Tower of London

Today was a day for doing the real "tourist thing"! The Tower of London is one of those "must see" places that everyone who's been here has seen, and we must needs do it too! There are a LOT of stairs there! :D When we first walked in, we waited just inside the first tower to be taken on the Yeoman Warder's tour - our guide was part guard and part actor, all showman! He had a million stories, and even though we might have heard them all before, he told them again. He was very entertaining, and it was a good introduction to the tower. We finished up in the chapel, where so many of the people who've been imprisoned and then died in the tower (or nearby) were buried!

After our tour, we were on our own and went through to see the crown jewels. They are mind-boggling - they don't look real at all, they're so big! My favorite part was the mantle that was first made for Queen Victoria - the embroidery is not to be believed - so amazing!

We wandered around and viewed the prison quarters of Sir Walter Raleigh, as well as many others, and saw the living quarters of several of the monarchs who lived here. We finished up in a little cafe by the Thames riverfront - it was a picture-perfect day with blue skies and sunshine - a lovely day to be outdoors!