This is Joanna. She is from Ireland. We were both loners in the group so me, being the shy but friendly person I am, I introduced myself and instantly made a new friend :)
This is Wellington Arch. This arch was built to the entrance of Hyde Park but due to busy traffic conditions, it was moved and became the grand entrance to Constitution Hill. The statue above it is the angel of peace.
Buckingham Palace.(This tour wasn't the best for taking good photos.)
Looking at this photo, can tell whether the Queen was home or not?
Clarence House.
This is where Prince Charles lives.
This is one of the guards, in his winter outfit, that protects Clarence House. He doesn't look very scary does he? But that's a real gun he's holding!
St James Palace. The Queen's postal adress if you need to send her a birthday card or letter :)
Do I make a good guard?Clearly there were a lack of guards on duty so we thought we'd help them out :)
(my photographer couldn't take a straight photo)
At Trafalgar Square.
Couldn't get a great pic from where we were standing.
This was one of the four statues surrounding Trafalgar Square. This forth plinth was interesting as it didn't always have a statue on it. Due to lack of funding, the statue that was meant to be there initially was not finished and therefore left an empty space. Antony Gormley, an English sculptor, invited the people of the UK to occupy the plinth and make it their own. It went for 100 days with one person standing there for an hour each. You can watch footage of it on youtube.
National Gallery.Joanna and I came back here after the tour. It was free :) I'm not the biggest fan of art galleries but I'm glad Joanna asked me to go with her. Even though I don't know much about 16th - 20th century artwork, but I sincerley appreciated the sophistication and detail that went into each painting and the messages there were being portrayed. Though there were some random paintings which confused me a little, the famous paintings that I did know of blew me away! Seeing them up close and being able to see the different paints and brushstrokes that were used to create such a masterpiece was amazing! Too bad I couldn't take a photo to show you all!
'The grand old duke of York,
Our group photo of the tour group at Horse Guards. People from different countries and of different ages were in the group. This place is where they perform all the horse parades, including the one that is performed for the Queen on her birthday 'Trooping the Colour'.
St James Park.
What's that behind me? It's...
BIG BEN! :) 
Westminster Abbey
Not sure where this was as we passed it after our tour. But there was lots of people taking photos. Some people were standing really close to the horses, probably unaware that:
:) One lady nearly got bitten!
So on our way back, Joanna and I decided to get up close and personal with one of the four lions. What we didnt know was that it wasn't meant for people to get so close to the statues as there was no easy access for people to get up there. We had to climb up the wall, using our hands to lift each other up! It was a challenge as we were both quite short. But after we got up, we realised that if we wanted to get to the front of the lion, we had to balance and maneuver ourselves around the lion on a very narrow ledge. Me, being scared of heights, failed the challenge hence I'm standing near the lion's bum.
Joanna was worse. She couldn't climb up again so she just stayed at the bottom. (you can see a couple of ladies near the lion's bum trying to do the same as us).
It was an eventful but tiring day. My knee definitely needs a rest tonight.
'The grand old duke of York,He had ten thousand men.
He marched them up to the top of the hill
and he marched them down again.'
Remember that nursery rhyme? Well I couldn't get a very good shot of him, but that statue in the background is that very same 'Duke of York' :)
Our group photo of the tour group at Horse Guards. People from different countries and of different ages were in the group. This place is where they perform all the horse parades, including the one that is performed for the Queen on her birthday 'Trooping the Colour'.
St James Park. If you look to the left of the photo, you will see three pelicans that are apparently famous (not so sure if its those exact pelicans :P). They're famous because on youtube you will find a video of them fighting with a seagull. It ends with one of pelicans eating the seagull. I guess the pelicans won?!
What's that behind me? It's...
BIG BEN! :) Facts about Big Ben:
- it's the largest four faced chiming clock
- 'big ben' refers to the bell
Westminster Abbey
Not sure where this was as we passed it after our tour. But there was lots of people taking photos. Some people were standing really close to the horses, probably unaware that:
:) One lady nearly got bitten!
So on our way back, Joanna and I decided to get up close and personal with one of the four lions. What we didnt know was that it wasn't meant for people to get so close to the statues as there was no easy access for people to get up there. We had to climb up the wall, using our hands to lift each other up! It was a challenge as we were both quite short. But after we got up, we realised that if we wanted to get to the front of the lion, we had to balance and maneuver ourselves around the lion on a very narrow ledge. Me, being scared of heights, failed the challenge hence I'm standing near the lion's bum.
Joanna was worse. She couldn't climb up again so she just stayed at the bottom. (you can see a couple of ladies near the lion's bum trying to do the same as us).It was an eventful but tiring day. My knee definitely needs a rest tonight.
1 comment:
loving the updates lee-ean!
you must keep notes of things to do and see
and when i come over
you can be my tour guide!
:)
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