First and foremost, Happy Birthday Gram! She's 94!
Today we're touring parliament. In case you didn't know, Big Ben, which is bell in the Elizabeth Tower, is part of the parliament castle which is also known as the Palace of Westminster.
Outside stands a statue of Oliver Cromwell. He was erected in 1899 and is directly outside the House of Commons. There's some ongoing controversy as to whether the statue should remain.
The Cromwell statue from a different angle. The lion on the base was added slightly later.
Woo! Clock Tower/Elizabeth Tower/Big Ben!
The tower was completed in 1858. Big Ben is the name of the largest bell in the tower. The tower was renamed the Elizabeth Tower in 2012 in honor of Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee. The Diamond Jubilee is the 60th anniversary of her reign.
We started in Westminster Hall, which is enormous. I didn't get a good photo of it, so.... Imagine the hall that goes with the rafters in the photo below. Or ask the internet.
It has beautiful stained glass. The South window of Westminster Hall commemorates the members of parliament and staff who died during WWII.
There are statues and fancy light fixtures in the hall.
This is the entrance to St. Stephen's Hall.
It stands on the site of the royal Chapel of St. Stephen's, where the House of Commons met until the fire of 1834 destroyed it.
It's stoney and statue-y and mural-y and...grand.
The statues are of various famous parliamentarians.
St. Stephen's also has beautiful stained glass.
I believe they are coats of arms of various parliamentary cities and boroughs.
Even the ceiling has little decorations in it.
These two mosaics are by A. Bell. The one above depicts King Edward III approving the plans to rebuild the chapel. The one below depicts St. Stephen with King Stephen and Edward the Confessor.
There are several murals on the wall that depict important events in British history. There are at least two distinct styles compared above and below. Dan for scale.
And because, why not? here's the tiles on the floor.
We were not allowed to take photos beyond this point. Luckily for you, there's a YouTube selection of videos that you can watch and feel like you were here.
We were not allowed to take photos beyond this point. Luckily for you, there's a YouTube selection of videos that you can watch and feel like you were here.
We went to see the show the Book of Mormon as our last adventure in London. It was very entertaining but also very much like South Park. This is to be expected since it was created by Matt Stone and Trey Parker who also created South Park.
This concludes our adventures in London.
