London three - the end

This is it – the last day. Up, breakfasted and checked out with our bags in the backroom for the day, and we were off on the underground to St James for the Changing of the Guards at Buckingham Palace.



We got there early, but not as early as some. Still, we scored a decent possi around the corner from the main gates and watched lots of marching up and down – and tootling, the highlight being the theme from Starwars and the Cantina Theme from the same. But we couldn’t stick it all outa and marched off ourselves in search of Harrod’s. Oh boy, is it OTT or what? Lots of flash stuff from fridges to food, glass to gaudy anything, and the christmass shop is open all year! The Egyptian stuff should be seen to be believed, and if live opera by the escalators is your thing, you’re in the right place! The Diana and Dodi memorial stuff is a bit strange – but then you have to have yin with your yang. Don’t forget the food halls! Wow!

Then we made our way to the Natural History Museum, dashing through a bunch of displays with a cavalier regard to their significance – but we had little time. We did spend a while in the Antarctic Exhibit, driving snowmobiles and enduring real minus 20 degree temperatures, as well as checking out blue whale skeletons, stuffed, well, everythings – and a whole lot of gift-shop - before deciding to try for a late entry to Westmister Abbey. We got there in a timely manner, but found it closed to tourists given a service was about to get underway.

Indi says...

We tried to go to Westminster Abbey but, as a working church, there was a service on as we got there. What is Westminster Abbey? That's what I asked. But actually in the Tower of London I found out quite a lot about it, as several royals are buried there, including Elizabeth I and her cousin Mary Queen of Scots - whom she had beheaded! But Mary's son, James I of England, became kng after Elizabeth died, so Mary's tomb is much grander than Elizabeth's. Westminster Abbey is built in Gothic style, with two huge turrets at the grand enterance to the church. If you look at it from a helicoper it is shaped like a cross. It's a very impressive building, even just from the outside. Looking inside the souvineer program you see pictures of the huge canopy-like rooves high above. It looks amazing. I was dissapointed that we missed out on looking inside.

So it was back on the underground for a loooong rush-hour trip to Kings Cross Station and the search for Platform 9¾ - which we successfully found!!

The back to the hotel, out to the airport and onto the plane for the last bit.

London was fantastic, but too short. I think we’d all like to spend a month there, doing justice to the stuff we rushed through. Even the 13km walking we did each day(!) wasn’t enough to do much more than brush the surface of what is a fascinating town.