A few of us had an early start this morning as we prepared to ride the London Eye. We got on at 10 am and it was a spectacular view. Great opportunity for photos.
Shortly after we caught up to the group and ventured on a Shakespeare walking tour. Very informative and very cool. It is unfortunate how much history has been lost. Shakespeare's home, for example, was torn down around 200 years ago. There was little respect for Shakespeare here and is largely the reason for lost history. Very cool tour. As Roni would say "An out of body experience" 
Shortly after that we hustled over to another place of exploration, the Tower of London. This fortress was home to prisoners, royals, armies, and gifts, including animals, from other nations. People still live in it today, however many have spoke about its spookiness and the beings that haunt the tower. We also had the amazing opportunity to see the royal jewels which was amazing. To be standing in a place with such a tremendous history was almost surreal. Oh and we got some ice cream! 
Although exhausted from our many hours spent walking, the three of us who rode the Eye this morning went back to ride it again in the evening. This proved to be the most spectacular part of the day. We times it just perfectly so we were at the top of the London Eye just as the sun set. Absolutely beautiful. Unfortunately the pictures doesn't do it justice.
One last surprise for me tonight, which I'm devastated I didn't act on, was just minutes from the generator. I saw a cast member from last season of bbuk, Winston. By the time I realized who it was it was too late to go back and say hi. Such a weird thing to be upset about, but as a huge fan of the show, and him being my favorite contestant that season, I have reason to kick myself.
After a long day of touring and exploring my body is exhausted. I will soon be heading off to bed to get ready for another awesome day, including the start of an excursion to Paris!!!
Hello Jake! That day was definitely an exhausting one. Declan the Shakespeare tour guide was definitely a very educated man who has a deep passion for Shakespeare and was troubled of the lack of respect. I thought his conspiracies of Shakespeare's lovers and religion were very intriguing. Declan's night tour of a Bloody London was also really interesting. Your pictures from the London Eye were amazing! Would you recommend buying a ticket for the day or night for the London Eye?
ReplyDeleteIf you have enough time, buy the double day one! You go twice, once in the morning and once at night. It's only a few pounds more than a single admission. If you only do one I would recommend night. If you can time it to get on the eye at about 8:30 you will see the sunset at the very top!
DeleteThe Tower of London was a spectacular experience to walk through, as there is so much history inside one wall! In the past, this tower was home to kings, had a "petting zoo" filled with wild and exotic animals, given to the King at the time including elephants, Bengal lions, monkeys, polar bears and much more. After many attacks and incidents involving the animals, many were killed and eventually those remaining were brought to the London Zoo. An ostrich living on this land died after eating a large nail, as people at the time believed ostriches ate iron and a lion mauled a guest to the grounds who was petting his paw. Those were just two examples of the bizarre events that took place when wildlife roamed freely on these grounds. Just a note, it is not suggested (or probably legal) to keep any of these animals as pets, as the keepers at the zoos know much better proper care for such creatures. Note: Ostriches do not eat iron.
ReplyDeleteYour pictures are incredible! I'm not sure if the London Eye is on the top of my 'to do' list, but it's great experiencing it from your point of view. We've done so many amazing activities that it'll be hard to pick a favorite. However, I think the Tower will definitely make it into my top 5. Enjoy Paris!
ReplyDeleteBeautiful pictures, Jake! I would have to agree with Becca, though; I don't know if I'll get a chance to make it up the "Eyesore of London," since I get terrible vertigo whenever I go up man-made structures. The tower of London was also cool to walk through; I can't believe how many breastplates there were, nor have I ever seen so much organized army equipment in one place!
ReplyDeleteI was also really shocked that so much was lost of Shakespearian history. He is probably the most famous play writer in the world and it seems like London doesn't really care about him. And London is so good at preserving history! There's even still parts of the Roman wall from a thousand years ago! Not only do they not have the historical artifacts or sites anymore, they rarely put up plaques to commemorate their locations. I thought it was very odd. But we are lucky that there are people that devote their lives to finding those artifacts and people like Deckland to show them to us.
ReplyDeleteJake,
ReplyDeleteI definitely was out of my body watching myself watch the tour guide! The tour with him was so wonderful and I wont say it again, but so mind opening. The things that inspired me to want more information was so crazy. I hope France went well today.
Oh and p.s. very amazing pictures!
Wow Jake! Those pictures are fantastic! I will definitely have to visit the eye during my time here! I really enjoyed the Shakespeare Tour as well. I did not realize how disrespected he was here. Apparently they know of two houses in London where he lived, the one you spoke of and the one that they once had marked, but have since left unmarked. I think this disregard is astounding! You would think with someone like Shakespeare drawing in huge crowds over the years, they would have more respect for him.
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