Parliament and Westminster

Today we met at the Houses of Parliament for our tour at 9:36. It's an incredibly beautiful building--like they're all turning out to be! It's hard to believe they put so much work into making such ornate carvings and statues and their awesome architecture. We should rethink our slabs of concrete!

We started at the House of Lords and worked our way through to the House of Commons. Our guide was great, too.

My favorite thing was hearing about all their crazy traditions. Here's one. The queen gets dressed, enters the H of L, and sits in this incredible gold throne with gold all around her. Then the speaker (I think) has to march the long long way down to the H of C entrance with everyone watching. Then the H of C slam the door in his face to remind the queen of when Charles I stomped in to arrest 5 MPs and then...eventually got his head cut off for that (and starting the Civil War). Then he bangs on the door to ask them to come to the H of L to hear the queen's speech because no member, not even the queen can ever again enter the H of C. When we went through to the H of C we even saw the gouge marks from where he bangs super hard! That is also the same entrance that had to be rebuilt along w/the H of C itself from the German bomb that destroyed it. Churchill wanted to keep the damaged archway there as a reminder, which was really cool to see.

Then Steph and I had lunch outside and walked to St. James's Park. We heard a band playing up by Buckingham Palace so we wandered up there in time to see what we think might have been the end of the changing of the guard. We got some video of two marching bands and the police/guards behind them going toward the park.

We went back to the park where I took a lovely nap. By the way, it is a beautiful day outside. Sunny all day and really warm, hot at times!

Then back to Westminster Abbey to meet up for our 2pm tour. Our guide was really funny and had lots of good info for us and fun side stories to share. I got to see the memorial to Isaac Newton, and tombs for Charles Darwin, Elizabeth I, Mary I (Elizabeth is buried on top of her!!), James I, Anne Boleyn's family tomb, Ben Johnson, and lots of others! I especially loved Poet's Corner where they had the memorial to Shakespeare, the Bronte sisters, Jane Austen, Henry James, Handel, and others. Along with Charles Dicken's grave!! It was really cool. It really is a magnificent church--so so beautiful and grand. We also saw the coronation chair that has been used since, I can't exactly remember, the 13th century maybe? Anyway, the one that the king/queen sits in on his/her coronation day...oh, and the one Westminster choir boys used to sneak to at night and carve their initials in!!! :D Now it's under some crazy surveillance all the time!!

Something on this computer isn't reading my camera so I'll try to get lots of pictures up next time.