Day five: Saturday, March 7, 2015

We are feeling better today and better rested. Today was our last day in London.  After breakfast, our hotel said they would hold our bags while we continued to explore.
   We started at the Tower of London.  It has been around for ages. Interesringly, it is still a working State Government site. Not only did it serve the royals as a palace, but it was also a site for commerce, trade, and a prison/torture site. Anne Bolyn, Henry VIII's second wife, was beheaded there. It is also the site that houses the Crowned Jewels. Apparently when the English tried to overthrow the monarchy, they destroyed all of the crown jewels. Since the mid 1600's, the Royals have been acquiring new ones. They are impressive. No photos allowed, so can't share them with you. We took a guided tour with a yeoman.  He was quite funny as he discussed the history of the site. In the white tower we were able to see the armor used by several kings.
     After the Tower of London, we toured Kensington Palace, current home of Prince William. Kensington Palace was also where several monarchs lived, including Queen Victoria. They have a couple of displays set up. We toured the queen's state appartment, the king's state appartment (more lavish than the queen's), Queen Victoria's birthplace/life, and fashions of Princess Margaret,  Queen Elizabeth II, and Princess Diana. It was all geogeous.
    We then made our way to the train station. I wanted to be able to enjoy a traditional English afternoon tea before we left, but I had too much fun exploring the palace so we ran our of time. I will add that to the list for next time! We took the train to Paris via the English Channel. It was a 2.5 hr ride and quite comfortable. We were able to see the French countryside.
   We arrived in Paris about 6:30pm.  It was now time to start recalling all the French I had stored in the deep recesses of my brain. I have to admit...most of my knowledge of the french language came from Beauty and the Beast.  Thank you Walt Disney! We took the metro to our hotel,  got checked in,  and found a café for dinner.  There is literally a café on every corner of this city.  Alan had duck confit  and I had beef tartar. We made a game plan for tomorrow.  We walked around the neighborhood and found the veterinary clinic!
Until tomorrow....

Outside the Tower of London 

The outer wall, inner wall, and White Tower

The yeoman giving the tour. They must all serve in one branch of the Royal military before they are eligible for this position.

The Tower Bridge. Just outside the Tower of London. 

The gates at Kensington Palace 

Dresses worn be princess Margaret and queen Elizabeth II

Ball gown worn during state events. Talk about those hips!

Train to Paris

The veterinary clinic around the corner from the hotel.