Day 2

Day two took us touring London. It was so fun to ride on the bus and hear about the History of every corner. We disembarked at Kenzington Gardens to visit Kenzington Palace which was the last residence of Princess Diana. That's one thing I have noticed about Britt's...they LOVE their royal family. It's fun to hear the pride in their voices as they speak of the Queen. I am proud to say that we were in London the day that our first lady Michelle Obama hugged the Queen...quite the scandal!

Here we are at Kenzington Palace....oh and by the way, it was REALLY chilly! My ankles were a bit cold....I'm such a tourist with my socks and shoes and Capri's.

Next we went to see the Changing of the guard. I didn't realize what a Ta-Do they make about this ceremonial tradition. Everyday at precisely 11 am, a team of Mounties and a complete marching band escort the New guard down the street to Buckingham Palace. Another fresh set of Guards come from the other end. They meet at the Palace and exchange places. It's a tradition that has been done for over 700 years....(according to our tour guide Trevor).

I thought it was pretty cool that this Mountie passed REALLY close to me....that is until the horse sneezed and a drop of an unknown moisture landed on my lips. Mmmmm, royal snot.

We decided to have a nice cup of hot chocolate to warm our chilled bodies. Wasn't it sweet of me to take this picture of my Mother in law when she didn't know I was going to?....wasn't it sweeter of me to post it on my blog? :-)

One of the most amazing places we have visited so far was St. Paul's Cathedral. I am starting to realize that these old churches are AWESOME and becoming quite an addiction for me! I wish we could have taken some pictures of the inside. This picture is a PITIFUL representation of the real thing. It's only about a quarter of the building and I'm at a weird angle...anyway, this building is truly awe inspiring. We have added it to the top of our list of favorites.

You may THINK that this looks a little like the Salt Lake Temple, but don't be confused....it's slightly different with a slightly different purpose.... I always thought the Tower of London would be a really big..tall...uh, Tower.. Not so. It's actually a mid-Evil Castle/prison. I think Evil is a good word for the old place. It was used for many dark and gruesome purposes. One tower was called the Blood tower because they would take the Kings illegitimate children there and "do them in". They would also hang the head of a beheaded prisoner on the wall so everyone could come and celebrate whilst looking upon it. Cool crazy stuff! (once again, this is only a fraction of the structure...I need like a big screen camera to take with me to London next time.)

The London Tower isn't all horrid...it also houses the Crown Jewels! This is the Jewel House. The incredible Jewels are guarded by an armed Guard...I decided to obey the rules and keep my camera in my bag.
This is the London Tower Bridge...and this is us standing by a tree...:-)

Our day ended with a river cruise. We enjoyed seeing the city from the water. I didn't get the best shots, but here are a few of the sights we saw

On our tour we found out that if you kissed the one you love as you pass under a certain bridge you would have good luck! So far so good..:-)