London, Baby! Part 2.

Ahhh, sleep. It was wonderful to finally rest. We needed a good night's sleep so that we could bound from the bed and hit the streets to see everything else within the city. It's our last day in London. First, we decided to try the traditional English breakfast offered by the hotel. Nothing wrong with it, but I'm just not a fan of brats, poached eggs, baked beans and a tomato. No sir! I filled up on juice and toast and was ready to roll. Since we wanted to see sights that were further than we wanted to walk, we headed to the Victoria Coach Station to find a bus ticket.

Our first experience in having to pay to use the potty.

The bus took us to St. Paul's cathedral. Being that it was Sunday, this area filled quickly for mass. Daniel and I poked our heads inside and then sat in the courtyard to listen to the bells.

The beautiful columns.

Statue of Queen Anne in front of St. Paul's.

I think this is one of Daniel's FAVORITE things we saw.



Where we sat and listened to bells.

The Return of Templar Bar to the City of London. This is the only surviving gateway to the city of London, erected in 1672.

The doors that separated the Liberties of London from the city of Westminster.
We caught another bus to the Tower of London and decided to take a tour.

Here we are entering the Middle Tower, built in the 1200's.

We met our tour guide here. He was hilarious and really entertaining.

St. Thomas' Tower

Mint Street...where the nation's mint was made from 1300-1812. The street is now home to Yeoman Warriors and their families.

Traitor's Gate



The Ravens that watch over the Tower of London.





A beautiful curch - we couldn't go in because it was Sunday, but we did hear singing.


People who were significant to the King and Queen were beheaded in this special place.




Carvings were done by prisoners that were kept in the tower for years!

Here's where the crown jewels are housed.
Super cool!


We left the Tower of London and walked towards Tower Bridge. Saw oyster man by the river. They looked so good, but I don't like slimy oysters at all.


View of governmental buildings from the river. I loved the black and white egg shaped one. A picture of it hung in our hotel.

Yay! Tower Bridge is so pretty.

This view was breathtaking. I could have sat by the river all day. We walked towards the bridge and over it.


After a lot of walking, we found a bus, grabbed a spot in the back and relaxed. These feet needed a break.

Bus photos!






We walked and walked to see Shakespeare's Globe!

Here is the globe. It's recreated, but still so awesome to see.
Bus ride to Kensington Palace and the gardens next. I was looking forward to this! We didn't go in the palace since it cost money so we walked through the gardens. I wasn't expecting such huge grounds. Thousands of people were playing games, riding bikes, lying in the grass, walking dogs, riding horses...it was such a peaceful place. We couldn't sit long for fear that we wouldn't get up.

This woman reminded me of the bird lady on Mary Poppins.

Prince Albert Memorial.

Queen Victoria Memorial.

The Orangery.

Kensington Palace.

More walking. To say that we'd been, we found Harrods. Soooo over rated in my book. It's a giant shopping mall. Cool to see, but nothing was worth buying.



It was like Mercedes were required to shop there.

It was cool though. Glad I got to see it.

Doorman!
It was a long day, maybe not as exciting as the day before but soooo relaxing. We enjoyed it so much! I have to remind myself about the insane woman at the bus stop...I thought that she was possessed. The way she acted was both hilarious and humiliating. I nearly died trying not to laugh out loud in her face. Since we knew where good dinner was, Daniel and I opted for a second night at Garfunkels. We tried new food, but stuck with our delicious ciabatta bread. Of course we were exhausted again. London was so much fun and a great way to start our trip, but we were pumped to pack for Italy!

See ya in Roma!