I can't believe how quickly the days are passing.  This was our last full day in London.

We started out the day with a quick stop in Kensington Gardens to find the Peter Pan statue.

Click on picture to hear statue talk to you.

We also enjoyed the Italian Gardens on our way back out to the Underground stop.


We got off at the St. Pauls Station and walked through the grounds at St. Paul's Cathedral.


And across Millennium Bridge




Stopping mid-way across to enjoy the view...


before continuing on to Shakespeare's Globe Theater.  You can read a quick history of the theater here. In order to see the theater, you must be part of a guided tour.  Our tour guide was quirky and fun, offering up interesting tidbits and making us relive the Globe of Shakespeare's times.

The theater is still a working theater, so the stage is set with minimal scenery in the colors chosen by the director of the current play.


The audience can purchase a seat under the thatched roof (which is now fireproof),



sit in a more luxury box,



or stand out in the elements for the duration of the play.

Note the ceiling on the stage. It represents all seasons and times of day.

We spent a few minutes before our tour at the exhibition inside and had hoped to return afterward, but had to hoof it to make it to Buckingham Palace in time to see the changing of the guard.


We ended up seeing the parade, but not much of the ceremony.  There were just way too many people there.


We left the crowd behind and walked through St James Park, stopping for some pictures on the bridge.




Look kids!  Big Ben.  Parliament.



We hung out in Parliament Square for a few minutes before venturing over to Methodist Central Hall for a quick bite to eat in the Wesley Cafe.  It was a nice quiet place to eat with a wide selection of foods.

After lunch, we headed across the street to the Westminster Cathedral. There was a piper out front and I really enjoyed listening to his music!

Great West Door and Towers

No photographs are allowed within the Sanctuary of the Abbey.  They have posted some on their website and I would highly encourage you to view them and listen to the audio commentary if you are interested in the history of the Abbey.  Seventeen Monarchs, Charles Darwin, Isaac Newton, Jane Austin, Charles Dickens, Henry Purcell, and Georg Fredrick Handel are some of those entombed inside the Abbey.  Many others are memorialized.  It has been the coronation church since William the Conqueror and was most recently viewed during Prince William and Kate's wedding.

Once you leave the main portion of the Abbey, you are allowed to take photographs.

View down the side of the cloister

The Cloisters, looking back toward the West Towers

 

Chapter House at Westminster Abbey

11th Century - Pyx Chamber

The College Gardens were open while we were there so we took a few minutes to check those out.


After visiting the Abbey, we walked by Westminster Palace and across the Westminster Bridge, which was almost as crowded as Buckingham Palace had been earlier!  We made it across and headed over to the London Eye Pier, to catch our River Tour.

Westminster Bridge

Boat Tour (photo by Ebabe)

Top of the Royal Air Force Memorial

Golden Jubilee Bridge

Cleopatra's Needle

Columns on Blackfriar's Bridge - one side has birds from the sea

And the other has birds from freshwater

Millennium Bridge

Shakespeare's Globe

Not falling down...

HMS Belfast

Tower of London (note water entrance for Traitor's Gate)

Tower Bridge

Golden Hinde

Coca-Cola London Eye

After our boat ride, we got in line for the London Eye.  Our wait time was about 90 minutes, but it didn't feel that long. The London Eye is not a ferris wheel. There is only one arm supporting the wheel.  Each pod is a separate motorized compartment that rotates along with the main body to keep the pods upright at each location.  It does not stop except for times required for handicapped riders, so you board and disembark while the wheel is in motion.

Interior of pod

Jubilee Bridge

Artsy Picture

Big Ben & Parliament :)

Buckingham Palace in the distance, viewed from the Eye

Panoramic from the very top of the London Eye

After our "uplifting" experience, we grabbed some fish & chips.



Then took a quick jaunt over to Piccadilly Circus to check it out.

Advertising everywhere, just like Times Square in NYC

Now we're back at the hotel for some packing up and sleeping!