The central courtyard of the museum was redone by Norman Foster, with a mind-bending glass and steel roof similar to the one that he is now building in DC. I read that it is now the largest covered courtyard in Europe, with almost 2 acres of space covered by the glass roof. It rained off and on, so these pics are a little grey, but it was a pretty amazing space.
The British Museum has one of the world's foremost collections of Egyptian artifacts, which we buzzed through pretty quickly. Our visit didn't really do this museum justice, we basically wandered around aimlessly but there was a massive amount of things to see. This picture is of the Rosetta Stone.
The exhibit hall, filled with columns, sarcophagi, and giant stone scarabs.
The other main part of the museum that we visited was an exhibit on the cycle of life and death in various cultures from around the world. A little macabre, but pretty interesting. The glass display in this picture shows the timeline of two people from infancy to old age using all the pills that they took throughout their lives.
The pill timeline and other exhibits.
An Easter Island statue.
After the life and death exhibit, we hit the museum bookstore, then wandered outside into the wind and rain. Across the street was a British souvenir store, where we stocked up on all things British, including some cool London Underground swag. When we got done shopping, the rain had stopped and the sun was out so we headed to the tube to visit the Tower of London.
The Tower! Basically a fortress along the Thames that has served as, among other things, an armory, a treasury and a prison during the hundreds of years that it was in use. Now it is a museum, and the Crown Jewels are still kept there today.
The entrance to the Tower, across the river to the city beyond.
Looking up from the Tower entrance towards the Gherkin Building.
The view of the buildings along the river from inside the Tower walls.
London Bridge!
When we were inside, we went through several rooms that were used by kings and queens to receive guests and occasionally live in. Amy, Vikki, and Mo had the distinct pleasure of talking with the king, and it was a hoot to watch. Its like going to Six Flags, only historical.
Some beautiful stained glass windows in the room where the girls talked to the king.
Light from the stained glass cast onto the wall.
Outside on the walkway to the next tower, getting ready for a photo opportunity.
Me and London Bridge.
The Ivory Tower, in the central courtyard of the Tower complex, which once served as the armory.
Ivory Tower against a beautiful blue sky.
A massive gun rack in Ivory Tower.
A small but beautiful chapel in the Ivory Tower, where you can get your religion after you pick out your sword and suit of armor.
After touring the Ivory Tower, we went across the way to the building where the Crown Jewels are kept. The entire building has been transfromed into one gigantic waiting line for the room with the Crown Jewels, but fortunately the line was short and there was plenty of stuff along the way to distract us. The actual crowns/orbs and scepters/ginormous rings were pretty amazing... they were set up in glass cases, and you passed by them on a moving sidewalk to keep the crowd moving, which is probably a good thing because I'm easily distracted by shiny objects. I can't imagine how much money all that is worth... wow.
Last shot of the Ivory Tower, I promise...
After the Crown Jewels, we made our way to (surprise!) the museum shop. Neither rain nor sleet nor slippery sidewalk can keep my travelling companions from... "OH MY GOD, SHOES". Just kidding... I don't think this place even sold shoes but I needed a place to drop that wonderful phrase in.
After we left the Tower, we walked along the river around the Tower back towards the tube. I couldn't get over how cool the glasswork on this building is... after being in Rome so long, it was pretty nice to see some modern office buildings.
We took the tube to a stop far from the Tower of London to meet Frank and go to Harrod's, London's super-elite department store, where I could have dropped a year's tuition on a pair of cufflinks... fortunately, I wasn't so inclined. On the way there, we passed by London's museum devoted to the Victorian Age, seen on the left.
After walking by a lot of stores and restaurants, and being ridiculously indecisive about finding a place to eat, we decided to go to Harrod's, then go eat. I felt like too much of a knob to pull out my camera and take pictures inside, but suffice it to say that the place is pretty ridiculous... from the price tags to the fashions to the people that actually shop there. All we could really do was wander around and stare in awe. We did end up buying some desserts for our dinner in the food section that were surprisingly reasonable, but those were just about the only reasonably priced thing to buy.
The street in front of Harrod's.
We did eventually decide on a place to eat, right down the street from Harrod's... a pub with great steak and ale pie, it was pretty delicious.
After lunch, we walked back to the tube, passing by the Victorian Museum on the way.
Vikki, actually using the red phone booth this time, across from the museum.
There is a black phone booth in front of Frank's flat... which prompted Amy to ask one night, "Why is it BLACK?? They KNEW we liked it red..."
Frank and Amy, and an explosion of light from a car in the sun.
An incredibly ritzy area of London, with Beamers, Range Rovers, and million-pound apartments are far as the eye could see.
Bedknobs and Broomsticks, anyone? Anyway, we stopped at a cool bookstore on the way back to the tube, then rode it back to Frank's flat. We cooked ourselves dinner, ate our desserts from Harrod's, then my friends Jill and Amanda, also studying in London, came by to chat for awhile. After that, we went to sleep and tried to get a few hours of sleep before our first day in Paris.
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