I'm so glad I wasn't here last week

[cornerofmadness]

That storm I mentioned? One of my coworkers had such a down draft on her home that it shoved the roof in and bowed out the walls on either side, doing almost 40K worth of damage. SOme places still have no power. I got lucky, really lucky here.

The vet kept Soul another day but didn't tell her tech what, if anything is wrong. Okay something IS wrong. Blood is coming out his butt. There is something wrong.

Kanda nearly broke my nose. He's SO excited to have me all to himself that he keeps head butting me. One head butt (battering ram, whatever) slammed right into my nose.

THe power outage from the storm cost me nearly all the plants in the greenhouse. Might as well have flushed the money.

And in things that are too funny (at least to me) I was editing the story Staples (with still NO clear idea to my pen name but still living with the fear that my conservative college wouldn't appreciate some of what I write), I was reminded that Sulien's father was supposed to be Llwellyn ap Gruffydd. ie this guy.



The day started out awful. I had a migraine of epic proportions. It was so bad I nearly stayed home but I knew I was only going to get 2 days in London and I couldn't see both Highgate AND the Tower of London in one day. I had planned out to see the Tower of London first then to Westminster but I was barely able to eat a few swallows of yogurt and I spent the morning talking to customer service for my international phone since it was letting me call America but not England.

I finally staggered out of the house with bobfish's well drafted routes in hand. I actually got to the Tower of London without any problems. Dad will be happy to know that Liverpool Street station is more Victorian looking (he was disappointed when I said Euston station looked more like a modern airport than a romantic Victorianesque one).

I took some photos of a ship memorial in front of what I think must be even MORE ship memorial(not really sure what that building is) and pictures of the Memorial (maybe) building. I also got some of a church across the street that I don't know the name of but I liked the looks. By now I thought I could hold down lunch (figures I was still on the verge of migraine vomiting when at Liverpool St station with all its food choices). I saw one restaurant (and only one), honed in only to find out it was obviously for the wealthy but the liberty bonds pub next door was reasonable. (naturally after I ate there I found the fast food across the street).

the building behind the ship memorial that might still be part of the ship memorial

The ship memorial had a horseshoe honor roll broken up with very cool gods and goddesses like this one and this one


What can I saw about the Tower of London other than I loved it? It was a bucket list item for me so I was thrilled. I had wanted to go on a Yeoman Warder (Beefeater) guided tour but they kept putting them off so I just paired for the audio guide and off I went. I was still pretty sick when I saw the armor exhibit so all the crowds and ill behave kids got to me. I did see all the armor but didn't read anything talking about it (the visual aura crap that goes with migraines made that hard to do and the crowds made it worse). There were longer lines at the armor than the crown jewels but I liked the armor more.

They had a torture exhibit in the White tower which was interesting (if small) and naturally I liked the Bloody tower and Beauchamp towers, especially the latter with all the graffiti on the walls carved by the condemned. I have no idea how people got up and down those spiral stairs in a hurry and how small were their feet? I had to walk on tip toe.
outside the Tower of London

Gatehouse

White Tower (I think)



Scavenger’s Daughter (they’d bend you in half in this thing)

The rack

a raven who would NOT leave me alone

Young prince’s armor

Gilt Armor

horse armor

for eld and silvrethorn

The garderoom

And for those who don’t know what a garderoom is, is this a hint?

Saddle made of bone

wheel lock pistols because they’re cool

There was a Tudor house in the tower on the tower green, supposedly the last actual Tudor home (the rest lost in the London fire in 1666) the Queen's house that was used to house prisoners like Anne Bolen, Guy Fawkes and the founder of my home state, William Penn. I wish I could have gotten into the church Peter ad vincula, but it was locked off unless you were on tour with a Yeoman. Anne Bolen, Catherine Howard and Lady Jane Grey were buried inside.

the Tudor house (Queen’s house)

the obligatory palace guard picture

I also didn't know there was a zoo inside and that King James I had a polar bear on a lead so long it could swim in the Thames. I also didn't know the Thames once lapped up against the Tower and was later rerouted. The infamous Tower Ravens were around. One kept getting closer and closer to me in search of food no doubt and another pulled apart a trash bin looking for a snack.

ME!

Sir Walter Raliegh’s prison

Sample of Lady Jane Grey’s carving from the tower while she was imprisoned

engraving by a ‘sorcerer’

Tower Bridge complete with Olympic rings (wow, look at that sky. I think it might have rained that day….and rained and rained and rained)

I spent four hours there and had no time for Westminster (well I had to keep sitting down whenever the headache reared up and I did want to see everything, go up every tower, walk every wall I could). Made it home (with one minor scare when my oyster card didn't want to let me through the gates), rested up and later bobfish and Dr H took me to the Castle pub for dinner. After saying I wanted anything but ground beef, I get a burger with stilton but it was good. Tried Reverend James Bitters too, also good. The bartender wanted to know if the burger was a good as we get in America and yeah it pretty much was.

Comments

[evil-little-dog.livejournal.com]

What great photos. I love the alchemy circle. :D

Is it wrong that the horses look like giant Breyer or Hartland horses to me?

Ooo, bone saddle...and armor. Mmm, armor.

[cornerofmadness.livejournal.com]

isn't it cool?

Well, they looked like giant Breyers to me too

the armor was very cool

[evil-little-dog.livejournal.com]

Very, very cool.

They don't look quite like carousel horses, so we'll go with the plastic models, instead.

Yes, armor always is.

Speaking of metal, someone stole the giant fish from that park walk I took you on. It's been gone for a week, and probably sold for the copper scrap.

[cornerofmadness.livejournal.com]

they were supposed to be king's horses or something. honestly, my migraine was so bad, reading wasn't really an option.

oh geeze and yes probably. has anyone reported it stolen?

[evil-little-dog.livejournal.com]

Was Humpty Dumpty there, as well?

Oh, yes, but who knows if any investigation is being done. I'm still amazingly disappointed, the fish is gone, and two other pieces of public art have been vandalized in the past couple of weeks, as well. The fish almost made it too easy, what with how to get to it at night without anyone being able to see anything, but the other two works were in the downtown area, and were vandalized during broad daylight.

[cornerofmadness.livejournal.com]

no humpty

oh geez to the art

[evil-little-dog.livejournal.com]

Too bad, no Humpty.

Yeah, seriously. Then someone burned a pit bull locally....

[cornerofmadness.livejournal.com]

special.

[evil-little-dog.livejournal.com]

She's alive, and needing a foster. Mom's saying 'no!'

[cornerofmadness.livejournal.com]

i'm sure she is.

i still don't have Soul back. If this vet thinks I'm paying for all these days she's keeping him she's wrong

[evil-little-dog.livejournal.com]

Geeze.

[bay115.livejournal.com]

Nice photos at London there! Ha I too was thinking "alchemy circle" on the second to last pic. XD

[cornerofmadness.livejournal.com]

that IS what it looks like

[helliongoddess.livejournal.com]

Having been fighting a migraine off and on (with a side-order of sinus) for over a week now, I have to express my unbridled admiration for your ability & fortitude, to brave crowds, steps, and rain, to go out and sightsee while in the throes of a migraine. You are made of damned sturdy stuff, my friend, and I bow to you. And thanks for the lovely piccies, too!

[cornerofmadness.livejournal.com]

thank you very much. If nothing else, medical residencies force you to soldier through a migraine.

[helliongoddess.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I can see how that would do it. I think I've gotten to be a woos (wuss? how IS that spelled?) in the past few years because when the migraines hit now, they are on top of all the other things that already hurt, and the chronic fatigue, and so on - it's not like before when I would feel good and BAM, had a headache, and that was the only thing wrong. I remember working through a lot of headaches when I was still working - even through back spasms, if they weren't so bad that I couldn't stand upright. Now, when I get a migraine or my back goes out, it's like, "oh crap, I give up... let's just lie down for a while and call it a day." I guess I really should be harder on myself, have more perseverance.... O__o

[cornerofmadness.livejournal.com]

it's wuss. some days I would like to just lie down when these hit but I'm such a damn workaholic

[silvrethorn.livejournal.com]

You're right, the armor room was cool. The horses look like they should be modeling armor, but they're not, so what are they? I see plaques in front of them, so their presence must have been explained.

The piece of horse armor is a chamfron.

I'm trying to replicate that kind of ivory saddle in miniature, but the carving is too damn complex. I like the bifurcated butt-cheek rests, though. There are leather panels that are supposed to go with the bone frame, by the way, but they've long rotted off.

Pity about the migraine. And the rain. And the "derecho" that happened in Ohio while you were enjoying England, and Soul's bloody butt. I can't imagine what's wrong with that cat, but it's very probably the cause of his strange bowel habits.

[cornerofmadness.livejournal.com]

it is. IT was the alley of kings or something. I guess the royal horses were original kept in keep and these were a representation but honestly I had such auras from the migraine I couldn't read shit.

chamfron, i'll remember that

good luck to you carving that saddle. I was wondering about leather and padding and what not.

i hope it IS Soul's problem instead of it just being mental

[silvrethorn.livejournal.com]

I looked it up--the horses are the remnants of the Line of Kings, which had various kings' armor, with carved heads inside the helmets, mounted on the horses. The open mouths on the horses are a definite clue that they were meant to display horse gear (with bits, natch). There's talk of restoring the Line someday, complete with carved heads.

[cornerofmadness.livejournal.com]

that's it line of kings. I knew it was something kings. That is really cool. i hope they do

[lunaria-kitty.livejournal.com]

Lovely photos! I don't think I've ever seen a Scavenger’s Daughter before.

[cornerofmadness.livejournal.com]

thanks

actually that was a first for me too in regards to that particular torture.

[bob_fish.livejournal.com]

The building you were wondering about by the Tower Hill Memorial is 10 Trinity Square. It's a posh hotel and flats now, not sure what it was built for: http://www.10trinitysquare.com/

And that's definitely the White Tower. Nice to see your pics of the Tower! I think Enemy and I missed the vintage privy somehow.

[cornerofmadness.livejournal.com]

blinks. that's a hotel? WOW. Thanks for the link. It has residences too. Hmmm rich character could afford that...

Oh good I remembered right.

Maybe they still had the door shut on the privy? Who knows. That was the tower with the most stuff jammed in it to see.

[bob_fish.livejournal.com]

We are so mature that we would definitely remember a medieval loo. I was fascinated by the ones I saw in castles as a child - that you had to poo down a stone chute out the wall was my first inkling that medieval life wasn't as fun as it seemed.

[cornerofmadness.livejournal.com]

yeah exactly. I learned that early on. I remember the outhouse at granny's burning down.

[dragonydreams.livejournal.com]

Isn't the Tower of London fascinating? I spent 4 hours there too when I went. I got my copy of The Other Boleyn Girl there.

[cornerofmadness.livejournal.com]

It is. If I hadn't had such a headache, I'm sure I would have stayed longer and gone on a Yeoman Warder tour. I'm sorry to have missed that

[masqthephlsphr.livejournal.com]

Interesting photographic choices for London

[cornerofmadness.livejournal.com]

thanks. If given an option, I'll always chose the historical sites

[masqthephlsphr.livejournal.com]

Oh, me, too, but I was thinking more the "darker" past of London in many of these.

; )

[cornerofmadness.livejournal.com]

that too. It's shameful how much I wanted to see the torture bits