The Tower of London, Tower Bridge and the Globe Theater
We started off right today with a full English Breakfast and fresh squeezed orange juice. Fueled up, we headed to Paddington Station where we caught the underground subway clear accross London to Tower Hill and the Tower of London. Quick tip: definitely get an Oyster card. You can use it on just about every form of transportation making life a lot simpler. Also, kids can use public transport for free!
Emerging from the subway, you are immediately greeted by the enormousness of the Tower of London. It is worth spending a good couple of hours there. Tickets in hand, we turn our heads to a story teller with a booming voice putting us in the mood of the Tower. The battlements are accompanied by metal art twisted into the form of midevil knights with crossbows. Each tower has different fascinating exhibits. There are whole armories, crown jewels, royal apartments and of course the bloody tower where the two princes disappeared. There is even a cafe so you can relax and get back to exploring. It felt like every room was available to look into and when they had an exhibit showing all of the wild animals like an elephant, rattle snakes, monkeys and lions that had lived there, my wonder of the premises was full of surprise. If you are ever in London don't miss the Tower of London.
In contrast, I would probably skip getting tickets to the top of the Tower Bridge next trip. It is absolutely beautiful, but I think pics in front of it or walking accross is perfectly adequate. Pose, smile and go to the next site.
We walked along the River Thames, over London Bridge and through a trendy market area to Shakespear's Globe Theater. I don't always do guided tours, but this tour was fantastic. We were guided around the theater while hearing a rich history of the Globe. Although the standing room only seats today are totally fine, we discovered that back in the Elizabethan time, there were no toilets and you had to pay to re-enter, so it smelled. Also, anyone needing to use the loo above you caused additional discomfort. Despite this, the theater was the place to go to have some fun. At one point, it was not considered to be apart of London because it was on the other side of the river Thames. In London, theater of any kind was illegal. Therefore, the Globe was built on the other side and you could either cross the London bridge or take a boat ride. At the end of the tour, we were able to see the first ever printed compilation of Shakespear's plays. Paper was so scarce at the time, it had to be partially imported from France. What a beautiful forethought they had so that generations to come can also enjoy the genius of Shakespear and plays like Hamlet. I would recommend visiting in the summer so you can also see a play.
We book-ended our day with croissant sandwhiches from a bakery near our hotel.
Cheers!
