Day 3: London, England

Day 3:   London, England    6/25/11

We all had a good night's sleep, averaging about 8 hours. For breakfast we had the choice of a regular continental breakfast or pay 2.75 pounds  more and getting the hot foods (eggs, sausage, etc.)  We got on our 9:00 bus and met David at Tower Gate. He was our guide and took us around town and gave us information. He had a nice voice and had worked for the BBC news and television station. Some facts about London he gave:

•         There are new buildings built next to old buildings because the new buildings were built on the site where the Germans bombed the old buildings.

•         London was part of the Roman Empire, but when the German tribes (Anglo and Saxon) drove them away, the language took root and would start to become English.

•         The Welsh were originally in the London area before being driven out by the Anglo-Saxons or Romans.

•         Once the English drove out the Anglo-Saxons, the crown was born.

•         Kensington is a very rich area where you have to have ridiculous money in order to live.

•         The department store Harrods was owned by the Fayad family, whose son died with Princess Di in Paris. The family thought that the British and French were secretly involved with it and sold the business.

•         Oliver Cromwell challenged the King and there was a revolution which ended in the King losing his head. Years later, the Monarch was invited back to help settle the political situations between the politicians, starting the fact that the king is just a figurehead in the government.

•         The British have “fierce” gun laws, making it very difficult to own a gun. There were only 8 incidents last year  when a gun was fired by police. I guess all the radical right to bear arms people went to the US to settle.

We got to see the changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace. The weather clouded up., but it did not dampen the ceremony. David said the parade during the first part was the most exciting and that after it was forty minutes of boredom, so we didn't stay for the whole thing.

Changing of the Guard

Horses at the Changing of the Guard

We were dropped off at St. Paul's Cathedral and walked to the place we had lunch. The menu included cottage pie, beans and carrots, and a crumble for dessert. A cottage pie is hamburger with a topping of potatoes (shaped to look like the top of the pie crust) sprinkled with melted cheese. Sheppard pie would have included lamb. It was a nice cultural meal.

We left the restaurant to go to the Tower of London. The group was there for at least an hour and a half, looking at the grounds and some standing in line for the crown jewels. I personally took the Beefeater's tour and got some interesting things out of it.

•         There is a changing of the guard type ceremony at the tower as it is also a royal residence. I got to see it, but from a distance. A couple of Yeoman Regents (Beefeaters) and Bucking ham Palace guards did a little ceremony.

•         The moat at the tower was designed to be flushed out by the Thames river from excrement and waste that was dropped into it. The problem was that the moat was built too deep and the waste went to the bottom, which was beyond the reach of the new water. So in effect, there was a cesspool moat.

•         A possible reason why the Yeoman Regents got the name beefeaters was that during their tenure as guards, they were fed better than the typical Londoner. The poor people  were barely fed while the guards had better food from the King's table and resources. Since the Yeoman Regents were hardier than the locals, they mocked them by calling them beefeaters. 

The Tower of London

Ashley, Betsy, a fellow from Texas named Jeremy, and I  then took the tube to Knightsbridge and started our shopping spree. Our route included going up the east side of Hyde Park where we heard a Saturday concert in the midst of our shopping.  We ate at Pizza Hut and compared it to the states. I noticed that their large pizza only go up to 14 inches (at 13.95 pounds sterling) and they had different types of pizza on their menu. I'm sure it is to reflect the local's taste. We ordered a double pepperoni and a large margarita (cheese) pizza. The unlimited Pepsi and 7-Up was a welcome surprise.

We finished our shopping and bought post cards and stamps. At 8:30 we left for the hotel going through Canning Town. We found out that the train station was closed for the weekend and two gals helped us figure out that we had to take buses to get back to our stop, Royal Regent.

We got back after 9:00 pm and the others who went to the Jack the Ripper tour came back a half hour later. June said one of the highlights was seeing one of the streets that looked like Diagon Alley from the Harry Potter books. The kids had fun and went to bed  past  11:00. It looks like they are adjusting well to the time change so far.