Thames and Tower of London

April 6 another beautiful day!! we met our guide at Parliament Square again. we had to walk to the Thames River from there, however, a London half-marathon was happening and blocking our way. We had to walk to the starting point and beg the official to let us sneak across between the end of one wave of people and the start of the next. our guide was a squirrley sort dressed all in pink with as many jeweled rings and bracelets that she could cram on her fingers and wrists. she was very quiet at the start, but once she started talking, she had a strong voice and a lot of great information! we cruised down the River Thames and she gave a great overview of all of the buildings that line both sides of the River. we pulled up to the Tower of London. 

The Tower of London is bigger than you think. It’s the size of a village and houses 32 beefeaters (named because they are the official bodyguards of the British monarch so they were given beef to eat) and their families. Also at least 6 ravens live there (Charles II in 1600 believed through his astronomy advisor that if ravens left the Tower of London, the kingdom would collapse). An executioners yard is there at which many were executed including 2 of King Henry VIII wives. They are buried in a chapel on the grounds. Two princes age 10 and 12 who were in line for the throne were murdered by their uncle Richard and whose bodies were eventually found, lived in a tower now named the bloody tower. The war of the roses was played out at the Tower of London, where over 30 years, 2 branches of the family, one represented by a red rose and one represented by a white rose, kept murdering the king and changing the heir. We also saw the museum where the Crown Jewels are kept - all used by the British monarchy for over 1000 years. We saw the white tower where all of the armor is maintained. So much history !! 

As we exited, we were created by Anna LaFrance who has lived in London for 8 1/2 years! We walked to the south bank and stopped at a pub Thamesview. Anna stayed only a short while. We shared some fish and chips. 

Afterward, we walked through the borough market (very old and very inviting!)  from there we took a London cab to Chelsea and the Frock Me Vintage Fair. 

I bought a black evening purse but most of the clients were weirdos! lol!! We learned the bus line system to get back to our hotel, which is efficient and a big money saver! I stopped at a wine shop for some red wine and olives for Meg. We had a cocktail and then decided to go to our hotel restaurant for dinner and live music. We got a great table and enjoyed a live band posing as the Beatles. They were very good!