The Tower and The Shard on Monday

Good day-
Yesterday was great fun in London.  We spent most of the day at the Tower of London which was high on my list of sights.  This made all those shows of The Tudors come to life!  William the Conqueror began building the Tower of London in the early 1100's and his successors continued to add on through generations.  We stood on the spot where  two wives of Henry VIII, Anne Boleyn and Catherine, among other unlucky people, were beheaded.  Following the beheading site, we were treated to viewing some torture equipment.  On a less bloody note, the Crown Jewels was also fun to see. 

Note to McCollum Cousins, in my research on Grandma's side there was an ancestor that slightly misbehaved toward authority in Dublin and I believe was a guest in the Tower.
I also believe a Jacobite ancestor from my maternal side might have been a guest.

View of Tower Bridge from Tower of London Next we walked across the Tower Bridge and took a tour into the towers to go through an exhibit on the building of the bridge in the late 1800s.  Paul was fascinated by the engineering and other boy stuff regarding bridge building.

Luckily Paul was able to get a hold of a business related colleague and friend, Graham, who happens to work close to the Tower Bridge.  Graham took us to a fun pub located right under the London Bridge and it was great to talk with him over a pint or two (note - I'm drinking out of a pewter tankard).  Graham helped us get into the Shard's 52nd floor and Paul and I had a beverage overlooking London at night.  It was a beautiful experience, thank you, Graham!

The Shard is the tall building in the background

Views of the city and Tower Bridge from the 55th floor of the Shard at night.









Tuesday is the last day we will be in London and we'll send you an update before heading to Glasgow Scotland!