After a wonderful stay in Bath, Ethan and I headed to the train station this morning. The weather was beautiful as we left Bath and we got some lovely views of the city as the train pulled out of the station.
Sadly, the air conditioning in our car was not functioning particularly well and soon we were all baking on the way to London. The combination of some of the warmest weather of the trip and the solid dose of humidity made for a sticky trip.
We arrived in Paddington Station, greeted by a statue of Paddington Bear. We took the Bakerloo line straight from Padding to Waterloo, right where our hotel is located. We had a bit of trouble figuring out how to get from the station to our hotel, as there were multiple levels of roadways around Waterloo. Once we made it out of the right exit, our hotel was just across the street from the station.
We checked in and crashed in our room. After a busy last night in Bath, we were both pretty tired, so we decided to take a little nap before exploring some of the area round our hotel. We woke up a bit more rejuvenated and made our way to the banks of the Thames.
Our location is fantastic, with the riverfront just about a ten minute walk away. We made our way through massive crowds by the London Eye as we headed towards the Westminster area. We both thought that while the views from the London Eye would be fantastic, the waiting in line for a ticket, then waiting in line to get on the Eye, and the slow process of going around would not be worth it. Don't think that the Eye will make it on our itinerary.
From Westminster Bridge, we had a full view of the London Eye and the promenade full of shops and cafes on the Queen's Walk.
After we had crossed the Thames we immediately came to the Palace of Westminster, the meeting place for Parliament of the United Kingdom. The Parliament consists of the House of Commons and the House of Lords. The Palace has been home to Parliament since the 13th century, but was a Royal residence from the 11th to 16th century.
The present building was built between 1840 and 1870 after a fire ravaged the earlier buildings. The winner of redesigning the Palace, Charles Barry, made the new buildings in a Gothic-Revival style, specifically influenced by the English Perpendicular Gothic which is present on parts of Westminster Abbey.
The Palace is also home to probably the most famous clocktower in the world, Big Ben. The tower, known as Elizabeth Tower since Queen Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee in 2012, is 315 feet high, has clock faces 23 feet in diameter, 9 foot long hour hands, and 14 foot long minute hands. The name Big Ben comes from the nickname for the clocktower's great bell. The first bell cast for the tower was 16 tons and took sixteen horses to pull to the base of the tower. Unfortunately, while being tested, the bell cracked beyond repair. The second bell cast for the tower, a 13 ton bell, took 18 hours to raise into the tower and it also cracked early in its service. Luckily, it was able to be repaired and still rings the hours in the clocktower.
A shot of the Union Jack flying over Victoria Tower, part of the Palace of Westminster. The Union Jack is a combination of three national flags from the British Isles. It combines the St. Andrew's Cross, the flag of Scotland (the blue background with a white x), Saint Patrick's Saltire, the flag of Ireland (the red x on a white background), and St. George's Cross, the flag of England (the red cross on a white background). The design was adapted in 1801. Sadly, there's no representation of Wales.
I found it quite amusing to see a curtain billowing through a window of the Palace of Westminster. Seems like an MP might have forgotten to shut the window!
We then walked around the outside of Westminster Abbey, as it was already closed. I, personally, found the main facade unimpressive compared to some of the other churches I've seen on my trip. That being said, I'm very excited to see inside.
We then headed back to our hotel, as we decided it was dinner time. Here's a shot of Big Ben in the evening sun.
We've spent most of our evening trying to figure out what we want to see in London and how to save money (this was spurred by realizing that admission to Westminster Abbey was £17.80). We've come up with a good list of free and admissions only sites and maybe some ways to see them for less money! Let the London adventure begin!
Fun Fact #25: A division bell is a bell rung to alert members of Parliament to return for a vote. The bells are mostly of the past, but some local establishments around the Palace of Westminster have division bells still. So if an MP decided to step out for a pint at the local pub, they would know when it was time to down the beer and run back to work. Apparently, they're great for startling tourists, who often mistake the bells for fire alarms. Seeing an MP run out probably doesn't help that illusion.
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