Day 2, Part 1 -- London town, the Tower of London

Between my marvelous tour of Day 1, pre-established must-dos, and speaking with others, I decided that Day 2 commanded trips to the Tower of London and the National Gallery/Trafalgar Square. Big surprise--the sun was shining brightly for the second day in a row! Since I had also purchased an Oyster card to ride the tube (London subway), I used that to take my first train to the Tower of London. Except I got on the wrong train. And it wasn't the tube but the overland. Which was going to London Bridge. Since London Bridge wasn't that far from the Tower Bridge, and I still possess a bit of intelligence, I got off at London Bridge and found the proper tube entrance. After descending into the bowels of the earth, a kind man in a tube uniform told me which train to take, then to get off and make the connection on another train to Tower of London. And so I did.

Coming back up from the bowels, the Tower of London was in front of me. Success!! When I reached the huge plaza in front of it, this is what the place looked like.

It's not so much a single "tower" as it is a small city not far from the Thames, as you can see. The "Beefeaters" who conduct the tours live there with their families! Here's the entrance, where they check the inside of your bags and wave a wand over you if you look dangerous, like at the airport.

 

And this is the Beefeater who conducted our tour.

 

 

 You have to remember that when a person was brought to the Tower of London, that person was fairly certain he or she would die there. This is the gate through which they entered the Tower of London. Appropriately enough, it's called Traitor's Gate.

And this is the Bloody Tower, where especially awful people were held prior to their executions.

This is the White Tower. Queen Anne Boleyn and other nobility would be held here until it was off with their heads. The accommodations were nicer than the Bloody Tower, not that it really made that much difference in the end.

And here is where the Crown Jewels are held. They are quite magnificent. I guess they don't want anyone standing in front of them too long, ogling, so you basically ride a people-mover conveyor belt past them. Once you get off the belt, you can walk back and ride it as many times as you like to get a second and third or fourth look. I rode it three times. If a diamond set in a crown is over 100 carats, you bet I'm gonna gaze upon it more than once. And photos of all that wealth are strictly forbidden.

This is over the entrance to the building. E R II stands for Elizabeth Regina the Second, in case you forgot who the ruling monarch was.

 

They have a superstition about ravens here and keep several on hand at all times. The saying goes that if all the ravens die at the Tower of London, the monarchy will fall. I'd sure hate to have the fate of my government resting on the lives of a few black birds. But that's just me.

 

 

These are some of the apartments where the Beefeaters and their families live.

Most of the beheadings of traitors were carried out outside of the Tower of London walls, where the general populace could witness and cheer. Nobility beheaded--Anne Boleyn, Catherine Howard, Lady Jane Grey, to name a few--were accorded some modicum of respect. Their beheadings took place inside the Tower walls with a limited audience looking on. Below is a memorial to all the nobility beheaded on this very spot. The top glass is etched with the names of all those who died here. The sun, clouds and tree(s) are merely reflections. The bottom is polished granite, etched with a poem dedicated to those who were innocent, accused wrongly.

 

 

Two of the exits leading out of the place, the walkways spanning one of two moats.

 

If you're ever in London, the Tower of London is a don't miss. I spent 2-1/2 hours here and it wasn't nearly enough. I'll go back.