Damn you, messed up sleep!
Trip Start
Apr 20, 2012
1
5
33
Trip End
May 23, 2012
London, England, United Kingdom
Monday, April 23, 2012
And breakfast is a very satisfactory, cooked-to-order full English or continental affair in a snug but smart dining room/kitchen. As could be expected in London, there is a wide assortment of guests - both ages and nationalities. The SOLE drawback of this very pleasant B&B are the endless flights of steep and narrow stairs... Even steeper after a day climbing stairs in the Underground!
This morning, we paid a flying visit to the British Museum - apparently the most visited attraction in London. And with the drizzle falling, everyone was indoors there this morning! It certainly confirmed that one would never want to visit London in high season.
The British Museum houses the Rosetta Stone and the Elgin Marbles amongst other things. In fact, it houses so much, it's the bulk of the collection that amazes. Egyptian mummies, Greek marble friezes and sculptures, Etruscan vases, Roman glass vessels 1000 years old, Michaelangelo sketches...
With a lunch date organised with Hilary, we walked south down Drury Lane (no muffin man) to Covent Garden and The Strand. The afternoon was spent at the Tower of London while Liz explored old haunts. This was easily a highlight and a day to remember forever. The Crown Jewels dazzled. The Towers, 1000 years old in parts, oozed with the history learned in early high school, making it now all very real. From the giant Norman fireplaces through the beheading and burial places for Henry VIII's less favoured wives to the 15 feet thick walls in the dungeons.
The ultimate school excursion.
Many weeks earlier, Hilary had secured tickets for the Ceremony of The Keys - the 740 year old ceremony where the Tower of London's duty Beefeater secures the doors for the night - so the three of us ventured back to Tower Hill for the 9.30pm start.
Beefeater Dave, a practised and comical guide outlined the procedure involving himself, the Chief Yeoman and the grenadier guards who patrol the Tower overnight. With perfect British pomp, precision, marching and rifle waving, the ancient doors were duly locked, guards dismissed and questions invited.
Can't do THAT in Melbourne...
Can sleep though and I'm planning on the full 8 hours tonight!
Comments
Ah, yes, the Britih Museum: emphasis that those British will nick anything from anywhere.