Dad’s tour of London

As a result of me meeting auntie Carolina and showing her around, it was decided that I would send my hudad back to London on Wednesday. I couldn’t go into many of the buildings that we walked past the previous day on account of me being a furry hound. So we hatched plans to try and show auntie Carolina & auntie Karen around some places. So, I instructed Dad to go into London again.

They all met at Tower Hill tube station and firstly went through St Olave’s Church, Hart Street. St Olave is the patron saint of Norway I believe.

Thence up to the Monument for a really good view of London. The Monument was built to commemorate the Great Fire of London of 1666. It is said that if you were to lay the Monument down upon its side, the fire ball would touch the spot where the fire started in Pudding Lane.

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Next was Leadenhall Market which is one of the oldest markets in the City of London originally selling meat, poultry & game. Now it is home to a number of boutique shops and restaurants. The architecture of the Market itself isn’t really altered so maintains much of the older charm.

Then they went to the Royal Exchange. The building was founded in the 16th century by Sir Thomas Gresham. It has twice been destroyed by fire and the current building was designed in the 1840’s. In its various guises it has held the Lloyd’s Insurance Market for around 150 years.

Next on the tour was St Pauls. I showed auntie C the outside of the building the previous day. The present St Pauls was started in about 1670 and finished in 1708 apparently. It was officially declared open by Parliament on 25 December 1711.

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When they went inside they were all in awe. Well, they were in St Pauls but you know what I mean. It was apparently the most lovely place with fabulous painted ceilings, statues and wonderful architecture. They seemed to spend ages inside marvelling at the sight.

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The views over London were pretty good. Dad managed to climb all the way to the Golden Cross to take these pictures.

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Once they had finished exploring St Paul’s it was off to Blackfriars tube station and then out of Westminster Station for a tour of Westminster Abbey. Everyone said they were impressed with the architecture of the beautiful building. There were also quite a few famous people including princes, kings, queens and poets interred and commemorated within the Abbey.

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They finished their day with a stroll through Victoria Tower Gardens, for the best views of the Houses of Parliament.

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They departed with sore feet and happy faces. Everyone said they had a nice time.

I hope so. Auntie C had travelled a long way to see London. I think she enjoyed it.