Thursday, June 18, 2009

London, Day Two!

Today was pure sightseeing. We took a riverboat (no paddlewheels or flashy gamblers, just a horde of French teenagers) down the Thames from Parliament to the Tower of London. There, we "did" the Tower - history, flashy crown jewels, outrageous costumes, an unkindness of ravens and - oh, yes - torture! Really, the Tower is not to be missed on your tour of London.

I sought out the SPRC (Society for the Promotion of Roman Studies, although I've called it worse), which turned out to be in Senate House, the library for the University of London where I studied lo these many years before! FryDaddy is a devotee of Roman history, so that was a "must" stop for me. Besides, it was on the way to the British Museum.

Now, one of the benefits to having an empire is that you can assemble a most impressive collection of stuff. The British Museum contains (among innumerable other treasures), the Rosetta Stone, most of the sculpture from the Partheon in Athens, mummies (not just human ones, either), Assyrian bas reliefs depicting a rousing lion hunt, and ancient Greek vases illustrating (shall we say) the earthier side of life.

Truly, something for everyone!

We leave tomorrow for Cambridge. We're driving ourselves rather than using the train or a bus. Remember, they drive on the wrong side of the road in the UK. Pray for us!

1 comment:

Lloyd said...

Greek vases depicting farming? I have never heard of the like ...