2006 London - Fandrick's Vacation

Our 5th day in London continues with visits to London's top Sights.
Using our guide books and travel folders we made a list the night
before of all the places we wanted to see the next day. Of course,
there isn't time for everything, so we renew our list each evening,
and make changes and start new lists of things we want to do on
our NEXT visit to the United Kingdom...

Also known as The Houses of Parliament and Big Ben.
Located along the Thames, housing the landmark clock tower containing Big Ben.

Westminster Palace has been at the heart of English governance since the 11th Century. The two
Houses of Parliament: the House of Commons made up of elected Members of Parliament (MP) and
the upper house, the House of Lords.

Big Ben, the biggest bell that Londoners have been hearing for nearly 150 years.
The 14-ton bell (hung in 1858) inside the clock, chimes every hour.

One of London's most important historic sites, Westminster Abbey is the burial place of Britain's monarchs since the 11th century
and is the setting for many coronations and royal weddings. King Edward the Confessor (1005-1066) built a new Abbey on this
site. King Henry III designed a new building, built by master masons and builders and completed in 1517, Other chapels were
later added to the main building: Henry V's Chapel and Henry VII's Chapel. A major restoration took place from 1973 to 1995.
The Abbey shelters the remains of Winston Churchill and will hold Prince Charles's coronation, should he become King of England.

Photography was not allowed, but, we had a very interesting tour by a verger guide who pointed out all the notable events
in the Abbey's 1,000 year history. The Poet's Corner is surrounded by memorials go Geoffrey Chaucer, William Shakespeare,
Charles Dickens, Rudyard Kipling, Jane Austen and many others. Great scientists and musicians are also remembered
(from Newton and Darwin to Purcell and Handel) www.westminster-abbey.org

St. Paul's Cathedral: This magnificent Baroque building was completed in 1710 and stands on the site of four previous cathedrals, the first of which dated from 604. St. Paul's has been the setting for great ceremonial events, including the funeral of Sir Winston Churchill in 1965 and the wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana in 1981. At 360 ft. high, the dome is the second largest in the world, after that of St. Peter's in Rome. We had the privilege of sitting in the choir loft to listen to a Sunday Organ Recital.

As we were leaving St. Paul's, someone called out Karen's name and she greeted
a friend from our old church in Fremont, CA that she hadn't seen in 9 years.