Tuesday in London

The Royal Mews at Buckingham PalaceSuzanne has put me in charge of the text for this section and honestly I won't have many details about the names for these carriages or their significance. I will know the people posing in front of them quite well as I have been living with them 24/7 for the last 2 weeks. :-)
Those sexy headsets were attached to little audio players and if you punched in the number that corresponded to the one on the carriage / whatever it would tell you all about it.
This 2 ton golden monster is for coronation ceremonies / processions and was really quite something. To get it in and out of the stable where they keep it they have to remove a window and disassemble a wall.
A side shot of the 2 ton golden monster with two beautiful people improving the shot.

One of the royal carriage horses in what I'm sure was the nicest and cleanest stall I have ever seen. A bit different than the sheep stalls I mucked out for Cahoon one time with 24 inches of stale manure and straw mashed together.

Wellington Arch
There are some impressive mounted parades in and around the royal parts of London. We have no idea what this one was for but it was an impressive sight of order and display through the famous arch.
Taylor had to be careful not to step in the manure left by the passing horses but he put on a happy face anyway in exchange for a small bribe (biscuits to feed pigeons)
Isabelle had no problem avoiding the manure as she tends to be more cheerful and eager to dance about without bribes.

Kensington Palace and Hyde Park
Really beautiful gardens outside the palace with palm trees in each corner of this pond . . . didn't seem to fit but it was exotic. On the far side of this garden they were redoing the entire front entrance to the castle in preparation for the coming olympics; come to think of it the whole city seemed to be in some state of renovation for the same reason. We should have come after the games to see everything all finished like we did when we went to China.

This was inside the palace where they had an enchanted / mystical theme in the areas still open while the construction raged about. There was a bit of a historical treasure hunt as you went from room to room looking for the names of princesses whom had lived in the palace and a short story about each.

This was a fun room with a throne where you could speak into a microphone and have your voice turned into a ghost like quality over speakers.

A Ball Gown of Princess Diana

This was a room with a wartime theme and a strategy game that Taylor, Suzanne and I all played with each other.

After Kensington Palace we walked through Hyde park and talked about President Hinckley's missionary experiences there. It was fun to be there and think about him trying to get busy people to stop and talk about faith and religion.

We then went to the Queens gallery where they had two art exhibits. One of Dutch landscapes and another of Treasures from the Royal Collection. They were both really fantastic and set in a beautiful gallery. Of course they won't let you take pictures while you are inside but take my word for it it was great. The remote audio guides were a huge plus to those of us less schooled in the arts and if you sat long enough on a bench provided a wonderful lull into peaceful slumber until you wake with a jerk and hit the person next to you . . .

Queens Ice and Bowl

Taylor's favorite part of London . . . so far we have been unable to surplant culture for entertainment as his preference, but it's not for lack of trying on this trip for sure.

Isabelle had a good time but spent some time "cooling her jets" but I don't think it's because she felt warm . . .
Don't know if you can zoom into this picture but Isabelle has a priceless face caught on camera for the world to enjoy for eternity