Security Issues??

The look of a Queen!

On September 24th mom, Simona, and I went to Buckingham Palace. We were really hoping to see the changing of the guards but unfortunately it was cancelled because of security issues…. whatever that means.  On the bright right side we got to go into the part of the palace where there are 19 state rooms.  The house is beautiful and big… VERY BIG!  My favourite room I think was the ballroom.   It was HUGE and all red.  On our headphones the people said it can fit 84 double-decker buses. After the tour was finished we walked out of the palace through the backyard, which is literally the size of the TFC stadium and I am NOT kidding!!   It also has a pond which looks like a mini lake.

Happy B'Day to moi!

When the tour was over we found a bus to jump on and went home where we found dad getting ready for his next meeting.  We had to hurry up and get ready because we were going to watch Lion King so we got into a cab and went out for London's famous fish and chips.   After dinner we went to the theatre - perfect timing - at least to go to the washroom!!  The show was amazing.   There were these huge awesome costumes and the giraffes were real size giraffes and I loved the music.   When the show ended we went for dessert to a restaurant and saw dad walking home so we called him in to join us.

Like Maddy and dad have already told you, London is an amazing city. The only problem was, there was so much to do and see but not enough time. I was going to write about Buckingham Palace, but considering my sister already told you about it, I decided to write about the Crown Jewels.

In the backyard of the Palace

While we were in London, we went to see the Crown Jewels at the Jewel House in the Tower of London where they are kept. The Crown Jewels are a collection of crowns, swords, orbs, and an ampulla, which are used during the coronation ceremony of a new Monarch in Westminster Abbey. The St. Edward's crown was the crown that was used for crowning the new king or queen until Queen Victoria said it was too heavy and ordered that a new one be made. Currently the Imperial Crown of State containing 2,783 diamonds, 17 sapphires, 277 pearls, 11 emeralds and 5 rubies is used for the coronation ceremony. It also contains the Cullinan diamond, the second largest portion of the Star of Africa.

Tower Bridge

The orb, a golden sphere with a diamond cross topping it, has been an item used in the coronation ceremony and symbolizes the world ruled by Christianity.  My favorite crown is the Imperial Crown of India, although it is not part of the Crown Jewels. It was made for the visit of King George V to Delhi as the Emperor of India. It was necessary to make this crown because they could not bring a crown out of England and bring it to India, for fear it would be stolen. It has over 6,000 diamonds along with rubies, sapphires, and emeralds and is beautiful and big.

The next time you are in London, be sure to go see the Crown Jewels. You won't regret it.  


Maddy & Simona