White Tower of the Tower of London.

Fancy rifle.

Trying out how it feels like to have the Gauntlet around your arm.

Exploring the insides of the castle. Mechanism for the heavy portculis gate.

Lion of St Mark. We saw this in Venice!

All in all, we spent about 3 hours visiting the Tower of London and it was about 1 PM when we left the place. Right outside, we get to see the next London icon, the Tower Bridge.

There was a 62 gun salute near the Tower of London for Queen Elizabeth's birthday celebration. The guns seemed to be firing at the HMS Belfast, moored right across the Thames river.

HMS Belfast on the Thames River.



Here is a video of the gun salute. Quite funny. Every time the gun fires, the baby will cry. LOL.

After watching the 62 gun salute, we walked along the Thames, across the bridge and try to shoot some photos of Tower Bridge.

Sculpture is the focus here, not the bridge.

Crossing the Tower Bridge.

River Thames  as viewed from Tower Bridge.

After crossing over the bridge, we took our lunch in a small cafe by the bridge and then continued down the banks of Thames.

HMS Belfast.

Then we saw that the planes are flying again. There goes our free vacation extension.

Vapour trails of 2 planes flying on the blue sky, like 2 fireworks shooting out from the Tower.

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England-Scotland Day 19 ( Part 2) – Madam Tussauds and The London Eye

21 April 2010

From Tower Hill, we took the subway to the Madam Tussauds Museum. On the way to the wax museum, we spotted the statue of Sherlock Holmes, near Baker Street where he was supposed to have lived.

Statue of Sherlock Holmes  along Baker Street, London.

We bought a discounted combined ticket to visit both the Madam Tussauds and London Eye.

Madam Tussauds was fun to visit. We were greeted by the wax figure of Napoleon at the entrance. Then it was stars galore.

Photos sessions with our favourite and not so favourite characters included the Beckhams, Jose Mourinho, Steven Gerald, James Bond(s), Tom Cruise, Nicole Kidman, Brad and Angelina Jolie etc. I never knew Nicole Kidman was so tall until I stood beside her, and Tom Cruise is not taller than me! 

US President Obama and First Lady at the White House.

There is a section with the political figures. You get to pose with Obama and sit on his desk in the White House! 

It was kind of sad to see Princess Diana standing alone, while her sons were displayed with the Royal Family. Posing for photos with the baddies like Saddam, Hitler were also fun.

Adolf Hitler.

And of course, the characters from the music scene – Beatles, Elvis, Michael Jackson and Jimmy Hendrix.

Elvis Presley.

There is even a section to compete with the London Dungeon. Wax figures of Vlad the Impaler, plus medieval torture scenes were depicted.

Medieval torture.

Vlad the Impaler - inspiration for Count Dracula.

The Rack – a form of torture.

All in all, we spent close to 2 hours in here before heading to the London Eye. En-route, we saw the Parliament House located across the Thames from the London Eye.

Parliament House on the Thames.

The silhouette of the Parliament House.

Crossing the bridge to get to the London Eye.

The London Eye is a large ferries wheel that is suspended over the Thames. Since the wheel is over water, the designer has to provide two supports on one side of the wheel on land and used cables to “pull” it in. I find the design more interesting than the Singapore Flyer (also a Ferries Wheel) which is designed like a bicycle wheel with two supports on both sides of the wheel.

Wheel over water. Hence need for innovative design to “suspend” the structure using cables and supports on only one side. 

Singapore Flyer – designed like a upside-down bicycle wheel.

Bubble cabins of the London Eye.

Design aside, the experience of being in the London Eye was pretty much similar to that of taking the Singapore Flyer. We get a bird’s eye view of the city.

View from the cabin.

On top of London. Photo of next car right at the top of the wheel.

After the ride, there were cherry trees to see at the park next the London Eye.

Cherry trees with cherry blossoms.

Pigeon feasting on the flowers buds.

Plus entertainment too. This guy was offering passers-by money if they could ride his bicycle. Not easy as the front wheels had been specially configured to make the bicycle unstable.

Trick cycling.

For stability, the placement of the bicycle's steering axis should be such that the axis intersects the ground ahead of the point where the front wheel meets the ground. In this case, it was not. Hence for any person used to riding the normal bike, it was difficult to ride on this bike. But he showed that he can do it easily.

Silhouette of Hungerfold Bridge against the setting sun.

Then we across the Hungerfold Bridge and walked to Trafalgar Square where the National Gallery is located.

It was too late to visit the Gallery, so I just took some photos at Trafalgar Square before going for dinner at a nearby street.

Nelson Column at Trafalgar Square. Figure of Admiral Nelson (hero of Battle of Trafalgar) at the top.

Long exposure photo of the fountain at Trafalgar Square.

We will be backed.

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England-Scotland Day 20 – Westminster Abbey, Buckingham Palace and St James Park and shopping

22 April 2010

The Westminster Abbey, St James Park and Buckingham Palace are best visited on the same day as they are located within walking distance to each other. 

We started at the Westminster Abbey. Big Ben was visible from the abbey and it showed 10.15 AM when we arrived. We took some photos of the facade of Westminster Abbey and then bought tickets to go inside the Abbey. The ticket includes the use of the hand-held audio guide.

The Abbey is closely linked to the Royalty. The place for coronations, weddings and also funerals. Inside we saw the tombs of kings and also prominent people. Some of the most famous are Charles Darwin, Sir Isaac Newton and David Livingstone. In particular, the tomb of Sir Isaac Newton was featured in the movie Da Vinci Code.

Big Ben showed noon when we came out. We then proceed towards St James Park.

Big Ben showing noon.

St James Park is nice for a slow walk on a beautiful day. Many locals were deployed all over the lawn, enjoying the sun. Squirrels, ducks and colourful water birds entertained us as we walked through the park.

View of Buckingham Palace from St James Park.

The view on the opposite side – Cabinet Offices.

Spring flowers.

Tulips.

It was fun to watch the ducks paddling and diving into the water for food.

Looking at the water birds. Some nests were seen on the water surface.

Nice pair of ducks.

Dafty Duck.

Emerging from the St James Park, we came to the Victoria Memorial, a large roundabout fronting the majestic Buckingham Palace.

Victoria Memorial, outside Buckingham Palace.

Colourful tulips in spring.

Victoria Memorial.

Details of the golden figurines at the top of Victoria Memorial, outside Buckingham Palace.

If we come at the right time, we would be able see the ceremonial changing of the guards. But not today.

We can see one motionless guard through the massive palace gates. Looking at this, I can help but remember one episode of Mr Bean and his antics with a similar guard. LOL.

Rifle on Left hand.

Union Jacks lining the road leading to the Buckingham Palace.

Massive gate of the palace.

Leaving the Palace and heading for some shopping.

Finished with the sightseeing planned for the day, it was time for some shopping in London. Ironically, it was more sightseeing and window shopping than actual buying of stuff. Selfridges, Harrods and Carnaby Street were some places visited.

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