Phase 10 -- Phases of London Life -- Experiences
Westminster Abbey
This Gothic church was founded in 960 -- the 10th century! Can't even get my mind wrapped around that kind of antiquity! It is still a working church and we were there when a prayer was offered for those voting in the current government election and for those elected. The Abbey has hosted many royal weddings (most recently that of Prince William and Kate in 2011) and is packed full of tombs and monuments to kings, queens (17 monarchs, including Mary Queen of Scots, are buried there) priests, politicians, poets and other famous people such as Sir Isaac Newton, Geoffrey Chaucer, Charles Dickens and Laurence Olivier. Memorials are dedicated to Shakespeare and others, as well.
It has soaring, vaulted ceilings, elaborate stone work, vibrant stained glass windows, a black and white checkerboard floor, altars, a tomb for the unknown soldiers, lovely artwork and the original coronation chair (made in 1296 for King Edward I and still used today). My favorite part though is an area called the Lady Chapel which features an intricately delicate fanned ceiling, wooden quire seats, flags and crests. It is all quite stunning in architecture and history.
Meeting Our Neighbor -- Tower Bridge and the Engine Rooms
Just in our "backyard" around the corner is Tower Bridge. We've walked across it often, but this time we ventured inside it! Standing 213 feet tall and 800 feet long, this Victorian bridge was constructed in 1894 and is a working bascule (French for see-saw/suspension bridge). One night we happened to catch the scene as the leaves raised and lowered to let a boat through (a paddle wheeler called the Dixie Queen, if you can imagine that here! We felt like a little piece of the South was with us!). It took less than 5 minutes from down-to-up-to-down so traffic could whiz by again. That lifting evidently happens about 1,000 times per year to let ships pass through.
Seeing the structure from the interior, learning more of its story (plus how its engines work) and gingerly crossing the glassy, clear floor with a view of the distant moving cars below was wild! We like our new "neighbor"!
St. Paul's Cathedral
A cathedral dedicated to St. Paul has stood on the spot where today's Sir Christopher Wren masterpiece sits for over 1,400 years. It's famous dome is instantly recognizable and the views from that dome are striking! Climbing the 259 stairs to the Whispering Gallery proved a spiral-staired hike, but worth the trip to see the murals more closely. Then we climbed further up to the Stone Gallery to catch the city view laid out before us outside. This 365 foot high Anglican church features a nave and quire in each of it's three bays. The dome artwork, high altar and mosaics of creation, the skies and Christ's resurrection are lovely and the carved wooden quire and apse are quite wonderful. This cathedral is a favorite for sheer beauty!
It is a working church and we were actually able to stay for Evensong one night and hear the service and clear, lilting music of the choir boy's voices. Some famous events held here were the wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer, the funerals of Sir Winston Churchill and Margaret Thatcher, peace services at the end of WWI and WWII and the 80th birthday and the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II.
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