Churches, Museums, and Jack the Ripper - London (Day 7 - GToE)

Today was a stunningly gorgeous day in London. It was sunny with very mild temperatures. I couldn't have asked for better weather. But there is a bit of sad news. I lost my camera cable and until the new one is delivered tomorrow, I cannot transfer my photos. You'll just have to deal with checking out my photos in a couple of days and the use of stock photographs for this posting.

Today, I explored all over the city. It started with a visit to St. Paul's Cathedral. St. Paul's was designed by the great English architect, Sir Christopher Wren and was built on the site of the Old St. Paul's church which was destroyed in the Great Fire of 1666. In 1697, it was open for business and is one of the most iconic sites in London with its beautiful domed roof. It was repeatedly bombed by the Nazis in the Second World War but despite heavy damage, the church survived and was ultimately repaired. Many important ceremonies have taken place at St. Paul's, including the funerals of Winston Churchill and Margaret Thatcher, the wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer, and both the golden and diamond jubilee services for Queen Elizabeth II. Below the church is the crypt where several important British figures are buried: Sir Christopher Wren, the 1st Duke of Wellington, and Lord Horatio Nelson. The church is beautiful and very ornate. Visitors are allowed to climb up into the dome, but as it takes over 1000 stairs to get to the golden gallery with its panoramic views of London, I opted out. I just didn't think I had that much energy in me.

After my tour of St. Paul's, I went to the British Museum. Home to the Rosetta Stone, the museum is a treasure trove of ancient civilization artifacts and is dedicated to human history and culture with over 8 million works. There were mummies, sarcophagi, statues, and all other really interesting items from ancient times. I kept watching the mummies to see if they would arise, but sadly none did. I didn't spend much time there as my interest lies in Ancient Egyptian artifacts. After viewing them, it was time to move along to my next adventure.

The Westminster walk: The walk started at Westminster Bridge where the Palace of Westminster (which is the meeting place of the  Houses of Parliament) and Big Ben are in prominent display. Note: Big Ben is not the name of the clock or the clock tower! Big Ben is the name of the bell that is housed within the clock tower. After snapping many a photo, I walked to Parliament Square and said "hello" to Winston Churchill and Nelson Mandala... okay, I said "hello" to their statues. I then, moved onto Westminster Abbey. The Abbey is a gothic church which was built in the 10th Century and has burials and memorials to some of England's finest citizens: Sir Isaac Newton, Charles Dickens, Alfred Tennyson, The Bronte sisters, Jane Austen, and so many others. I visited the abbey 13 years ago, but wanted to make another visit today. Sadly, the wait to get into the abbey was over an hour and I just couldn't wait that long. So I moved along...

I continued my tour by walking up Whitehall and passed #10 Downing Street (the British "White House"). The funny thing about #10 Downing is that it's nearly impossible to see the door from the sidewalk, but I snapped a photo all the same. I passed by the Horse Guard and snapped a couple of photos and then continued walking to Trafalgar Square which commemorates the Battle of Trafalgar and has a rather large statue of Lord Nelson. Behind Trafalgar Square is the National Gallery, which was my next stop (after a little picnic lunch in the square).

The National Gallery is an art museum which houses over 2,300 paintings. Today I decided to focus my visit. Instead of trying to see everything, I decided to see only my favorite art period: The Impressionists.  Don't get my wrong, I did make a quick sweep through the other galleries, but I can only see so many Madonnas, Jesuses, and other religious Renaissance subjects before I want to shoot myself. The Impressionists wing of the Gallery is incredible! Some of my favorite works of art are located in the National Gallery: Monet's The Water-Lily Pond, Van Gogh's Sunflowers and Chair, Seurat's Bathers at Asnieres, and many more. I spent a good amount of time, just sitting and drinking in those paintings. The paintings were equally moving and calming at the same time! 

After leaving the Gallery, I took a quick jaunt through St. Martin-in-the-Fields Church which is famous for their regular lunchtime and evening concerts. Sadly, I missed the lunchtime concert today and arrived to hear the last 2 minutes of music. I next walked from Trafalgar Square to Buckingham Palace.

Buckingham Palace is the London residence and principle workplace of the British monarchy. The Palace became the official residence in 1837 when Queen Victoria took the throne. As the current Queen is currently in residence, there are no tours available for the Palace, but I've seen it before. It was just nice to stand outside - snap a few pictures and look at the Queen's Guard standing so incredibly still. I finished my wandering tour by walking to Victoria Station before taking the tube back to Jen and Bill's for a much needed rest.

After resting, I met my friend, Jacquelyn for the Jack the Ripper walking tour of London. If you are unaware, Jack the Ripper was the name given to a Victorian serial killer who terrorized London starting in 1888. "Jack" killed an unknown number of women (mostly prostitutes) in the Whitechapel section of London and the identity of the killer has never been solved - no matter what recent events have been reported. Of the two walking tours I completed during my time in London, the Ripper tour was by far the better of the two. The Ghost tour was 80% history of London and 20% ghost stories -- and not very scary ones. The Ripper tour is entirely about the Ripper case as it walks in the steps of the Whitechapel murders and is frightening because it is real. The tour really only focuses on what is now known as the "Canonical Five" -- the five women that most experts agree were victims of Jack. Historically, there could be as few as 3 victims to as many as 20. At the end of the tour, the guide gives a list of possible suspects, but the reality is, we will never know the answer to who killed those women. Very interesting tour.

And so closes another day of my European tour. I will post today's photos tomorrow (hopefully). If you've missed any past days' photos, check out my Grand Tour of Europe photo site.